Italian invasion of Greece

Greco-Italian War
Part of the Balkans Campaign of World War II
Greek newspaper announcing the war
Date 28 October 1940 – 23 April 1941 (5 months, 3 weeks and 5 days) Location Southern Balkan Peninsula Result See Aftermath section
Belligerents
Italy Albania	Greece British Empire air support
Commanders and leaders
Benito Mussolini (Prime Minister of Italy) Sebastiano Visconti Prasca (Commander in Chief to 9 November) Ubaldo Soddu (C-in-C to mid-December) Ugo Cavallero (C-in-C from mid-December)	Ioannis Metaxas (Prime Minister of Greece) Alexander Papagos (commander-in-chief of the Hellenic Army) John D'Albiac (commander of RAF in Greece)
Strength
87,000 rising to 565,000 men 463 aircraft 163 light tanks	Fewer than 260,000 rising to 430,000 men 79 aircraft
Casualties and losses
13,755 killed 50,874 wounded 3,914 missing 21,153 POW Total combat losses: 89,696 52,108 sick 12,368 frostbite cases 64 aircraft (another 24 claimed) 1 submarine 30,000 long tons of shipping General total: 154,172	13,325 killed 42,485 wounded 1,237 missing 1,531 POW Total combat losses: 58,578 ? sick c. 25,000 frostbite cases 52 aircraft 1 submarine General total: 90,000+

 Italy

 Greece

13,755 killed
50,874 wounded
3,914 missing
21,153 POW
Total combat losses: 89,696
52,108 sick
12,368 frostbite cases
64 aircraft (another 24 claimed)
1 submarine
30,000 long tons of shipping

The Greco-Italian War (Italo-Greek War, Italian Campaign in Greece; in Greece: War of '40 and Epic of '40), took place between the Kingdoms of Italy and Greece from 28 October 1940 to 23 April 1941. This local war began the Balkans Campaign of World War II between the Axis powers and the Allies. It turned into the Battle of Greece when British and German ground forces intervened early in 1941.

In the mid-1930s, the Italian Prime Minister Benito Mussolini began an aggressive foreign policy and annexed Albania in the spring of 1939. World War II began on 3 September 1939 and on 10 June 1940, Italy declared war on the Allies, invaded France, British Somaliland and Egypt by September and prepared to occupy Greece. In the late 1930s the Greeks had begun the Metaxas Line opposite Bulgaria and from 1939 had accelerated defensive preparations against an Italian attack from Albania. In 1940, there was a hostile press campaign in Italy and other provocations culminating in the sinking of the Greek light cruiser Elli by the Italians on 15 August, (the Christian Dormition of the Mother of God festival). On 28 October, Mussolini issued an ultimatum to Greece demanding the cession of Greek territory, which the Prime Minister of Greece, Ioannis Metaxas, rejected.

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