 After abandoning the Thermopylae area , the British rearguard withdrew to an improvised switch position south of Thebes , where they erected a last obstacle in front of Athens . The motorcycle battalion of the 2nd Panzer Division , which had crossed to the island of Euboea to seize the port of Chalcis and had subsequently returned to the mainland , was given the mission of outflanking the British rearguard . The motorcycle troops encountered only slight resistance and on the morning of 27 April 1941 , the first Germans entered Athens , followed by armoured cars , tanks and infantry . They captured intact large quantities of petroleum , oil and lubricants ( " POL " ) , several thousand tons of ammunition , ten trucks loaded with sugar and ten truckloads of other rations in addition to various other equipment , weapons and medical supplies . The people of Athens had been expecting the Germans for several days and confined themselves to their homes with their windows shut . The previous night , Athens Radio had made the following announcement : 
