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CHAPTER 4
The Campaign in Greece

Preparations for departure and last-minute issues of weapons and equipment—mosquito cream, anti-gas ointment, tommy guns—made busy the last days of February and the first three days of March. It rained most of the time, endless working parties were required to load platoon trucks or help in the battalion store, men were hard to find and tempers sometimes frayed. There were scores of rumours and much speculation about the battalion's destination, covering all possible battlefronts from the Far East to the Dodecanese Islands; parades for this and parades for that; a final session in the gas chamber to test respirators; a final session in Cairo and some farewell parties in the Naafi. On 3 March Major Burrows left Helwan with the transport for Amiriya, a bleak and dusty desert transit camp about 12 miles from Alexandria. Floods there delayed the departure of the rail party until the following morning, when, ‘loaded up to the eyebrows’, the troops clambered aboard 26 Battalion's transport and were taken in three flights to the Helwan railway siding and entrained, wearing topees, in drizzling rain. Several very disappointed officers and NCOs were left behind at 33 Infantry Training Depot to help train the recently arrived sections of the 4th Reinforcements.

The battalion detrained at Ikingi Maryut about half past six and was met by Major Burrows and company guides. As a climax to an uncomfortable day the men marched about two miles carrying all their gear. Some of the recent reinforcements who had not had the hardening training of the First Echelon men found this a severe ordeal.

The troops were housed in hastily erected tents. Although dust-storms made the following six days very unpleasant, company training was carried out. No leave was granted. The Naafi sold out of beer and Australians had burnt down the camp cinema. Rations were light and the nights were cold. No one was sorry to leave Amiriya.

The transport party was first to go. At Alexandria it was

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divided into two sections, the first leaving on 8 March under Captain Garriock¹ in the Thurland Castle and the Cingalese Prince; the last section—comprising eleven of the heavier lorries—did not get away until the 13th when it left in the City of Norwich.

There were only twenty-one New Zealanders in the Thurland Castle, the rest of the passengers belonging to an English armoured unit with Daimler scout cars. Dry rations were provided, the men cooking with primuses and receiving only tea from the ship. The troops lived, cooked, and slept on the deck, so the fine weather was welcome, particularly as the transport was only a tramp steamer, with no canvas covers or shelter of any kind. In the Cingalese Prince was another English armoured unit with infantry tanks. Men slept anywhere, chiefly on the top deck, and rations were similar to those provided in the other ship. Drivers took turn on ack-ack picket, manning the two Bren guns which were the ship's sole protection.

Three days later the convoy arrived at Piraeus and disembarked without incident. Driving through Athens the men received a tumultuous welcome from the crowds in the streets, who threw flowers and handed up wine. In the midst of this demonstration the convoy was split up and some trucks went miles out of their course before locating the camp at Hymettus, where they were to await the arrival of the infantry. Here a week was spent checking over trucks, sightseeing in Athens, and making first acquaintance with Greek food and wines.

On 11 March the rest of the battalion moved from Amiriya, again on foot with all gear. After a two-hours' wait at Ikingi Maryut they entrained for Alexandria and embarked on the Breconshire. The troops were housed in the holds without unreasonable crowding. Amenities were few and the men slept on steel decks. The ship, a modern cargo vessel, had been built in Hong Kong in 1939 and had been largely reconstructed and equipped as a Navy fuel-carrier. Some of the senior officers shared cabins with the ship's officers. The men were on hard rations during the crossing, receiving from the ship only soup at lunch-time and tea twice a day—at breakfast and at the evening meal.

The convoy—eight ships and two destroyers—sailed at 5 a.m.

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on 12 March. On the second day at sea a bad storm caused smaller vessels to seek shelter off Crete and visibility became so poor that the men felt comparatively safe from submarine attack, let alone danger from the air. Surprisingly few were sick.

In the evenings Crown-and-Anchor had its customary followers, while a few men began to learn Greek with help from the Cypriot troops on board. During the first morning at sea the battalion's destination had been announced when the Colonel read a special order of the day from General Freyberg. Unofficial information, of course, had come earlier from the ship's crew. In the best traditions of the sea the sailors were generous in their hospitality, and some men at least have pleasant recollections of a quiet rum in the seclusion of the ship's quarters or a fried egg in the galley.

During the voyage the Chief Officer explained the procedure to be adopted in the event of air attack or the order to abandon ship. The vessel was equipped with armour-plated decks and special bomb-proof hatches; the latter, incidentally, were on a level with the decks on which the men were sleeping and were calculated to deflect the force of an explosion upwards. The troops were not greatly encouraged by this information.

Apart from the storm the voyage was uneventful, and early on the morning of 15 March the convoy moved into Piraeus harbour. The men lined the decks for their first glimpse of Greece and of a landscape that reminded them of New Zealand. Treeclad hills capped with snow rose gradually to rugged mountains from whose heights swept an icy wind.

Disembarkation was rapid and well organised. The troops marched a short distance and embussed in transport. Even before leaving Piraeus the men received an enthusiastic greeting from the wharf labourers and inhabitants in the vicinity of the docks, a marked contrast to that received by several hundred bearded Italian prisoners who simultaneously marched through the streets of Athens to the accompaniment of derisive hissing. At this time the peculiar Greek wave of welcome, palm upwards, was noticed and was at first thought to be a beckoning sign, especially when waved by the younger and prettier of Athens's female population.

The route to the camp at Hymettus ran past the German Embassy in Athens, where the men noticed with great interest

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and a certain amount of incredulity the two large swastika flags hanging from the balcony and the jack-booted storm troopers with swastika armbands standing in the doorway. It was hard to realise that as yet Germany and Greece were not at war. The camp was situated on pine-covered grassy slopes in a large park several miles beyond Athens and later proved to be a most difficult place to find in a blackout.

On Sunday, 16 March, a crisp spring morning, the troops were awakened by the air-raid sirens in Athens. At the battalion church parade Padre Spence² compared the battalion's stormy crossing with Paul's experience of the Mediterranean and the Colonel gave a talk on the history of Greece in which he impressed upon the men that they were not to treat the inhabitants as ‘Wogs’. The same day orders were received that Major MacDuff was to command the reinforcement camp near Athens and Lieutenant Washbourn³ assumed command of A Company.

