War Memorial for Greek Cadets of the Battle of Crete

A simple monument as it is worth to the 300 Greek Cadets of the Battle of Crete, in a place where the view from Kolimbari to Maleme is breathtaking.

An anthem to freedom and patriotism.
The Monument was erected in memory of the Greek Cadets who fell while fighting, against the conquerors in the Battle of Crete in 1941.

When on April 23, 1941, the capitulation agreement was signed between the government of Greece and the Germans, the Supreme Military Command gave the order, according to which, the Cadets has to perform police duties to maintain order at the entrance of the Germans in Athens.

The Cadets refused to carry out this order and decided to continue the fight against the conquerors in Crete.
On the same day, first and second year Cadets together with officers of the school received the flag of the school together with their weapons and after an adventurous descent arrived in the morning of April 29, at the Holy Monastery of Gonia in Kolymbari, Chania.

On May 20, 1941, the active participation of the Guards in the battle of Crete in the area of the hills of the village of Kolimbari began, according to the Allied Defense Plan.

The attacks of the German paratroopers were repulsed with self-sacrifice and heroism, despite the heavy bombardment of the fighter jets.
But the struggle was unequal, because the Germans had many modern weapons and absolute superiority in the air. Opposite them, the Cadets had outdated and unreliable armament, with many problems, and little ammunition.

When the ammunition ran out and Maleme Airport was occupied, the retreat began. Since Crete had already been occupied by German troops, any continuation of the struggle was pointless and unjustified.
To honor the sacrifice of the first-year Guards, who fell heroically fighting in the hills of the village of Kolimbari, this monument has been built here.

Apart from the monument for the battle of Crete, it is the best place in Kolimpari area to listen the sea, to feel the land and the air ... !!!
Your gaze is lost and all the senses become one.
Worth it !!!

The entrance to the monument is free.