On October 28, 1940, Italy's 3rd Alpine Division "Julia," one of its most elite mountain warfare units with roughly 10,8...

On October 28, 1940, Italy's 3rd Alpine Division "Julia," one of its most elite mountain warfare units with roughly 10,800 men, pushed through the Pindus passes at 5 a.m. with a single objective: reach Metsovo, sever the connection between Epirus and Western Macedonia, and crack open Greece's defensive line for the Italian advance. Standing in their way was the Pindos Detachment. About 2,000 Greek soldiers with stretched supply lines, limited equipment, and an enormous front to hold. Julia was purpose-built for exactly this terrain. The Alpini took villages, pushed deeper into the mountains, and made it as far as Vovousa. But Metsovo stayed out of reach. Greek units didn't hold a pre-planned trap. They withdrew under intense pressure, unit by unit, fighting to stay in contact and buy time until reinforcements could arrive. Greek General Headquarters responded by reinforcing the Pindos Detachment and ordering I Division to regroup and counterattack. On November 1, Greek forces hit Julia's left flank. Over the next two days, I Division seized the Tambouri and Fourka heights, and the Cavalry Brigade retook Samarina. On November 2, the commander of the Pindos Detachment, Colonel Davakis, was shot through the chest near Fourka while at the front, a blow the Detachment absorbed without breaking. Between November 4 and 6, Julia's withdrawal turned dangerous. A large portion of the division risked being cut off entirely at Distrato. The 47th "Bari" Division had to intervene to pull Julia's remnants out through the Smolika passes toward Konitsa. By November 13, the Greek line ran from Smolika to Grammos and held firm. The villages behind the front sent everything they had. Men and women carried ammunition and rations up paths too narrow for any vehicle, on their hands and backs, to keep the soldiers supplied. Italy's elite alpine corps went into the Pindus with more than five times the manpower and never completed its mission. #OxiDay #Greece #WWII