Crete was defended by british and greek forces who had some success against the lightly armed german soldiers jumping out of the sky. There are a total of 25 invasion of crete ww2 timeline may 20th june 1st, 1941 events in the second world war timeline database. Other leading and trailing events may also be included for perspective. The invasion of crete marked the first large scale use of paratroopers in an attempt to overtake an enemyheld territory. Ww2 peoples war homepage archive list timeline about. The battle of crete,the german invasion of crete,german. The day began with a normal run of german air raids on the allied occupied crete. However, its eventual occupation came at a heavy price for both sides.
It was the largest german paratrooper assault of world war two. Command of a strategic island can provide control over a large surrounding area. This was the start of what is known as the battle for crete. The events of the 76 th anniversary, of the battle of crete 2017. Entries are listed below by dateofoccurrence ascending firsttolast.
The battle of crete is considered one of the most sensational events os t he second world war in 1941 it highlights the final act of the german greek war. Though a victory, the battle of crete saw these forces sustain such high losses that they were not used again by the germans. All about crete battle of crete 2017, 76 anniversary. The battle of crete was the first occasion where fallschirmjager german paratroops were used en masse, the first mainly airborne invasion in military history, the first time the allies made significant use of intelligence from decrypted german messages from the enigma machine, and the first time german troops encountered mass resistance from a civilian population. The campaign revealed though allied and axis accounts. The battle of crete was the first battle where fallschirmjager german paratroops were used en masse, the first mainly airborne invasion in military history, the first time the allies made. The battle was fought between germany and italy on the axis side and greece, the civilians on the island, and the rest of the allies on the other. It began on the morning of 20 may 1941, when nazi germany began an airborne invasion of crete. We had only light ammo no air cover as all planes had been. For 12 dramatic days new zealanders, british, australian and greek troops, assisted by cretan civilians, tried to repel a huge airborne assault by the germans. See more ideas about battle of crete, crete and wwii. Clashes began with the invasion of the mycenaeans, a group of people who invaded from the greek mainland. The 20 most important battles of world war ii popular mechanics.
The battle of greece the anzacs of greece and crete. Battle of crete news newspapers books scholar jstor may 2017 learn how and when to remove this template message. Of the total commonwealth force in crete of 32,000 men, some 18,000 were evacuated, and 12,000 were taken prisoner. Greek and allied forces, along with cretan civilians. Operation mercury is the fascinating story of a high risk operation fought across a stunning mediterranean landscape. The british had occupied the island of crete when the italians had invaded greece on october 28, 1940. This item was created by a contributor to ehistory prior to its affiliation with the ohio state university. Greek history timeline greece flags, maps, economy, geography, climate. The battle of vimy ridge fast facts canadian national vimy.
To navigate the timeline, click and drag it with your mouse, or click on the timeline overview on the bottom. Crete garrison mainly new zealand expeditionary force under. Battle of crete 2017, program of events of 76 anniversary. The defenders numerical superiority was eventually overwhelmed by the attackers massive advantage in logistic and air. Crete garrison mainly new zealand expeditionary force under general bernard freyberg vc, plus british and australian troops. Germany would never again attempt a major airborne assault. However, its more likely that he lcts that survive the ttl battle of crete will remain there. The fact files in this timeline were commissioned by the bbc in june 2003 and september 2005. Battle of crete cretan federation of australia and new. The battles for the island of crete were fought from the second week of may 1941 when the islands british, commonwealth, and greek garrison was attacked by german airbourne troops. Those crewing the glider transport fared worse, as they were either shot down or the crews killed by defensive forces after landing.
Crete history is enviable, consisting of greek myths and legends, and some of the most stunning minoan relics of anywhere. Battle of crete the germans assault on the greek island of crete, this was the first recorded event in which normal citizens fought back against the nazis in a stunning feat of bravery which had never been seen before from citizens. Specialized tools make it much simpler to build and modify timelines of all kinds from charting career growth to showcasing the progress of a project. The battle of crete was unprecedented for another respectit was the first time german troops encountered widespread resistance from a civilian population. In these book the writter pictures in interesting way how the germans, after first failures, survive and took iniciative from brittish soldiers. The romans, the venetians, the turks and the british also influenced its development yet the island has its very own culture, since it has only actually been a. The importance of this battle was the resistance by the civilians of crete to the nazi invasion, this was a first battle civilians fought the nazis to protect the island. It began on the morning of 20 may 1941, when nazi germany launched an airborne invasion of crete under the codename unternehmen merkur operation mercury. R h thomson was a new zealand soldier amongst the 5000 troops who were forced to surrender at sphakia after the evacuation was halted. The cost of the battle for crete was high for both sides. To the modern mind it is known primarily as a beach holiday destination, however the landscape is wonderfully. The battle of crete took place on the greek island of crete. Of the 600 men who started the battle in iii battalion, 400 would lose their lives during the first day of the invasion of crete.
