The most dramatic WWII battle you never heard of took place on the south shore of the Peloponnese. Here, the Battle of Kalamata became the end of the road for the British, Australian and New Zealander allies of the ill-fated Greek campaign to defend Greece and Crete from Germany.

History may be written by the victors, but often the chapters are chosen by Hollywood. The Battle of Kalamata had no flotilla of small boats dodging into the beaches. There were no official photographers, press corps or even future novelists among those facing the desperate hand-to-hand combat along the waterfront.

There was only defeat. And it hung heavy.

Germany invades Greece

To rescue Mussolini from his foolhardy adventure and to safeguard access to Romanian oil fields, Hitler blitzkrieged Greece on April 5, 1941, diverting six divisions intended for the invasion of Russia. In 24 days, he defeated the Greek army, shot the RAF out of the sky and drove the entire 59,000 British and Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) force into the sea.

Although 50,000 fighters were eventually evacuated from all ports, the ratio of losses in KIA and POWs were far higher than Dunkirk. The Luftwaffe sank 26 troop-filled ships. 500 men were lost in one ship alone. The remaining formations retreated to Kalamata, driven relentlessly southward by the Fifth Panzer Division.  

Rescue operations

There, on the night of April 24, flying boats evacuated RAF pilots that had been shot down. The British destroyer, Hero, maneuvered into Kalamata’s small port but found lights and communication lines cut as well as German guns on the docks. The transport, Costa Rica, was sunk. But the destroyer, Defender, was able to load cases containing the crown jewels of Yugoslavia.

When German Junkers dropped mines into the harbor, rescue operations were forced to the beaches. Nevertheless, through the night of April 26, the Royal Navy managed to extract 8650 troops.

Meanwhile, Allied British and ANZAC stragglers kept arriving, including another 7000 of the expeditionary force and a wave of refugees. Taking cover from the Luftwaffe, thousands huddled in the Kalamata olive groves, which are still there today. As the sun set, the recon battalion of the German Fifth Panzers arrived, quickly joined by SS troops dashing over from the Ionian coast. The end was near.

ANZAC Counterattack

A company of the British 4th Hussars Regiment guarding the bridgehead to the sea front was quickly overwhelmed. A counterattack led by courageous ANZACs engaged in pitched house-to-house battles, taking many prisoners, but barely delayed the advance. New Zealander Sergeant Jack Hinton made a mad dash on the quay capturing two German field guns and storming two strongpoints before being wounded and taken prisoner. For his actions, he was awarded the Victoria Cross.

Finally, the destroyers were forced to withdraw, and a covering group sent from Crete turned around, believing rumors that an Italian fleet was approaching from the West.

By Tuesday, April 29, it was all over. After consulting with his officers, the Commander of the 8000 remaining on shore negotiated their surrender effective 5:30 am.

But the story doesn’t end there. The heroism continued.

“Remember Kalamata. “Tell them we were here.””

Escape and evasion

Hundreds escaped into the mountains, evading capture for months. Australian PVT Syd Grant, having made his way down the coastline with a small team, attracted an offshore destroyer. It put out longboats but balked fearing a German ambush. Quickly thinking, Grant led his mates in singing Waltzing Matilda. The rescue boats immediately landed.

Another story comes from George Bizos, who became a civil rights lawyer in South Africa. He recalled how as a Greek schoolboy he and his father exfiltrated seven New Zealand soldiers in May 1941. Skirting under the searchlights of Koroni castle at the tip of the Messinian Peninsula, they carried the soldiers to Crete in their small sailboat. Many Greeks were executed for giving aid to escapees.

Brotherhood of the Greek Campaign

Winners sing their victories and silence their defeats. But for the men and women of forgotten engagements, the battles shaped their lives, their families and descendants. In 1991, Edwin Horlington MBE, one of the last survivors, founded The Brotherhood of the Greek Campaign and observed the comparisons to Dunkirk. The Brotherhood holds an annual gathering of remembrance where the stories live on, and the bonds are renewed. 

Now living in Greece along the coastline of the escapees, I attended the service last April at the monument near the waterfront where the fiercest fighting took place. It stands at the entrance to the Railroad Museum, which includes rolling stock similar to those that took the prisoners to camps.

I met Greek, British and ANZAC families of those who fought here. I heard stories of fathers killed, miraculous escapes and POW’s spending years in camps. 

It was a solemn ceremony. At the end, participants placed seven poppy wreaths at the memorial flanked by two Army honor guards. A trumpeter played the Greek version of Taps.

The next Kalamata memorial service is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Tuesday May 13, 2025.

Brotherhood of the Greek Campaign website: ww2greekveterans.com

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