The 12th Mechanized Infantry Division "Evros" ( el, ΧΙΙ Μηχανοκίνητη Μεραρχία Πεζικού «ΕΒΡΟΣ» ''Dodekati Mihanokiniti Merarhia Pezikou «EVROS»'') is a military formation of the

Hellenic Army The Hellenic Army ( el, Ελληνικός Στρατός, Ellinikós Stratós, sometimes abbreviated as ΕΣ), formed in 1828, is the land force of Greece. The term ''Hellenic'' is the endogenous synonym for ''Greek''. The Hellenic Army is th ...

, based at

Alexandroupoli Alexandroupolis ( el, Αλεξανδρούπολη, ), Alexandroupoli, or Alexandrople is a city in Greece and the capital of the Evros regional unit. It is the largest city in Western Thrace and the region of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace. It h ...

Thrace Thrace (; el, Θράκη, Thráki; bg, Тракия, Trakiya; tr, Trakya) or Thrake is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe, now split among Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkey, which is bounded by the Balkan Mountains to ...

History

The division was formed in the reorganization and expansion of the

following the Balkan Wars of 1912–13. It was activated on 23 December (O.S.) 1913 at

Kozani Kozani ( el, Κοζάνη, ) is a city in northern Greece, capital of Kozani regional unit and of Western Macedonia. It is located in the western part of Macedonia, in the northern part of the Aliakmonas river valley. The city lies above sea ...

, comprising the 31st,

32nd 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...

, 33rd Infantry Regiments and the XII Mountain Artillery Battalion. It formed part of III Army Corps. The original formation was disbanded during the

National Schism The National Schism ( el, Εθνικός Διχασμός, Ethnikós Dichasmós), also sometimes called The Great Division, was a series of disagreements between King Constantine I and Prime Minister Eleftherios Venizelos regarding the foreig ...

and did not take part in any engagements during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. In February 1920, the Xanthi Division (; ''Merarkhia Xanthis'') was formed at

Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...

from

Thracian The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied ...

recruits, whence its naming after the city of

Xanthi Xanthi ( el, Ξάνθη, ''Xánthi'', ) is a city in the region of Western Thrace, northeastern Greece. It is the capital of the Xanthi regional unit of the region of East Macedonia and Thrace. Amphitheatrically built on the foot of Rhodope m ...

. Commanded by Major General

Konstantinos Mazarakis-Ainian Konstantinos Mazarakis-Ainian ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Μαζαράκης-Αινιάν, 1869–1949) was a Hellenic Army officer who rose to the rank of Lieutenant General. Life Konstantinos Mazarakis-Ainian was born in the island of Kyth ...

, it comprised the

13th In music or music theory, a thirteenth is the note thirteen scale degrees from the root of a chord and also the interval between the root and the thirteenth. The interval can be also described as a compound sixth, spanning an octave pl ...

, 14th, 15th Infantry Regiments, the XII Mountain Artillery Regiment and other divisional units. In May 1920, the division took part in the Greek takeover of

Western Thrace Western Thrace or West Thrace ( el, �υτικήΘράκη, '' ytikíThráki'' ; tr, Batı Trakya; bg, Западна/Беломорска Тракия, ''Zapadna/Belomorska Trakiya''), also known as Greek Thrace, is a geographic and histori ...

, after which it was shipped to

Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The ...

where it took part in the Greek offensive operations against the Turkish nationalist forces. In July it was withdrawn from the Anatolian front and re-shipped to take part in the operations for the capture of

Eastern Thrace Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai *Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 *Eastern Air Li ...

