Greece,at wwII,METAXAS,HEPIRUS,CRETA (1 Viewer)

[STRATEGOS]

What is your opinion fo GREECE
AT WWII??, a trap for GERMANY,cause ITALIAN-GREEK war??
a delay for the invasion in Soviet UNION?
why was not out of the conflict??
WHY ALLIES REFUSED THE SPOILS of WAR,at GREECE??

 

[CannonFodder1971]

I think one of the reasons why Greece is overlooked is perhaps because it was initially seen as an Italian-led "parallel war" and initially the Germans were reluctant to be drawn in. However, some of the most famous Fallschirmjager operations took place there, including the capture of the Corinth canal. The battle for Crete is a fascinating one. The slide towards civil war and the rival partisan organisations is also of interest. I'm surprised that a soldier manufacturer hasn't addressed this part of the war in the Mediterranean.

 

[Louis Badolato]

My favorite war movie is the Guns of Navarone, so I would love to see some Greek Paritsans (along with, say, Colonel Andrea Stavros, Captain Keith Mallory of the L.R.D.G. and Corporal Dusty Miller).

 

[vandilay]

I would like too see crete covered in some way,The partisan resistance on crete was pretty ferocious and after it was lost to the germans [why freyberg
didnt launch a strong attack to recapture maleme airfield I guess well never know]they suffered accordingly.But hind sight is a beautiful thing I guess.
so go the greeks [and maori battalion ]

 

[panda1gen]

I would like too see crete covered in some way,The partisan resistance on crete was pretty ferocious and after it was lost to the germans [why freyberg
didnt launch a strong attack to recapture maleme airfield I guess well never know]they suffered accordingly.But hind sight is a beautiful thing I guess.
so go the greeks [and maori battalion ]

It was a pretty bad 'losing streak' for the commonwealth forces, but the error of not creating a 'legitimate' army of cretan troops meant they were not subsubsequently covered by the geneva convention as combatants - that was the perhaps most tragic mistake.

Agree would make superb and neglected area of collecting.

 

[binder001]

I think the reason the combat in Greece doesn't get more coverage is that first, the Allies lost out as soon as the Germans showed up to rescue the Italians, and then the combat settled in to a combat of partisans and guerillas. There were no great invasions, no sweeping moves of great armies, and the battles were on the "edge" of the actions that brought down the Germans. There is no doubt that the Greeks fought bravely - they drove the Italians back past their starting lines in many places. There is also little doubt that the Germans allowed themselves to be diverted into the Balkans, losing precious time and good weather that they needed to defeat Russia. A few weeks worth better weather MIGHT have allowed the Germans to take Moscow. It might not have beaten the Soviets, but it would have shifted the emphasis of the war and Soviet efforts further north, perhaps allowing the Germans to firmly grab the oil in the Caucasus. The action on Crete was the high-water mark for the German airborne forces. Never again would Hitler look at a huge airborne operation, just as the Allies took the lessons and built up huge airborne forces.