Figure 1.--After the German invasion campaign (April-May 1941), Greece was primarily occupied by the Italians with a relatively small German garrison amd the Bulgarians in the northeast. This changed when the Germans moved strong units into Greece (Mid-1943), despite the critical battle shaping up at Kursk. The move into Greece was the result of an Allied disinformation campaign and anticipation of an Italian surrender. We are not sure where in Greece this photograph was taken, perhaps one of the Aegean islands the Germans occupied.

The invasion of Greece was primarily a Germab operation. The occupation was a joint effort among Axis psrtners (Germany, Italy, and Bulgaria). The Germans kept a relatively small garrison in Greece. As in Yugoslavia, the Italians had a large occupation zone and provided most of the occupation force. The Italians occupied the Peloponnese, cental Greece, Thssaly, and Epirus. The Italians also occupied many Aegean islands in addition to the Decodese which they had seized from the Ottomans (1912). The Italians deployed 11 infantry divisions as part of the 11th Army under General Carlo Geloso. An additional division was present in the Dodecanese Islands. The Germans primarily were in extrene north south of modern Macedonia and eastern Thrace. There were also German garisons in Athens, Crete, and various islands. The German troops in southeastern Europe came under the overall command 12th Army headed initially by Field Marshal Wilhelm List and later by General Alexander Löhr. The German commands in Greece were separated: the Salonica-Aegean Military Command at Thessalonica and the Southern Greece Military Command at Athens. Luftwaffe General Helmuth Felmy held sway in Athens. Crete was organised separately and designated a fortress ("Festung Kreta"). The Germns garrisoned it with the Fortress Division "Kreta" and after August by the powerful 22nd Air Landing Division. The Bulgarians occupied much of Thrace and eastern Macedonia withan Army corps. Brutal anti-partisan campaigns drove large numbers of Greek villagers into the German zone of Thrace (1941). Allied disinformation efforts convinced OKW that after the loss of North Africa (May 1943) that an invasion might come through Greece. The Allied target was Sicily. Any look at the map would suggest Sicily as the next Allied target. The Allies wanted to confuse the Germans so they would not concentrate their forces in Sicily. The Germans moved the 1st Panzer Division and the 1st Mountain Division into Greece (mid-1943). It is not altogether clear to what extent the disinformation worked or tge Germans were preoaring for an Italian surrendr to the Allies. Italy surrendered to the Allies (Septenver 1943). As in Italy, the Germans had anticipated the surrender of their Axis ally. This represented, however, a drain on the increasingly hard-pressed Germans after major defeats in the East. The German occupation of the Italian zone was accompanied by some violence against the Italian garrisons. The Germans viweed the Italians as traitors. The Grermans also escalsated the anti-partisan campaign. The British attempted to take advantage of the Italian surrender by entering the Aegean in the Dodecanese Campaign. Without Anmerican help, the German garrison was strong enoughh to defeat the British.

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Created: 9:46 AM 3/1/2011
Last updated: 9:46 AM 3/1/2011