1941: Crete

Crete, an island in the eastern Mediterranean, inhabited by Greeks and politically a part of the kingdom of Greece. During the month of May 1941, the island became the scene of some of the most bitter and most significant fighting of the Second World War. After the conquest of the Greek mainland by the Germans, the Greek king and cabinet and British military forces established themselves in Crete. On the evening of May 19, the island was subjected to a German air attack of unprecedented violence. Large transport planes brought air borne Nazi troops for the attack upon the island's air fields and especially upon Suda Bay. The Allied forces consisted of one New Zealand division under General Bernard Cyril Freyberg and remnants of some Greek and British divisions which had been evacuated from Greece. The Germans quickly achieved air supremacy, and the ultimate defeat of the British was almost entirely due to their lack of sufficient air support. Soon the whole northern coast of Crete was in German hands. The Greek king escaped over the mountains to the south shore where he embarked for Alexandria.

The British Navy under Admiral Sir Andrew B. Cunningham fought valiantly, but in the narrow waters was helpless against German dive bombers. A large number of British ships were sunk or damaged. The invasion of Crete proved the German contention that 'any sea power which does not enjoy air supremacy within the area chosen for its activity is subject to most dangerous risks.' After twelve days of fierce fighting the British decided to withdraw their forces from Crete. They succeeded in getting some 15,000 of their troops to Egypt, but admitted severe losses. According to the Greek prime minister, Emmanuel Tsouderos, the three principal towns in the north and northwestern part of Crete were almost completely destroyed, Canea, Rethymno, and Candia. The evacuation from the south shore was very difficult as a result of the lack of good evacuation points. Many British soldiers were taken prisoners by the Germans. On the other hand, the British had very little heavy equipment in Crete so that the material losses, except to the Navy, were relatively slight.

With the evacuation of Crete the story however was not ended. Some British soldiers succeeded in hiding in the difficult and practically uninhabited mountains of Crete. The local population, unprepared for systematic defense but uncowed in its spirit, continued its resistance and helped the British soldiers to evade capture and even in individual cases to fight on. Although the complete censorship established in Crete after the German conquest did not allow any detailed information to leak out of the island, nevertheless, it appeared clear that the Germans were only holding fast to the larger towns and the military establishments, while in the more remote districts the indomitable spirit of the Cretan Greeks kept up the fight for liberty. See also GREECE.