Losses in the Battle for Crete

At the start of the Battle for Crete, there were about 32,000 British servicemen on the island. There had been 6,000 prior to the evacuation from Greece, and 21,000 more came from there. There were also 10,000 Greek soldiers. The British forces lost about 1,800 killed and 12,000 taken prisoner in the battle. We have already listed the naval losses, which were great. The RAF lost 7 Wellingtons, 16 "medium bombers" (Blenheims and Marylands?), and 23 fighters. The Gremans lost more: 147 aircraft lost and 64 damaged in action. They lost another 73 destroyerd and 84 damaged "by other causes". The Germans lost about 1,990 killed, 2,131 wounded and 1,995 missing. The British forces clearly held their own, and fought well, but in a lost cause. This is based on the account in Vol.II of the Official History.