Kos and Leros 1943: The German Conquest of the Dodecanese

by Anthony Rogers, Darren Tan (Illustrator)

Overview

An illustrated account of the disastrous British-led effort to occupy the Dodecanese in autumn 1943.

This title is an illustrated account of the autumn 1943 battle for the Dodecanese, as Winston Churchill attempted to secure the Aegean islands in the wake of the Italian armistice. The occupation was a gamble intended to increase pressure against Germany and at the same time possibly provide encouragement for Turkey to join the Allies. Spearheaded by the Special Boat Squadron and the Long Range Desert Group, garrison troops were deployed to the Italian-occupied Dodecanese, but they were too late to prevent the Germans from taking control of the key island of Rhodes and its all-important airfields. An all-out German offensive followed. Air force and naval units supported a series of assaults by infantry and paratroopers, including specialist forces of the Division Brandenburg. Within three months, only Castelorizzo was still in British hands. Rhodes, Kos and Leros remained under German occupation until May 1945 and the end of the war in Europe. The Dodecanese would be Adolf Hitler's last enduring victory – and the last enduring British-led defeat.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781472835116
Publisher:	Bloomsbury USA
Publication date:	08/20/2019
Series:	Campaign , #339
Pages:	96
Sales rank:	1,086,584
Product dimensions:	7.10(w) x 9.60(h) x 0.30(d)

About the Author

Anthony Rogers is an accomplished writer known for his meticulously researched books detailing events in an around the Mediterranean during World War II.

Born and raised in Malaysia, Darren Tan grew up drawing spaceships, dinosaurs, and the stuff of his imagination, which was fueled by movies and computer games. Following a brief stint in 3D animation, Darren now works as a freelance illustrator.

Table of Contents

Introduction: The strategic setting 4

Chronology 8

Opposing Commanders 9

German commanders

British commanders

Italian commanders

Opposing Forces 13

German forces

British forces

Italian forces

Order of battle

Opposing Plans 20

German plans

British plans

The Campaign 25

Prelude

Operation Eisbär

War at sea and on land: 4-11 October

War at sea: 12-21 October

Levitha

War at sea: 22-31 October

Change of command at Leros

War at sea and in the air: 1-11 November

Enigma and Ultra

Operation Taifun 12 November

13 November

14 November

15 November

16 November

The Aftermath 90

The Battlefields Today 92

Bibliography 93

Index 95