In mid-June 1941 German 12th Army divisions in Greece transferred to the Eastern Front, leaving most of Greece to Italian control, the Bulgarians in western Thrace and German forces in Athens, eastern Macedonia (with Salonika), the Greco-Turkish border region, western Crete and some islands. 12th Army HQ in Athens (from October 1941 Salonika), also called Commander-in-Chief South-East, under Generalfeldmarschall List, controlled XVIII Mountain Corps, with 164th Infantry Division and 125th Independent Infantry Regt in Salonika, 5th Mountain Division on Crete, 6th Mountain Division in Athens and 65th Corps in Serbia and Croatia.

With minimal Greek guerrilla activity in 1941, the Germans concentrated their forces on Crete, withdrawing 5th and 6th Mountain divisions and reorganising 164th and 713rd Infantry divisions as Crete Fortress Division. In August 1942, 22nd Airlanding Division arrived on Crete, allowing Crete Fortress Division to transfer to North Africa.

In 1943 the threats posed by Greek Nationalist EDES and Communist ELAS guerrilla forces, along with the Italian armistice and a possible Allied landing, forced a reorganisation. On 1 January 1943 the 12th Army became Army Group E, under Luftwaffe Generaloberst Lohr (from August 1943 restricted to Greece), reporting to Army Group F in Belgrade, under Generalfeldmarschall von Weichs. Athens was garrisoned from January 1943 by 11th Luftwaffe Field Division; Rhodes from May by Rhodes Assault Division; eastern Greece and the Peloponnese from June by LXVIII Corps (117 Rifle, 1 Panzer divs) and western Greece from September by XXII Mountain Corps (104th Infantry, 1st Mountain divs). From January 1944, 41st Fortress Division, with 22 ’999′ fortress battalions of disciplinary troops, guarded the Peloponnese, and the Crete garrison was reorganised as 133rd Fortress Division. In August 1944 LXXXXI Corps was formed in Salonika, with fortress brigades to supervise Army Group E’s retreat into Yugoslavia. This was completed by 2 November 1944, leaving the island garrisons to surrender in May 1945. Elements of the Rhodes Assault Division joined the new Brandenburg Mechanised Division in Belgrade on 17 October 1944.

The Occupation of Albania

On 9 September 1943 the 2nd Panzer Army’s XXI Mountain Corps occupied Albania with 100th Rifle and 297th Infantry divisions, disarming the Italian garrison and attacking Albanian Communist UNCS guerrillas. 100th Rifle Division left in March 1944, and was replaced in June by the Albanian 21st SS Mountain Division. On 29 November XXI Corps evacuated to Yugoslavia.

369th Legion Memorial badge

Croatia – a country that had seen itself as the victim of Serb oppression – was delighted when it was recognised as an independent country. It contributed ground forces to assist the Germans as well as a small naval force operating in the Aegean and air force squadrons that fought on the eastern Front. These squadrons produced a number of aces.

Verstarktes Infanterie Regiment 369 (kroatisches)

The Verstarktes Infanterie Regiment 369 (kroatisches) also known as the Croatian Legion (Hrvatska Legija) was formed soon after the German invasion of the Soviet Union. It was made up of two companies of Croatian and one company of Bosnian volunteers and was posted to Dollersheim, Austria, for training.

It was attached to the 100 Jager Division and was sent to Army Group South on the Eastern front. The regiment fought at Valki, Kharkov, Kalatch and at the Don before being trapped and destroyed in Stalingrad.

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1. Light Infantry Parachute Battalion

1. Light Infantry Parachute Battalion (1. Padobranska Lovacka Bonja) was formed in 1942 as 1. Light Infantry Parachute Company (1. Padobranska Lovacka Sat). The volunteers were trained at the Air Force school at Petrovaradin before moving to the new training area at Koprivnica. The base was attacked by the partisans in October 1943 and the paratroopers were forced out after days of heavy fighting, where they suffered 20 killed or captured.

Following the attack the unit was disbanded. It was, however, soon reformed again and expanded to battalion size. It was sent to the area of Resnik and Obrovo in January 1945 to fight the partisans. The unit later fought the partisans at Sisak and Petrinja, this time attached to the Kampfgruppe Schlacher (Borbena Skupina Schlacher) together with the Motorised Brigade (Brzi Zdrug).

At the end of the war the men of this unit marched to Austria and surrendered to the Allies but were immediately transferred back to the partisans and most of them were killed. – see Hrvatski Orlovi: Paratroopers of the Independent State of Croatia 1942-1945; Novak-Spencer