Leave was granted to 20 per cent of the battalion at a time and most men saw Athens. There they visited the Acropolis, the Palace gardens, and various places of historical interest, or as a relaxation from sightseeing passed the time in one of the many small wineshops which sold mavrodaphne, koniac, and even German beer. In the streets shabby Greek soldiers with the toes cut from their boots to ease the pain of frost-bitten feet provided a truer picture of their country at war than the striking looking Evzones in short kilt, tasselled slippers, and long white stockings.

Routine orders for this period stressed the danger of drinking contaminated water, warned all troops against the presence of fifth columnists, and stated the obligation to salute Greek officers. Great care was to be taken to conceal the camp from the air and a strict blackout was to be observed. Anti-aircraft LMGs were mounted and air-raid sentries posted.

On 17 March preparations were made for the move north to take up a defensive position in the Aliakmon line. It was not a smooth operation. A guide from No. 80 Base Sub-Area

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did not turn up till 8.30 a.m. on the 18th, over an hour after the battalion transport had left under Major Burrows for Katerini. Transport for the troops and their baggage had been arranged but word cancelling this was received at 11 a.m. In the end the baggage was loaded on to two ten-tonners found by the Adjutant. A, B, and C Companies marched to Rouf siding, while Headquarters and D Companies were carried in transport obtained from 19 Battalion, the Divisional Supply Column, and other units. During their march through Athens, again past the German Embassy, the troops received a great ovation from the crowds gathered on the roadway. Six officers and eighty other ranks were left behind in an infantry reinforcement depot at Hymettus.

The battalion's officers at this date, including those detached to remain behind as reinforcements, were:

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Second-Lieutenants Upham, Neilson, Green, and Gutzewitz had rejoined the battalion after passing through OCTU.

The Greek train consisted of two or three third-class carriages of ancient pattern, these being reserved for officers, flat cars for the Bren carriers, and steel wagons (Hommes 40, chevaux 8) each containing forty to fifty men. With such crowded conditions it was difficult to find room to lie down, and the lack of room for movement made the cold even more trying. To add to the discomforts of the train journey quite a number of the men suffered from acute diarrhoea, probably as a result of too good an acquaintance with the wine of Athens.

The train left about 4 p.m. and people all along the line gave the troops a rousing farewell; the Greeks were naturally heartened by the knowledge that the long-promised assistance for their own valiant but sorely-tried troops had at last materialised. Until dark the men lined the doors of their box-cars, waving to the hardy peasants at work in their fields.

During the next morning the train passed through rocky gorges in mountainous country, reminding the men of parts of the Christchurch–Arthur's Pass line without, of course, the dense West Coast bush. Near Larisa was an aerodrome on which there were about a dozen Wellington bombers and a few Hurricane fighters. It was not realised that this was about the whole of the Royal Air Force in Greece. After a breakfast of bully stew and tea, served by the RASC at Larisa, the train moved on towards Katerini. A fortnight earlier Larisa had experienced a violent earthquake, and about three days later the destruction had been added to by Italian bombers.

About three o'clock in the afternoon the battalion arrived at

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Katerini, detrained, and marched to billets in the town. Battalion Headquarters was located in the school, Headquarters Company was housed in the central barracks, C and D occupied various houses and sheds, while A and B found shelter in the local theatre. The town's children, many in ragged clothes, watched the troops settling in; few went home unrewarded.

Katerini was a typical Balkan town with narrow, crooked streets, whitewashed stone buildings, a central market-place where fresh vegetables could be obtained, many little wineshops, bakers' shops where the troops could buy fresh bread, and little street stalls where thin fillets of steak grilling on skewers over charcoal braziers emitted an appetising smell. A tin of bully beef could buy a number of nips of cognac. Clothes were cheap; food dear. Fraternising with the inhabitants, the troops were told that the Greeks would not defend Salonika but ‘a line of defence nearer us’, presumably the Aliakmon line which ran from the mouth of the Aliakmon River to the Yugoslav frontier at Mount Kaimakchalan. More heartening was the news that Yugoslavia had refused to join the Axis, while the information that the Greeks in Albania had captured Tepelene was the occasion for much celebration.

Next morning the CO left to reconnoitre the position the battalion was to occupy. The New Zealand Division was to take up a defensive position between 19 and 12 Greek Divisions in the Aliakmon line from the sea to Riakia, with 4 Infantry Brigade on the left on the general line of the road from Paliostani to Riakia, the main line of defence being along the ridge between those two villages. Dispositions within the brigade area placed the 20th on the left, with 12 Greek Division on its left flank, some miles away and out of sight and touch; the 18th on the right, with 19 Greek Division on its right flank; and 19 Battalion in reserve. These Greek divisions contained only two or three thousand men each, had little equipment, and only horse- or donkey-drawn transport.

All crossings over the Aliakmon River from the sea to Varvares had been prepared for demolition and were to be blown by 1 Armoured Brigade, which was operating in front of the Allied line and had the role of delaying the enemy advance by fighting and demolitions. There were also four weak Greek divisions along the Greek–Bulgarian frontier. The Toponitsa

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River provided an anti-tank obstacle along the brigade front and ditches were cut across the roads.

Twentieth Battalion's area, to quote the CO, was ‘very extensive, blinded by woods of stunted oak, and could be turned by the empty high ground on our left. It was vulnerable to infiltration tactics and I was very thankful that we never had to fight on it.’

In the afternoon the company commanders received their orders from the CO. B, C, D, and HQ Companies were to be disposed on the ridge and in Riakia village, with A Company in reserve in Riakia in a defensive position. The battalion had one battery of 6 Field Regiment in support, three guns of 31 Anti-Tank Battery and one section of 27 (Machine Gun) Battalion under command.

