新西兰英语 438 70 years after Battle for Crete

 　　This weekend is the 70th anniversary¹ of the Battle for Crete. It was the first major battle of World War II for the New Zealand soldiers.

　　Crete is a Greek island, south of the Greek mainland². During April 1941, the Germans had won battles in Greece, and the Allied³ soldiers (British, Australian and New Zealand) escaped to Crete. There were 21,000 Allied soldiers – nearly 8,000 of them were New Zealanders. The Allies⁴ had lost most of their heavy equipment – tanks and big guns. The soldiers had only rifles⁵ and bayonets.

　　The Germans arrived early May 20th. Thousands of planes carrying men with parachutes flew over Crete. The men jumped from their planes. There was fierce fighting for 12 days. The Germans won. 671 New Zealand soldiers died and nearly 1,000 were injured in that battle. 2,000 New Zealand soldiers were taken prisoner. Others escaped to Egypt but some escaped into the hills of Crete. Local Crete people fed them and protected them.

　　A ceremony to remember this battle was held today in Wellington. Also, 16 old soldiers went to Crete, along with the Minister for Defence, Wayne Mapp. Many people in Crete remember the New Zealanders who fought to save their island.

　　Questions

　　1. Why did New Zealand join the Allies during World War II?

　　2. Conscription in New Zealand meant that every young man over the age of 18 had to join the army. We don’t have conscription now. Does your country?

1 anniversary   

n.周年(纪念日)

参考例句：

• They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。
• Today is my parents'30th wedding anniversary.今天是我父母结婚30周年纪念日。

2 mainland   

n.大陆，本土

参考例句：

• The new bridge will link the island to the mainland.新的桥梁将把该岛与大陆连接在一起。
• Hong Kong's prosperity relies heavily on mainland.香港的繁荣在很大程度上依赖于大陆。

3 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

4 allies   

联盟国，同盟者； 同盟国，同盟者( ally的名词复数 )； 支持者； 盟军

参考例句：

• The allies would fear that they were pawns in a superpower condominium. 这个联盟担心他们会成为超级大国共管的牺牲品。
• A number of the United States' allies had urged him not to take a hasty decision. 美国的一些盟友已力劝他不要急于作决定。

5 rifles   

步枪( rifle的名词复数 )； 来福枪

参考例句：

• They have a few rifles. 他们有几支步枪。
• Rifles and cannons volleyed on all sides. 枪炮向各方面齐发。