Friday, March 12, 2021

13 to 15 April 1941 with Australian and New Zealand soldiers

 On 13 April, the 1st Armoured Brigade was still at the Sotir rearguard position. General Mackay drove south to join the "16th, 4th, and 19th Brigades". The bridge "that carried the main road over the Aliakmon" was still intact. Mackay learned that General Blamey had already ordered a New Zealand battalion to reinforce the 19th Brigade. General Mackay waited at the bridge until 3:20pm. The rearguard at Ptolemais was being attacked at this time. Australian sappers blew the bridge at General Mackay's orders. Even after being blown, infantry could still walk across the bridge wreckage. 

It figures that right after the bridge was blown, six British three-ton trucks drove up. For a little while more, a pontoon bridge was still available for the trucks to use. 

The 4th Brigade was at the Servia pass and had been digging in. Three field regiments, three Australian and one New Zealand were in place. 

There were two battalions from the 19th Brigade in position on 13 April. Stragglers had arrived that increased the 2/8th Battalion to 308 men. During the night of 14 April, you saw the 26th Battalion use a "folding boat and a rope to cross the river". This is based on the account in "Greece, Crete, and Syria" by Gavin Long.

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