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The brigade defensive policy laid down that there was to be no withdrawal without orders from Brigade Headquarters. Main positions were to be prepared for all-round defence and held against full-scale attack. Crossings over the anti-tank obstacle were to be defended by light outposts which would retire slowly in the face of enemy attacks, offering resistance at every suitable position until back in the main line. Patrolling was to be carried out between defended localities at night and, in bad visibility, by day, and constantly between defended localities along the outpost line, which extended along the brigade front from the Toponitsa River to the Krasopoulis. The country north of the outpost line was to be reconnoitred and suitable tracks blazed to facilitate patrol operations when contact with the enemy was likely.

In order that the positions of the defended localities might not be disclosed unnecessarily, anti-aircraft machine guns were not to open fire unless enemy aircraft were obviously making or about to make a direct attack.

The priority of the work was given in the order of fire trenches; anti-tank obstacles; wiring; clearing scrub to provide fields of fire; and clearing scrub to provide lanes for patrolling between defended localities and the outpost line.

The unit transport had reached Katerini from Athens on 20 March and on the 21st the battalion moved to Riakia. It was a rough journey, the lorries bumping over bullock tracks and lurching through three fords. One vehicle overturned but there were no casualties beyond a few cuts and scratches. As compensation for the rough ride the cooks excelled themselves and provided an excellent meal.

Billets were arranged in the village for Battalion Headquarters, HQ, A and C Companies—the rent was 8s. 4d. per room per month—while B and D were given all available tents—there were not many—to bivouac in their company areas. Riakia was a rambling hillside village whose uneven cobbled streets wound through a cluster of stone cottages, poky wineshops, and smelly log corrals. A little apart stood the church and its bell-tower. Through the clear mountain air, as the men bedded down for the night, came the musical sound of goat bells as the herds were driven homewards.

During the ensuing seventeen days the battalion assiduously

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dug itself in and the village and most platoon positions were surrounded by a single-apron barbed-wire fence. The CO regularly inspected the work and with company commanders carried out reconnaissances of the area forward of the battalion's defences with the intention of going forward to engage the enemy should he come up the valley in front of the position. As a precaution, also, the CO tried to discover a way of retirement over the trackless foothills to the rear should the 20th have to get out. The greatest difficulty seemed to be the lack of a suitable route for the transport.

As a change from navvying the platoons, in turn, were granted a half-holiday. Usually the troops arranged picnics down a nearby valley at a pleasant spot beside a stream where small fish were caught and fried in mess tins. Already the first signs of spring had begun to appear. Oak trees were budding, while clusters of crocuses, primroses, and violets in the hedgerows reminded the men of spring at home. Near at hand was an old stone flour-mill at which the men daily watched the peasants arrive leading donkeys carrying heavy sacks of corn; the farmers waited while it was ground, and then, in time-honoured custom, paid the miller in kind.

After the initial strangeness had been overcome the troops billeted in houses soon became on friendly terms with their hosts and mastered the rudiments of the Greek language. To entertain the inhabitants a concert was arranged one evening in the churchyard by Padre Spence, who was assisted by Jack Ledgerwood⁴ of the YMCA. The Greeks were obviously interested, but the highlight of the entertainment was the rendering by local performers of the Greek version of ‘The Woodpecker's Song’ satirising Mussolini.

A few days after the battalion's arrival in the area the inhabitants began to tag on at the rear of the sick parade. The RMO, Captain Gilmour,⁵ gave them the same skilful treatment as he gave the troops. The first patient was a very frightened boy who had been badly scalded. He had literally to be dragged in by a parent on the first day. In three days he came by himself.

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Friendly relations were still further improved by a distribution of chocolate to the local school children. The Padre had acquired sixty cakes, which obviously would not go very far amongst so many troops. At first some difficulty was experienced in arranging to assemble the children, partly because of the language difficulty—no one in the battalion spoke Greek and none of the villagers seemed to know English—and partly because the children were at that time on holiday. However, the second-in-command, Major Burrows, and the local school-mistress both had some knowledge of French, and arrangements were accordingly made to bring the children back to school.

It was rather a pathetic little ceremony. The children first sang several of their school songs and then sat in open-eyed wonder as the Colonel, the 2 i/c, and the Padre distributed the chocolate. Seldom, if ever, had such luxury been seen in Riakia, but not one child opened the wrapping. Clutching their gifts tightly in grubby fists, they ran off to take the unopened cake home.

The Greeks, though poor, were extremely hospitable and did not hesitate to give the troops fresh bread, even at sacrifice to themselves. Everywhere the absence of men on military service was noticeable. The work on the farms was done by the women who, besides packing supplies for the Greek forces on the frontier, provided most of the labour for work on the roads.

Through battalion wireless sets and also through addresses by the CO at church parades, the men were kept well informed of the general situation with its alternating hopes and fears about the position in Yugoslavia; and it was no surprise when, on 6 April, word was received that Germany had declared war on Greece and Yugoslavia and was already attacking. The day before, the New Zealand Division had become part of 1 Australian Corps with 6 Australian Division and other British troops under General Blamey's command.

Rain and Greek summer time commenced on 7 April, and on the same day it was officially announced that the 2 NZEF was in Greece. Next day rain hindered work on the battalion's positions and about 7.30 p.m. the men were told to pack and be ready to move. The Yugoslavs' efforts had proved little obstacle to the German drive south.

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A report on the New Zealand Division's movements in Greece contains a summary of the events of the first days of the German attack. It reads:

(a)	At dawn on 6 Apr German tps in Bulgaria crossed the frontier into Greece moving down the river valleys of the four main routes from Bulgaria into Eastern Greece.
(b)	At the same time other German forces advanced into Southern Yugoslavia by three separate routes. Within two days these tps rapidly overcame all resistance and cut off communication with Greece. On the third day [8 April] this fast German mechanised force turned south and started to move towards Florina.
(c)	South of Florina there is a natural gap about 12 miles wide between the two mountain ranges that form a natural mountain barrier across Northern Greece. This gap is the only place really suitable for the passage of fast tanks and armd vehicles. Once the Germans obtained possession of this gap and further down a crossing over the Aliakmon River, mechanised vehicles could pour into Central Greece behind the posns of the Allied forces.
(d)	The speed of the German advance was so swift and the threat to the Florina gap so serious that the whole of the Allied front had to be reformed immediately.
(e)	The 4 Inf Bde together with att tps was moved at a few hours notice back over the Katerine Pass and up to Servia to meet this threat from the north….

