On This Day in 1941 Nazi Germany Invades Greece

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On April 6, 1941, Germany launched a monolithic onslaught connected Greece’s bluish borderline aft the Italian service had earlier failed miserably successful its effort to invade Greece.

Adolf Hitler’s archetypal program was to nonstop his Italian allies to invade the “little country” connected the Mediterranean truthful that helium could stitchery his troops to hole for the ambitious run to onslaught Russia successful the spring.

The Italians tried to participate Greece without a combat connected October 28, 1940, but they received a resounding “OXI” from Prime Minister Ioannis Metaxas.

The Italians subsequently attacked from the Albanian border, but the outnumbered Greek Army not lone managed to support the state but pushed the attacking forces further backmost to Albania and occupied much territory, dealing a almighty stroke to the Italian forces.

In the outpouring of 1941, the German warfare instrumentality was preparing for a fierce onslaught against Russia.

Germany underestimated Greece

In the eyes of the Nazi generals, Greece was a insignificant item that needed to beryllium sorted retired earlier the Russian campaign.

Little did they cognize astir the Greek warring spirit, which was soaring precocious aft the victorious warfare connected the Albanian front.

“Operation Marita.” arsenic Germany called the onslaught connected Greece. brought the Nazi forces to the Bulgarian border. They included full Panzer divisions which were meant to determination northbound to Russia soon afterward.

Meanwhile, Greece had asked for Britain’s assistance to halt the Germans. The kingdom sent 62,000 Commonwealth troops, who were enactment into presumption on the Haliacmon Line portion the Greeks chose to inhabit the well-fortified Metaxas Line.

However, the Greek First Army remained connected the Albanian beforehand successful lawsuit the Italians mightiness spot their removal from Albania arsenic a motion of weakness.

On April 6th, Field Marshal Wilhelm List led the German service to onslaught and the Battle of Greece began.

The Germans archetypal deed Prilep with Panzer tanks, accompanied by bombing from the Luftwaffe, and chopped the country disconnected from the remainder of the country. Then, they moved to Monastir, with a program to onslaught Florina connected April 9th.

This determination was a large menace to the British flank and could person easy chopped disconnected the Greek troops successful Albania. In the east, the Germans attacked Yugoslavia and made their beforehand done the Strimon Valley. To marque matters worse, the northeastern portion was weakened by a deficiency of capable numbers of troops.

Fort Roupel: The archetypal enactment of Greece’s defense

Germany precocious rapidly done Yugoslavia and headed toward Greece’s Thessaloniki, defeating Greek troops astatine Doiran Lake. They captured the metropolis by April 9th.

However, the Greek equipped forces managed to inflict superior harm to the advancing Nazis from their powerfully fortified upland locations.

Fort Roupel, which was incorporated into the Metaxas Line, held retired against the German onslaught and was lone abandoned by its men aft the surrender of the Greek service successful Thessaloniki.

The valor of the outnumbered Greek soldiers who fought determination was aboriginal praised adjacent by German generals.

When the Germans had successfully chopped them disconnected from the remainder of the country, the Greek Second Army surrendered to the attackers connected April 9th, aft which immoderate existent absorption connected the eastbound slope of the Axios River ceased.

Continuing their advance, the Germans made a propulsion for Monastir Gap, wherever they attacked connected April 10th. With nary absorption from the Yugoslavs successful the gap, they decided that it would beryllium a bully accidental to onslaught the British adjacent Vevi.

Once astatine Servia and the Olympus pass, the Germans were halted by the British. The British forces determination had orders to clasp Pineios Gorge astatine each costs until different British troops had an accidental to determination south.

At this point, the Greek First Army recovered itself chopped disconnected successful Albania by the German forces. Instead of surrendering to the Italians, their commandant decided to surrender to the Germans connected April 20th. The pursuing day, it was decided that the British would retreat to Crete and Egypt.

Germany invades Athens

The Commonwealth troops were attacked connected April 24th but managed to clasp their presumption for that full time until they were pushed back. On April 27th, German troops managed to bypass the flank, and they entered Athens.

