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Whatsapp Captain (then Sergeant) Reg Saunders (centre) and troops on leave from New Guinea in 1943.



In May 1941, 6,500 Australian troops took part in the desperate and ultimately doomed defence of Crete. Among them was Captain Reg Saunders, the Australian Army's first Indigenous commissioned officer.

While the term 'Anzac' has come to be defined by the Gallipoli campaign, the Second Anzac Corps was formed a generation later and served in Greece during World War II.

Given what took place there, I felt it was important to honour the memory of all those who fought and fell in that place.

As was the case in the Dardanelles, the Anzac Corps in Greece was doomed to be part of a strategic debacle.

Facing an enemy that had swept through Europe, outnumbered, outgunned, and with virtually no air cover, Allied forces in Greece were defeated in not much more than three weeks.

The brutal endgame took place in Crete, a vicious 12-day battle. Despite immense acts of bravery by the soldiers on the ground, the Allies lost the island largely due to ineffective preparation and strategic errors in the first 48 hours.

The Battle of Crete saw more than 1,750 British Commonwealth troops killed and 12,000 captured. Some 6,500 Australian troops took part.

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Whatsapp The Cretan town of Heraklion after the Battle of Crete

Australian and New Zealand soldiers who launched a spontaneous counterattack against an elite regiment of German mountain troops on 27 May 1941 will be honoured in a ceremony today.

The defiant action in the face of the Allies' imminent defeat bought 15,000 British Commonwealth soldiers vital hours to reach the evacuation point on Crete's south coast.

The battle took place along a country lane on the outskirts of Chania, nicknamed '42nd Street' by the Allies.

The 175 square-metre 42nd Street Anzac Memorial will be dedicated today as part of this year's official Battle of Crete commemorations.

One soldier who took part in the Battle of 42nd Street was Reg Saunders of the 7th Infantry Battalion AIF, who later served with distinction in New Guinea and the Korean War.

After the beaten Allied troops surrendered on 1 June, Saunders evaded capture and survived for almost a year in the mountains, protected by local people and partisans.

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Whatsapp Glenda Humes visiting 42nd Street in Crete

Saunders' story echoes the experiences of many soldiers left on Crete, who were sheltered by civilians, who faced summary execution for hiding them.

Glenda Humes, Saunders' daughter, who was instrumental in the campaign to have the Battle of 42nd Street commemorated with a memorial, will attend the dedication ceremony today, along with representatives of the Australian, New Zealand and Greek governments, including New Zealand's Governor-General.

'I first travelled to Crete in 2010 to meet some of those who as children helped my father when he was on the run in '41,' she says. 'It was on that trip that I visited the 42nd Street battle site, which was totally unmarked.'

'Given what took place there, I felt it was important to honour the memory of all those who fought and fell in that place.

'It's not about glory. It's about recognising the sacrifice that took place there. And as we commemorate the Anzac centenary, I felt it was right to recognise this battle, fought by the second Anzacs. Aussies and Kiwis fighting side by side.'

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Whatsapp German paratroopers on the march during the Battle of Crete

While the Greek Government issued a medal for Allied soldiers who fought in the Greece and Crete campaigns, the Australian Government has always declined to do the same, despite the efforts of veterans and historians.

Central to the fundraising efforts for the 42nd Street Anzac memorial have been donors from the Greek Australian community and Battle of Crete veterans' families.

A $30,000 grant by the Department of Veterans' Affairs ensured the memorial would be completed in time for this year's commemorative events.

Despite the severe economic crisis in Greece, the Municipality of Chania, spurred on by its mayor, contributed to the memorial's construction costs; an indication of the depth of feeling that still exists between the Cretan people and their antipodean defenders in World War II.

Hear Reg Saunders' story An epic tale of survival behind enemy lines.

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