Evacuation of Crete
In-House EventsDescription
By 26 May, Freyberg reported that his men had reached the limits of their endurance. His position was hopeless. His men were almost out of food and ammunition. They had no motor transport and their communications were sporadic at best. The three forces established to defend the sectors around the airfields could not support each other. The German Air Force had unchallenged mastery of the skies and, therefore, dominated the battlefields during daylight hours. Retreat and evacuation was the garrison's only option. The troops around Suda began a fighting withdrawal across the island to Sfakia on the south coast. On 29 May, the Allies abandoned Heraklion. Successfully evacuated from the ancient port, many lost their lives when the convoy was attacked by air. At Retimo, the West Australians of the 2/11th and the New South Welshmen of the 2/1st Battalions, still fighting to deny the airstrip to the Germans, were cut off. From 29 May-1 June, the Royal Navy evacuated around 10,000 Allied soldiers from Sfakia. They did not have the ships to take more. The Victorian 2/7th Battalion, after fighting so gallantly at 42nd Street near Suda, was one of those left behind. Without food or ammunition, they faced capture.
By 30 May, Lieutenant Colonel Ian Campbell, commanding officer of the 2/1st Battalion and Retimo Force commander, decided that further resistance at Retimo was pointless. He ordered his men to surrender. Major Sandover, leading the 2/11th Battalion, offered his men the choice of surrender or escape. Those who were able to took the latter option. Many evaded capture for several months, living in the mountains with assistance from the local population. Locals helping Allied soldiers risked death if discovered. Between June and September, approximately 600 Allied soldiers were able to escape the island of Crete. Almost one in ten of the escapers were from the 2/11th Battalion. Their stories provide a fitting sequel to the journey of Odysseus.
Crete remained occupied by Axis forces to the end of the war.
Dates
1941-05-27 – 1941-06-01