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Evacuations from the Mani to be commemorated

The fall of Kalamata in April 1941 saw Allied soldiers make desperate attempts to evade capture. Many of these evaders made their way down the Mani coastline, mostly on foot, through its rough tracks and paths and on to its small seaside villages in the hope of evacuation by Allied warships. All the while they were subjected to enemy air attack during the day and to the ever-advancing enemy troops.

Assisted by the local people, eventually over 200 would be evacuated by three Royal Navy warships in the early hours of 1st May 1941, successfully transporting the men to Crete and Egypt.  This mini-Dunkirk – the final Allied evacuation from the Greek mainland – will soon be commemorated with the installation of a new commemorative plaque.

This is the initiative of historian Jim Claven OAM working with Australian Pammessinian Brotherhood Papaflessas and Municipality of the Mani. It is hoped that the plaque will be installed and unveiled in May 2025.

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Anzac The Greek Chapter: new documentary on 1941 Greek Campaign through Anzac Eyes

A new 90 minute broadcast quality documentary has been produced in Australia telling the story of the Anzacs in the 1941 Greek campaign. It does so through the use of excerpts from over 130 hours of veterans’ video interviews from the personal archive of historian and director Dr Peter Ewer. These were completed over 20 years ago as part of Peter’s university studies. To these vivid interviews have been added newsreel footage and still photographs from the campaign.

The whole effect is to tell the story of the campaign as it has never been told before. We see the veterans speak for themselves. Dr Ewer worked with director and filmmaker John Irwin and historian and associate producer Jim Claven  to complete the documentary. The film is narrated by journalist, author and Greek campaign veteran’s son Barrie Cassidy.

The documentary is being premiered in Australian cinemas in October 2024, with plans for an Australia-wide TV broadcast on Anzac Day 2025. Plans are underway for screenings in community settings, in Greece and hopefully in the UK under the auspices of the Brotherhood.

The documentary trailer can be viewed at the following weblog link: https://lemnosgallipolicc.blogspot.com/2024/08/anzac-greek-chapter-documentary-trailer.html.

For more information on the documentary go to the following weblog link: https://lemnosgallipolicc.blogspot.com/2024/07/anzac-greek-chapter-documentary.html

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UK Reunion – 83rd Anniversary 7th September 2024

Our service this year went well but because of rain it was held in the Chapel.  However, the rain did stop so, after the service, we were able to take the wreaths down to the Greek Grove and lay them at our altar, where, once again, the last post and reveille were played.

The service was led by Father Theodoros Polyviou (Father Theo) of the Greek Orthodox Church, Coventry. Father John, who led our service for many years has now retired. We, at the Brotherhood are very grateful for the many years that Father John served us and send him and Georgina very best wishes for a long and happy retirement. We are  delighted to report that Father Theo has agreed to take on the role of Brotherhood Padre.

We were also delighted to welcome, once again, Captain Nikolaos Filias, HN, Greek Defence Attaché, together with Lieutenant Colonel Anthony Lias, Australian Defence Force; Lieutenant Colonel David W Dawber – Mercian Regiment; Major John Miller, Royal Engineers; and Major Barrington Harvey, Royal Signals.

Five standards were carried by the following ‘volunteers’: Richard Greville, Ted Gummer, Paul Hadwin, Colin Pleavin and Peter Simpson.

Janet Parkin gave a short welcome speech and reiterated, as always,  how important it is not to forget the 1941 Greek Campaign and the sacrifices made.

This was followed by an address from our Chairman, David Sanderson. This is an abridged version of his speech:

`’Over one and a quarter million Axis forces were involved, against a combined Greek and Allied force of around 500,000, in the Battle for Greece. The German forces were not only larger, but they were better equipped, and, crucially, they had control over the skies. Britain had committed a force of approximately 60,000 personnel, made up principally of British, Australian and New Zealand troops – who arrived in Greece in early 1941.

It was an ill-fated campaign. Once Germany had invaded Greece on 6 April 1941, a decision was soon taken that the Allies should leave Greece for Crete – and so, a long journey started – to the southern ports of Nauplion, Monevasia,  Raffini and Kalamata. It was a perilous retreat – and soon – like Dunkirk, it turned into a race to move thousands of men by boat to somewhere safer. This time however, there weren’t hundreds of small boats waiting to take our forces away from danger – only the Royal Navy.

