The Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) was originally a First World War army corps of the British-led Mediterranean Expeditionary Force, which was formed in Egypt in December 1914 and operated during the Gallipoli campaign. It was disbanded and absorbed into other units during the course of the 1st World War, but reconstituted in 1941 to help with the defence of Greece against the German invasion.
ANZAC forces played a vital role in the short-lived defence of Crete, a fact which explains the regular presence of Australian and New Zealand representatives at commemorative events for the Battle of Crete. The engagement for which they are best remembered is what came to be known as the Battle of 42nd Street.
The Odos Tsikalarion runs south from the Leoforo Karamanlis (the Souda Road) to Tsikalaria, a suburb of Chania south of the VOAK. It was called 42nd Street by the Allied soldiers during the Battle of Crete, as it had been occupied by the 42nd Field Company of Royal Engineers. A brochure published by the Australian ANZACS of Greece Committee in 2016 and available on their website, describes the rearguard action against the invading Germans fought by the Australian and New Zealand troops at that point:
“In 1941, Odos Tsikalarion (Tsikalarion Street) was known to British Commonwealth troops as 42nd Street. It was along this road in the early hours of May 27, 1941, that hundreds of Australian and New Zealand (Anzac) soldiers took up defensive positions facing west.
“After seven days of fighting the Allies in western Crete were in retreat. At 11 am that morning, leading elements of a regiment of German mountain troops approached 42nd Street, advancing towards Souda Bay.
“As the Germans fired into the Anzac line, the Australian and New Zealand soldiers charged with bayonets fixed. Brutal close-quarter fighting ensued and the Germans fled, overwhelmed by the ferocity of the attack, which continued through the olive groves for more than a kilometre.
“The charge delayed the German advance, providing vital hours for thousands of Allied troops to begin crossing the White Mountains to the evacuation point at Chora Sfakion.”
The spot is now marked by a memorial plaque at the junction of Tsikalarion and Trion Ierarchon streets, at the point where former passes under the VOAK. It is here that a memorial service will be held on Friday 24th May.
