The Battle of Greece began on 6 April 1941 when Nazi Germany invaded Greece during World War II. It followed an unsuccessful Italian invasion in October 1940 and an Italian counterattack in March 1941. When the German invasion began (German artillery pictured), the bulk of the Greek army was on the Albanian border, defending against the Italians. German troops created a second front by coming through Bulgaria, where the Greek defensive line did not receive adequate reinforcements. The Greek army was vastly outnumbered by the two invading forces and was soon forced to surrender. The German army reached Athens on 27 April and Greece's southern shore on 30 April, capturing 7,000 soldiers from British Empire forces who had been sent in anticipation of Germany's invasion. The conquest of Greece was completed with the capture of Crete a month later. Looking back near the end of the war, as Germany's defeat loomed ever closer, Hitler blamed Mussolini's Greek fiasco for his own subsequent catastrophe. As an explanation of Germany's calamitous defeat in the Soviet Union, this had little to commend it. It nevertheless had serious consequences for the Axis war effort in north Africa.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Greece
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
1580:
One of the largest earthquakes in the recorded history of England, Flanders and Northern France struck the region. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1580_Dover_Straits_earthquake
1830:
Joseph Smith, Jr., Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer and others formally organized the Church of Christ, starting the Latter Day Saint movement. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_Christ_(Latter_Day_Saints)
1896:
The first modern Olympic Games (official report pictured) opened in Athens, with 241 athletes from 14 nations participating in 43 events in nine disciplines. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1896_Summer_Olympics
1947:
The first Tony Awards, recognizing achievement in live American theatre, were handed out at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Award
2008:
Egyptian workers staged an illegal general strike, two days before key municipal elections. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Egyptian_general_strike
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
lek: (biology) An aggregation of male animals for the purposes of courtship and display. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/lek
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
Whenever the powers of government are placed in any hands other than those of the community, whether those of one man, of a few, or of several, those principles of human nature which imply that government is at all necessary, imply that those persons will make use of them to defeat the very end for which government exists. --James Mill https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/James_Mill