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| At the time of the German attack (6 April 1941) the bulk of the Greek forces were facing the Italians in Albania. Some of the remaining Greek forces were deployed in a line of fortifications along the Bulgarian frontier (the ]) and most of the rest were with the British intervention forces deploying north of Larissa. The British wanted the Greeks to abandon the Metaxas Line and deploy north of Larissa; the Greeks vacillated. The Germans invaded Yugoslavia at the same time as Greece and so were able to outflank the Metaxas line by moving through southern Yugoslavia. The Allied forces were forced south. German paratroops landed around the Corinth Canal sealing the fate of the Peloponnese. Because their army was mechanised the British managed to withdraw most of their troops; the slower Greek forces were captured by the Germans. | At the time of the German attack (6 April 1941) the bulk of the Greek forces were facing the Italians in Albania. Some of the remaining Greek forces were deployed in a line of fortifications along the Bulgarian frontier (the ]) and most of the rest were with the British intervention forces deploying north of Larissa. The British wanted the Greeks to abandon the Metaxas Line and deploy north of Larissa; the Greeks vacillated. The Germans invaded Yugoslavia at the same time as Greece and so were able to outflank the Metaxas line by moving through southern Yugoslavia. The Allied forces were forced south. German paratroops landed around the Corinth Canal sealing the fate of the Peloponnese. Because their army was mechanised the British managed to withdraw most of their troops; the slower Greek forces were captured by the Germans. | ||
| ] general ] was among those who praised the fierceness of the Greeks. In an official notice released to coincide with the Greek national celebration of the Day of Independence (25th of March), De Gaulle expressed his admiration for the heroic Greek resistance: |
] general ] was among those who praised the fierceness of the Greeks. In an official notice released to coincide with the Greek national celebration of the Day of Independence (25th of March), De Gaulle expressed his admiration for the heroic Greek resistance: | ||
| :"In the name of the captured yet still alive French people, France wants to send her greetings to the Greek people who are fighting for their freedom. The 25th of March, 1941 finds Greece in the peak of their heroic struggle and in the top of their glory. Since the battle of ] Greece had not achieved the greatness and the glory which today holds". | |||
| Even Hitler would later praise the Greek people and their bravery, and would grant to the Greek military officials distinctions and privileges no other defeated Army officials enjoyed. | |||
| ==Result== | ==Result== | ||
Revision as of 08:58, 10 October 2005
The Greco-Italian War, was a conflict between Italy and Greece from October 28 1940 to April 30, 1941, during the Second World War.
Cause
Italy had long term plans for the establishment of a new Roman Empire, which included Greece. Italy’s immediate reason for seeking war with Greece was a desire to emulate its German ally’s triumphs. Mussolini also wanted to reassert Italy’s interest in the Balkans (he was piqued that Romania, an Italian client, had accepted German protection for its Ploesti oil fields earlier in October) and secure bases from which the British eastern Mediterranean outposts could be attacked.
Years before the outbreak of war, the Metaxas regime, which came to power in 1936, had foreseen the weakness of Greek borders and had implemented an ambitious plan to secure the country's frontiers and the nation's independence and sovereignity. The Army benefited from great investments aiming at its modernization: it was technologically upgraded, enlarged and as a whole dramatically improved.
The Ministry of National Defense purchased new arms for the three Armies, and the Navy was given submarines for the first time in Greek history. In the North, where borders were obviously more sensitive, and where any invasion would be most likely to be launched from, Metaxas envisaged and finally developed a defensive line, which was named after him: the Grammi Metaxa (the Metaxas Line). Also, a massive contingency plan was developed and great amounts of food and utilities were stocked by the Army in many parts of Greece for the eventuality of war.
As war exploded in Central Europe, Metaxas tried to keep Greece out of the conflict, but as the conflict progressed, Metaxas felt increasingly closer to Great Britain. This was of course a heavy weight to carry for Metaxas, who had always been a Germanophile and who had built strong ties with Hitler's Germany.
On the eve of October 28th, 1940, Italy's ambassador in Athens handed an ultimatum from Mussolini to Metaxas. By then Italy had concentrated a large part of the Italian Army in neighboring Albania, and the Duce demanded vast concessions from the Greek side, threatening war if they were not met.
Greece had been loyal ally and friend of National Socialist Germany, but now Germany's ally Italy was to invade Greece (without Hitler's awareness), partly to prove that Italians could match the military successes of the German Army in Poland and Czechoslovakia. Metaxas channeled the Greeks' outrage and he shot a simple straight answer at Italy's ambassador: "Ohi!" (Greek for "No!"). Within hours Italy was attacking Greece from Albania.
Shortly thereafter, Metaxas adressed to the Greek people with these words: "The time has come for Greece to fight for her independence. Greeks, now we must prove ourselves worthy of our forefathers and the freedom they bestowed upon us. Greeks, now fight for your Fatherland, for your wives, for your children and the sacred traditions. Now, over all things, fight!". In response to this address, the people of Greece reportedly spontaneously went out to the streets singing Greek patriotic songs and shouting anti-Italian slogans, and hundreds of thousands of volunteers, men and women, in all parts of Greece headed to the Army's offices to enlist for the war.
