An Cosantóir

An Cosantóir April 2019 www.dfmagazine.ie 28 | BY PAT POLAND O n 1st March 1944, Major General Heinrich Kreipe was ap- pointed OC of German forces on the Greek island of Crete, to replace General Friedrich Muller. In marked contrast to the avowed Nazi, Muller, Kreipe (pronounced 'Cry-puh') was an avuncular, cultured man who liked nothing better than a good rubber of bridge after his day's work. Muller's time on the island – occupied by Germany since 1941 – had been marked by harsh, repressive measures against the population that earned him the nickname the 'Butcher of Crete'. Early in 1944 a scheme was hatched to kidnap Muller and spirit him across the Mediterranean to Allied-held North Africa as a boost to Cretan morale and 'one in the eye' for the enemy. On learning of Muller's departure, the architects of the plan, two young British Army officers, Anglo-Irish Major Patrick 'Paddy' Leigh Fermor (Irish Guards) and Capt Ivan William Stanley ('Billy') Moss (Coldstream Guards), both attached to the Special Operations Executive based in Cairo, decided to go ahead with the operation, anyway. General Kreipe would have to do. On the evening of 26th April 1944, General Kreipe left his head- quarters in his Opel limousine, with his driver, Fenske, at the wheel, for the journey to his residence, Villa Ariadne at Knossos, about 25km from Heraklion. As they approached a T-junction in the pitch dark at 9.30pm, two German Feldgendarmarie NCOs carrying red traffic lamps signalled the car to stop. In perfect German, the older of the two policemen asked to see the general's credentials. As the general was not carrying ID, he was then asked to provide the evening's pass- word. Exiting the car, Kreipe snapped: "What unit are you? Don't you know your general?" To which came the quiet reply, again in faultless German: "General, you are now a prisoner-of-war in British hands." Leigh Fermor and Moss – the two 'German policemen' – assisted by a unit of the Cretan Resistance (the Andarte), who had hidden on either side of the road, made their move. The driver was quickly over- powered, sustaining a serious head injury in the process, but Kreipe was not going down without a fight. Grabbing Leigh Fermor, the two men rolled over in the road, the general kicking and lashing out until three guerrillas handcuffed him and tossed him into the back of the car. Leigh Fermor put on the general's hat and sat in the passenger's seat. Moss slid behind the wheel, with two Andartes sitting in the back, Kreipe between them, a dagger pressed against his ribs. It was made clear what would happen if he should make one false move. The remainder of the partisans melted off into the darkness, bringing the mortally-injured chauffeur with them. Because of Kreipe's penchant for playing cards in the mess long after the day's work was finished, his non-arrival at his villa caused no concern for several hours. During that time, the kidnappers encoun- tered no less than 22 German checkpoints, all of which recognised 'ILL MET BY MOONLIGHT' From the dusty roads of Crete to the leafy boreens of Cork and the Déise – the kidnapping of a Nazi general The abduction team: Kreipe (left) and Leigh Fermor (right), following the abduction.

• Cover