KG_Cloghaun
12-07-2006, 09:07 PM
Here is an excellent overview of the battle at Wikepedia-
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Crete
First major airborne operation of WW2 or of any war, period.
First time the Allies got major results from cracking the Enigma code.
The Anzacs put up a Hell of a fight against the Fallschirmjaegers. Not to mention the Greek civilian population! I've got to get a book on this battle. Just this dry-written wikipedia overview is chuck-full of very interesting sidenotes.
Example-
Among the German dead were a trio of brothers, relatives of the Prussian (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prussia) general Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gebhard_Leberecht_von_Bl%C3%BCcher) of Waterloo (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Waterloo) fame. The first to fall was Count (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graf) Leberecht von Blücher (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Leberecht_von_Bl%C3%BCcher&action=edit), who was attempting to resupply his brother, Lieutenant (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lieutenant) Wolfgang von Blücher (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wolfgang_von_Bl%C3%BCcher&action=edit), with ammunition when the latter and his platoon (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platoon) were surrounded by members of the Black Watch. Leberecht had commandeered a horse which he attempted to gallop through British lines; he almost reached his brother's position, and in fact was shot before the count's very eyes. The next day, the second brother was killed, followed by the youngest brother, Hans-Joachim, who was reported killed in action a few days later but whose body was never recovered. For years afterward, Cretan villagers report seeing a ghostly rider galloping at night down a road near the spot where Leberecht was shot; yet until they were told the story of the von Blücher brothers, they had assumed that he was British
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Crete
First major airborne operation of WW2 or of any war, period.
First time the Allies got major results from cracking the Enigma code.
The Anzacs put up a Hell of a fight against the Fallschirmjaegers. Not to mention the Greek civilian population! I've got to get a book on this battle. Just this dry-written wikipedia overview is chuck-full of very interesting sidenotes.
Example-
Among the German dead were a trio of brothers, relatives of the Prussian (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prussia) general Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gebhard_Leberecht_von_Bl%C3%BCcher) of Waterloo (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Waterloo) fame. The first to fall was Count (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graf) Leberecht von Blücher (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Leberecht_von_Bl%C3%BCcher&action=edit), who was attempting to resupply his brother, Lieutenant (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lieutenant) Wolfgang von Blücher (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wolfgang_von_Bl%C3%BCcher&action=edit), with ammunition when the latter and his platoon (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platoon) were surrounded by members of the Black Watch. Leberecht had commandeered a horse which he attempted to gallop through British lines; he almost reached his brother's position, and in fact was shot before the count's very eyes. The next day, the second brother was killed, followed by the youngest brother, Hans-Joachim, who was reported killed in action a few days later but whose body was never recovered. For years afterward, Cretan villagers report seeing a ghostly rider galloping at night down a road near the spot where Leberecht was shot; yet until they were told the story of the von Blücher brothers, they had assumed that he was British