Battle of Leros
Battle of Leros | |||||||
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Part of the Dodecanese campaign of World War II | |||||||
German paratroopers prepare to be flown to Leros. | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Italy United Kingdom Naval Support: South Africa Greece | Germany | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Luigi Mascherpa Robert Tilney | F.W. Müller | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
Italian: 8,320 soldiers and sailors British: 3,500+ soldiers 74 Squadron, RAF 7 Squadron, SAAF |
2,800 German soldiers extensive air power | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
Italian: 254 killed or missing 5,350 POWs 1 destroyer sunk 5 auxiliary and merchant ships sunk 5 Armored Motor Boats and Torpedo Boats sunk British: ~600 killed 100 wounded 3,200 POWs 115 RAF aircraft lost 3 destroyers sunk Greek: 1 destroyer sunk 68[1][2] |
512 killed, 900 wounded at least five MFPs | ||||||
20 civilians killed (Leros Islanders) |
The Battle of Leros was the central event of the Dodecanese campaign of the Second World War, and is widely used as an alternative name for the whole campaign. After the Armistice of Cassibile the Italian garrison on the Greek island Leros was strengthened by British forces on 15 September 1943. The battle began with German air attacks on 26 September, continued with the landings on 12 November, and ended with the capitulation of the Allied forces four days later.
Background
The island of Leros is part of the Dodecanese island group in the south-eastern Aegean Sea, which had been under Italian occupation since the Italo-Turkish War. During Italian rule, Leros, with its excellent deep-water port of Lakki (Portolago), was transformed into a heavily fortified aeronautical and naval base, "the Corregidor of the Mediterranean", as Mussolini boasted.
The island was base for some Italian naval units; specifically, in September 1943:[3][4]
- 4ª Squadriglia Cacciatorpediniere (4th Destroyer Flotilla) with the sole destroyer Euro;
- III Flottiglia Mas (third MAS Flotilla) with two MAS;
- XXXIX Minesweeper Flotilla with eleven boats;
- nine minor units, seven merchant ships, two minelayers (Azio and Legnano) and three Italian-built Marinefährprahm of German project.
After the
The
Prelude
Initial Allied and German moves
After the Italian government had signed an armistice, the Italian garrisons on most of the Dodecanese either wanted to change sides and fight alongside the Allies or just return to their homes. The Allies attempted to take advantage of the situation, but the Germans were ready. As the Italian surrender became apparent, German forces, based largely in mainland Greece, were rushed to many of the major islands to gain control. The most important such force, the Sturm-Division Rhodos swiftly neutralised the garrison of Rhodes, denying the island's three airfields to the Allies.
By mid-September, however, the
The British forces on Kos, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel L.R.F. Kenyon, numbered about 1,500 men, 680 of whom were from the 1st Bn
Allied forces
The Italian garrison of Leros numbered about 7,600 men, under the command of
After the fall of Rhodes, some men from its garrison reached Leros, and Mascherpa assumed command of all Italian naval forces in the Aegean Sea.[1] He also re-organized Leros' anti-aircraft defenses. On 12 September, a delegation of British officers met Mascherpa to assess the island's defenses and to inquire about what relations could be established between Italian and British troops; Mascherpa did not go too far in his replies, since the terms of the armistice were still rather vague. On the following day, more British officers arrived, including Major George Jellicoe and Colonel Turbull, who was disappointed by the state of the defences, particularly the anti-aircraft preparations. Meanwhile, the Italians made the decision to fire on any German aircraft that flew over Leros. On 13 September, the Germans made an offer of surrender with "honourable conditions", which Mascherpa refused.[8]
On 17 September the small Italian garrison of
By October, the British forces on the island of Leros numbered ca. 3,000 men of the 2nd Bn
The air force units detailed for this operation were not large. Apart from the troop-carrying and transport
German forces
The German forces assembling for Unternehmen Leopard ("Operation Leopard") under the command of Generalleutnant Müller, comprised III./Infanterie-Regiment 440, II./IR 16 and II./IR 65 of the 22nd Infantry Division, the parachutists of I./FJR 2, and an amphibious commando company of the Brandenburg Division (1./Küstenjägerabteilung). The invasion force assembled in harbours in Kos and Kalymnos, with reserves and heavy equipment waiting to be airlifted around Athens. Two groups with Ju 87 D3 dive-bombers were available for close air support. I. Group of Schlachtgeschwader 3 flew from their base in Megara and II. Group from Argos and later Rhodos. II. Group of Kampfgeschwader 51 with Ju 88 were available for air strikes.
