Battle of Morava – Ivan The battle of Morava – Ivan was the first major Greek offensive in the Greco - Italian War of 1940 - 1941 . It took place on the eastern flank of the Greek - Italian front , where the Italian forces had remained on the defensive during the initial Italian invasion toward Epirus . It was a major success for the Greek forces , not only on operational terms , but also as a morale boost , as the breaching of Morava – Ivan line led to the fall of the city of Korçë to Greek hands , and made news internationally . Prelude . Initial conception . The plans for the offensive had been laid by the Greek General Staff before the start of the war . Following the torpedoing of the Greek cruiser " Elli " by an Italian submarine on 15 August 1940 , the Greek authorities became certain that an Italian invasion was imminent and started to assess the situation . Greek intelligence had revealed fairly accurately the Italian disposition of forces in Albania , which showed that the Italian forces planned to attack towards Epirus while keeping a defensive posture on the Macedonian sector . The Greek plan was finalised in the second half of September . The Greek forces in North - Western Macedonia would keep a defensive posture , potentially improving the positions with limited attacks in Albanian ground , until the necessary forces arrived . The objective of the offensive was to boost the morale of the Greek forces and the nation in general , as well as to capture the important transportation centre that was Korçë . 28 October - 13 November . The Greek forces available on the sector were the 9th Infantry Division and the 4th Infantry Brigade , under the III Army Corps . In the first three days of the war , they were not attacked in any appreciable scale . From 1 – 6 November , they began their own limited offensives , entering in some places Albania . During these clashes , it was revealed that they faced the " Parma " , " Piemonte " and " Venezia " divisions of the Italian XXVI Corps . The battle . Terrain . The terrain was very favourable for defence , although it afforded little strategic depth . The Greek and Italian positions were separated by the Devoll river valley . North of the valley lay the Morava mountain , a continuation of the Grammos mountains , with a maximum altitude of 1808 metres . North of the Morava lay the Korce plateau . The Morava massif provided good defensive positions to the Italians , however the lack of depth meant that should their defenses on Morava collapse , they had no option but to abandon Korce and the Korce plateau , and retreat further north , to the Kandauian mountains . The upper Devoll valley communicated with the Korce plateau through the Cangonj ( Tsangoni ) pass , which was defined by the Morava on the south and the Ivan mountain on the north . The Ivan mountain is steep and reaches the height of 1770 metres . Through the Cangonj pass , a paved road passed . Another hard surfaced road , in the southern part of Morava , crossed the mountain towards Korce . Available Forces . By 13 November , the Greek forces concentrated for the attack were the 10th , 9th and 15th ( the former 4th Βrigade ) Divisions , all under III Corps commanded by Lieutenant General Georgios Tsolakoglou , which in turn was subordinate to West Macedonia Army Section under Lt . Gen . Ioannis Pitsikas . The 11th and 13th Divisions were on the march to further reinforce the Greek forces . During the battle , the " K " Divisional Group was created under Lt . Gen . Georgios Kosmas , taking the 10th and 11th Divisions under its command . On the Italian side , there was the XXVI Corps , with the " Parma " , " Piemonte " and " Venezia " Divisions on the front , and the " Arezzo " Division as the corps reserve . Additional reinforcements in the form of the Alpini Division " Tridentina " and other Alpini elements began arriving from 13 November , but were committed piece - meal and had little impact . Plan . The Greek plan was to put the main effort on the left , along the mountainous road through the village Darza , rather through the Cangonj pass , as there were fears that the Italians could use armour through the relatively flat terrain of the Cangonj pass . The Greeks would attack with the 15th Division on the right ( toward Cangonj ) , the 9th in the centre and the 10th on the left . The 15th had the task of approaching the Cangonj pass , between Ivan and Morava , and capturing if possible its western exit . The 9th would attack toward the Morava mountain , coordinating its left flank with the 10th Division . The 10th Division had the task of penetrating the Italian position , through the use of surprise , and if possible flank the Italian positions atop of Morava .