It was a trying journey under miserable conditions. Rain fell, with intermittent snow, and the drivers were severely tested by the narrow roads. The unit transport left Riakia at 8.30 a.m., joining the column at the assembly area. A small rearguard was left in the village to destroy stores that could not be brought away. According to Private Blunden⁶ of A Company, later an escaped prisoner of war in this area, this was a most unfortunate measure. In the ensuing months escaped prisoners were frequently fed on bully beef salvaged at this time by the Greeks. Impressions of the trip are quoted from two battalion diarists.

Private Glue of D Company writes:

8 April—About 7.30 p.m. we were told to pack and be ready to move. Waited around and tried to snatch a bit of sleep (no luck) under a tent fly until 1 a.m. Breakfast, then away at 2 o'clock—

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marched for two hours over hilly road with pack and overcoat. Lay round on the road for another hour and a half waiting for a guide. Slept a bit and woke up very cold.

9 April—…. On the way again from 5.40 till 8 a.m.—must have gone between 10–11 miles. Fairly hard going—everybody a bit tired. Stopped for three hours in a clearing. [Major Paterson] said we had to shave, which wasn't well received. Felt a lot better afterwards though. Another half-mile then into transport—20 in one truck is cramped for long journeys. More than the usual waiting about and stops—several because of blocked petrol feed. Most of the convoy passed us and it was 8 p.m. and raining like hell when we arrived. Dinner wasn't ready until after 10 o'clock and it was still raining hard so went to bed. Blankets, overcoat, feet, everything wet….

10 April—Most miserable night I've ever spent. Slept for a few hours then lay in wet blankets until morning—shivered so much I nearly rattled to bits. Was thoroughly fed up with the army. Bitter wind off the snow. Poor breakfast, but what a hunger. Dried some of the blankets in the wind, then away again at 10.30. Marched about a mile into a village [Lava] where we sleep in a straw barn….

Wally Kimber,⁷ of the Bren-carrier platoon, recorded his impressions at the time:

9 April—Moved at 8.30 a.m. (supposed to move at 6.30) worst convoy ever been in—a lot of stops—carriers broke down or ran out of petrol. Lost convoy, camped in Greek police station. Shifted about sixty-four miles through a very pretty pass (Olympus) in mountains. Some roads were clay tracks through scrub, others good but steep and plenty of bends. Slept out in open—very wet and cold.

10 April—Rejoined convoy in morning. Some lorries had capsized. More rain. Dug in allotted area.

The destination had originally been given as Kato Filippaioi but on arrival there the convoy was directed by the Brigade Intelligence Officer to go another 22 miles to near a village called Lava. Next morning, 10 April, companies began to prepare defensive positions. Fourth Brigade's task was to occupy a defensive position on the general line Kastania–Servia–Prosilion to prevent enemy penetration from north and east; the position was to be held at all costs, with no question of withdrawal. Eighteenth and 19th Battalions were forward, holding positions south of Servia town, while the 20th, plus

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two Australian machine-gun platoons and a troop of anti-tank guns, was in reserve astride the road back through the pass. D Company occupied positions in Lava village, on the high ground right of the road. A and C Companies, the latter in reserve, occupied flattish ground in the centre, while B Company spread over a spur to the left of the road.

A description of the area is quoted from the brigade report on its operations in Greece:

…. The country was mountainous, and very steep, Kastania being 3000 ft above sea level or 2100 ft above the valley of the Aliakmon River which lay 4 miles to the north of Servia. Servia itself was at the 1500 ft level with very steep slopes rising to Kastania to the SE….

West of Servia a narrow precipitous rocky ridge 2600 ft high and almost unscaleable on the northern side, extended for 4500 yards

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towards Proselion. This ridge was separated from Servia by a narrow precipitous gorge at its eastern end, and at its western end from a similar but higher ridge North of Proselion by a pass about 500 yds wide, through which ran the main road from Servia in a SE direction to Elasson, and a minor road SW to Mikrovalton.

The line of forward defended localities presented a complete tank obstacle except along these roads and at their junction, while a difficult route led via Point 675 to Polirrakhon. Four anti-tank ditches existed in the vicinity of Prosilion, three to the north on either side of the road, and one to the south.

As reserve battalion the 20th was required to cover with machine-gun fire the gorge immediately west of Servia and to maintain one company (B) on Point 1019, with routes reconnoitred to Point 1096 in readiness to meet enemy movement over high ground to the left of the battalion.

The brigade report describes the position:

The Servia–Elasson rd from Proselion to the SE passed through a valley flanked by hills 4000 ft high for a distance of 8 miles, the valley narrowing from 2500 yds wide opposite Lava to a mere slit in its southern end. The road was well graded but exceedingly tortuous and steep in places, the width being just sufficient for two-way traffic. Owing to precipitous sides vehicles could be got off the rd at very few places and then only with difficulty. The valley generally was devoid of scrub or trees…. Enemy observation except over fwd slopes was nil, apart from very long range view through the two gaps near Servia and Proselion.

Good Friday, 11 April, dawned fine but cold and rain followed with heavy fog. Next day snow fell again so that the digging of weapon pits continued under difficulties, but with greater zest when word was received that the enemy might be expected the following day. One section of D Company had to dig its posts in a cemetery and gained a very full knowledge of Greek burial customs. German bombing was observed down the gorge in front and Greeks in Lava took to sleeping in caves in the hill above the village. Old men with rifles patrolled the village.