On the night between 6 and 7 October, in the Astypalaia channel, the Royal Navy cruisers
Battle
Bombing and preparations
Starting on 26 September, after days of dropping threatening leaflets, the Luftwaffe unleashed continuous attacks on Leros, enjoying complete air superiority.[1] On that day,
Between 26 September and 11 November Leros was continuously subjected to heavy bombings (an average of four air strikes and 41 bombers per day between 26 and 30 September, and eight air strikes and 37 bombers daily between 7 October and 11 November). In addition to military objectives, also the villages and towns, especially Leros and Lakki, suffered heavy damage.[1] 10% of coastal batteries, 30% of anti-torpedo boat batteries and 20% of anti-aircraft guns were destroyed; hospitals had to be transferred in caves.[1]
The
The anti-aircraft batteries were prime targets for the bombings; they often ran out of ammunition or became fatigued from continuous firing, but the
On the night between 24 and 25 October,
Between 1 and 6 November, while German forces were being concentrated for the attack, the German air offensive was temporarily halted.
On 7 November, the Luftwaffe bombings started again; over the next five days, a total of 187 German bombers carried out 40 raids over the islands, especially targeting the batteries located on the eastern part of the island (the area designated for the main landing) and those in the central and southern part (so that they would stop firing against Kalimnos), as well as the Anti-Aircraft and Coastal Defense Command (aiming to destroy coordination between the batteries) and the area of Lakki and Mt. Maraviglia, where British troops were concentrated.[1] These last raids worsened the wear of the guns, disrupted communication routes and caused further consumption of ammunition.[1] A British ammunition depot near Lakki was hit and blew up, causing more damage.[1]
Landings
On 12 November 1943 at 04.30, after almost fifty days of air strikes, an invasion fleet landed troops at Palma Bay and Pasta di Sopra on the north-east coast. British motor torpedo boats and the Italian MAS 555 spotted the German ships between 03:00 and 03:30, but the reaction was delayed by communication problems and by uncertainty whether they were German or more British ships with reinforcements.[1] German troops were thus able to land, and only at dawn did the situation become clear.[1] The Italian batteries Ducci and San Giorgio opened fire and drove off a convoy of six Marinefährprahme escorted by two Torpedoboote Ausland (Italian ships captured in Greece), heading for Gurna Bay.[1]
There were other landings at Pandeli Bay (where the Italian Lago battery fired on the landing convoys[1]), near Leros town, that were heavily contested by the Royal Irish Fusiliers. The Fusiliers stopped the capture of some key defensive positions but were unable to stop the landings. In the northeastern sector, a German force of six auxiliary
In the central part of the island the Germans, despite counter-action, managed to create small bridgeheads and in the afternoon, after heavy fighting, they captured the Italian Ciano battery on Mount Clido.[1] The Italian MAS 555 and 559 were also captured in Grifo Bay;[1] MAS 555 was fired upon and destroyed by Italian batteries to prevent its use by the Germans, whereas MAS 559 was sabotaged by her crew on the following day.[20][21] Heavy fighting developed around the Lago battery (commanded by Sub-Lt. Corrado Spagnolo, who was killed in action), defended by its gunners and by an Italian Navy platoon sent as a reinforcement in a hand-to-hand combat.[1][22] A British company was also sent to help, but had to withdraw after suffering heavy losses.[1]
German consolidation
The positions of the British units were spread around the island with poor communication between them. The attacking German forces had the twin advantages of local numerical superiority and air control. In the early afternoon Luftwaffe fighter-bombers machine-gunned and bombed the area between the Gurna and Alinda Bays, followed by Junkers Ju 52s which at 13:27 dropped some 600 parachutists from the Brandenburg Division over Mount Rachi.[1] Some German aircraft were shot down by the batteries and about half of the paratroopers were killed, but the rest of them landed safely and attacked the nearby batteries, meeting stiff resistance and suffering heavy losses.[1] One of them, no. 211, was captured before dark, and its commander, Lt. Antonino Lo Presti, was executed.[1] The position of these landings effectively divided the island in two, separating the Buffs and a company of the King's Own on the south side of the island from the rest of the garrison. Counterattacks during the rest of that day failed.
