I - 120 : Italian Invasion of Crete in 1941

Italian L3/35 tanks landing on 28th of May 1941 on the Shores of Sitia in eastern Crete

On my first trip to Crete, we, 2 history students from Bern and 3 nurses from Stuttgart, hiked along the island’s south coast from Elafonisi Beach to Kastri. From there, we turned north to cross the mountains to the Lasithi Plateau. The hike on animal trails was adventurous – at best. Our large-scale map of Crete was useless. My Swiss compass way better. After a day of trekking, we made it to the small town of Agios Georgios. Sweaty and dirty, we walked right into a wedding. None of us spoke Greek. To our surprise, the orthodox priest knew Italian. My Italian was not perfect but sufficient for a basic conversation. The priest brought us to his home, let us shower and change and then invited us to the wedding. The plate smashing was truly memorable so was the dancing to the wee hours in the morning.

The Lasithi Plateau seen from the South - we also reached it from the South

I always wondered why an orthodox priest would speak Italian. He told us that he learnt the language in the seminar. Something that did not reconcile with my knowledge of history. The mystery remained unresolved for decades – I honestly forgot about it until I saw a map of Crete in World War II. It showed that the eastern part was occupied by Italians. The years 1941 - 1943 must have been the time when our priest from Agios Georgios went to school. Mystery solved. We were so lucky to find the only Italian speaker in Lasithi – without him we would not have been able to shower and attend a fabulous Greek wedding.

The Lasithi Prefecture was occupied by Italian Forces

Now that we sail from the Dodecanese to Crete this summer, I wonder what brought the Italians to the eastern part of the island. The distance from the Dodecanese, an Italian possession since 1912, is only 30 miles. With the prevailing winds, we will cover it in 4 hours. Sitia is our port of arrival. It is Crete’s most eastern town.

This Photo of the Italian Landing in Sitia looks fake to me - the Landing was unopposed

84 years earlier, a small Italian invasion force had made the same journey. It left Rhodes on 27th of May 1941 and disembarked a day later in Sitia. The Italians came upon request of vainglorious Air Marshal Goering, the Commander of Germany’s Luftwaffe and its para division. He had promised Hitler to take Crete with airborne forces alone. Within hours though, the paras were pinned down near the towns of Chania and Rethymnon. The British forces under NZ Major-General Freyberg proved to be a difficult nut to crack.  Goering urgently needed help from the so often belittled Italians.

Modern Military Map do not show the Italian Invasion - It is mostly forgotten

The Italian task force was small. Led by 1 destroyer and 3 torpedo boats, a motley group of 12 ships and 3 tankers left Rhodes on the 27th and arrived a day later. It carried the 50th Infantry Regiment of the Regina division and 13 L3/35 light tanks, The landing at 5 pm was unopposed. There were no British forces in the vicinity. The 3’000 Italians pushed to Agios Nikolaos in the north and Ierapetra in the south without any resistance. Their furthest line of advance became the demarcation line between Italian and German occupiers.

Italians met German Paratroopers in Ierapetra with one of Crete's few surviving Mosques

Contrary to the other Greek islands, the Germans stayed in western and central Crete. They planned to use these aerodromes to bomb Egypt and the Port of Alexandria, the base of the Royal Navy in the Mediterranean. The Italians only occupied the Prefecture of Lasithi – where we met the priest.

The German Luftwaffe kept M-109 Fighters and some Me-111 and Ju-88 Bombers on Crete

Soon after the fighting, Italy sent the 51st Infantry Division “Siena” as garrison to Crete to releave the invading force. The “Siena” had valiantly fought in the Albanian mountains against the Greek Army but had suffered terrible losses. The LI Special Brigade “Lecce” followed in 1942 and was in charge of coastal defense.

The Italian 51st Infantry Division "Siena" in Albania - not sure whether this photo is correct

When Italy capitulated to the Allies in September 1943, the Germans took the Italian troops prisioners and tried to ship them to the Greek mainland. A total of 4’670 Italian prisoners of war died when British bombers and submarines attacked these transports in October 1943 and February 1944 respectively.

After Germany’s general retreat from Greece in October 1944, the Germans on Crete were cut off. Their strength had dropped to 10’000 men. In the winter 1944, they withdrew from the Lasithi sector. The Cretan resistance with some English help was able to liberate this part of the island. But it would take the general German surrender on 8th May 1945 until Crete was finally free again.

The small Town of Agios Georgios on the Lasithi Plateau - I recongnize the Church!

Never thought that my interest in military history would solve a question that puzzled me for many years. Maybe I go to Agios Georgios this summer – am sure the priest has passed away a long time ago but maybe I find the restaurant where the fabulous wedding was held 40 years ago.