The Hellenic Infantry has a long tradition of martial virtue. In 1940 he even wrote some of the most glorious pages of his history in the northern continental mountains. The Infantry is charged with the main mission during the battle.
It is the only complete and able to fight by movement and fire Weapon, in any type of terrain, day and night. This truth was true in 1940 more than ever, given that the Greek Army, due to the country's terrain, was a purely "infantry" army.
In total, on October 28, 1940, the Greek Infantry was constituted, based on the mobilization plan , in 56 infantry regiments, each of three battalions (168 battalions), nine machine gun battalions – five with two machine gun companies and one infantry company (24 machine guns) and the rest with three machine gun companies and one infantry (36 machine guns).
The Greek infantry regiments each had: 3 battalions of infantry, a platoon of mounted scouts and a company of heavy weapons (a machine company according to the terminology of the time). Its armament, in addition to the individual rifles, consisted of:2 65 mm guns, 4 81 mm mortars, 36 machine guns, 108 machine guns, 144 Lebel grenade launchers, which fired a 445 gram VB bomb at a distance of up to 200 m .approx.
Each infantry battalion, respectively, extended a command platoon, three infantry companies, a machine gun company (12 elements) and battle transports. The company had four platoons, each of 44 men and a command team. The platoon had three squads of 13 men each, the platoon leader, the platoon assistant, the gunner corporal, an observer and a dispatcher.
The team, finally, numbered 12 men, and a non-commissioned officer team leader, in other words 13 men in total. It was divided into the machine gun half-team (5 men, shooter, loader, two suppliers and the assistant team leader) and the sniper half-team (6 snipers and the gunner).
The group was – just as it is today – the basic infantry force, which uses fire and movement to act against the enemy. The 1940's Fandars were trained precisely in the tactics of fire and movement. "Under the protection of the machine-gun fire the skirmishers advance towards the enemy, in such a way as to support the movement of the machine-gun with their forward rifle fire in turn.
“At short distances, however, under the protection of machine gun fire, the gunner and grenadiers can approach the enemy resistance and make use of the machine gun and grenades, or attack with the lance » , reports the late colonel Davakis in the Infantry Officers Digest. The machine gun teams had two machine guns. The machine gun platoon two groups – four machine guns – and the machine gun company three platoons – 12 machine guns. Accordingly, the mortar platoon had two mortars. Two mortar platoons and an infantry platoon made up a mortar company.
An important difference compared to the Italian companies was the ability of the Greek counterparts to line up four, instead of three, infantry platoons. And yes, the Italian companies were superior in firepower, but they were behind in maneuverability.
The tetrad organization of the infantry company allowed great flexibility to the respective captain. Usually the Greek companies fought with two platoons forming the base of fire and the other two the maneuver force. However, the formation of the company depended on the terrain and the strength of the opponent.
However, an important factor, perhaps the most important, was the initiative of junior officers, captains and platoons. "The task of the platoon officer is to eventually change into the leader of that group, from whose action he expects the most serious results and, being placed at the head of it, to drag the rest forward by his example.
Any other form of directing the fight at a distance of less than 200 m from the enemy is impracticable under enemy fire and as long as the enemy is still on the defensive and does not allow a general charge through the spear.
Therefore let our young platoon officers, permanent and reserve, steel their hearts to reach that height where the officer scorns danger, scorns bullets and lances, and marches forth with forehead high and breast stretched out, more armed with mental fortitude than with pistol's ", says Davakis.
It is no coincidence that Colonel Davakis makes such extensive reference to the moral powers of young leaders. Accordingly, the Infantry Exercises Regulation of 1936 states:
"The struggle is essentially a struggle of moral forces. It is not he who has suffered the greatest losses in men or material who is defeated, but he whose morale is broken. Morale stems from trust. The fighter's confidence in his abilities, his weapons, his colleagues, and his leader. The performance of a unit depends mainly on the value of its leader and the mental fortitude of its officers ».
It is no coincidence that in an army, such as the Hellenic one, poor and with outdated armament, an attempt is made to cultivate the moral powers of officers and soldiers. In terms of armament, the Greek Infantry lagged behind the modern armies of the time in terms of firepower.
The rearmament plan drawn up by Papagos and not implemented provided for the provision of 12 81 mm mortars per infantry regiment. Instead the Greek regiments eventually had just four mortars, compensating for the lack by adding, per regiment, one 65 mm mountain gun ulama. (2 guns per regiment).
Each battalion was also provided with four 81mm mortars. 12 machine guns, 36 machine guns and 12 anti-tank rifles (one per platoon). In the absence of mortars and anti-tank guns, the Greek battalions only had a 12-gun machine gun company and their machine guns.
In many cases, the grenadiers – known as “trombonists” – equipped with Lebel rifles and special grenade launchers, of the entire company – 16 in total – were assembled, providing significant close support to the attacking units, at distances of up to 200 meters from the enemy.
The 65 mm. they were often used as anti-tank guns, performing direct fire against Italian tanks, but also as combat artillery, in ad hoc emergency artillery units. After all, improvisation has never been lacking in the Greek Army.