The Battle of Crete

If the battle of Crete, is being characterized as the most paradoxical battle of the 2nd World War, the battle of Galatas for sure, was the biggest and the most dramatic of all battles, that took place, when the island of Crete was conquered by the Germans, on May 1941.

In the historical battle of Crete in the year 1941, the resistance of Galatas, played a significant role to the extension of the 2nd World War, by withstanding for a whole week.
It is significant that it took the Germans so many days to conquer Galatas. The same days, it took them to conquer the whole of France and one can say, that the battle of Galatas was really, the battle of Crete and the battle of Crete, was the delay really, of the 2nd World War and eventually, the defeat of the Germans.
Galatas is 5 kilometres away on the west of Chania, and due to its position, during the Turkish domination, was the rampart of Chania, which of course made Galatas, the direct target of the Germans, which revealed the German’s intensions in the first 10 days of May 1941.

On the 20th of May, at 6.30 in the morning, the sun over Chania and Galatas, was obliterated by the german parachutists.

Despite of Metaxas general disarmament, the village was fortunate to have the “Idomeneas” snipers. Consequently the people of Galatas were fairly armed.


Thanks to this, the locals were successful in warding off the attackers. The few defenders of the area, were 100 marksmen of Major Gerogiannis, the 6th battalion of New Zealanders under the British Major Smith and the recruits of Major Gregoriou’s 6th infantry battalion, together with the local people, the very few defenders of the area.
So in the early hours of May 25th, the battle started on the high ground of Galatas.

On May the 26th at 4.00 o’clock in the afternoon, according to the German’s plan, the parachutists started falling from the sky.

So the first wave of aeroplanes started dropping their bombs. The artillery increase their firing to the maximum. An inferno of smoke, was created by the explosions.

West of Galatas, the germans bombard, where the British defense position is situated and occupy the church high ground, which now is already covered by dead parachutists. With great difficulty, the Germans now move towards, the first houses of Kasteli.

The fighting is fierce until the Germans start attacking from the sites.
In the meantime, the bombardment is intensified and with the last bombs the alpinists rush in and the 1rst Battalion Strantk occupies, the northeastern high grounds of Galatas.

From house to house, begins fierce struggle and despite the darkness, eventually the Germans enter Galatas.

The British defense, together with the help of the local people, they ward off the attacks on Galatas, but with a strong counterattack, supported by tanks, the village is almost entirely in the hands of the Germans. However, by sunrise after a frightful night, the German alpinists occupy Galatas

The epilogue of the Battle of Galatas was written by General Whitman, who conveys his first impressions upon entering the village : «The rising sun of May 27th sheds light, on a ghastly spectacle. Many brave and fearless soldiers, friends and foes, are found dead in the alleyways, of the square of Galatas».

The village’s priest Vasilis Roumeliotakis, together with the local police, few residents and Germans who were sent there, they bury the dead.

This is why the Battle of Galatas was called, the «Battle of the Giants».

The Cretans were not properly armed, yet they fought with whatever old weapons they possessed, they fought with rocks and shavels. Also, Antonis Fintikakis, from Galatas, with no weapons, just with a huge rock, is seen attacking the Germans, as depicted in Petros Vlahakis famous painting. Fintikakis an illiterate Cretan, is seen fighting the enemy. A modern, David fighting the fully - armed Golliath.

According to Winston Churchill, the Germans achieved a «Pyrrhic victory». They won a battle but they lost a war.

According to the British, the German casualties were many thousands, but perhaps their most significant loss, was that, of the 7th Division of parachutists, who were one of the most effective weapons of the German army.

Hitler himself, immediately rendered the corps, obsolete, telling General Stoud : « Crete, has proven that parachutists are now a thing of the past». The Battle of Crete, prevented the occupation of Syria, Iraq and Persia.
It was the Prime Minister of England, Anthony Eden, who said : « Hellas was first to teach a lesson».

The Battle of Crete was a landmark. It was the last strategic battle of Europe but the first battle of National Resistance against Nazism. A battle which marked the beginning, of the end of the Nazis.
Crete’s resistance was recognized, admired and praised, by the whole world, including Hitler.
Nikos Kazatzakis writes : «Indomitable souls are the Cretans. For thousands of years, they have been battling against the rugged Cretan mountains, against hunger, poverty and the foe. Neither man or fate, can ever make them, bow their heads….»

The ten days of the Battle of Crete, left for the people sufferings and difficulties, problems and anxieties, for almost four years! …

The Battle of Crete. It could not have been, any other way. History will not allow that, for the birthplace of Zeus, Minoa, El Greco, Daskalogianni, Venizelo, Kazatzaki, to be different. It had to add another epic deed, for the island of wonders, enigmas, legends, civilization and high ideals.

Listen to what the poet says, to the children of Crete:
«Count the graves of our people and all the strangers, who fought with them and light a candle for each one of them and burn incense and if relatives of the dead come along, welcome them »

Ever since, every year, we remember and praise the 10 day battle. We praise the heroic deeds, of all the people that fought at that time and we relive again, as much as we can, all the things that we have seen and we have done. Today, there are still amongst us, some people that took part in the Battle of Crete, people that have lived the stress and the problems, of those days. Yet they still live, this titanic battle and they try to keep it alive in our minds.

They are fortunate, the last remaining fighters of the Battle of Crete, to see the construction of the memorial, which will remind the coming generations, of the sacrifice of all the people that took part, in the Battle of the Giants.

Manolis Stamatakis