On 12 April the name of 1 Australian Corps was changed to that of Anzac Corps. Large numbers of refugees began to stream back through the area and No. 15 Platoon C Company, under Lieutenant Upham, was sent to establish a check post behind 19 Battalion at the crossroads, one of which led north

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from Servia Pass to Servia. The platoon's orders were to stop unauthorised persons, refugees, and fifth columnists from streaming back and blocking the roads. The British and Greek troops holding the gap near Florina had been forced out of position. Remnants of an Australian brigade came back in good order in transport, but many Greeks struggled back on foot. A party of Yugoslavs, including some very senior officers, came back with four brand-new 88-millimetre Skoda ack-ack guns drawn by caterpillar tractors. This battery was later located near Battalion Headquarters but was very short of ammunition. During the next two days it engaged enemy planes until it ran out of ammunition, and on the afternoon of 14 April—‘without by your leave or ask you’, according to 6 Field Regiment's commander—pulled out for an unknown destination and was never heard of again.

The Greek interpreter with Upham's check post was of very little use as most of the Greek soldiers coming through spoke only Turkish; and he was also very jittery. Enemy aircraft accurately bombed the road junction and machine-gunned some vehicles. It was later believed that a large number of fifth columnists, including Germans and Bulgarians in Greek uniform, passed through. The small section of Greek military police with the platoon shot out of hand some men and youths who they said were Bulgarians and German spies.

German artillery advanced right up to the river and began exchanging shots with our 25-pounders located near Brigade Headquarters at the top of the hill. Quite a number of Australians who had been cut off at Kozani infiltrated through the advancing Germans, crossed the Aliakmon, and rejoined our forces.

Greek soldiers presented a pathetic appearance as they straggled along the grassy sides of the road carrying their boots in one hand and rifle in the other. Almost every man had kept his rifle with him. It was believed that rifles were about the only arms their division possessed. The Greeks said there was a general order for every man in the Greek Army to go home as best he could. Numbers of Greek horsed transport also passed; some of the horses had been hit by shrapnel.

About this time a welcome addition to the battalion transport was a black Ford V8 car found abandoned on the side

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of the road and taken over by one of the drivers, Private ‘Barney’ Homann.⁸ It was used by Major Burrows.

On Easter Sunday the war reached 20 Battalion. About 6.30 p.m. enemy aircraft dive-bombed 15 Platoon at the crossroads and three men, Lance-Corporal McKegney,⁹ and Privates Casford¹⁰ and Laird,¹¹ were wounded. The ack-ack platoon replied spiritedly with Bren fire.

On 14 April work on the defences continued. Enemy ‘spotters’ flew over several times to inspect the work and in the afternoon a flight of four yellow-nosed fighters machine-gunned platoon and gun positions. During the day the battalion, less one company, was ordered to move to a defensive position on the left of 19 Battalion. The purpose of the move was to link up with the right flank of 19 Australian Brigade across the river. The right battalion of this brigade was the attached 26 NZ Battalion which had passed through 4 Brigade's area the previous afternoon.

During a reconnaissance of the new area the CO, Adjutant, and company commanders were machine-gunned by enemy aircraft. That night the battalion, less C Company left in reserve, moved out at short notice. The convoy was machine-gunned before the start and heavily shelled at ‘Hellfire Corner’ in the Servia Pass, though without casualties. Much credit for the move must go to the unit drivers. There were vehicle collisions and traffic blocks, but someone always straightened things out and the convoy kept going. In this connection it is fitting to record the efforts of Corporal Frank Scott,¹² transport NCO, who not only cleared traffic blocks and organised a transport group for movement after his own vehicle had been immobilised, but returned next day with a driver and, in spite of heavy shellfire and air attack, recovered and repaired his vehicle.

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During a break in the convoy a D Company truck became the leader of a small section. Apparently the driver did not hear the shouted direction to turn left at the corner of Servia Pass and went straight on until the vehicles were stopped by some Australian engineers who were laying booby traps. Getting the trucks turned around was quite a job and the D Company cooks' truck got stuck. The crashing of gears and the noise appalled the Aussies, who were working in strict silence.

Cold, tired, and dirty, the troops moved into their new positions on the left of 19 Battalion on a high, steep ridge overlooking the village of Rimnion. A Company was on the right, B in the centre, and D on the left on forward slopes. One troop of 31 Anti-Tank Battery and two platoons of Australian machine-gunners were under command, and artillery support was provided by ? Australian Field Regiment under Lieutenant-Colonel Strutt. Boundaries were clearly defined and, as the battalion's front was beyond the range of the field artillery covering the brigade front, the CRA arranged for 7 Medium Battery to provide fire on approaches to the battalion area.

The digging of the defences on 15 April was interrupted by periodic bombing and machine-gunning by enemy aircraft in spectacular dive attacks which were ‘impressive without always being effective’. The battalion suffered one casualty, Private Pat Kelly¹³ being killed, but the anti-tank troop had three killed and two wounded. The enemy had complete command of the air, none of our aircraft being sighted. Air sentries were posted and in between the raids work went steadily on.

During the day enemy transport could be seen advancing, and at 2 p.m. enemy infantry attempting to cross the river were shelled and dispersed by the artillery. At one stage the battalion mortars fired without effect on what were believed to be troops crossing the river but which proved later to be refugees. It was obvious that the enemy was rapidly closing up on the brigade front and there were reports of an attack in 19 Battalion's area. Members of B Company observed activity on a landing field to the north-east and their OC called for artillery fire. No action was taken but the field was later bombed by a small force of Blenheims.

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Next morning D Company patrols were unable to make contact with 26 Battalion on the left flank. Far below parties of infantry could be seen crossing the river, apparently in retreat. Brigade had no information. Major Burrows went out to ascertain the position and finally met an officer who had returned to look for some missing men. Nineteenth Australian Brigade and 26 Battalion had withdrawn south during the night and had not notified 20 Battalion. D Company was withdrawn from its now-exposed position and occupied Hill 808 to cover the left flank.

Shortly afterwards orders were received from Brigade to destroy all unnecessary gear and be prepared to move back that night to the previous position near Lava. The order to move arrived at nightfall. While bringing it the despatch rider took the wrong turning in the Servia Pass and rode right up to within reach of German patrols before being turned around by Australian engineers. With the complete plans for the withdrawal in his satchel, he would have been a valuable prize. These were hazardous times for those responsible for communications, but they stuck to their job through shelling and air activity. While carrying a message from the battalion to Brigade Headquarters on 15 April, Private Hopkins¹⁴ of Headquarters Company was severely wounded in the head. Though in much pain, he rode a further three miles in the darkness and delivered his message.

