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Massacre of Cretan civilians at Kondomari, Crete, 1941. The Battle of Crete was not the first occasion during the Second World War where the German troops encountered widespread resistance from a civilian population, as similar events took place during the invasion of Poland ; nevertheless it initially surprised and later outraged them. As most ...
HMS Gloucester - Capt. Henry A Rowley, sunk 22 May 1941 with the loss of 722 crew; HMS Fiji - Capt. PBRW William-Powlett, sunk 22 May 1941; HMS Orion - Capt. GRB Back - damaged [9] HMS Dido - Capt. HWV McCall - damaged [9] Destroyers HMS Decoy - Cmdr. EG McGregor; HMS Hereward - Lt. WJ Munn, sunk by enemy aircraft 29 May 1941
The Italians were repulsed without the aid of the expeditionary force. A German invasion in April 1941 overran mainland Greece and the expeditionary force was withdrawn. By the end of the month, 57,000 Allied troops were evacuated by the Royal Navy. Some were sent to Crete to bolster its garrison, although most had lost their heavy equipment. [5]
In July 1941, Horst Trebes was awarded the Knight's Cross for his leadership during the assault against Crete. Three years later (1944), he was killed in action in Normandy. [5] After the surrender of Germany, Kurt Student was captured by the British. In May 1947, he came before a military tribunal to answer charges of mistreatment and murder ...
German paratroopers land in Crete, May 1941 The only Greek territory remaining free by May 1941 was the large and strategically important island of Crete , which was held by a large but weak Allied garrison consisting primarily of the combat-damaged units evacuated from the mainland without their heavy equipment, especially transport.
The invasion of Crete in May 1941 was the first major airborne assault in history. Despite their victory, the elite German paratroopers suffered such heavy losses that Adolf Hitler forbade further airborne operations of such large scale for the rest of the war. The memorial was erected at the end of a stone staircase leading to the top of a ...
The Battle of Heraklion was part of the Battle of Crete, fought during World War II on the Greek island of Crete between 20 and 30 May 1941. British, Australian and Greek forces of 14th Infantry Brigade, commanded by Brigadier Brian Chappel, defended Heraklion port and airfield against a German paratrooper attack by the 1st Parachute Regiment of the 7th Air Division, commanded by Colonel Bruno ...
Part of the larger Greek resistance, it lasted from 20 May 1941, when the German Wehrmacht invaded the island in the Battle of Crete, until the spring of 1945 when they surrendered to the British. For the first time during World War II, attacking German forces faced in Crete a substantial resistance from the local population.