Secret War: The Fight for Greece | Free Documentary History

[Applause] [Music] this is the story of one of the most controversial missions of World War II in October 1942 Monty Woodhouse scholar diplom Warrior was parachuted into Greece to raise hell with a mly band of partisans he would pull off one of the most spectacular missions of the entire War but Woodhouse would also unleash a monster his partisans collapsed into infighting and eventually outright Civil [Music] War a gorilla force that he had helped arm would destabilize Greece for decades and lead to thousands of deaths so was this a fair price to pay for what had to be done to defeat the Nazis or was it a mission too far in April 1941 the German Army overran Greece the British troops stationed in the country realized the fight was up they destroyed their equipment and [Music] fled among those boarding a ship evacuating troops was an unlikely Soldier Monty [Music] Woodhouse Monty Woodhouse Would One Day become one of the most heroic Special Forces operatives of World War II but there was precious little sign of that in his [Music] upbringing Woodhouse was born into wealth the son of a British Aristocrat he was educated at Winchester College Britain's oldest boarding school which is famed for its academic Brilliance after excelling there Woodhouse went to New College Oxford he studied Classics British military historian Michael foot was a personal friend of the Woodhouse family and later became an expert on the Special Forces wanted woodh house I had known and admired since 1933 we were at the same College in Oxford where he again went on to a row of academic successes first in mods first in greats row of classical prizes Monty's was a rarified world and that was where he planned to stay he was destined for a career in the confines of British [Music] Academia according to his autobiography he envisaged an agreeable life lecturing on Plato and [Music] Aristotle but the outbreak of War changed everything [Music] Monty Woodhouse joined up and so in 1941 this scholarly young man was just another evacuated Soldier arriving in [Music] Egypt Cairo in the summer of 1941 was a fun place to be it was seething with half a million British and Commonwealth [Music] troops the city was also home to thousands of Administrators and an army of women secretaries based at British General headquarters life in the Egyptian Capital was a far cry from the front [Music] line there were no Air Raids or [Music] blackouts officers were bed in luxurious hotels could pass the time sightseeing shopping and enjoying [Music] themselves but for Monty Woodhouse the Cairo High Life didn't last [Music] long he caught the eye of the British Consul in Athens and have been selected for some special work the British Cil General in Athens called Sebastian was an early recruit to S soe and said to himself wood is just the sort of man that we need and recruited [Music] him the Special Operations executive or S soe had been created in the summer of 1940 when Hitler's Advance through Europe seemed Unstoppable [Music] [Applause] s soe was tasked with running a secret War building up and organizing a resistance Army Behind Enemy [Music] Lines the organization was Winston Churchill's own idea he' seen Guerilla Warfare firsthand in the B war and was convinced it could work against the Nazis he famously planned for S soe to set Europe Ablaze but so far the organization had little to show for its efforts it was coming under attack from rival agency MI6 whose view was that it was staffed by amateur who ran missions incompetently s soe badly needed some [Music] success perhaps Woodhouse could be the man to deliver it he suddenly seemed to have the attributes that soe were after brain above all very quick in the uptake reasonably deaf with his fingers very reasonable descent which in those days counted for quite a lot and the people who nowadays said it counts for nothing still think it do for everything with the breeding of race horses Woodhouse was certainly clubbable but first s soe had to see what he was made of so he was sent to cre the island had been occupied by the Germans since [Music] 1941 now Woodhouse was ordered to go Behind Enemy [Music] Lines his task was to evacuate stragglers British soldiers who had escaped or evaded capture but were now trapped on the island [Music] he was also to collect intelligence and assess the possibility of active [Music] resistance for Woodhouse it was a testing experience Communications with his Cairo headquarters were a constant Challenge and the winter in the mountains of creep was severe with characteristic modesty wood have said the experience taught him to feed on snails Mountain grass and acorns but he had also learned an essential skill how to live undetected in enemy territory Woodhouse had passed his first test now he was ready for something more [Music] ambitious s soe was planning one of their most ambitious operations to date it was code named harling in the summer of 1942 North Africa was Britain's