Throughout the period at Servia members of the signal platoon maintained battalion communications most effectively. For three days and nights Privates Spilman¹⁵ and Scott¹⁶ repaired lines between Brigade Headquarters and 18 Battalion under shellfire and during air raids. Both men were awarded the Military Medal.

At 8 p.m. the move back to the Lava area began. Transport moved by the narrow, winding road, cut out of a steep cliff and with its corners cambered the wrong way. The night was pitch dark, no lights were used, and a man had to walk by the

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running board of each vehicle where the driver could just see him. Towels were hung from the rear of trucks as marks for the drivers following. One 30-cwt truck went through a culvert and had to be abandoned, while a 15-cwt water cart, a Bren carrier, and two motor-cycles went over the bank and had to be left behind. At Prosilion an Australian 25-pounder blocked the corner and Major Burrows ordered it to be pushed over to allow the column to proceed. During this move, and also the one on 14 April, the provost detachment proved its efficiency. Private ‘Pop’ Lynch¹⁷ was mentioned in despatches for his fine work in policing bad corners and for directing the convoy under heavy shellfire at ‘Hellfire Corner’.

In some places there were shell or bomb craters in the road. One Headquarters Company truck became stuck in one of these and had a bad lean to one side. The vehicle following was a huge British lorry towing a field gun. There was no hope of passing, and in the rain and the dark the driver backed this difficult combination along the tortuous road to a place where the truck following him (and driven by the battalion LAD sergeant) could pass. The sergeant, Tom Drummond,¹⁸ soon organised things and pulled out the stranded truck. During this ‘schemozzle’ a British officer in charge of the big lorry and gun caused something of a sensation by asking with typical sangfroid and in a most distinctive voice, ‘Oh, Meadows, hand down my attache case and orange drink.’

The rifle companies experienced their toughest march to date. They were led by guides from the intelligence section who had partly reconnoitred a route across country in daylight, but it proved difficult to follow at night. Rain fell most of the time and the march across the hills to avoid ‘Hellfire Corner’ took over eight hours, the men wading through creeks and scrambling up slippery banks. Most of them arrived in the old area exhausted but there were no stragglers. In A Company big Tom Dalton¹⁹ showed considerable determination and kept up in spite of a badly injured ankle.

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As Battalion Headquarters had been shelled rather heavily it was shifted into Lava. While in the village the Colonel, MO, and Adjutant had a narrow escape when a shell came through the roof of their building and exploded weakly in the next room, slightly wounding a pig. The CO, while shaving, received a scratch on the face from a splinter of wood. About this time the troops saw the unusual spectacle of a flight of Blenheim bombers going northwards through the pass while German planes passed them going south. Although within a few hundred yards of each other, neither group took any notice of the other.

About 11 a.m. the CO was summoned to Brigade to receive instructions regarding the withdrawal. The left flank of the Allied line was again in danger of being encircled owing to the German drive south and west from the gap at Florina, so that it became necessary to withdraw to a shorter line—known as the Thermopylae line—which it was hoped to hold from coast to coast. Fourth Brigade Group would pull out that night, 17–18 April. Twentieth Battalion would take over the rearguard, Colonel Kippenberger was to control the demolitions which the sappers were preparing on the road, and everybody was to be out of the pass by 3 a.m.

During the afternoon the battalion transport was moved to the assembly area south of Point 1142. B Echelon moved under the command of Major Burrows and passed through Larisa and Lamia to Molos. On the way progress was slow because of traffic jams which, however, were capably sorted out by Australian military police. The convoy was subjected to frequent bombing and aircraft spotters travelled on the roofs of all vehicles. No casualties were reported, although at sudden halts when the troops dived for ditches one or two who had gone too far afield were left behind but arrived later. After passing Lamia the troops saw it badly damaged in an air raid. On arrival at Molos the vehicles were dispersed and camouflaged.

The withdrawal of the brigade and attached troops began at 8 p.m. D Company went into position about Lava to check out 18 Battalion, while B Company set up a post astride the main road to check out the 19th. C Company, being the freshest, and one platoon of A Company were detailed to provide flank guards and posted along the spurs on the east of

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the road back through the pass. A Company, back in its old position, was to cover B and D Companies. It was to keep in close contact with D Company and was not to retire until D Company did so. All three companies were then to retire to the transport assembly position south of Point 1142. C Company would retire on the order of the CO, who had established on the road a Main Control Post consisting of a detachment of four Bren carriers, an RAP truck, an attached WT truck, the IO, the Intelligence Sergeant and the Provost Sergeant. This party joined Lieutenant Kelsall²⁰ of 6 Field Company and a demolition party of sappers at the first demolition site at 7 p.m.

During the day conditions had been wet and misty with poor visibility, enabling the artillery to withdraw in daylight. Towards 3 p.m., however, visibility suddenly improved and vehicle movement was almost certainly seen by the enemy, both from the ground and also from a reconnaissance aircraft. During the afternoon Lava village was quite heavily shelled, the track from the village to the main road receiving particular attention. Many of the shells were duds. The enemy had apparently guessed that a withdrawal was to take place. Throughout the whole night harassing fire was maintained on the village, on the track leading to the main road, and along the road itself. About midnight a very heavy concentration was put down on Lava village and on A Company's area, but there was no sign of an attack.

Nineteenth Battalion began to come through the forward control posts about 9 p.m. and the whole battalion was through in good order before midnight. Prior to this a section of Bren carriers, under Second-Lieutenant Green,²¹ had been sent up to hold B Company's position astride the road with instructions for the company to withdraw as soon as 19 Battalion was through. B Company came through in good order soon after midnight.

Owing to the difficulties of communication it was not known by which route 18 Battalion would retire, but it was expected that some companies would come through Lava and that the rest would withdraw along the high ground above the village.

