28 October Italian forces invade Greece.
23 November Romania joins the Tripartite Pact.
13 December Adolf Hitler issues War Directive No. 20 outlining the planned invasion of Greece, Operation Marita. German troops enter Romania.
18 December War Directive No. 21 is issued, concerning the planned attack on the Soviet Union, Operation Barbarossa.
1 March Bulgaria joins the Tripartite Pact and German troops prepare to enter the country.
5 March British Expeditionary Force prepares to enter Greece.
25 March Yugoslavia signs the Tripartite Pact.
26 March Anti-royalist coup in Yugoslavia leads to the repudiation of the Tripartite Pact.
27 March War Directive No. 25 is issued outlining Operation Strafe, the invasion of Yugoslavia.
6 April Germans launch simultaneous invasions of Yugoslavia and Greece, and the Luftwaffe begins air bombardment of urban targets, including Belgrade.
7 April Operation Barbarossa postponed until 22 June. The Metaxas Line broken by German mountain troops.
10 April Axis forces capture Zagreb.
12 April Belgrade falls to German troops.
14 April XVIII Gebirgs Corps penetrates the Mount Olympus defence line and takes Kateríni.
15 April Generalmajor Student submits his plan for the invasion of Crete to Reichsmarschall Göring.
16 April Sarajevo falls to XLVI Panzer Corps.
17 April Churchill gives General Sir Archibald Wavell permission to withdraw ‘W’ Force from Greece.
18 April German armistice with Yugoslavia comes into effect.
25 April War Directive No. 28 covering the proposed invasion of Crete, Operation Merkur, is issued.
26 April German 2nd Fallschirmjäger Regiment assaults bridge over Corinth Canal and captures the town.
27 April Athens falls to German forces.
29 April Kalámai falls, German forces reach the southern coast of Greece.
30 April Allied evacuation ends. Some 25,000 Allied troops have been evacuated to Crete and so Wavell appoints Major General Bernard Freyberg to command the garrison.
1 May The Luftwaffe starts its bombardment of Crete.
16 May 2nd Battalion, the Leicestershire Regiment arrives on board the cruisers of Force ‘B’ while heavy air attacks occur on Heraklion, Maleme, Souda Bay and Hania.
18 May Air raids continue on Heraklion and Maleme, while HMS Glengyle lands the 1st Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders (A&SH) at Tymbaki.
A group of New Zealand troops taking a break in the shade of some trees in a transit area between Hania and Galatos, shortly after they arrived on Crete in late April 1941. They were involved in the final rearguard action before the withdrawal from the island. (Alexander Turnbull Library, DA-01110)
German Gebirgsjäger from Julius Ringel’s 5th Gebirgs Division (as given away by the standard German infantry equipment, including the helmet) preparing to board their transports for the journey to Crete, during the early stages of the operation in May 1941. (Alexander Turnbull Library, DA-01313)
A group of Allied soldiers, on the run from the occupying Germans, take cover behind bamboo and oats that were often used for protection in Crete – photographed by Lance Corporal Liddel on 29 July 1941. (Alexander Turnbull Library, DA-03179)
New Zealand soldiers await evacuation, while keeping under cover from air attack in caves near Sphakion on the south coast on 31 May 1941. (Alexander Turnbull Library, DA-10636)
20 May Heavy bombing of Heraklion and Maleme precedes the landing of parachute and glider troops around Maleme (08.00hrs), in Prison Valley (08.15hrs), to the east of Rethymnon (16.15hrs) and around Heraklion (17.30hrs). By nightfall, none of the four main objectives has been taken and the paratroopers have only established a firm perimeter at Maleme.
21 May With pressure building, the New Zealand 22nd Infantry Battalion withdraws, relinquishing Hill 107 to the Germans and thus the airfield. At dawn, the Ju-52 carrying Hauptmann Kleye lands on the western edge of the airfield, confirming the area is free from direct artillery fire. Reinforcements are dropped near Heraklion, Pyrgos and to the west of Maleme airfield, and 100th Gebirgsjäger Regiment starts to arrive (17.00hrs). The Allies start to organise a counterattack, while the Royal Navy intercepts a convoy of Greek vessels carrying elements of 5th Gebirgs Division.
22 May The Allied counterattack manages to reach the eastern edge of Maleme airfield by around 07.30hrs but is forced to withdraw. The Allied position deteriorates and the troops are forced to withdraw to a shorter line, leaving Maleme in German hands. In Prison Valley, around Heraklion and Rethymnon, the paratroopers are too weak to break through the defences. 3rd Fallschirmjäger Regiment in Prison Valley sends out a detachment under Major Heilmann in the hope of linking up with forces moving east from Maleme.
23 May The Germans continue to fly in reinforcements, while Allied forces withdraw to a new line near Galatos, as they are in danger of being outflanked.
24 May Reinforcements are dropped south-west of Heraklion. 85th and 100th Gebirgsjäger Regiments start to probe the Allied frontline around Galatos.
25 May 1st Battalion, A&SH starts arriving at Heraklion only to find their progress blocked. Later that day, the western group of German paratroopers under Major Schultz marches east to join up with the remainder of 1st Fallschirmjäger Regiment. At around dusk a German attack develops towards Galatos. An Allied counterattack only partially restores the situation, and it is decided to withdraw 4th NZ Bde. into reserve and form a new line using 5th NZ Bde. RAF attacks Maleme airfield and destroys some 24 Ju-52s for the loss of seven aircraft.
26 May The Germans break through the Hania–Galatos line and Allied forces withdraw towards Souda Bay. Freyberg decides on a withdrawal to Sphakion so that the troops can be evacuated by sea.
27 May Layforce arrives in Souda Bay. Wavell signals to Churchill that Crete is no longer tenable and the chiefs of staff order the evacuation of the island. A new defence line is formed, nicknamed ‘42nd Street’ just to the west of Souda Bay. The Germans advance, encircling Force Reserve near Hania, but 100th Gebirgsjäger Regiment is stopped in its tracks by an Allied counterattack. Allied forces start to withdraw to Sphakion.
28 May Evacuation starts in earnest with Force ‘B’ heading for Heraklion and Force ‘C’ for Sphakion. Italian troops occupy the area of Lasthi.
29 May Some 700 troops embark at Sphakion, while 4,000 are evacuated from Heraklion, although HMS Imperial is sunk and Force ‘B’ is bombed throughout the day. The Allied rearguard continues to carry out an orderly withdrawal, now pursued by 100th Gebirgsjäger Regiment. Germans now control Heraklion and Rethymnon.
30 May Force ‘D’ from Alexandria embarks over 6,000 men at Sphakion with Force ‘C’ en route back to Crete. Maleme is bombed again by the RAF. Rearguard is now only a few miles from Sphakion.
31 May Further evacuations are carried out by Force ‘C’ before dawn with some 1,500 men embarking. Major General Freyberg leaves by Sunderland flying boat while Major General Eric Weston remains in command on Crete.
1 June Force ‘D’ conducts the final evacuation with 4,000 men embarking at Sphakion. The remaining Allied forces on Crete capitulate with Weston leaving for Egypt on a flying boat.