Main theater of war Britain's eighth Army was being pummeled by the brilliant German field Marshal Owen roml the key to rl's success seemed to be the constant stream of supplies that followed a route from Germany down through the Balkans through Greece and on to North [Music] Africa operation harling was a plan to sever that supply line to do that they needed to destroy the main Railway line in Greece that was the task now given to Monty [Music] Woodhouse first Woodhouse had to learn how to [Music] parachute he was rushed through a two-day course in the desert outside Cairo it was there that he met the mission Commander Eddie Meyers where Woodhouse was new to soldiering Myers was a military man through and through Myers was a regular Brigadier who had risen to be a rather senior Brigadier looking after engineers in Cara but the two men had similar backgrounds he at Woodhouse both coming if I may dare call it so from the old officer class got on perfectly well together they knew what sort of things one ought to do and one ought not to do and were able to see eye to eye quite happily the bond between Woodhouse and Meyers would serve them well in the months ahead they would become lifelong [Music] friends on September 30th 1942 Woodhouse climbed aboard an RAF Liberator he would always remember the flight we flew from the Egyptian desert Beyond Caro a ladyb bird settled on me in Egypt and I cherished it uh all the way across in my airplane Woodhouse and his team were heading for the unknown and I told myself that I knew um I would be all right if the ladybird was still there when I arrived in gree part of the group was theistic [Music] marinos a Greek officer from the island of zakinthos for him as for Woodhouse it was his first mission of this kind it was very cold extremely cold and so we had to have uh not only our uh special equipment were War but blankets and all that even so the mood on board was optimistic the moon was in full and I could see the whole of Greece even to the side toward the I Onan SE in my in my Island that is a fantastic side actually H from Turkey to the other side like in the in the map Woodhouse dropped into the night sky and landed in the Rocky and wooded Terrain R of Mount gona in Central [Music] Greece his Talisman had survived I landed I opened my harness and there was the little lady bird inside and I kept it for as long as I could they quickly established a base [Music] camp Woodhouse and his team would live in caves and rely on locals for [Music] food and within weeks the target for sabotage was selected the gootus bridge a 20th century feet of Greek [Music] engineering seven steels spans supported by Stone and steel peers the viaduct was 200 M long and towered 32 m above a Roaring River the bridge was massive it was also very well protected guarded by 40 Italian soldiers at either end and there was more in a nearby Garrison the Italians had an armored train that could Rush a 100 troops to the bridge within [Music] minutes it was all too much for just 12 s soe men to succeed they would have to get help from local partisans the trouble was they had little idea who they were or where to find [Music] them Woodhouse and his team had been dropped into Greece with almost no Intelligence on Resistance groups in the country for Woodhouse there was only one thing for it go out and find them and so the British Aristocrat accompanied by a mule and a singing Greek Shepherd called Bara Niko set off into the mountains of Greece none of them had much idea of where they were going or what they were looking [Music] for Eddie Meers too had underestimated the task he gave Woodhouse just 24 days to return with more men you simply didn't realize that in Greece uh you don't drive along motor roads you walk over mountains and this is what I did but Monty Woodhouse by now sporting a fearsome beard was more than up to the challenge goodh house was a very very good Mountaineer he had never done that before in his life but he was the strongest and faster Walker over the mountains uh there um he was the number one even among the guillas nobody could C [Music] him after Marching for several days Woodhouse made a breakthrough in a remote Mountain Village he met Napoleon zervas zervas was a retired Greek General who now led a resistance group called edes The National Republican Greek League behind his jovial appearance was a sharp military mind he was a pleasant face very much so and he was open hard was extra weth he had sense of humor uh but he was a very good soldier really and u a great Patriot Zas greeted Woodhouse enthusiastically his first words to me in Greek were Caron evangelon welcome angel of Good Tidings then I knew I had a a friend there Napoleon zervas immediately agreed to lend his support to the raid on the gootus bridge but he could only offer 50 of his men Woodhouse needed more heading back into the mountains Woodhouse managed to make contact with Aris fotus AR was the leader of a different group of partisans called alas he was a skilled gorilla