Forgotten Anzacs: the campaign in Greece, 1941 - revised edition
Author: Ewer, Peter
ISBN: 9781925321296
Publisher: Scribe Publications
Year first published: 28 Mar 2016
Pages: 448
Format: Hardback
This is the largely unknown story of another Anzac force, which fought not at Gallipoli, but in Greece, during World War II.
Desperately outnumbered and fighting in deeply inhospitable conditions, these Anzacs found themselves engaging in a long retreat through Greece, under constant air attack. Most of the Anzac Corps was evacuated by the end of April 1941, but many men got only as far as Crete. Fighting a German paratroop invasion there in May, large numbers were taken captive and spent four long years as prisoners of the Nazis.
The campaign in Greece turned out to have uncanny parallels to the original Gallipoli operation: both were inspired by Winston Churchill, both were badly planned by British military leaders, and both ended in defeat and evacuation. Just as Gallipoli provided military academies the world over with lessons in how not to conduct a complex feat of arms, Churchill's Greek adventure reinforced fundamental lessons in modern warfare - heavy tanks could not be stopped by men armed with rifles, and Stuka dive-bombers would not be deflected by promises of air support from London that were never honoured.
Until now, there has been no history on the campaign in Greece and Crete written from a truly Anzac perspective. Based on rarely accessed archives and more than 30 interviews with Australian, Greek, and New Zealand veterans, this superb book gives overdue recognition to the brave, forgotten Anzacs of 1941.
'This clear and well-written account of the campaign should do much to rescue the forgotten Anzacs from neglect by subsequent generations.'
-Jeffrey Grey, Australian Book Review
'This book makes fascinating reading and does a long way in recognising these forgotten Anzacs.'
-Peter Masters, Australian Defence Magazine
'Forgotten Anzacs is a timely tribute to those who took part in a neglected chapter in our military history.'
-Greg Thom, Herald Sun
ISBN: 9781925321296
Publisher: Scribe Publications
Year first published: 28 Mar 2016
Pages: 448
Format: Hardback
This is the largely unknown story of another Anzac force, which fought not at Gallipoli, but in Greece, during World War II.
Desperately outnumbered and fighting in deeply inhospitable conditions, these Anzacs found themselves engaging in a long retreat through Greece, under constant air attack. Most of the Anzac Corps was evacuated by the end of April 1941, but many men got only as far as Crete. Fighting a German paratroop invasion there in May, large numbers were taken captive and spent four long years as prisoners of the Nazis.
The campaign in Greece turned out to have uncanny parallels to the original Gallipoli operation: both were inspired by Winston Churchill, both were badly planned by British military leaders, and both ended in defeat and evacuation. Just as Gallipoli provided military academies the world over with lessons in how not to conduct a complex feat of arms, Churchill's Greek adventure reinforced fundamental lessons in modern warfare - heavy tanks could not be stopped by men armed with rifles, and Stuka dive-bombers would not be deflected by promises of air support from London that were never honoured.
Until now, there has been no history on the campaign in Greece and Crete written from a truly Anzac perspective. Based on rarely accessed archives and more than 30 interviews with Australian, Greek, and New Zealand veterans, this superb book gives overdue recognition to the brave, forgotten Anzacs of 1941.
'This clear and well-written account of the campaign should do much to rescue the forgotten Anzacs from neglect by subsequent generations.'
-Jeffrey Grey, Australian Book Review
'This book makes fascinating reading and does a long way in recognising these forgotten Anzacs.'
-Peter Masters, Australian Defence Magazine
'Forgotten Anzacs is a timely tribute to those who took part in a neglected chapter in our military history.'
-Greg Thom, Herald Sun
