In May of 1941, German forces invaded the Greek island of Crete. This marks the largest airborne invasion since the beginning of aerial warfare and airborne assaults. Winston Churchill was later quoted saying “To lose Crete because we had not sufficient bulk of forces there would be a crime.” to the Chief of the Imperial General Staff on June 4, 1940. Death and destruction became the norm for Axis power, Allied forces and even civilians during a ten-day battle following an airborne assault conducted by the Germans. Winning the battle the Germans were able to force thousands of people to flee to Egypt by sea. Some say that the fall of Crete could have been easily avoided. Although the Germans and Adolph Hitler won the battle it was a battle that forced them to re-evaluate their own tactics. Although the Germans made errors, Allied forces had larger shortcomings and errors ultimately causing them to lose the battle.
History
“As a base for air warfare against Great Britain in the Eastern Mediterranean, we must prepare to occupy the island of Crete. For the purpose of planning, it will be assumed that the whole Greek mainland including the Peloponnese is in the hands of the Axis Powers.” This quote is a direct reflection of the growing need and concern for terrain to support future operations in the Mediterranean area made by Adolph Hitler in Directive No. 28. In 1941, it had become clear that the Mediterranean area is becoming an extremely decisive area for both sides to influence the future of the Second World War. The Germans saw that by taking Crete it would prevent the British forces from hindering operation in the Balkans that would further influence their attack on the Soviet Union planned for the summer of 194...
... middle of paper ...
...Works Cited
Antill, Peter. Crete 1941: Germany's lightning airborne assault. Osprey Publishing, 2005
Buckley, Christopher . Greece and Crete 1941. Second World War, 1939-1945; a popular military history. London: H.M. Stationery Off.
Holms, Richard. The Oxford Companion to Military History Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004
Spencer, Randolph and Gilbert, Martin. Winston S. Churchill: Finest hour, 1939–1941. Houghton Mifflin, 1983.
Schreiber, Gerhard; Bernd Stegemann; Detlef Vogel. 'Germany and the Second World War: The Mediterranean, South-east Europe, and North Africa, 1939–1941, Volume III'. Oxford University Press, 1995
Führer Directive 28, World War II Database, http://ww2db.com/doc.php?q=326, 2012.
'Overview - The Battle for Crete', URL: http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/war/the-battle-for-crete/overview, (Ministry for Culture and Heritage) updated 20-Dec-2012
Cameron, R. S. (2003). The army vision: The 4th AD in world war II. Military Review, 83(6), 59-68
"World War II in Europe." 10 June 2013. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. 18 March 2014 .
"World War II". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2013. Web. 05 Nov. 2013. .
Field, Frank. British and French Operations of the First World War. Cambridge (England); New York: Cambridge University Press, 1991.
Von Der Porten, Edward P. The German Navy in World War II. New York: Thomas Y.
Works Cited Horne, Alistair. A.S.A. & Co. To Lose a Battle: France, 1940. New York: Penguin, 1990. Jackson, Julian.
The Peloponnesian War was between the Greek cities of Athens and Sparta due to the growing tensions that continued to grow between the two cities that eventually came to a breaking point. The Peloponnesian War, which can be divided into three phases known as: The Archidamian War, The Sicilian Expedition and The Decelean War, is one of the greatest event in Greek history and an analysis of the causes and effects of this war will give us a better understanding for how the cities of Athens and Sparta came to war and the impact it left behind.
3rd edition of the book. Athens: The Anagnosis of the. Zink, Harold. The. (1957) The United States in Germany, 1944-1955 [online].
Lyons, Michael J. World War II - A Short History. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education,
Kaltsas, Nikos E. Athens-Sparta. New York, NY: Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation (USA) in Collaboration with the National Archaeological Museum, Athens, 2006. Print.
Fischer, Fritz. Germany's Aims in the First World War. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1967.
Loyd E. Lee, World War II: Crucible of the Contemporary World: Commentary and Readings (New York: M.E. Sharpe, Inc., 1991), 209.
Anderson, Jim. "Bumps on the German-America road ahead: NATO Middle East". Deutsche Press-Agentur, April 1997.
Thales of Miletus (modern day Turkey) was said to be the very first Greek philosopher, scientist and mathematician. Although little is known about Thales, it is recorded that he lived between 624 BC – 546 BC. Thales was the founder of the Milesian school and also known as one of the Seven Wise Men (Stokes). Most of his accomplishments are speculated upon since none of his writings survived, and all sources seem to be non-existent. All that is known about his thoughts came from Aristotle, the four statements are as follows: (1) The world originated from water; (2) The world floats on water; (3) The world has many gods; (4) Soul produces motion (Burnet). Aristotle was very hesitant in writing these claims, stating that even by his time Thales was known only by word of mouth and not through hard evidence. Thales was said to be a devoted traveler and it is mainly through the writings of Aristotle why Thales is considered the “father of science” and the first pre-Socratic Greek philosopher.
Although once a strategic military site even up through World War II, Crete is now a wonderful Greek asset full of history, culture, and beauty. Crete is the largest of the Greek islands and is located in the southeast of the Mediterranean Sea. Crete is not only home to more than 550,000 Greek citizens; it is also the destination for more than one quarter of all visitors that come to Greece.