Swastika Over the Aegean is a unique pictorial record of the last
decisive German victory of the Second World War. Following the Italian
armistice in September 1943, British and Dominion forces were sent to
reinforce their new Italian allies in the Dodecanese. The Wehrmacht
responded with a succession of air-sea landings, notably on the islands
of Kos and Leros: German infantry carried out beach assaults and, more
than two years after sustaining frightful losses in Crete,
Fallschirmjäger were deployed in several airborne operations.
Both sides
relied on conventional and unconventional ground forces. German
paratroopers were drawn from the Luftwaffe and Division Brandenburg; the
latter also fielded coastal raiders and assault troops. The Allies had
on call a battalion of The Parachute Regiment, several infantry
battalions, and Raiding Forces, which included the Long Range Desert
Group, Special Boat Squadron, Commandos and Ieros Lohos (Greek Sacred
Squadron).
By the end of November 1943, after a series of remarkable
actions at sea, in the air and on land, Allied forces in the Dodecanese
had been subjected to a resounding defeat: 234 Infantry Brigade ceased
to exist, and key Aegean islands would remain under German occupation
until the final Allied victory.
This limited edition book published in
commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the battle for the Dodecanese
features hundreds of photographs together with detailed maps and rare
wartime documents.
See some example pages here.
Available from:
Direct from the Author, Anthony Rogers:
E-Mail
(The book is available on Amazon too, but at a much higher price than direct from the Author)