Battle of Korytsa

Battle of Korytsa Part of the Greco-Italian War Greek troops in Korçë, Albania, Nov 1940 Date 16–22 November 1940 Location Korçë, Albania Result Greek victory: Italian defensive line at Korcë is broken through Defeat of the Italian 9th Army Belligerents  Fascist Italy  Kingdom of Greece Commanders and leaders Ubaldo Soddu Alexander Papagos Strength Italian 9th Army III Army Corps Casualties and losses Unknown killed, 2,000 captured, 135 field guns and 600 machine guns captured [1] 624 dead and 2,348 wounded

The Battle of Korytsa was fought during the Greco-Italian War of 1940–41 in the town of Korçë (Greek: Korytsa) in southern Albania between the defending Italian 9th Army and the attacking Greek III Army Corps.

After the initial Italian invasion starting 28 October had been stopped, Greek forces launched an counter-offensive in early November. The battle for Korytsa formed the first part of the operation against the Italians and marked the final stage of the Greek penetration in the Battle of Morava–Ivan heights sector.

The Italian 9th Army was entrenched around the town, but fierce fighting over two days led to the break-through of the Italian defensive line by the Greeks and its capture. Remnants of the 9th Army itself avoided capture, as the opposing Greek forces were poorly motorized and unable to pursue the retreating Italians.

References

1. Οκτώβριος 1940: Η επίθεση εναντίον της Ελλάδας όπως την είδαν οι Ιταλοί, Συλλογικό έργο, Εκδόσεις Παπαδήμα, Αθήνα 2008, page 86; (Greek translation of Italian original: Ottobre 1940: La campagna di Grecia, Italia Editrice, Campobasso 1995/Foggia 2007)