During the night of 12/13 November more German reinforcements arrived. Counterattacks by the King's Own and the Fusiliers failed during the 13th with heavy casualties, but the Buffs on the south side of the island managed to capture 130 prisoners and reclaim some control of their area. On the same day, the two sections of the no. 763 battery were captured by the paratroopers; another Italian officer (Lt. Fedele Atella), in charge of the Alinda area, was executed after capture.
On the night of 14 November, British forces recaptured some batteries and positions and, supported by Italian artillery, prevented the Fallschirmjägers from rejoining the German landing troops; new German attacks later in the day, however, led to the capture of Alinda Bay, Grifo Bay, Mount Clidi, Mount Vedetta and Mout Appetici.
The fighting on the 14th and 15th was mostly inconclusive with more casualties on both sides, although a counter-attack by two companies of the King's Own succeeded in recapturing part of Apetiki. Lt Col French was killed in this attack. German forces attacked the castle; the commander of the local British platoon ordered it to be abandoned, but Italian Navy personnel instead kept defending it.[1]
On the night of the 15th the fourth company from the West Kents was landed and 170 German prisoners were taken to Samos. The Germans, on the other hand, landed an estimated 1,000 troops and artillery during that night. The defenders were left with only one tenth of their
By the evening of 15 November, the island was cut in two, and the situation hopeless.[1] During the night Lt. Col. John Richard Easonsmith, commander of the Long Range Desert Group, was killed in action while fighting inside the town of Leros.[1] At dawn on 16 November, the no. 306 battery was destroyed by German airstrikes; the no. 127 battery on Mt. Maraviglia was attacked by German forces but stiffly defended by its garrison, commanded by Captain Werther Cacciatori, who lost an arm.[1] At 12:30 the German command commanded Rear Admiral Mascherpa to surrender with his Italian forces, but he refused.[1]
Surrender
On the morning of 16 November it became apparent to the British commander, Brigadier Tilney, that his situation was untenable; at 17:30, when German forces had nearly reached his
Overall, 3,200 British (201 officers and 3,000 soldiers) and 5,350 Italians (351 officers and 5,000 soldiers) were taken prisoner by the Germans.[1][23] The 4th Bn, The Buffs, in their isolated position, were unaware of the surrender so did not attempt to escape; consequently nearly the whole unit was captured.[24] As with the Buffs, only ninety men from the West Kents managed to escape from the island. The few Italian ships that were still serviceable left for Turkey or British-controlled ports.[1] Some Italian officers were executed after the surrender; among them Cdr. Vittorio Meneghini, the commanding officer of Euro.[1][25] On 17 November, 30 officers and 40 wounded prisoners were sent to Piraeus on board the destroyer TA15.[1] On 21 November 2,700 prisoners, including Rear Admiral Mascherpa, were sent to Piraeus on board the steamer Schiaffino.[1] On 7 December 3,000 Italian prisoners were transferred to Piraeus on board the ship Leda.[1] Rear Admiral Mascherpa would be later handed over by the Germans to the Italian Social Republic; he was subjected to a kangaroo court for having defended Leros against the Germans, sentenced to death, and executed by firing squad.[1]
Aftermath
The withdrawal of air support, particularly that of fighters, had sealed the fate of Leros. With no air support and heavily attacked by enemy aircraft, the three battalions had fought for five days until they were exhausted and could fight no more. The
After the fall of Leros, which was received with shock by the British public,[
Casualties of the Battle of Leros were as follows:
- Germans – 520 killed or missing
- Italians – 254 killed or missing
- British – 600 killed or missing, of whom 187 died in the fighting on Leros (the rest being lost at sea)
- Hellenic Royal Navy – 68 killed or missing
- Civilians – 20 killed
Legacy
The Dodecanese Campaign and the Battle of Leros provide the general context of the fictional 1957 novel The Guns of Navarone and the successful 1961 film made from it, meaning that there was conflict between the Germans and the British, Italians and Americans in the Dodecanese island group. Also, there were 11[28] 152mm (6 inch) Italian guns on Leros that were captured by the Germans in the battle that were used to fire on the Allies until the end of the war.
