Quote:
Originally Posted by Rundstedt
I believe that the allies had some 45,000 to 50,000 defenders on Crete and that a total of 15,000 Germans attacked, makes you wonder the effectiveness of the allied commander in chief capabilities.
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Cut them some slack. They'd left all their heavy stuff on the mainland and the Germans had pretty good control of the air.
I think the idea that Crete was sold out to protect the Enigma secret is a bit far-fetched. The Royal Navy tore itself up repelling the German transports and later evacuating the British survivors from the island.
I agree the situation in the Balkans and the air war in southeastern Europe would have been more interesting. If Turkey comes in on the Allied side sooner, then the airbases are even closer to the oil fields.