An anonymous Greek soldier's story - the Final Stage

[Manolis]

(Sorry for dividing the parts, I got confused with the word meter in the bottom of the text"

…continued from PART V…

While we were approaching Delphi, the smell of smoke and fire was in the air. We could hear the gunshots and the explosions. I was feeling a bad pain in my stomach. I wanted to throw up but I retained myself. From the faces of the other soldiers mates, somebody could easily guess that they were feeling kind of the same way. All of us were young. Some, had just finished school or were going to the University. others had just started a career as businessmen, lawyers, teachers etc, others had just got married. As I told you I was a freelancer. I had my own little business, a small tourist office. I was organizing trips and holidays all around the world. Many people were going holidays to Paris to admire the wonder of Sistine's Chapel, or to Babylon to see the great wonder of Hanging Gardens. Others were preferring the sunny beaches of Egypt. All these were now in danger by a fierce enemy. Our jobs, our families our FREEDOM, were now in danger and those boys despite they weren't military professionals, they knew that. They were ready to sacrifice their life for freedom no matter how much pain it was causing to them. The Greeks can't tolerate not a single city to be occupied by a foreign civilization than Greek. It's in our culture to live free and have fun.

We arrived in Delphi. The half of the city were already in ruins from the Russian artillery bombardment. Important city's improvements like the Cathedral, the University and the Bank were destroyed. Along with the 197th MHA we were stationed to the damaged Barracks to have a report and then to deploy to our positions. It was dusk when we were deployed a kilometer west of the city. The 197th developed it's cannons within the city's walls. The night was peaceful, but with the first sunlight the Russian artillery have started to bombard the 2nd Order's position. The reply from the 197th was immediate. The Russian artillery weren't in a big distance, so only a fast move from the infantrymen of the 2nd Order was enough to capture it. The problem was that it was being supported by a battalion of infantry. The plan was that the 2nd Brigade of the XVI Mechanised Infantry division to do a counter attack against the Russian battalion while the 2nd Order would be capturing the undefended artillery. Behind the 2nd Order we'd follow to clear the remains of the enemy. At the same time the 197th would be hitting the Russian infantry from Delphi as long as they were in range. If we succeeded we would stop the bombardment against Delphi and we'd pushed back the Russian infantry before new reinforcements from Grozny and Odessa would arrive. We'd win precious time for our forces to redevelop and for new reinforcements to arrive from Argos and the 1st Tactical Air Bomber Wing "Pericles" from Athens (The Wing was given that name to honor the first Mayor of Athens when the city was first founded, the mother of Greek civilization) which was fast built up in Athens to support us.

The signal for the attack was given from General Georgios Kanellopoulos in his HQ in Thermopylae. The 2nd brigade started to move fast to the west to confront the Russian battalion. A few minutes later the 2nd Order started moving to the SW and we were following in a distance of a kilometer.

The 2nd Brigade was fighting bravely and despite it's casualties, they managed to push back the battalion and keep the artillery undefended. There were information though, that a Russian infantry division and a cavalry division were moving fast from Odessa to the 2nd Brigade's position. So we needed to move even faster, to capture the artillery and retreat to our previous positions around Delphi and hit these 2 divisions with our and the captured artillery to weaken them and hold them to their position until the arrival of our reinforcements.

We were almost 2 km south of the Russian artillery's position, the Russian infantry battalion had started to retreat NW as it had suffered great losses. When we were ready to move north to capture the artillery, suddenly and out of nowhere a couple of Russian infantry orders appeared with the support of a group of cavalrymen. They attacked directly to the advanced 2nd Order. Meanwhile a battery of the enemy artillery, found the opportunity to detach from the main body of the artillery force and retreated west where it's re-deployed and aimed to our position. The attack of the Russian infantry was devastating against the 2nd Order. We were running from behind to give some help to the guys of the 2nd Order. My heart was beating fast and I was feeling my sweat in all over my body. As we were approaching the battlefield we were getting hits from the detached enemy battery. Explosions were all over the place and the first of us were falling dead on the ground. A few meters ahead of me there were 3 mates running, when an artillery shot exploded right in front of their feet. Their cut heads, hands and body parts were falling all around me. I wanted to drop my gun and run back, but it was too late for that. We had already many men dead after we managed to pass from the artillery's shots. But it wasn't over yet. The Russian cavalrymen were attacking us to prevent us of supporting the 2nd Order. The Russian cavalry started to shoot at us, a soldier next to me was hit straight on the head, between the eyes and on his stomach and fell dead on my feet. I was starting to shoot in any direction, not knowing if I was shooting at friendly or enemy forces, my mind was fuzzy I didn't know what to do! Then our Commander, Major Dimitrios Panagiotidis ordered us to cover ourselves wherever we could and shoot the enemy. But where to cover in the plain grassland? We were all lied down and were shooting against the marching cavalry. I was shooting but I couldn't see if I got somebody. I was really distracted from the bullets were hitting the ground around me.

The Russian cavalrymen reached our positions and then a battle body-to-body started. I stand on my knees aiming to shoot. At the very last moment I saw from the left a cavalryman ready to cut my head. In no time I turned and shot him. From the speed he had, his dead body fell on me bringing me down. As I fell I hit my head leaving me unconscious on the ground. Couple of days later, I opened my eyes for the first time. I woke up in Athens's hospital. Around me were also other injured soldiers. I was really upset as many questions troubling my mind. Where was I, what happened, where are the rest of my mates, what happened to them, were Herakleia and Delphi fell in the hands of the Russians? Were Thermopylae safe? Was really upset, I can tell you that, oh yeah, I have started to scream when a kind nurse came and relaxed me telling me I was safe and that the war over. I've stayed in the Hospital for 4 days. It was a good chance to get some rest and recover from my bruises. All these days I was reading the papers to see what happened and of course the latest news. That kind nurse, had the courtesy to bring me from Athens Great Library copies from the papers of the previous days.

