SHORT REPORT ON CAPTURE OF GENERAL KREIPE

 

(Quote from http://www.illmetbymoonlight.info/paddy-s-letter-to-the-cretans.html )

 

Report 8 KREIPE report

Below is the text of Major Patrick Leigh Fermor's short report on the capture of General Kreipe. It is taken verbatim from National Archive File HS 5/728 . None of the errors have been corrected. These will be pointed out later.

SECRET

 

SHORT REPORT ON CAPTURE OF GENERAL KREIPE

 

Map: CRETE 1:250,000.
16 May 1944


On February 4 I dropped in to CRETE on the KATHARO plateau, the LASITHI PROVINCE and made a good landing. Captain MOSS, Stanley, Coldstream Guards, and the two CRETANS that formed the rest of the party were unable to follow, owing to the sky suddenly clouding. They came back on seven nights during the next two months but the weather was consistently bad, and after several sea attempts, they finally landed at SOUTSOURO on 4th April.

Our orders were to capture the GERMAN General Commanding the 22nd SEBASTOPOL (BREMEN) Div., then General MULLER. Shortly before MOSS's arrival with the remainder of the party, MULLER was withdrawn from that command and replaced by General KREIPE, who had served in FRANCE and on the LENINGRAD and KUBAN fronts.

We and our party, now seven strong, struck North across MONOFATSI, and PEDIADA counties, and established and a HQ in the mountains above KOSTAMONITZA. I then left for HERAKLION in shepherd costume to recce the area MICHAEL AKOUMIANAKIS our HERAKLION agent and I had chosen as the mostly likely one. This lay at Pt .1727 at the junction of the ARCHANES road and the HOUDESTI-HERAKLION road, where a sharp twist in the road would force any vehicle to slow up considerably. This was the most suitable place on the road from ARCHANES (KREIPE's Div HQ) and KNOSSOS, where he lived at the VILLA ARIADNE . Several days recce prove that he left his house at any time between dusk and 9 o'clock. The plan was formed to carry out the operation on this return journey, under the cover of darkness.

Three difficulties were:-

1) To be sure of not mistaking another car for the General's.
2) Disposing of any other vehicle and its occupants should they passed during the Op.,
3) Avoiding bringing down reprisals on the local population.


The first was obviated by placing an agent (ELIAS ATHANASSAKIS) to acquaint himself thoroughly with the shape of the car, size of blackout-slits on headlamps etc. He did this excellently. The second difficulty was to be dealt with by using a small ANDARTES Band, to capture the passengers and ditch any traffic that made an untoward appearance .The third problem was more difficult, and I left HERAKLION (where I spent two nights) for HQ at's KOSTAMONITZA, where Capt. MOSS, M. AKOUMIANAKIS and I had a conference and worked out a plan. As the operation panned out exactly as we laid our scheme in every detail except one (the abolition of the Partisan Band at the last moment), I will not go over it twice.

When the plan was arrived at, I summoned ATHANASIOS BOURDZALIS, a good Patriot from ASIA MINOR, with a band of 15 CRETAN ANDARTES , to our HQ, added them to our party of 9 and move Westwards with them by night on the 19th/20th of April, spending the next day at KHARASSO (MR: 2829), reaching our final hideout near SKALANI, among the trees and reed of dried-up river bed at MR: 1829, 20 minutes' march from the proposed site of the Op. The party turned out to be too large for effective concealment in this rather dangerous traitorous area near HERAKLION, and we unwillingly sent the Partisans back, none of whom were in the picture, on most friendly terms, and decided to carry out the Op. with a party of 9 picked men, on a nucleus of our own immediate followers 2 or 3 years in the service. We then lay up and waited for the right moment. This was one of the most trying parts of the Op. Four evenings running he came back before dusk, as if he had got wind of the plan. On the fifth, however, night fell and he was still at his Div HQ, so Capt. MOSS and I put on GERMAN police-corporal  uniforms, and hastened with out (sic) party to the road-fork. EL IAS was posted near ARKHANES to signal one torch flash at the approach of the car, (2 flashes if accompanied) to a scout posted nearer us who was to signal down half a kilometre of flex to an electric bell, next to another scout who was to flash the signal to us. MOSS and I took our positions as traffic M.Ps in the road, the men (who knew each detail of the drill by heart) hidden ditches either side of the road-fork.

At 9: 30 the warning signal flash came, and three minutes later the car came slowly round the bend. MOSS and I waved red lamps up and down, and the car stopped, we walked towards the two doors drawing our pistols. I opened the right door of the car, flashed the torch inside, and saw the General was sitting beside the Chauffeur. He was easily recognizable by his tabs, medals and Iron Crosses. I asked him his papers in GERMAN, and while he was explaining, MOSS open the other door, struck the driver hard with a life preserver, took him by the shoulders, threw him out to the waiting CRETANS, who quickly disarmed, handcuffed and bound him, and started off for the hills. MOSS then jumped into the driver's seat.

