5th Cretan Division The 5th Cretan Division ( ) , formerly the 5th Infantry Division ( V Μεραρχία Πεζικού ) and commonly referred to simply as the Cretan Division ( Μεραρχία Κρητών ) , is a formation of the Hellenic Army . Founded in 1912 , it continues to exist today as a reserve and training formation of brigade size . History . The 5th Division was first formed in September 1912 at Farsala , on the eve of the First Balkan War , following the mobilization of Greece and the other Balkan League states . Its first commander was Colonel Dimitrios Matthaiopoulos , and it comprised the 16th , 22nd and 23rd Infantry Regiments , the 3rd Squadron of the 1st Field Artillery Regiment and the 2nd Mountain Artillery Squadron . The division fought in the First and Second Balkan War , and was retained on the Army ' s order of battle afterwards . It was relocated to Kilkis in August 1913 and from December 1913 in Drama in Macedonia , and subordinated to the newly formed IV Army Corps . It comprised the 22nd and 23rd Infantry Regiments and the 3 / 37 Cretan Regiment . As Greece remained neutral initially during World War I , the division remained at Drama . On 12 September 1916 , along with the rest of IV Corps – at the time demobilized to a skeleton force of ca . 7 , 000 men – it surrendered to the Germans during the German - Bulgarian occupation of eastern Macedonia . For the remainder of the war , the 5th Division was interned at Görlitz in Germany , and was disbanded upon the war ' s end . Soon after , the outbreak of a Venizelist revolt in Thessaloniki resulted in the formation of a " Provisional Government of National Defence " , which entered World War I on the side of the Allies . The new government quickly extended its authority across northern Greece and the Aegean Islands , including Crete . There , from October 1916 until April 1917 a new Cretan Division , based at Chania , was formed . The division participated in the Macedonian Front operations in 1917 – 1918 , and subsequently in the Asia Minor Campaign . In early 1921 , following the anti - Venizelist victory in the November 1920 elections , the division was renamed to 5th Infantry Division in order to purge the Venizelist - associated name . Following the Greek defeat in Asia Minor in August 1922 , the division retreated along with the rest of the Greek army , to Chios . It was reformed at Serres in early 1923 , again as the Cretan Division , by merging the remnants of the 5th and 9th divisions . On 30 June 1923 it was re - renamed to 5th Infantry Division . From 1924 , the division was based again in Chania in Crete , comprising the 14th ( Chania ) , 43rd ( Heraklion ) and 44th ( Rethymno ) Infantry Regiments . With the arrival of British troops that took over the defence of the island in late 1940 , the division was transferred to the Albanian front where it participated in the January – February offensives against the Italians , distinguishing itself in the Capture of Klisura Pass and in the Battle of Trebeshina . The division remained in the front until the Greek withdrawal from Albania in the face of the German invasion of Greece in April . The division retreated to the Peloponnese , where it dissolved itself in May 1941 , as there was no way for it to reach Crete . Greece was liberated from German occupation in October 1944 , although German garrisons remained on Crete until the German capitulation in May 1945 . Soon after , the Independent Crete Military Command was established , comprising the 603rd , 606th and 607th National Guard Battalions . In April 1946 , these troops were reformed as the 51st Independent Brigade ( 51η Ανεξάρτητη Ταξιαρχία ) . On 2 January 1951 , it was reformed as the 5th Infantry Division , comprising three battalions and a Mountain Artillery Squadron . In 1954 , with the reduction of the army ' s size , the 5th Division was converted into a training and reserve formation . On 1 July 2004 , as part of a general reorganization of the Greek Army ' s structure , the division was disbanded and reorganized as the 5th Infantry Brigade ( 5η Ταξιαρχία Πεζικού ) . On 20 October 2009 however , it was renamed as the 5th Cretan Division ( V Μεραρχία Κρητών ) .