leader but he had a fierce reputation he was the opposite of humor I mean he was very hard a cruel person and I would say even sadis I mean killing people was nothing to him ais's men came from all political Persuasions but the group's leadership was dominated by Communists and Aris was one of them I realized I was dealing with a very tough organization but we needed Aries for our operation because with zerver Team alone we would not have had [Music] enough the problem for Woodhouse was that Aris and zervas were sworn enemies with very different political views they hated each other as much as they hated the [Music] Germans but on this occasion their rivalry worked in woodhouse's [Music] favor when Aris heard of the plan to blow up the bridge he decided zervas shouldn't get all the credit [Music] involvement in such a daring Mission could win valuable propaganda for his [Music] group he offered Woodhouse a 100 of his elas men Woodhouse rejoined Eddie Meyers in Triumph when I arrived back it was just after midnight Eddie looked at his watch and said jokingly you're a quarter of an hour late and that after traveling 24 days across the mountains was quite funny with 150 Greeks to reinforce the British sabots the operation could [Music] begin at 11 p.m. on November the 25th 1942 Woodhouse Meyers and their gorillas reached the target the plan was to take out the Italian defenses on both ends of the bridge before blowing it up from [Music] below but the Italian forces put up a fierce resistance the prolonged firefight alerted the Italian Garrison to the attack they rushed their armored Troop Train down the track now theis marinos sprang into action my job was to stop a a train with the reinforcements themis's role was to cut the railway tracks using two small demolition charges he managed to break the line but his problems weren't [Music] [Applause] over the train stopped the were it was full with Italians and I had with me a group uh of 15 guerillas of elas and as long when the train stopped they started firing as Themis and his elas gorillas battle to hold off the Italians the demolition team set to work they climbed down the Steep Gorge to the foot of the [Applause] viaduct the plan had been to neutralize the Italian defenses before laying the explosives but that was now impossible with the river roaring past them and the fighting going on overhead the explosives experts set to work they meticulously laided 500 lb of pH a Superlight plastic explosive pioneered by S soe [Music] itself finally the charges were in place would there be enough to blow up the [Music] bridge then came this wonderful sight of the steel lines floating up in the air and crashing onto the [Music] ground the gootus bridge was down twisted and severed in the valley the s soe team and their partisans had suffered no casualties I remember vividly joining hands and dancing around in a circle and singing a Greek him we walked home in [Music] Triumph the operation was a huge success for Woodhouse and his [Music] comrades but as was so often the case there was a price to [Music] pay the Italians took um I think 15 or 16 villagers uh you know completely innocent people took them to the bridge and they sent sat them down at the foot of the bridge and shot [Music] them I don't know what we could have done at s soe headquarters in London there were no such doubts for them the destruction of the bridge was a [Music] Triumph it was out of action for 6 weeks as the Germans repaired it and Michael foot believes the effect it had on Greek morale was even more important it gave the Greeks the idea that they could start hitting back and this was perhaps what one of the most important things soe ever did it gave to countries some of which had been put through intense military humiliation by being overrun by much Superior German forces in 1939 4041 the sense that they might hit back after all they were done but they were not out s soe High command wanted more of the same in their eyes Woodhouse and his partisans really were Bo to set Europe [Music] Ablaze but the reality on the ground was very different Woodhouse and S soe were about to become mired in a controversy that resounds to this day the problem was Aris and his elas fighters in February 1943 Woodhouse embarked on a high-risk mission to get information in Athens he needed to know exactly who was in control of [Music] elas the city was crawling with axis [Music] troops Woodhouse twice evaded capture and made contact with 's high command he made a worrying Discovery the Communists had an agenda that went Way Beyond beating the Germans they were planning for after the war their plan was to monopolize the Greek resistance they were build build up arms and men and at the end of the war seize control of the country in a coup and turn it into a communist [Music] state Woodhouse was appalled should s soe really be dealing with the likes of Aris fotus and Ellas Woodhouse shared his concerns with Eddie Meyers and they were urgent ly communicated to S soe headquarters