Summary of Campaign
On October 28th 1940, the Italians attacked from Albania with inadequate preparation and force, and were unable to make progress. The Greeks launched a counter attack on the 14th November which pushed the Italians back into Albania. This made good progress at first, but eventually ground to a halt with the fronts stalemated. After the failure of a second Italian offensive in March 1941 Mussolini called on Hitler to intervene. When the Germans moved into Bulgaria in preparation for the invasion, Greece asked for British intervention. At the time of the German attack (6 April 1941) the bulk of the Greek forces were facing the Italians in Albania. Some of the remaining Greek forces were deployed in a line of fortifications along the Bulgarian frontier (the Metaxas Line) and most of the rest were with the British intervention forces deploying north of Larissa. The British wanted the Greeks to abandon the Metaxas Line and deploy north of Larissa; the Greeks vacillated. The Germans invaded Yugoslavia at the same time as Greece and so were able to outflank the Metaxas line by moving through southern Yugoslavia. The Allied forces were forced south. German paratroops landed around the Corinth Canal sealing the fate of the Peloponnese. Because their army was mechanised the British managed to withdraw most of their troops; the slower Greek forces were captured by the Germans.
French general Charles De Gaulle was among those who praised the fierceness of the Greeks. In an official notice released to coincide with the Greek national celebration of the Day of Independence (25th of March), De Gaulle expressed his admiration for the heroic Greek resistance:
- "In the name of the captured yet still alive French people, France wants to send her greetings to the Greek people who are fighting for their freedom. The 25th of March, 1941 finds Greece in the peak of their heroic struggle and in the top of their glory. Since the battle of Salamina Greece had not achieved the greatness and the glory which today holds".
Even Hitler would later praise the Greek people and their bravery, and would grant to the Greek military officials distinctions and privileges no other defeated Army officials enjoyed.
Result
The Greek state was totally defeated in this campaign and divided between the Germans, Italians and Bulgarians. However it has been argued that this campaign delayed Operation Barbarossa, which may have affected its outcome.
Greece's siding with the Allies also may have contributed to its annexation of the Dodecanese islands at World War II's conclusion.
The 1940 epos and the resistance of the Greeks is celebrated to this day in Greece every year. October 28th, the day of Metaxas' "No" to the Italian ultimatum, is a national celebration in Greece, named (Greek for "Day of No"). For as long as three days, in the houses, in the offices, in the factories, in schools and public buildings across Greece, Greek flags are flown in memory to that epos. During these days, radio stations broadcast Greek patriotic songs, especially those of Sophia Vembo, a singer whose songs gave strength to the Greeks on the Italian front.
Stages of Campaign
Initial Italian Offensive (28 Oct 1940- 13 Nov 1940)
The Italians attacked with inadequate strength (and some sources say inadequate motivation) to make a breakthrough, capturing only insubstantial amounts of ground. The offensive ground to a halt as Greek reinforcements were brought up.
Greek counter-offensive (14 Nov 1940 - 8 March 1941)
The Greeks brought up sufficient strength to launch a counter attack and drove the Italians back into Albania. The Greeks made good, but not decisive progress. The Italians were greatly hindered by the cold winter suffering many frostbite casualties.
Italian offensive March 1941 (9 March 1941-5 April 1941)
Italy launched a second offensive in March 1941 for political reasons. This failed to capture any land whatsoever and resulted in Mussolini’s calling for German intervention.
German Intervention (6 April 1941- 30 April 1941)
The Germans outflanked the Metaxas line by moving through Yugoslavia. The Greeks in the Metaxas Line surrendered on the 9th April. The Germans then outflanked the Greek and British defensive positions north of Larissa and advanced into central Greece.
Military insights gained from the war
- The poor performance of the Italian forces can be blamed on many things, some sources state nationality and motivational factors, primarily the date of Oct 28th (aniv of march on Roma)started the campaign in the begining of winter ,others blame the weakness of the Italian forces, especially in infantry with only two regiments per division. However the Italians were stronger in artillery and mortars than the Greeks. General Sebastiano Visconti Prasca attributes the failure of the campaign to poor organization, personal agendas, corruption and lack of cooperation among the top ranks of Italy's Armed Forces.
- It can be claimed that the intervention of the British Imperial forces did more harm than good, giving Hitler an excuse to invade Greece and disorganising the Greek strategy. The force was not strong enough to stop the Germans. Perhaps the Allied forces could have been better used in North Africa, where their removal may have prevented the Allies from totally expelling the Axis from North Africa.
- It has been argued that the Balkan Campaign decisively delayed the German invasion of Russia. For example, during the Nuremberg trials after WWII, Hitler's Chief of Staff Field Marshall Keitel stated that "The unbelievable strong resistance of the Greeks delayed by two or more vital months the German attack against Russia; if we did not have this long delay ,the outcome of the war would have been different in the eastern front and in the war in general, and others would have been accused and would be occupying this seat as defendants today". On the other hand, it may have been the Russian weather, not the contingencies of subsidiary campaigns, which determined Barbarossa’s launch date.
Sources
- “The Greek Army in World War II”. A six volume series. This is the Greek official history (written in Greek).
- “The Hollow Legions”, by Mario Cervi, 1972, Chatto and Windus London.0 7011 1351 0
- “The Battle of Greece 1940-1941”, by General Alexander Papagos J.M. Scazikis “Alpha”, editions Athens
- “La Campaigna di Grecia” - Italian Official history (in Italian) 1980
- “Io Ho Aggredito La Grecia”, by General Sebastiano Visconti Prasca, 1946, Rizzoli.