The Navy did a magnificent job – transporting around 52,000 of the 60,000 or so of our forces away to Crete. Unfortunately, around 8,000 men were left behind and most were taken as POW’s by the Germans to Stalag 18a in Wolfsberg,  Austria.

Each year when saying these few words,  I like to mention a couple of veterans for us to remember on this day. Today, I’m going to mention Allan Slocombe and George Dexter.

Sapper Allan Slocombe of the Royal Engineers, 292 Field Company, survived the bombing of the Clan Fraser, an ammunition ship in Piraeus harbour, which caused tremendous devastation in Piraeus. Allan was literally blown out of his bed by the explosion. His unit was subsequently involved with the blowing up of bridges in the retreat south. He was then involved in the street fighting which took place in Kalamata.

Once the decision had been made to surrender at Kalamata, Allan along with others set off along the coast and took shelter in a cave. After a few days Allan was captured and imprisoned at Corinth. He witnessed a visit by Heinrich Himmler and his SS entourage. He had to endure a fifty mile march to Salonica – before he eventually ended up in Marburg, Yugoslavia.

The other person I would especially like to remember is George Dexter of the Royal Army Service Corps. George was one of only 8 soldiers, 41 seamen and 1 officer to survive the sinking of SS Slamat on 27th April 1941. Of the 500 people on board the Slamat only 50 survived. As the Slamat was sinking (and still under dive bomb attack) HMS Diamond and HMS Wryneck went to her assistance. George was dragged aboard HMS Wryneck, only for that ship to also be sunk. He managed to scramble on to a rescue boat, and was eventually picked up by HMS Orion and taken to Crete. 843 men lost their lives on that day. Many years later, George commissioned  a memorial stone in honour of those who died on the day he was saved. The memorial stone sits here at the Greek Grove.

It is often claimed that the Greek campaign was not a complete disaster. By committing  some of his best divisions to Greece, Hitler delayed his planned invasion of Russia by six crucial weeks. Whether that was ever intended or not, the delay meant the Germans had to contend with the Russian winter, which undoubtedly contributed significantly to a Russian victory on the Eastern Front. I for one like to believe that is true, and that our parents/grandparents  did not go through what they did in vain.”

After David Sanderson’s address, six wreaths were laid by the following:

Captain Filias , Greek Defence Attaché;  Lieutenant Colonel Anthony Lias, Australian Defence Force;  and Brotherhood members Buster Beckett in memory of the Prisoners of War;  Mrs Margaret Stanbridge on behalf of the Widows;  Mark Buttery in memory of Deceased Members and Mr David Sanderson on behalf of the Brotherhood.

Barry Parkin gave the oration and acted as Parade Marshall.

 

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Kalamata 2024 – 83rd Anniversary of 1941 Greek Campaign.

This year, commemorations commenced on the Monday evening, 13th May, with a presentation at the Kalamata War/Military Museum on “The Battle of Kalamata April 28, 1941, People-Events-Memories”.

The next day, Tuesday, 14th May, the Service of Commemoration was held, as usual, at the Memorial in the Railway Park. A number of speeches were made.  The first was given by the Mayor, Mr Athanasios Vasilopoulos. This was followed by: Mr Periklis Mantas, Member of Parliament for Messinia representing the Greek Parliament; the Deputy Governor of Messinia, Mr Stathis Anatasopoulos; Captain Sam Law, Defence Attaché, British Embassy, Athens (who gave his speech in both Greek and English): Mr Lachlan Scully, Deputy Head of the Australian Mission, representing the Australian Ambassador;  Janet Parkin, on behalf of the Brotherhood; and Professor Marios Athanasopoulos with a historical account – and he also paid tribute to our dear, departed Nikos Zervis – a well-known historical author whose books include ‘Kalamata – Occupation-Resistance-Liberation’*. 

Janet Parkin reiterated that the sacrifices made in 1941 must not be forgotten and referred to the fact that 30 years ago in May 1994 her father, Edwin (Ed) Horlington had unveiled the memorial in the Railway Park where the ceremony was taking place; a memorial which represents a wonderful symbol of hope and acts a constant reminder of the sacrifices made by those brave men in those dark days of 1941. At the end of the speeches, Barry Parkin gave the oration.