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The first of the 18th appeared about 2 a.m., but by 4 a.m. only two companies had passed through and these did not know the whereabouts of their battalion headquarters and the other two companies, or their line of withdrawal. Eighteenth Battalion's CO, Lieutenant-Colonel Gray,²² arrived about this time and reported that two of his companies were still on the hill route but that he did not know where they were. It was decided to withdraw the remaining two 20 Battalion companies, A and D, which were still forward, and orders were sent to that effect. Actually Major Paterson, commanding D Company, had discovered that no more of 18 Battalion were to come through his position and was already withdrawing with his company and A Company. He passed through shortly after Colonel Gray and went on to the assembly point. Lieutenant Green's carrier section was then called in and posted on the road some 300 yards to the north of the culvert which was to be blown. For some time small parties of the 18th continued to appear in the riverbed below the road and Colonel Kippenberger directed Captain Lyon²³ of that battalion to collect transport and bring it up to carry the exhausted stragglers to the assembly point. This was done.

There was a risk that enemy infantry following up the withdrawal might outflank the rear party and cut off its retreat, and a still further danger that demolition parties farther south, which were not under the control of Lieutenant Kelsall, might blow their charges too soon. Deciding to wait for the other 18th companies, Colonel Kippenberger sent the IO, Lieutenant Teddy Dawson,²⁴ down the road as far as Elasson to ensure that no charges were blown until the rear party had passed through. The RAP and wireless trucks were also sent off with the Provost Sergeant.

About 5 a.m. the other two 18 Battalion companies arrived in the creek bed below the first demolition, and when they reached the road they were sent on to the assembly area in Captain Lyon's transport. Their late arrival through exhaus-

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tion delayed the blowing of the first charge till 5.40 a.m., while further stragglers caused the second demolition to be held till 6.20 a.m. Finally, the rear party moved down the pass, the last of the charges being blown at 8 a.m. C Company, guarding the flank behind the rear party, had left a runner by the side of the road. He was sent back with a message to withdraw and the company arrived in notably good order and passed through the rearguard.

From then on the rear party was harassed by enemy aircraft which halted the column three times. Near the Elevtherokhorion crossroads, where the road from Mount Olympus joined that from Servia, the air attack was supplemented by fire from two German medium tanks sitting in the middle of the Olympus road. Carrier action was attempted with sappers acting as infantry, supported by fire from a two-pounder gun from 34 Anti-Tank Battery. The arrival of another enemy tank and the approach of many trucks of lorried infantry, ‘all sitting upright like tin soldiers', made the odds too great. ‘I counted seven, more in the distance, and rightly or wrongly decided that the odds were too heavy and we must run,’ wrote Colonel Kippenberger. The rear party had already had several men killed. The head of Kelsall's party reached the crossroads safely, but the trucks farther back in the convoy were cut off and about forty sappers were captured.

The seven survivors ran across ploughed ground on which the carriers had stuck and climbed to shelter behind a steep bank. Led by the Colonel, they made a wide detour across country in an attempt to join up with the rearguard at Elasson. At various stages when the little party emerged from cover it was fired on by artillery from either side in turn and once by both sides simultaneously. Two men semaphored with handkerchiefs to Australian gunners, ‘We are NZedders escaping’, whereupon fire from that quarter ceased. When in view of their own guns the party moved in a solid clump, all waving their jackets furiously and trying to look as little like soldiers as possible. Under German eyes the group adopted a more soldierly formation, extending to forty paces apart and moving in bounds from cover to cover. About 4 p.m. the party, almost exhausted from its ten-mile cross-country tramp after two sleepless nights, passed through the forward posts of 25 Battalion,

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which was holding the rearguard position south of Elasson, and was picked up by 26 Battalion transport. The party rejoined 20 Battalion near Molos late in the afternoon of 19 April.

The convoy carrying the rifle companies had had quite a fair journey as far as Larisa. However, between this town and Molos the road was badly congested and the column was continually harassed from the air. Transport was bombed and troops running to cover were strafed. There were casualties, though surprisingly few, in vehicles and men.

The RAF—‘Rare as Fairies’ and other more pungent translations of these initials—received bitter criticism from the troops for its failure to protect the convoys from the air, but it could not fairly be asked to take all the blame. Road discipline was bad, unit convoys became broken up, and conflicting orders, ‘by various authorities at various points’, to disperse off the roads or to push on without stopping caused confusion.

The laconic notes of the diarists are better than a lengthy description of the journey. Private Bill Glue writes:

17–18 April—Good quick going at night—the Huns were keeping on our tail with their artillery. Early morning outside Larissa … Hun spotter came over…. Hell of a jam. Hun planes bombed the road and when we dispersed they came down and machine gunned and bombed us. Truck next to ours was set on fire. Was covered with flying earth from a near one—sheltered in the hole it made…. Lost all my gear when our truck moved out in a hurry without half of us. Bombed and strafed at intervals from 2 o'clock until dusk— not dark now until nearly 9 p.m. How slow it was coming. We did fairly well by pushing ahead and not stopping for the raids…. Some steep pinches over the pass…. Joined our own outfit and had a grouse breakfast of porridge and bully stew—first real meal for days. Borrowed the doings to shave off four-day-old beard—hard going. Short of lots of gear but managed to rummage about and make one from the left-overs. Molos.

Trucks set alight and pushed over the bank all along the road. … Some of [our drivers] had been driving continuously for 50 hours….

Wally Kimber of the Bren-carrier platoon writes:

17–18 April—Stand-to duties at brigade headquarters most of the day and then took up Bren gun covering positions around the embussing position and spent the night at this job in the rain. The Germans were shelling the main road below us and the side of a hill we were behind, not doing much harm as most of the shells landed in a stream below.

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By 5 a.m. the MT had got away so we went too. Another carrier had gone over the bank in the darkness and had to be abandoned. We were the last to get round the junction of the road [Elevtherokhorion] before the German tanks put in an appearance. After Larisa we got the works good and properly—bombing and strafing until it was too dark for the pilots to see properly in the hilly country. After Larisa we ran into various other units, Tommies, RE,²⁵ Machine Gunners, Royal Artillery, Medical, Australian, and the Armoured Div., all with the same idea—getting out as fast as possible. Once the Jerry air force put in an appearance it was just a mad rush—a lot of the time trucks were two or three abreast and tanks mixed up with them. The bombing of harmless villages was awful but the storks still stuck to their nests.

