The 6th Infantry Regiment "Himarra" ( el, 6ο Σύνταγμα Πεζικού «ΧΕΙΜΑΡΡΑ», 6ο ΣΠ) was a historic unit 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 the ...

History

The regiment was formed in 1877 in Arta. It fought in the

Epirus sq, Epiri rup, Epiru , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Historical region , image_map = Epirus antiquus tabula.jpg , map_alt = , map_caption = Map of ancient Epirus by Heinrich ...

front of the

Greco-Turkish War of 1897 The Greco-Turkish War of 1897 or the Ottoman-Greek War of 1897 ( or ), also called the Thirty Days' War and known in Greece as the Black '97 (, ''Mauro '97'') or the Unfortunate War ( el, Ατυχής πόλεμος, Atychis polemos), was a w ...

. During the

First Balkan War The First Balkan War ( sr, Први балкански рат, ''Prvi balkanski rat''; bg, Балканска война; el, Αʹ Βαλκανικός πόλεμος; tr, Birinci Balkan Savaşı) lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and invo ...

of 1912–13 it took part in the battles of

Sarantaporo Sarantaporo ( el, Σαραντάπορο) is a village and a former municipality in the Larissa regional unit, Thessaly, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Elassona, of which it is a municipal unit. Pop ...

Giannitsa Giannitsa ( el, Γιαννιτσά , in English also Yannitsa, Yenitsa) is the largest city in the regional unit of Pella and the capital of the Pella municipality, in the region of Central Macedonia in northern Greece. The municipal unit Gian ...

and the operations in western Macedonia and

Northern Epirus sq, Epiri i Veriut rup, Epiru di Nsusu , type = Part of the wider historic region of Epirus , image_blank_emblem = , blank_emblem_type = , image_map = Epirus across Greece Albania4.svg , map_caption ...

, advancing as far as Kleisoura. The regiment also fought in the

Battle of Kilkis-Lahanas A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

and the other operations of the

Second Balkan War The Second Balkan War was a conflict which broke out when Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Serbia and Greece, on 16 ( O.S.) / 29 (N.S.) June 1913. Serbian and Greek armies r ...

(1913). In 1918 it fought in the

Macedonian front The Macedonian front, also known as the Salonica front (after Thessaloniki), was a military theatre of World War I formed as a result of an attempt by the Allied Powers to aid Serbia, in the autumn of 1915, against the combined attack of German ...

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 ...

under French command, while in 1920 it took part in the operations in

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 ...

, before being transferred to the

front Front may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''The Front'' (1943 film), a 1943 Soviet drama film * ''The Front'', 1976 film Music * The Front (band), an American rock band signed to Columbia Records and active in the 1980s and e ...

Asia Minor 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 re ...

, where it remained until the Greek retreat in 1922. During the

Greco-Italian War The Greco-Italian War (Greek language, 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 kingdom ...

of 1940–41, the regiment captured Argyrokastro and Himarra. It was disbanded after the

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 ...

and the surrender of the Greek Army in April 1941. After the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, on 16 March 1946 a training centre for new recruits (Κέντρο Εκπαίδευσης Νεοσυλλέκτων, ΚΕΝ) was established at

Corinth Corinth ( ; el, Κόρινθος, Kórinthos, ) is the successor to an ancient city, and is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it has been part o ...

, which on 20 September 1965 received the designation "6th Infantry Regiment". On 23 November 2000, the regiment received the honorific name "Himarra". For its wartime service, the regiment had been twice decorated with the highest Greek military distinction, the Commander's Cross of the Cross of Valour, the first time on 19 June 1921 for the Asia Minor Campaign, and the second on 28 May 1941 for the Greco-Italian War. The regiment and the training centre were disbanded in February 2013.

References

{{Recipients of the Commander's Cross of the Cross of Valour 1877 establishments in Greece 2013 disestablishments in Greece Military units and formations established in 1877 Military units and formations disestablished in 2013 Infantry regiments of Greece Commander's Crosses of the Cross of Valour (Greece) Military units and formations of Greece in the Greco-Italian War Corinth Military units and formations of Greece in the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922) Military units and formations of Greece in the Balkan Wars