Battle of Hill 731

Battle of Hill 731
Part of the Italian spring offensive, during the Greco-Italian War
The Italian Spring Offensive (red arrows)
Date 9–24 March 1941 (2 weeks and 1 day) Location Hill 731, Mount Trebeshinë, Albania Result Greek victory
Belligerents
Greece	Italy
Commanders and leaders
Maj-Gen. Georgios Bakos (II Corps) Maj-Gen. Vasileios Vrachnos (1st Division) Col. Nikolaos Georgoulas (5th Regiment) Major Dimitrios Kaslas (731 Batalion)	Gen. Gastone Gambara (VIII Corps) Gen-Div. Alberto D'Aponte (Puglie Division) Brig-Gen. Angelico Carta (Siena Division) Brig-Gen Matteo Negro (Bari Division)
Strength
1 battalion [Rising to 1 Division]	2 Infantry divisions 1 Tank Regiment
Casualties and losses
~1,000	Roughly 8,000

The Battle of Hill (Height) 731 (Greek: Μάχη του υψώματος 731), was a fierce battle fought during World War II in southern Albania, part of the Greco-Italian War. It began in the early morning of 9 March 1941, when Fascist Italy launched an assault (Operation Primavera) against Greece, aimed at capturing the critical mountain pass leading into the Kalpaki valley. Hill 731, strategically located 20 km north of Klisura (Këlcyrë) at the feet of Mount Trebeshinë, stood at the heart of the Greek defensive line. Despite being repeatedly and heavily attacked by superior Italian forces for over two weeks, Hill 731 was not captured, contributing to the failure of the Primavera offensive and the repulsion of Italians.^[1][2][3]