. Following the 1920 elections and the victory of the anti-

Venizelist Venizelism ( el, Βενιζελισμός) was one of the major political movements in Greece from the 1900s until the mid-1970s. Main ideas Named after Eleftherios Venizelos, the key characteristics of Venizelism were: *Greek irredentism: ...

royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governm ...

coalition, the Xanthi Division was renamed as the 12th Infantry Division. In early 1921, it was reformed under the command of

Prince Andrew Prince Andrew, Duke of York, (Andrew Albert Christian Edward; born 19 February 1960) is a member of the British royal family. He is the younger brother of King Charles III and the third child and second son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince ...

and, comprising the 14th, 41st and 46th Regiments, was transferred once again to the Anatolian front, landing in

Smyrna Smyrna ( ; grc, Σμύρνη, Smýrnē, or , ) was a Greek city located at a strategic point on the Aegean coast of Anatolia. Due to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence, and its good inland connections, Smyrna rose to promi ...

between 29 May and 6 June 1921. The division took part in the

Battle of Kütahya–Eskişehir The Battle of Kütahya–Eskişehir ( el, Μάχες Κιουτάχειας-Εσκί Σεχίρ (Δορυλαίου), tr, Kütahya-Eskişehir Muharebeleri), was fought between July 10 and July 24 (or June 27 and July 10 in the old calendar, the ...

and the Greek advance to

Ankara Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...

, which ended in the

Battle of Sakarya The Battle of the Sakarya ( tr, Sakarya Meydan Muharebesi, lit=Sakarya Field Battle), also known as the Battle of the Sangarios ( el, Μάχη του Σαγγαρίου, Máchi tou Sangaríou), was an important engagement in the Greco-Turkish W ...

. The division was commanded from 15 July by Colonel Periklis Kallidopoulos. The division remained in Anatolia under I Army Corps until the great Turkish offensive in August 1922. The division was practically destroyed as a fighting force after the

Battle of Dumlupınar The Battle of Dumlupınar ( el, Μάχη του Τουμλού Μπουνάρ, translit=Máchi tou Toumloú Bounár, tr, Dumlupınar (Meydan) Muharebesi, lit=Dumlupınar (Field) Battle), or known as Field Battle of the Commander-in-Chief ( t ...

; its remnants—155 officers, 2,240 men, 1,010 animals, 18 guns and 15 machine-guns—embarked at

Çeşme Çeşme () is a coastal town and the administrative centre of the district of the same name in Turkey's westernmost end, on a promontory on the tip of the peninsula that also carries the same name and that extends inland to form a whole with the ...

for

Chios Chios (; el, Χίος, Chíos , traditionally known as Scio in English) is the fifth largest Greek island, situated in the northern Aegean Sea. The island is separated from Turkey by the Chios Strait. Chios is notable for its exports of masti ...

on 31 August. In Greece, its remnants were merged with the Independent Division to form the new 12th Division at Feres as part of the

Army of the Evros The Army of the Evros ( el, Στρατιά Έβρου) was a field army of Greece, stationed in Western Thrace between December 1922 and August 1923. History The Army of the Evros was formed following the defeat and evacuation of the Army of Asi ...

(October 1922). It remained in

after the signature of the Treaty of Lausanne, based at Komotini. Upon the outbreak of the

Greco-Italian War The Greco-Italian War (Greek: Ελληνοϊταλικός Πόλεμος, ''Ellinoïtalikós Pólemos''), also called the Italo-Greek War, Italian Campaign in Greece, and the War of '40 in Greece, took place between the kingdoms of Italy and G ...

in October 1940, the division remained in Thrace, and provided the cadre for several reserve regiments, which were transferred to other divisions. On 6 March 1941, with the expected

German invasion of Greece The German invasion of Greece, also known as the Battle of Greece or Operation Marita ( de , Unternehmen Marita, links = no), was the attack of Greece by Italy and Germany during World War II. The Italian invasion in October 1940, which is usu ...

looming, the division was transferred to the Central Macedonia Army Section, and was placed under the

British Commonwealth The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Co ...

troops holding the

Vermion The Vermio Mountains ( el, Βέρμιο), known in antiquity as the Bermion ( el, Βέρμιον), is a mountain range in northern Greece. It lies between the Imathia Regional Unit of the Central Macedonia Region and the Kozani Regional Unit of ...