Luftlandeschlacht um kreta, also unternehmen merkur, operation mercury, greek. The battle began in the morning of 20 may when german paratroopers began operation mercury. The battle concluded after approximately 10 days with the axis powers in control of the island. Is an important milestone missing from our timeline. The initail fighting was fierce and the germans, though with extremly heavy casualties, began making inroads in the land. Timeline of the fall of crete history learning site. The battle of crete was fought from may 20 to june 1, 1941, during world war ii 19391945.
British prisoners of war on crete, pictured after the surrender, later in june, 1941. The greek campaign, codenamed operation marita by the germans, commenced on 6 april 1941, when the germans simultaneously attacked greece through bulgaria and yugoslavia in a pincer movement designed to encircle the greek troops fighting the italians on the albanian front, as a result of italys declaration of war on greece on 28 october 1940. They and any sent in as reinforcements will be used to provide a shuttle service from fullsize cargo ships. German invasion of crete begins the day began with a normal run of german air raids on the allied occupied crete.
Total casualties among commonwealth forces were 15,743, of whom 1751 were killed or died of wounds. The battle for crete 1941, is one of my favorite books. The battle of crete started on 20 may 1941 when germany launched an airborne attack on the island of crete. But later i find these marvelous book about battle of crete. It saw the germans make largescale use of paratroopers during the invasion. Some of the fiercest battles in world war ii were fought over relatively small islands. The battle of crete was a battle fought in world war 2 between the nazis and british commonwealth soldiers with greek support.
Crete was the scene of the largest german airborne operation of the war, and the first time in history that an island had been taken by airborne assault. Germanys lightning airborne assault, peter antill, operation mercury, the german airborne assault on the island of crete in may 1941, was the first strategic use of airborne forces in history. Because of the occupacion of crete kriti was considered an unrealistic military obsective, no significand defense preparationshad been made of the island. A timeline created with timetoasts interactive timeline maker. Battle of crete 1941 world war 2, photos mike hotel. Throughout the battle, cretan villagers, often armed with only makeshift weapons or captured german firearms, joined in the fighting against the german invaders. The battle of crete was fought during the second world war on the greek island of crete. Greek forces and other allied forces, along with cretan civilians, defended the island. Of the 7700 new zealanders involved in the battle, 671 were killed a fatality rate of nearly 9% while another 2180 were taken prisoner. Still hoping tourists will dare to travel when lockdowns aimed at preventing the spread of the covid19 coronavirus are lifted and international air traffic picks up cyprus especially wants them from the united kingdom, the islands former colonial ruler. By june the 1st 1941, the battle of crete was over. The battle for crete was a victory for german forces, but they had suffered heavy losses with around 4,000 killed or missing.
Battle of crete simple english wikipedia, the free. Crete has to be one of the most beautiful greek islands, and some would argue that there is no other place like it. Make educational timelines or create a timeline for your company website. The battle of crete was fought from may 20 to june 1, 1941, during world war ii 1939 to 1945. Historic site designation design and construction battle of vimy ridge student guide program in france memorials.
The assault began on 20 may, with landings near the islands key airports, and reinforcements the next day allowed the german forces to capture one end of the runway at maleme. Greek history timeline greece flags, maps, economy. The commemorations will be from sunday the 14th of may until sunday 21nd of may 2017. The enemy lost 370 aircraft in the fighting which ended on june 1st, 1941 just eleven days after the initial assault wave. They provide landing fields for aeroplanes and harbours for shipping. Invasion of crete ww2 timeline may 20th june 1st, 1941. Battle of crete by warwickshire libraries heritage and trading standards. This is the complete order of battle for the battle of crete and related operations in 1941. The battle of crete, 20th may 1941 the airborne invasion of crete took place during wwii when german paratroopers landed at maleme airport near chania. Click on the timeline accordion below to view decades of accomplishments. Two matilda tanks, crewed in part by two officers and five gunners of the 23rd field regiment, royal australian artillery raa. Timeline of events covering the german invasion of the island of crete during the fighting of world war ii. The battle for crete the battle for crete nzhistory.
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