My party and I simultaneously seized the General handcuffed and bound him, and put him in the back of the car. PATERAKIS, TYRAKIS, and SAVIOLAKIS jumped in beside him, with three sub-machine guns stuck out of the windows, and had the general covered by two fighting- knives.

The rest of the party dispersed at once; I put on the General's hat and sat in his seat beside MOSS, who started up the engine and headed for HERAKLION. The whole halt and operation took over just over a minute, and the CRETANS carried out their parts like clockwork. A car and three troop-trucks passed two minutes after the starting up, so we had done it in the nick of time.
We drove on past SPILLIA KNOSSOS, and TEKE, and into HERAKLION market-square, through the CANEA  Gate, main German post in HERAKLION and out along the RETIMO road. We passed 22 road-in all. The sentry at one attempted to stop us by waving his torch up and down, but MOSS drove straight on at the same speed. Other sentries saluted or stood to attention when they saw the two pennants of the car. We chose this route as being the most improbable one and the least likely to arouse suspicion: in this we were not wrong.

We drove for about an hour and a half to YENI GAVE (MR: 870370) where MOSS, PATERAKIS, and SAVIOLAKIS got out with the General, who was then unbound (having volunteered his word of honour not to escape nor to draw attention to himself in the event of GERMANS being near). After the first shock he seemed to accept the' fait accompli' fatalistically, and I informed him that he was an honourable prisoner of war captured by BRITISH officers and would be treated as such. That party, under MOSS, then set off up the foothills of Mount IDA in the direction of ANOYEIA, a large and patriotic maintain village. I then drove the car on with TYRAKIS to a point between CHELIANA (MR: 835575) and MOURDZANA, were a footpath runs northward to a suitable submarine beach at AMYRA (ISLD did actually make a landing here last year).

We left a sealed letter addressed to General BRAUER and all GERMAN authorities in CRETE (appended), stating that the general had been taken prisoner by BRITISH officers shortly before, and by the time the letter was read, would be on his way to CAIRO.
We then abandoned the car without destroying it, and left a BRITISH overcoat inside of corroborative detail. By this process we hope to exculpate CRETANS, living near the scene of abduction, of suspicion. The ruse was successful. We then struck Southwards towards ANOYIA and reached it as dawn broke my GERMAN uniform caused looks of hate in this notoriously lawless village. During the afternoon planes patrolled the North coast constantly and  Fieseler-Storch hovered for three hours over every peak and ravine in Mount IDA, dropping hastily turned-outs leaflets stating General KREIPE had been captured by bandits, that his whereabouts could not be unknown to the population and  that, unless he was surrendered within three days, all the local villages of HERAKLION province would be razed to the ground and the sternest measures brought to bear on the civilian population.

To the lasting credit of the CRETANS that, though hundreds (till he was finally evacuated) knew his whereabouts, the secret was loyally kept. Indeed our progress was a kind of royal procession of enthusiasm and congratulation.

MOSS's party and mine contacted at nightfall we set off with an escort of ANOYEIANS and the General en route to the steep northern slopes of IDA, till we reach the lair of MICHAEL XYLOURIS band of Partisans.

The party detailed to conduct the GERMAN driver across MONOFATSI Province to the same RV arrived soon after, but, without the driver who had been so badly hit and walked so slowly that he had to be disposed of on the way owing to the hue and cry in the plains.

Next day we marched right over the top of Mount IDA through deep snow (one of the most difficult and arduous climbs in CRETE which the General performed on foot),  exchanging a bodyguard of XYLORIS' men for a party belonging to PETRAKOGIORGES band half-way. Advance scouts sent down the Southern slope of the mountain lit a series of beacon fires to show that the way was clear as ugly rumours of GERMAN concentrations in the AMARI below us were beginning to come in.  A thousand GERMANS spread over the foothill villages was the most-named figure. We fetched up in the labyrinthine cave and remained there all next day. Morale continued to be extremely high.

About here are troubles began. Our carefully planned RV with Major DUNBABIN fell through as he was down with malaria somewhere in the AMARI and the charging-engine of his set with XZYLOURI's Band was out of order. Runners were sent hot-foot to three other sets, two in Western RETIMO Province, the other (RENDELL's (sic) ) far to the east near HIERAPETRA in LASITHI. But communications were very long and it was many days before we got an answer from any of them, and then the plans outlined were out of date and the quickly-changing situation made them impossible anyway.

We managed by an intricate system of posts along the foothills to slip our heavily armed caravan through the cordons and reached AYIA PARASKEVI, hoping to escape from SAKHTOURIA beach, a nights march SW of here. The day after we arrived, however, SAKHTOURIA village was burnt to the ground and most of the male population arrested owing to a gun-running operation there three weeks before, in which no less than 50 mules, laden with rifles, had fanned out all over Central CRETE. We could also hear the explosions and see the smoke of the villages of LOCHRIA, KAMARES and MAGARIKARI being bombed and blown up owing to the indiscrete conduct of PG's gang over the Easter celebrations some weeks before.