After Germany conquered Athens, the conflict of mainland Greece was implicit to each intents and purposes. The Allies evacuated, and during the evacuations, the German troops managed to seizure 7 to 8 1000 of their soldiers.

At the extremity of the evacuation, the British had escaped with a full of immoderate 50,000 men.

The Battle of Crete began connected May 20th with Commonwealth troops and the Greek Army resisting the German parachutists successful the archetypal chiefly airborne penetration successful subject history. By June 1st, the Germans conquered Crete, albeit aft suffering a tremendous fig of casualties.

The aftermath of the Battle of Greece

Over 13,300 Greek soldiers were killed during the Battle of Greece, and different 62,660 were wounded, portion 1,290 went missing.

In defending Greece against Germany, the British mislaid 903 soldiers with different 1,250 wounded and an astounding 13,900 captured.

After the Nazis had captured Greece, it was decided the federation would beryllium divided up betwixt Germany, Italy, and Bulgaria. The Axis stopped their run successful the Balkans erstwhile they captured Crete.

These victories, however, would travel astatine a dense terms for the Germans. Because of the Battle of Greece and the different battles successful the Balkans, the penetration of the Soviet Union had to beryllium delayed. This meant that the German troops would astir apt extremity up warring not lone the Soviet Army but the brutal Russian wintertime arsenic well.

Praise of Greek bravery

By immoderate measure, Greece’s absorption to the Axis forces had been remarkable. Beginning from the clip of the archetypal Italian onslaught connected October 28, 1940 done to June 1, 1941 erstwhile Crete fell, it took a full 216 days to conquer Greece militarily.

The overmuch larger and militarily almighty federation of France fell to Germany successful lone forty-three days portion Norway resisted for a full of sixty-one days. Poland enactment up fierce absorption for 30 days, Belgium eighteen, and Holland fell successful lone 5 days.

The nations of Denmark and Czechoslovakia, successful contrast, surrendered without firing a changeable against Germany.

The protagonists of World War II, some Allies and enemies, spoke highly of the valor shown by Greece successful defending themselves against Germany.

Russian person Joseph Stalin, successful an unfastened missive work connected Radio Moscow during the war, said “the Russian radical volition ever beryllium grateful to the Greeks for delaying the German service agelong capable for wintertime to acceptable in, thereby giving america the precious clip we needed to prepare. We volition ne'er forget.”

Russian Field Marshal Georgy Zhukov wrote successful his memoirs: “If the Russian Peoples succeeded successful raising their bushed bodies successful beforehand of the gates of Moscow, to incorporate and acceptable backmost the German torrent, they beryllium it to the Greek People, who delayed the German Divisions each the clip needed. The gigantomachy of Crete was the climax of the Greek contribution.”

Hitler’s main of staff, Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, stated during the Nuremberg trials: “The unbelievably beardown absorption of the Greeks delayed by 2 oregon much captious months the German onslaught against Russia; if we did not person this agelong delay, the result of the warfare would person been antithetic successful the eastbound beforehand and successful the warfare successful general.”

Adolf Hitler himself spoke astir the valour of the Greek fighters successful 1944 to celebrated German lensman and cinematographer Leni Riefenstahl, arsenic she related successful her memoirs.

Hitler told her, “The entranceway of Italy to the War was proven catastrophic for us. Had the Italians not attacked Greece and had they not needed our help, the warfare would person taken a antithetic course. We would person had clip to seizure Leningrad and Moscow earlier the Russian acold upwind acceptable in.”

In 1941, successful a speech made astatine the Reichstag, Hitler besides paid tribute to the bravery of the Greeks: “It indispensable beryllium said, for the involvement of humanities truth, that amongst each our opponents, lone the Greeks fought with specified endless courageousness and defiance of death.”

British Prime Minister Winston Churchill famously said of the Greeks who fought the Germans: “Until present we would accidental that the Greeks combat similar heroes. From present on, we volition accidental that heroes combat similar Greeks.”

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