Tinos Elli Torpedoing

The torpedoing of the Greek light cruiser (warship) Elli is considered the first act of World War II in Greece. Elli was purchased by the Greek government in 1914, right after the Balkan Wars, from which the country had emerged victorious. It saw action both in the First World War and during the Asia Minor Campaign, while in 1920, along with the Greek warship Averof, she underwent reconstruction in France, obtaining modern technological equipment.

Although the cruiser Elli had so many victories at war, it sank in times of peace. On August 15th, 1940, Elli arrived at the port of Tinos to participate in the celebrations for the biggest religious festival on the island, the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, as the church of Panagia Evangelistria is considered the most significant pilgrimage site in Greece.

At 08:25, while 10,000 pilgrims were concentrated in Evangelistria Church and the entire area of the port, a torpedo hit Elli’s engine room and oil tanks, causing a fire. Nine officers and sailors were killed, while another 24 people were wounded. Other torpedoes tried to hit passenger ships Elsi and Esperos, which were also anchored at the port, but luckily with no success. Despite all the crew’s efforts to keep her afloat, Elli sank approximately an hour later.

Although an investigation held the next day showed that the torpedo had come from an Italian warship, the Greek government didn't at first reveal it to the people, so as to maintain the country’s neutrality in the war, which had broken out in September 1939. Indeed, the torpedo had been launched by the Italian submarine Delfino, which had its base in Leros, as the Dodecanese islands were under Italian occupation at the time. The torpedoing of Elli in peacetime was meant as a provocation to force the country to enter the war, as the Italian government suspected Greece of offering shelter to the British fleet in spite of its proclaimed neutrality.

After the Second World War, Italy compensated Greece for the sinking of Elli, donating the cruiser Eugenio di Savoia. This ship was renamed Elli and served the Greek Royal Navy till 1973. To commemorate the torpedoing of this glorious vessel, the locals have constructed a monument at the port of Tinos, which represents the front side of the warship with the name Elli written on it in Greek letters. Moreover, within the complex of Evangelistria Church, there is a small mausoleum housing the ossuary of the dead sailors, the first victims of World War II in Greece, as well as parts of the torpedo that sank the Greek cruiser.