Camped for the night about 12 p.m.—our third night on end without sleep—worst day ever spent in my life.

19 April—Left camp area 6.30 a.m. Went through Lamia about 8 a.m. Arrived Molos 9.30 a.m. after running the gauntlet for twenty-seven hours. 127 miles by Bren carrier.

During the withdrawal there were many individual actions worth recording. Lieutenant Dawson had been mortally wounded while gallantly engaging enemy aircraft with a Bren gun. Similarly, Lieutenant Poole,²⁶ who between Larisa and Molos was wounded in the knee and was unable to leave his truck during raids, engaged enemy aircraft with a Bren gun from the back of the truck, helped by some of his men of 12 Platoon. Private Strang, ²⁷ also of B Company, performed a useful service in an emergency after the driver of his truck disappeared during an air raid near Larisa. Extricating his vehicle from a difficult position, Strang drove for sixteen hours through several more raids and by his coolness and courage set a valuable example.

The trucks continued to straggle in to the little village of Skarfia, two miles east of Molos, throughout the day and night of 19 April, and for the next two days the battalion rested in a beautiful spot, engaged in coastwatching, and was joined by the stragglers, some of whom arrived by road and others by boat across the Gulf of Lamia. At this stage the main task of the New Zealand Division was to defend the Thermopylae Pass.

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Fifth Brigade, later joined by 6 Brigade, covered the front, while 4 Brigade was in reserve, two miles east of Molos. Fourth Brigade's duties included coastwatching as far east as Cape Knimis —allotted to 20 Battalion; the taking of a census of boats in readiness for use if required for evacuating troops from the north shore of the gulf, east of Lamia; the provision of carrier patrols and infantry detachments to attack paratroops or boat landings near the south shore.

At 3 p.m. on 20 April C Company under Major Cliff Wilson, with under command one section of 25-pounders, one section of anti-tank guns and three despatch riders, left for Stilis, ten miles east of Lamia, to prevent an enemy advance from the east until dumps in Stilis had been cleared and to secure the line of withdrawal of Lee Force from Dhomokos through Lamia. A detachment of the New Zealand Divisional Cavalry was to be east of Stilis holding a demolition. About 8.30 p.m. Major Wilson reported to Headquarters 4 Brigade that the CRE NZ Division (Lieutenant-Colonel Clifton²⁸) in Stilis had informed him that ‘… there was no Divisional Cavalry east of that village and that he should withdraw about 9.30 p.m. when he [CRE] would have finished his task in Stylos; and that Lee Force had been reduced to a weak battalion.’

In accordance with this message Major Wilson placed a detachment of 25-pounders and two-pounders and some infantry in the vicinity of Lamia to secure his withdrawal, which was accomplished without incident.

While the battalion rested in the Molos area, considerable bombing and strafing of the coast road took place. The enemy bombers had no fighter escorts, apparently confident of their immunity from attack. On one occasion, however, Hurricane fighters were seen to shoot down several enemy aircraft. It was here that the majority of the troops first saw the vapour trails left by high-altitude fighters.

On 21 April the battalion was ordered to take up a defensive position from Karia village to Cape Knimis. A and C Com-

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panies were allotted the higher ground round Karia, B Company was on the beach, and D in mobile reserve. The move began at dusk. Next morning A and C Companies had no sooner scaled their precipitous heights and expended considerable energy in hauling up ammunition than orders were received from Brigade that, owing to the capitulation of the Greeks, all British forces were to withdraw from Greece.

The plan was that 4 Infantry Brigade would move in transport during the night 22–23 April to occupy a position south of Thebes, in the vicinity of Kriekouki, to cover the withdrawal of the New Zealand and Australian divisions. No movement was to take place in daylight, and units unable to complete the journey in darkness would lie up on the way until the following night. After orders for the withdrawal were received all surplus gear was destroyed, including blankets, winter underclothing, cooking utensils, gas respirators, and bicycles. After dark the battalion moved to a bivouac area north of Thebes which had been reconnoitred by Major Burrows. Men and vehicles remained hidden in the olive groves during the day, 23 April, successfully avoiding observation by German aircraft. In the haste of the withdrawal Lance-Sergeant Findlay,²⁹ accidentally left behind at Thermopylae, remained at his post for a further twenty-four hours and then returned with 5 Brigade.

After reconnaissance of the defensive position by the CO and company commanders, the battalion moved at 8 p.m. in transport to the summit of Kriekouki Pass, where the troops debussed and took up their positions on the left of the road, with 18 Battalion (less carriers) on the right, and 19 Battalion (less carriers) in reserve. In the 20 Battalion area C Company was allotted the right flank, with B in the centre and A on the left. D Company was in reserve. B Echelon was located south of the crossroads from Villia. The battalion had in support one battery from ? Australian Field Regiment and shared with 19 Battalion the support of three machine-gun platoons, an anti-tank battery, and one ack-ack battery.

Instructions from Brigade ordered the most careful concealment to prevent the enemy from discovering the presence of a large force in the area. Ack-ack fire was forbidden except in the event of serious air attack. There was to be complete wireless

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silence. Active patrolling was to be carried out at night. By day the majority of the troops were to be in rear of the forward slopes ready to move at short notice. False flanks of detached posts and snipers were to be used on the high ground on the flanks. The battalion's carriers were to patrol well out on the left flank.

The battalion's forward defended localities were roughly from the main road two miles west along the 600-metre contour to its junction with a track leading round to Villia. The ground was too rocky to permit much digging, which in any case was undesirable owing to lack of camouflage and would have betrayed the defences, but where possible stone sangars were built. With the exception of one hill sparsely covered with bush the area was devoid of cover. Enemy planes passed frequently overhead firing bursts from their machine guns, but so good was the discipline of the men as a result of their experience further north that during these reconnaissance flights each

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man remained motionless and planes searched in vain. Water was scarce and the only well was situated some distance from the road. This necessitated long treks, frequently interrupted by enemy aircraft, when