– Aliakmon line. Coming under German attack at the Battle of Siatista Pass, the division retreated to the southwest and lost much of its force to desertion; finally, with the Greek capitulation on 24 April, the division, by now reduced to some 1,000 men, was disbanded. 12th Infantry Division was reformed on 26 August 1964 at

, with the 29th, 30th and 31st Regiments and other divisional units. In June 1996 it was converted into a

mechanized infantry Mechanized infantry are infantry units equipped with armored personnel carriers (APCs) or infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) for transport and combat (see also mechanized force). As defined by the United States Army, mechanized infantry is di ...

division, and in 2009 it received the honorific title " Evros".

Organization

* HQ Company (ΛΣ/ΧΙΙ Μ/Κ ΜΠ) * 3rd Armoured Cavalry Squadron (Γ'ΕΑΝ) * 12th Support Battalion * 12th Signal Company (12ο ΤΔΒ) * 966th Military Police Company * Tactical Command/41st Infantry Regiment (ΤΔ/41οΣΠ), based at Samothraki * Division Artillery Command (ΔΠΒ/ΧΙΙ Μ/Κ ΜΠ) ** HQ Company ** 156th Self Propelled Artillery Battalion (156 Α/K ΜΜΠ pzh 2000Gr) ** 187th Observation Battery (187 ΠΠΑΠ) * 7th Mechanized Infantry Brigade (7η M/K ΤΑΞ Σαραντάπορος), based at Lykofos. ** HQ Company (ΙΣΤ) ** 7th Armoured Battalion (7 ΕΜΑ) ** 640th Mechanized Infantry Battalion (640 M/K ΤΠ) ** Mechanized Infantry Battalion (M/K ΤΠ) ** Self Propelled Artillery Battalion (131 Μ Α/K ΠΒ) ** 7th Antitank Company (7 ΛΑΤ) ** 7th Engineer Company (7 ΛΜΧ) ** 7th Signal Company (7 ΛΔΒ) ** 7th Support Battalion (7 ΤΥΠ) * 31st Mechanized Infantry Brigade (31η M/K ΤΑΞ Κάμια), based at Feres ** HQ Company (ΙΣΤ) ** 12th Armored Battalion (12 ΕΜΑ) ** 526th Mechanized Infantry Battalion (526 M/K ΤΠ) ** 561st Mechanized Infantry Battalion (561 M/K ΤΠ) ** 535th Mechanized Infantry Battalion (535 M/K ΤΠ) ** 536th Mechanized Infantry Battalion (536 M/K ΤΠ) ** 110th Self Propelled Artillery Battalion (110 Μ Α/K ΠΒ) ** 31st Antitank Company (31 ΛΑΤ) ** 31st Engineer Company (31 ΛΜΧ) ** 31st Signal Company (31 ΛΔΒ) ** 31st Support Battalion (31 ΤΥΠ)

Emblem and motto

The division's emblem depicts two roosters confronting each other. It and the divisional motto, ('; "Until one of them falls") are inspired by a quote of the historian Polybius, describing the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

and

Carthaginians The Punic people, or western Phoenicians, were a Semitic people in the Western Mediterranean who migrated from Tyre, Phoenicia to North Africa during the Early Iron Age. In modern scholarship, the term ''Punic'' – the Latin equivalent of the ...

during the First Punic War: "We may compare the spirit displayed by both states to that of game cocks engaged in a death-struggle. For we often see that when these birds have lost the use of their wings from exhaustion, their courage remains as high as ever and they continue to strike blow upon blow, until closing involuntarily they get a deadly hold of each other, and as soon as this happens one or the other of the two will soon fall dead."Polybius, ''History''
I.58.7–8
/ref>

References

{{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 Mechanized infantry divisions of Greece Alexandroupolis