Intensive enemy activity, patrols etc, began all along the south coast, prohibiting its useful evacuation purposes. It was the opinion of several BLO's that the Germans were expecting an invasion. After three days fruitless waiting at AGIA PARESKEVI, I decided to push NW with my henchmen to contact ISLD or BARNES directly and use their sets for arranging the evacuation. MOSS remained behind with the General and the party and did splendid work keeping them cheerful and optimistic through these trying days. I had heard that one of the sets was at PANTANASIA, but found it had pushed further West. I spent the next two days sending runners out in all directions to I finally contacted Capt BARNES of Force 133. The latter contacted me at the YENI on the 7th of May.

On the morning the 8th a runner brought a message, stating that Force 133 was sending in a SBS party of JELLICOE's with a W/T and instructions to contact us at all costs near LIMNI beach. This was most encouraging and showed the Office was doing the utmost to back us up a hundred percent, and would have been a solution to all our difficulties. Unfortunately hot on this runner's tail came another, whom I had sent to recce that particular beach, with the intelligence that Huns pullaulated there  and a post had been established as it SAKHTOURIA. So there was nothing for it but to move Westward to find a place where we could slip through the net.

MOSS and the main party meanwhile had advanced to PATSOS (MR: 625265) via YERAKARI ( MR: 645240) where I contacted him, and on the night of the 9th/10th we marched to PHOTINOU, exchanging escort on the way. On the night of the10th/11th we marched on through VILLANDREDO where I contacted Capt. CICLITERA who had moved to ASI GONIA to meet us.  We at once sent recce parties to a beach West of RODAKINO and suggested to Force 133 the night of the 14th/15th as a suitable evacuation date. Our scouts returned to state that the beach was miraculously of GERMANS.

A W/T came confirming our date, times, place and signals and on the night of the 13th/14th we struck South over the barren RODAKINO mountains and reached the point at nightfall on the 14th.

Moss gave the signals and the craft arrived on the stroke of 23:00 hrs. local time as had been agreed. The first to land was Lieut. BAILEY and his Raiding Force, bitterly disappointed at missing the adventure of contacting us in the interior of CRETE. I repeat the dispatch of this raiding party was an excellent idea and might well have proved our salvation if things had been stickier.
The embarkation took place with model efficiency dispatch and we set sail for MERSA MATRUH  with our prisoner. It was a great relief for all of us to have brought the operation to a successful conclusion after these 18 anxious days in the CRETAN mountains
The General's behaviour was most friendly and helpful throughout and he put up with the hardships of mountain travel living rough with fortitude. MOSS and I had the impression that he had lost his nerve a bit after the first contact with us. He certainly made no attempt to escape.

One or two untoward events occurred. Firstly, the loss of his Knights Cross of the Iron Cross on the first nights march, which we made every attempt to discover, and secondly, two very bad falls, one from a mule and another from a ten foot precipice in the dark, in which he injured his shoulder. We surrounded him throughout with whatever amenities, i.e. mules, warm clothing, food, drink, bedding etc that were possible in the circumstances, and he was treated both by ourselves and all our staff will all fitting deference and respect. I think he understood this was grateful for it.

I should like to state that any credit to the BRITISH personnel for the success of this operation was due in exactly equal shares to captain MOSS and myself as we collaborated intimately on every single detail. The conduct of the backing's CRETANS were superb. Three main helpers in the abduction were: –

                      MANOLIS PATERAKIS of KOUSTOYERAKO
                      GEORGE TYRAKES of PHOURPHOURAS
                      MICHAEL AKOUMIANAKIS of KNOSSOS

The rest of the abduction party, all old hands and worthy of praise, were:-

                     GREGORY CHNARAS of THRAPSANO
Gendarme    ANTONY ZOIDAKIS, of AY. YIANNI (AMARI)
                      ANTONY PAPALIONIDAS of ASIA MINOR
Gendarme     STRATIS SAVIOLAKIS, of ANAPOLIS
                     NIKOS KOMIS, of THRAPSANO
                     DIMITRI TZATZAS, of EPISKOPI (HERAKLION)
                     ELIAS ATHANASSAKIS. of HERAKLION
                     PAVLOS ZOGRAPHISTOS, of SKALANI
All Representing Different Areas of Crete




COPY OF THE LETTER LEFT IN KREIPE's CAR

 

TO THE GERMAN AUTHORITIES IN CRETE

 

23rd of April 1944.


Gentlemen,
Your Divisional-Commander KREIPE was captured a short time ago by a BRITISH raiding force under our command. By the time you read this he and we will be on our way to CAIRO.
We would like to point out most emphatically that this operation has been carried out without the help of CRETANS or CRETAN Partisans, and the only guide used were serving soldiers of his Hellenic Majesties Forces in the Middle East, who came with us.
Your General honourable prisoner of war, and will be treated with all the consideration owing to his rank.
Any reprisals against the local population will be wholly unwarranted and unjust.
Auf baldiges Wiederschen!

………………..Major
Commanding Raiding Forces

……………….Capt.
Coldstream Guards

P.S. We are very sorry to leave this motor-car behind