it is now clear that whatever we do we cannot prevent elas from continuing to work for their own ends towards eventual control of Greece personally fear kudat through [Music] alas when they were received at s soe London the messages caused alarme High command faced an acute dilemma politically alas was extremely dangerous and the idea of working with Greek Communists flew in the face of British foreign policy but aras's men were the best partisan fighting force in Greece s soe needed them if they were to have any impact in the country what else was it to do one couldn't simply leave a country for the Germans to hang onate quite untroubled by S soe it was s soe's job to go forward irrespective whether anything was known of what was happening at the time and find out what was going on on the [Music] spot by Spring of 1943 the decision had been [Music] made Allied High command decided that Greek partisans were to play an important role in the next stage of their [Applause] strategy the order went out to Woodhouse that he was to continue working with alas so the British military started to assemble a stockpile of supplies destined for Greece medical equipment food and weapons they were going to arm the [Music] Communists by the summer of 1943 alas were bristling with British military hardware they had become a formidable fighting [Music] [Applause] force that was exactly what s soe thought it needed at the [Music] time by now the war in North Africa had turned after his earlier victories German field Marshall roml was now on the Run he had been trapped in a pins Movement by British General Montgomery and American General [Music] Eisenhower they had driven him out of North Africa now the Allies could prepare for the next stage of the war and one of its most [Music] risky the invasion of [Music] Sicily code named husky this was a highly dangerous Venture that involved shipping thousands of troops across the Mediterranean and Landing them on heavily defended enemy beaches the key to success was a campaign of deception the Allies planed to lure axis troops away from Italy by convincing Hitler an invasion would happen in Sardinia or Greece s soe was ordered to begin a campaign of sabotage in Greece that would appear as a Prelude to allout [Music] attack the Greek partisans had now become an intense integral part of the whole Allied war [Music] effort Woodhouse and Eddie Meers set to [Music] work they devised a plan called operation animals which tasked their Greek Gorillas with wiping out lines of communication roads telephone lines and Railways were destroyed across the [Music] country another Bridge was earmarked for Destruction this one called the asopos [Music] viaduct alas were committed to joining the operation but as s soe began the detailed planning for the raid Ellas withdrew their support they suddenly claimed that the mission was just too dangerous so in stark contrast to the triumphant gorus raid the asopos was blown up by just four British agents it was becoming apparent that Ellas were not to be trusted Woodhouse found himself in a constant battle for their cooperation but he had to work with them if he was to achieve s soe's aims I was miserable I said we'll have to do the best we can and we did it was um worse and more difficult than I had foreseen the only way to keep elas on side was by giving them more weapons it was a dangerous strategy but it [Music] worked two of Hitler's best divisions were kept stationed in Greece tied down by a w of sabotage the invasion of Sicily could go [Music] ahead the Allied invasion operations began from the beaches of the axis Sicilian stronghold and which will go forward until Italy and then Germany lay down their arms with unconditional surrender by August 1943 Sicily was in Allied hands and the regime of Italian dictator musolini collapsed but in Greece woodh House's problems were about to get worse with the Italians out of the war he accepted the surrender of an entire division of their troops but what followed was a disaster the Italians agreed to change sides and the plan was to disperse them amongst all partisan groups willing to fight the Germans but alas had other intentions where it went wrong was when we distributed the Italians to small villages all over the area what I dreaded did happen the Communist disarmed [Music] this massive influx of Italian weapons to the Communists completely changed the balance of power together with Arms supplyed by Britain Aris now had the Firepower to turn on woodhouse's friend Napoleon zervas alas launched vicious attacks on zervas his men dotted around the country zervas himself survived but Woodhouse faced the Stark reality that his partisans were no longer fighting the [Music] Germans they were fighting each other [Music] instead Woodhouse the man who knew the partisans better than anyone was now deeply alarmed convinced that the Communists were planning a coup he frantically reiterated his concerns to London I conclude my views on Ellas with a repetition of the remarks