Beschreibung:

[Recovered from Crete by the 22nd New Zealand Division, 1940.] A British made small linen Greek national flag, white cross on pale blue canton at upper left, and parallel pale blue and white stripes, luff marked "room E C 2," 420 x 870 mm. The flag with halyard, lightly discolored and stained. A fine trophy from the Battle of Crete apparently rescued by the Allied 22nd New Zealand Division as they evacuated the island. The Battle of Crete was the first (and last) time Hitler used his Fallschirmjager (Paratroops) en masse, and also the first mainly airborne invasion in military history. The New Zealand troops had been evacuated from mainland Greece along with British troops and they set up defensive positions at the three main airports and the main harbor. Deciphered Enigma Code messages gave the allies and Cretan partisans time to set up a strong defensive strategy. The airborne invasion started on May 20th 1940 with bombing and strafing of the drop zones, but losses were high from the entrenched Allied positions. The 22nd were defending the key positions around Maleme airfield, and put up a spirited defense for many days. By May 26th, German forces had taken the airfields, and poured over 50,000 troops onto the island. The Allies withdrew over the mountains to be picked up by British vessels on the southern coast. Some 15,000 men were rescued, but over 17,000 were forced to surrender. Hitler was shocked by the losses of his elite paratroopers in the invasion (over 6000), and never used them for such an operation again.