John Wesley Mitchell

John Wesley Mitchell, DSO (16 March 1891 – 29 September 1969) was a soldier of the Australian military serving in both World War I and World War II.[1]

John Wesley Mitchell
Other name(s)	Jack Mitchell
Born	March 16, 1891 Tarranyurk, Victoria, Australia
Died	September 29, 1969 (aged 78) Concord, New South Wales, Australia
Allegiance	Australia
Australian Army
Years of service	24 August 1914 - 5 April 1920 13 October 1939 - 24 November 1944
Rank	Honorary rank of colonel
Commands held	2/8th Battalion
Battles/wars	World War I Gallipoli campaign Battle of Arras World War II Battle of Vevi (1941) Battle of Crete
Awards	Distinguished Service Order
Spouse(s)	Margaret Blanche West

Battle of Vevi

The Battle of Vevi was part of the Greek campaign of World War II. It took place on 11–12 April 1941, north of the town of Amyntaion, close to the northwestern Greek border. Allied troops fought forces from Nazi Germany. Australian official historian Gavin Long: "At 2:00 pm ... Lt.-Col. [John] Mitchell of the 2/8th ... ordered a counter-attack which regained some vital ground on top of the ridge... After six hours of intermittent fighting in the pass and on the slopes to the east, the 2/8th still held the Hills though their left had been mauled; the Rangers, however, were rallying astride the road about two miles to the rear, but five of the six supporting guns of the 2/1st Anti-Tank Regiment had been left without protection and abandoned. Thus the ridge held by the 2/8th formed a deep salient."[2] The 2/8th Battalion was effectively destroyed as a fighting force for the rest of the Greek campaign. According to some accounts, at its fallback position of Rodona, the battalion could muster only 250 men, of whom only 50 had weapons.[3] The 2/8th eventually left Greece with the Allies.

Bibliography

Notes

1. Wood 2000.
2. Long 1953, p. 60.
3. Long 1953, pp. 62, 64–65.

References

• Long, Gavin (1953). Greece, Crete and Syria. Australia in the War of 1939–1945. II (1st ed.). Canberra: Australian War Memorial.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Wood, James (2000). "Mitchell, John Wesley (Jack) (1891–1969)". Australian Dictionary of Biography, Australian National University. Retrieved July 31, 2019.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)