which I made several times by signal last March that Ellis's primary aim is the control of this country during and after the war and their secondary aim the expulsion of the Germans Woodhouse feared that once the Germans withdrew from Greece there would be a power vacuum in the country which the Communists would exploit his report at the time was a dire testimony to the political failings in [Music] Greece the military position is now the exact reverse of the position when we arrived in October 42 then a handful of rebels prevented the enemy from Total OCC occupation of Greece now a handful of the enemy prevent the rebels from a total occupation of [Music] Greece Woodhouse requested that Britain send in more troops it would be the only way to avert total chaos but all British troops were either tied up fighting in Italy or preparing for the Allied invasion of northern France woodhouse's request was [Music] rejected in September 1944 the Germans finally began their withdrawal from Greece they had plundered the country for supplies and caused a 4-year famine half a million civilians had died many from starvation nearly all of the country's Jewish population had been rounded up and transported to death camps in [Music] Poland the Greeks had paid a heavy price but at last they seem to be [Music] free these are pictures of the people of atham giving British troops that tremendous welcome the Greeks gave their allies one of the greatest Ovations ever witnessed in this [Applause] world a small British Force landed for The Liberation and elas shared in the triumph but this show of unity was [Music] shortlived within weeks woodhouse's worst fears came true he could only look on as elas sparked a communist coup try to seize power in Athens British soldiers comrades of the men who fought with Greeks against the Han are here engaged in fighting those same men airborne troops occupying a rooftop position fire their machine gun into a street of atham to prevent the movement of elas forces the British army was forced to fight its former comrades many of whom had been armed by S soe the elas coup was eventually put down only to be followed a year later by a bloody Civil War that lasted 3 [Music] years 50,000 Greeks were killed when the country was eventually stabilized it was effectively under military rule the Communist party was banned post-war Greek politics were hardly a Triumph for [Music] democracy [Music] woodhouse's s soe mission in Greece ended in January 1945 the question remains of exactly what he and the organization had [Music] achieved the raid on the gootus had been spectacular it had boosted morale in the country but it emerged later that the operation had happened a month too late to have any impact on the war in North [Music] Africa the official report on S soe operations in Greece claimed Rebels had inflicted 25,000 casualties on axis [Music] troops 150 locomotives were damaged and 100 Bridges were blown [Music] up but some believe these achievements by s soe were overstated and that a civil war fueled by British arms was too great a price to pay for these actions no one was more aware than Woodhouse himself of the flaws in s soe policy he stated later the main handicap of s soe in Greece was 40 Direction not practical incompetence after the war Woodhouse returned to his life in upper class British Society he went on to be a diplomat politician and author but he also retained a lifelong loyalty to Greece and his work there on the 10th anniversary of the Goro partas oper operation we had a ceremony at the scene of the operation and it was a very Grand Occasion with cabinet ministers and Generals and so on as Woodhouse looked back on his heroic mission that had become so controversial he had to conclude that any attempt to take fight to the Nazis had a value and two little old men whom we'd never met in our lives uh came to Eddie and myself and said we must thank you for what you did for us and these were two Jews and Eddie rather sheepishly said well I'm afraid we didn't do very much we didn't do anything for you and uh one of the two old men uh said never mind you were there you were there and that really moved him and moved me Monty Woodhouse died in 2001 this unlikely Soldier had been awarded one of Britain's highest military honors a distinguished service order for his bravery [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] w [Music]

Channel: Free Documentary - History

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Keywords: Free Documentary, Documentaries, Full Documentary, documentary - topic, documentary (tv genre), History, History Documentaries, Free Documentary History, History Documentary, World War Two, World War Two Documentary, Secret War Documentary, WWII, Second World War Documentary, Special Operations Executive, Irregular Warfare, Sabotage Missions, World War Two Commandos, Commandos, Secret Warfare, Espionage WW2, OSS, Office of Strategic Services

Id: 2xO7UqA_idE

Length: 49min 1sec (2941 seconds)

Published: Tue Nov 21 2023