After the Germans evacuated the island, Leros came under British administration until 7 March 1948 when Leros, together with the other Dodecanese Islands, was united with Greece. From the Greek nationalist point of view, approximately 700 years after the end of Byzantine rule, the Dodecanese were once again incorporated into a Greek state. During the post-war years, the Greek government utilized numerous buildings in Leros for various reasons. In 1959, the mental hospital of Leros was founded in Lepida. During the junta of the Colonels, the island was used as a place of internal exile for political dissenters, with old Italian barracks of the island used as an internment camp.