Back Massacre de Cefalònia Catalan Massaker auf Kefalonia German Σφαγή της Μεραρχίας Άκουι Greek Masacre de Cefalonia Spanish Massacre de la division Acqui French Eccidio di Cefalonia Italian Masakra na Kefalinii Polish Massacre de Cefalônia Portuguese Бойня дивизии Акви Russian Kefalonya katliamı Turkish

Massacre of the Acqui Division

Massacre of the Acqui Division
The island of Cephalonia
LocationCephalonia, Ionian Islands, Kingdom of Greece
Coordinates38°15′N 20°35′E / 38.25°N 20.59°E / 38.25; 20.59
Date21–26 September 1943
Attack type
Deaths6,470 killed
  • 1,315 killed in action against German forces (300 German soldiers were killed in action prior to the surrender of the Italians)
  • 5,155 prisoners of war executed
    (including General Antonio Gandin)
Approximately another 3,000 POWs drowned after their transport ships were sunk by Allied aircraft and sea mines, amounting to 9,500 Italian soldiers being killed, of the 12,000 strong division
VictimsKingdom of Italy Royal Italian Army
PerpetratorsNazi Germany German Army Gen. Hubert Lanz
Lt. Col. Johannes Barge
Maj. Harald von Hirschfeld

The Massacre of the Acqui Division, also known as the Cephalonia massacre, was a war crime by German soldiers against POWs of the Italian 33rd Infantry Division "Acqui" on the island of Cephalonia, Greece, in September 1943, following the Armistice of Cassibile during the Second World War.[1][2][3] About 5,000 soldiers were executed, and around 3,000 more drowned.

Following the decision of the Italian government to negotiate a surrender to the Allies in 1943, the German Army tried to disarm the Italians during Operation Achse. On 13 September the Italians of the Acqui resisted, and fought the Germans on the island of Cephalonia. By 22 September the last of the Italian resistance surrendered after running out of ammunition. A total of 1,315 Italians were killed in the battle, 5,155 were executed by 26 September, and 3,000 drowned when the German ships taking the survivors to concentration camps were sunk by the Allies. It was one of the largest prisoner of war massacres of the war, along with the Katyn massacre carried out by the Soviet Union,[4][5] and it was one of many atrocities committed by the 1st Mountain Division (German: 1. Gebirgs Division).[6]

  1. ^ "Massacre details" (in German). Archived from the original on 16 February 2012. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  2. ^ O'Reilly, Charles T. (2001). Forgotten Battles: Italy's War of Liberation, 1943–1945. Lexington Books. ISBN 978-0-7391-0195-7.
  3. ^ "Italian presidents to attend events on Cephallonia Wednesday, 24 April, 2007". Greek Embassy in Washington, D.C. Archived from the original on 10 February 2012.
  4. ^ "Massacres and atrocities of WWII". Almost unknown outside of Italy, this event ranks with Katyn as one of the darkest episodes of the war." "The German 11th Battalion of Jäger-Regiment 98 of the 1st Gebirgs (Mountain) Division, commanded by Major Harald von Hirschfeld, arrived on the island and soon Stukas were bombing the Italian positions.
  5. ^ "Rizospastis" (in Greek). 3 September 2000. Πρέπει να σημειωθεί πως τα βιβλία για τη σφαγή των Ιταλών στρατιωτών της Κεφαλονιάς (η μεγαλύτερη σφαγή αιχμαλώτων του Β' Παγκοσμίου Πολέμου), εκτός αυτού του Μπερνιέρ, είναι το ένα καλύτερο από το άλλο. Translation: It must be noted that the books about the massacre of the Italian soldiers in Cephalonia (the biggest massacre of prisoners of war in WWII), except the one by Bernier, are one better than the other.
  6. ^ "Mörder unterm Edelweiß – noch immer unter uns ("Murderers under the Edelweiss – still among us")" (in German).

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