See also
- Military history of Greece during World War II
- Dodecanese Campaign
- Levant Schooner Flotilla
- Adriatic Campaign of World War II
- Axis occupation of Greece during World War II
- Mediterranean Theater of Operations
Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av aw ax ay az ba bb bc bd be bf bg bh bi bj "d'archivio USMM – La partecipazione della Marina alla Guerra di Liberazione" (PDF). www.marina.difesa.it. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ "Seekrieg 1943, November". Retrieved 23 June 2015.
- ^ Levi 1993, pp. 94–95
- ^ "Η Μάχη της Λέρου". Archived from the original on 4 October 2013. Retrieved 23 June 2015.
- ^ "Leros Churchill's folly". Archived from the original on 29 May 2010. Retrieved 23 June 2015.
- ^ "Seekrieg 1943, Oktober". Retrieved 23 June 2015.
- ^ "Massacres and Atrocities of WWII in Western Europe". Retrieved 23 June 2015.
- ^ La nostra Guerra 1940-1945
- ^ "Seekrieg 1943, September". Retrieved 23 June 2015.
- ISBN 0863328970personal account by RNVR officer, with photographs
- ^ Wrecksite – Ivorea
- ^ Rolando Notarangelo, Gian Paolo Pagano, Navi mercantili perdute, p. 392
- ^ Legnano Archived 22 December 2015 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Porto di Roma
- ^ Rolando Notarangelo, Gian Paolo Pagano, Navi mercantili perdute, p. 89.
- ^ MS 26
- ^ MS 15
- ^ "Levant Command - September to November 1943". Archived from the original on 1 January 2011. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
- ^ HMS Unsparing
- ^ MAS 555
- ^ MAS 559
- ^ Corrado Spagnolo
- ^ "Seekrieg 1943, November". Retrieved 23 June 2015.
- ^ "the-queens-own-buffs.com". Retrieved 23 June 2015.
- ^ Vittorio Meneghini
- ^ "LEROS ISLAND GREECE/WAR IMAGES/II WORLD WAR/II WELT KRIEG". Retrieved 23 June 2015.
- ISBN 1-84212-526-5.
- ISBN 9780750969581. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
Further reading
- ISBN 0-7195-6831-5.
- Hans Peter Eisenbach (2009) Fronteinsätze eines Stuka-Fliegers, Mittelmeer und Ostfront 1943-1944. Germany Helios Verlag ISBN 978-3-938208-96-0. €18,50 uro. The book describes exactly the Stuka missions of I. StG 3 against Leros and Samos and against the Royal Navy in 1943. The book is based on the flight log book of a stuka pilot.
- Guard, John; Head, Michael & Schenk, Peter (2001). "Question 27/00: Commando Attack on Leros". Warship International. XXXVIII (3). International Naval Research Organization: 244–246. ISSN 0043-0374.
- Jeffrey Holland (1988). The Aegean Mission: Allied Operations in the Dodecanese, 1943. United Kingdom: Greenwood Press. ISBN 978-0-313-26283-8.
- Levi, Aldo (1993). Avvenimenti in Egeo dopo l'armistizio (Rodi, Lero e isole minori). Roma: Ufficio storico della Marina Militare. No ISBN.
- Anthony Rogers (2003). Churchill's Folly: Leros and the Aegean — The Last Great British Defeat of World War II. United Kingdom: Cassell Publications. ISBN 978-0-304-36151-9.
- Peter Schenk (2000). Kampf um die Ägäis. Die Kriegsmarine in den griechischen Gewässern 1941-1945. Germany: Mittler & Sohn. ISBN 978-3813206999.
- Giuseppe Teatini, Diario dall'Egeo. Rodi-Lero: agosto-novembre 1943, Mursia, 1990, ISBN 88-425-0665-6
External links
- Leros during World War II (in Greek)
- Brief account of the Battle of Leros
- Account of the Battle of Leros
- "234 Infantry Brigade". Orders of Battle.com.
- Time lines of World War II
- Dedication to King's Own
- Special Operations in the Dodecanese
- Gartzonikas, Panagiotis (2003). Amphibious and Special Operations in the Aegean Sea 1943-1945. Operational Effectiveness and Strategic Implications (PDF) (MSc thesis). Naval Postgraduate School. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 March 2009. Retrieved 21 March 2009.
- Gander, Leonard; Williams. "Long road to Leros" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 March 2009. Retrieved 23 March 2009.