Razing of Kandanos
Videos
Page
The Razing of Kandanos refers to the complete destruction of the village of Kandanos in Western Crete (Greece) and the killing of about 180 of its inhabitants on 3 June 1941 by German occupying forces during World War II.
A German soldier in front of one of the signs erected after the razing. The text reads: "Kandanos was destroyed in retaliation for the bestial ambush murder of a paratrooper platoon and a half-platoon of military engineers by armed men and women."
BMW R75 with sidecar and MG34.
Horst Trebes (right) with W. Gericke in July 1941.
The Kandanos war memorial in 2000
Kurt Student
Videos
Page
Kurt Arthur Benno Student was a German general in the Luftwaffe during World War II. An early pioneer of airborne forces, Student was in overall command of developing a paratrooper force to be known as the Fallschirmjäger, and as the most senior member of the Fallschirmjäger, commanded it throughout the war. Student led the first major airborne attack in history, the Battle for The Hague, in May 1940. He also commanded the Fallschirmjäger in its last major airborne operation, the invasion of Crete in May 1941. The operation was a success despite German losses, and led the Allies to hasten the training and development of their own airborne units.
Student in 1941
German paratroopers landing at the Ockenburg airfield near The Hague, 10 May 1940
German paratroopers landing on Crete, May 1941
Up to 60 Cretan civilians were massacred at Kondomari by Student's Fallschirmjäger in June 1941