Laurel wreaths were laid by the Mayor and other Greek dignitaries. Poppy tributes were laid by Captain Sam Law and by the following Brotherhood representatives:  David Sanderson in Remembrance of the Prisoners of War;  Mrs Di Billinge on behalf of the Widows; Doug (Buster) Beckett, In Memory of Deceased Members;  Ms Lorraine Gill on behalf of the Brotherhood of Veterans of the 1941 Greek Campaign; and Ms Jane Thomas on behalf of the British Residents of Kalamata.

As well as the official tributes, 30 small (nine inch) wooden crosses were fixed to the railings behind the Memorial – each one dedicated to a particular veteran. This was an initiative of Buster’s (Beckett) and the crosses were made by him. They looked very impressive and we are grateful to Buster for the time and effort he put into the project.

At the end of the service the town band played the national anthems and we then adjourned for refreshments to the cafeteria area of the Railway Park – generously hosted as usual by the Kalamata City Council. The following day there was excellent press coverage of the service with photos, including a front page feature in one of the local papers.

Lastly, we wish to  thank to Yannis Dritsas, Press and PR Officer at Kalamata City Hall for all his help and support.

* Two years ago, our Chairman, David Sanderson, had Nikos Zervis’s book translated into English and 100 copies printed.  All proceeds from sales, after deducting costs, go to the Brotherhood. If you are interested in acquiring a copy please email David at greekveterans@gmail.com. 

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New veterans added to website

We have added a few more veterans to our website this month: Tom Davies, Alan George McGuffey, James C Lutener, John Tsirindanis, Thomas Harold de Forges Garland, Norman Barton and Howard Greville. Please take a look and read about their amazing stories including Howard Greville’s book ‘Espionage behind the Wire’, James Lutener’s War Diary and John Tsirindanis time in Greece as an SOE agent.

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UK Reunion – 83rd Anniversary 7th September 2024

This year’s service will be held at The National Memorial Arboretum on Saturday 7th September 2024 at 11.30am in the Greek Grove or in the chapel if wet. Please contact us if you would like further information. And please email us at greekveterans@gmail.com if you would like to join us for refreshments after the service (so we can provide numbers for the catering) which have been arranged locally.

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UK Reunion – 82nd Anniversary 9th September 2023

We were pleased to be able to hold the service outside at The Greek Grove and we were delighted to welcome Captain Nikolaos Filias, HN, Greek Defence Attaché. Father John (Nankivell) led the service and two members of his congregation accompanied him. Four standards were carried by the following ‘volunteers’: Colin Pleavin, Peter Simpson, Barry Parkin and Ted Gummer. Janet Parkin gave a short welcome speech and reiterated, as always how important it is not to forget the 1941 Greek Campaign and the sacrifices made.

Our Chairman, David Sanderson, was unable to attend the service this year. He did, however, prepare something for the Service, which was read out by Geoff Swinnerton on David’s behalf.  An abridged version of it is shown below:

“By way of a reminder, the Battle of Greece involved over one and a quarter million Axis forces (by which I mean Italian and German forces), against a combined Greek and Allied force of around 500,000. The German forces were not only larger, but they were also better equipped, and, crucially, had control over the skies. Britain had committed a force of approximately 60,000 personnel to Greece, made up principally of British, Australian and New Zealand troops, who arrived there in early 1941.

It was, as we now know, an ill-fated campaign. When Germany invaded Greece on 6 April 1941 the decision was soon taken by the allies to leave mainland Greece for Crete, and so a long journey started to the southern ports of Nauplia, Monevasia, Raffinia and Kalamata. This was a perilous retreat, and soon became another Dunkirk. The Navy did a superb job, getting away around 52,000 of the 60,000 or so of our forces. Unfortunately, around 8,000 men were left behind,  and most of them were taken as POWs by the Germans to Stalag 18a in Wolfsberg, Austria.

We have with us today Ian Brown, who established the Stalag 18a website, and who has done so much to remember those men who ended up at Wolfsberg.

The Brotherhood was set up by Janet’s father in 1990. Edwin Horlington advertised in the National Press to find fellow veterans, and the idea of erecting a memorial in Kalamata was taken up. With contributions from veterans and with the support of Patrick (Paddy) Leigh-Fermor as Patron, a memorial was unveiled in 1994, and an annual service in commemoration has been held ever since in Greece. A book entitled Tell Them We Were Here was also published, containing accounts by veterans of their own experience in Greece. The Greek Grove in which we are now standing, was also established.