A few while after I was falling unconscious, the 1st Tactical Bomber Wing "Pericles" were bombing the enemy forcing them to retreat. They completely destroyed the enemy artillery and almost all the enemy forces retreated both from Herakleia and Delphi. The bombing was enough to give the chance to the remaining Greek forces to re-group while the reinforcements from Argos were arriving. The 3rd and the 4th Tank Battalions and the 1st Infantry Regiment were those who cleared easily the area and then fortified waiting for new attack. However my Order were eliminated and only a few of us survived.

However, the Russians never attacked again. The leader of the Greeks, Alexander, while we were fighting in Delphi, had to face also the growing military mobilization of the Japanese forces in the north boundary. Small aggression had started also there and it was obvious the Japanese were preparing a massive invasion in Greece. If they did that, then Greece couldn't fight simultaneously in 2 fronts. Greece has powerful army but the Japanese are also using advanced technology plus that they were and still are outnumbering us. On the other hand, the Russians didn't have the technology of Greece, but they were also outnumbering us. It would be a matter of months for the total annihilation of the Greek civilization.

Alexander had to move fast in the diplomatic field. He knew that the Germans were looking for a chance to declare war to Japan and England to Russia. Germany is occupying a continent to the east of Greece and Japan and the German coastline isn't that far from our continent. In between of the Japanese and the German coastline there's a small island on which only one city can be built. This island has high strategic importance as the nation which controls it, can control that sea passage but more important is the fact the it's rich in oil resources. About 50 years ago, Germany and Japan fought each other for the islands control, but nobody could occupy it for long as the battles were continuous and brutal. Since nobody could conquer the island and win the war, the 2 countries made a deal, that nobody would occupy the island and if somebody act the opposite then it would be considered as casus belli, (act of war) as the Romans would say. Since then both the countries were waiting a new chance to start claiming again the island. On the other side, England is occupying a small continent to the north of Russia. The continent is over-occupied by the English and they desperately looking for new lands to build colonies and advance their civilization. Russia is the nearest to England country. England also is a naval super power and it can with comfort, unload massive forces to the Russian land and to support them from the sea. Elizabeth so far didn't have any serious reason to begin a war with the Russians.

Having all these as knowledge, Alexander sent 2 emissaries both in Berlin and London. From both request help. From Elizabeth requested to strike Russia in a case of a Japanese attack. From Bismarck requested to join him in the war against Japan, if the Japanese proceeded to an invasion and he committed to help Germany in the island's occupation without Greece having any demands from the oil resources. Elizabeth replied that she would attack Russia without waiting Japan's invasion and also said she would need gold and rubber resources to prepare her invasion on the Russian land. Alexander couldn't do otherwise. In Germany, Bismarck agreed, he got the chance he was looking for but he also needed gold and knowledge to proceed with his plans.

Alexander succeeded in having 2 important and powerful allies, but he cost him the biggest part of the National treasury in gold.

Indeed after the return of the emissaries in Athens, a massive concentration of English Naval Forces observed in the ports of the southern English cities. Between the island and Germany, the country's Navy developed also a powerful naval force, consisting from a Battleship, 2 submarines, an Aircraft Carrier, 2 AEGIS Cruisers and a number of transports. In the meantime, Greece sent it's fleet between the Japanese coast and the island, to prevent the Japanese fleet of occupying the island and helping the Germans to unload it's troops.

Togukawa, watching these moves understood that now he had to fight against 2 countries and while his forces would have being attacking Greece, he would also have to fight against the Germans who after the island's occupation, their forces would move against the Japanese soil, something Togukawa didn't want to risk. For that reason he withdrawn his forces and cancelled the attack. Bismarck lost his chance to occupy the island and maybe earn even a few more things from Japan, but what really matters for us was that Greece could maintain it's integrity. In Herakleia and Delphi when the reinforcements from Argos secured the area and waiting for the new Russian attack, the English were unloading troops near Minsk, which captured as it was almost undefended since the total of the Russian Army was concentrated in the Greek-Russian borders. This action forced Katherine to sign a peace treaty with Greece, having the last country the advantage to negotiate and in the end to acquire an amount of gold in order to sign it. That's why they didn't attack again. In the diplomatic scene before the war, the Russian and the Japanese emissaries were coming secretly in touch, obviously arranging a combined strike against Greece. Tokugawa knowing that Katherine couldn't support a large scale war, he provided with plenty of gold, but with no technology or resources He didn't want the Russians to advance technologically. It was obvious that Tokugawa wanted to use Katherine in order her forces to keep a big part of the Greek ones busy, so he could forward his forces deeper in the Greek soil, without letting the Russians to occupy a lot of Greek land. He new also that the Russian army couldn't defeat the technologically advanced Greek army or at least he knew that they couldn't move further than Herakleia and Delphi.

The only mistake was made, in the beginning of the whole story, was that the GAGS, had underestimated the threat from the South West of it's borders, even during the attack. The Russian Armed Forces maybe didn't have the technology of the Greek ones, like aircrafts, tanks or mechanized artillery, but they had a large army with determine and brave soldiers. Something that also Togukawa didn't predict. That's why in the cities near the borders there weren't advanced forces stationed. So when the Russians attacked the local forces couldn't hold the big number of the Russian Army and in conjunction with the late reinforcements, the Greek Army suffered big losses of Greek souls and military material.

As far as concerns me, after the hospital I returned to the Barracks in Thermopylae, where I got the Medal of Honor from the General Georgio Kanellopoulo, along with other soldiers. A week later Army put to my military service an end. I got back home and in the same evening I went to the pub and had lots of wine and ouzo. It was a cool spring evening…