Each year we like to mention a couple of names for us to especially remember on this day. Today I’m thinking about Len Abbs and Captain Malcolm Young, both of whom were keen supporters of the Brotherhood.

Len Abbs, RAF 211 Squadron

Unusually for this group Len was in fact in the RAF, and trained in RAF photographic work. He was posted to 211 Squadron. Finding himself in Argos, he walked over mountain passes to Kalamata, where he was able to board HMS Hero. He was in a convoy of 7 merchant ships, 5 cruisers and 12 destroyers. In Len’s words: “It was not long before we were attacked. High-flying dive bombers. First attack they hit one merchant ship. Two cruisers, one each side, held her upright until they took 1,500 men off (500 lost). We limped into Alexandria harbour the next day”.

Len eventually left Egypt for the Far East, to Sumatra, where he was eventually taken as a POW. His story is well worth reading on our website.

 Captain Malcolm Young, Royal Engineers, 292 Company

Born in 1918 Captain Young was born in Leigh on Sea where his father ran a fleet of shrimp boats. The youngest of 11 children, he was taught to sail, which came in very useful when he tried to escape from Kalamata by buying and sailing a local fishing boat. Malcolm arrived in Greece in October 1940, to build and improve airfields for forthcoming RAF operations.

After purchasing a caique (fishing boat), Young and his nine fellow escapees were machine gunned by Stukas. One of his comrades was killed, and another badly wounded, forcing Captain Young ashore to seek medical treatment. There he was captured by an enemy patrol, and, after a forced march to Kalamata, taken to holding camps in Corinth and Salonika, and then by cattle truck to Oflag V-B near the Swiss border. The journey took a week. The windows were nailed up and the men transported in darkness. Many died. After the war Captain Young joined Young’s Seafoods and became a director.

It is claimed that the Greek campaign was not a complete disaster. By committing some of his best divisions to Greece, Hitler delayed his planned invasion of Russia by six crucial weeks. That delay meant the Germans hit the Russian winter, which undoubtedly contributed hugely to a Russian victory on the Eastern Front. I for one like to believe that that is true, and that our parents/grandparents did not go through what they did in vain.

It is very important that we remember the men who lost their lives, or who were badly injured doing what they were required to do for their country, and for our freedoms today.

Thank you all for doing that, by being here today. “

Five wreaths were laid, one by the Greek Defence Attaché plus Buster Beckett in memory of the Prisoners of War;  Mrs Anne Holmes on behalf of the Widows;  Mark Buttery in memory of Deceased Members and Mrs Carole Brown on behalf of the Brotherhood.  Geoff Swinnerton gave the oration and acted as Parade Marshall.  ‘Thank You’ to you all.

 

 

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Kalamata 2023 – 82nd anniversary of the 1941 Greek Campaign

This year the service of Commemoration was held on Tuesday 16th May.  The weather, however, was not on our side. It rained very heavily. Unfortunately, due to the bad weather, our special guest, Mr Nikos Chardalias, the Deputy Minister of National Defence, was unable to make the journey from Athens to join us for the service

The Mayor, Mr Athanasios Vasilopoulos welcomed everyone and gave the opening speech. This was followed by an address by Captain Alex Bush, the Defence Attaché of the UK.

Janet Parkin then gave a short speech, reiterating that the Greek Campaign must not be forgotten, and thanking the City of Kalamata for continuing to be so supportive and for organizing “this important Annual Act of Remembrance”.

After this, Mrs Eleni Volonaki, Professor of Ancient Philology, University of the Peloponnese, gave a very interesting talk about the 1941 Greek Campaign. Barry Parkin gave the oration.

Laurel wreaths were laid by the Mayor and other Greek dignitaries. Poppy tributes were laid by Captain Alex Bush and by the following Brotherhood representatives:  David Sanderson in Remembrance of the Prisoners of War;  Mrs Margaret Stanbridge on behalf of the Widows; Doug (Buster) Beckett, in Memory of Deceased Members;  Paul Hadwin on behalf of the Brotherhood of Veterans of the 1941 Greek Campaign and Mrs Di Billinge on behalf of the British Residents of Kalamata.

At the end of the service the town band played the national anthems. Then, the rain having stopped, we adjourned for refreshments in the Railway Park generously hosted as usual by the Kalamata City Council.

Many thanks to Astri Mavrea, Press and PR Officer at Kalamata City Hall for all her help and support.