Generals At War The Battle of El Alamein - YouTube Generals At War The Battle of El Alamein Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. The interactive transcript could not be loaded. Loading... Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Published on May 7, 2014 I do not own the rights to this video. For educational purposes only. The Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October -- 11 November 1942) took place near the Egyptian coastal city of El Alamein. With the Allies victorious, it marked a major turning point in the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War. It followed the First Battle of El Alamein, which had stalled the Axis advance into Egypt, after which, in August 1942, Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery had taken command of the British Eighth Army from General Claude Auchinleck.

This victory turned the tide in the North African Campaign and ended the Axis threat to Egypt, the Suez Canal, and of gaining access to the Middle Eastern and Persian oil fields via North Africa. From a psychological perspective, Second El Alamein revived the morale of the Allies, being the first major offensive against the Axis since the start of the European war in 1939 in which the Western Allies achieved a decisive victory. Category First Battle of El Alamein | World War II Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia First Battle of El Alamein First Battle of El Alamein 1,451pages on Share Ad blocker interference detected! Wikia is a free-to-use site that makes money from advertising. We have a modified experience for viewers using ad blockers Wikia is not accessible if you’ve made further modifications. Remove the custom ad blocker rule(s) and the page will load as expected. British soldier looking over the battlefield as his comrades take position The First Battle of El Alamein took place near the El Alamein train station almost by the sea, between 1 and 27 July 1942.

The British Commonwealth forces emerged victorious in the battle, having stopped Rommel's Italo-German forces in Egypt. The battle marked the end of several Axis victories obtained at El Gazala, Tobruk, Mersa Matruh, Fuka and elsewhere, and was the first in a series of Allied victories which would result in the liberation of French Tunisia from Axis forces and the invasion of Italy. General Erwin Rommel's Panzerarmee Afrika had been successfully fighting their way ever closer to the Suez Canal and the rich oil fields of Egypt. Italian "battleship convoys" under Admiral Angelo Iachino , and good solid intelligence from the Italian Military Information Service (Servizio Informazione Militare or SIM) obtained from the US Embassy in Rome [1] , had greatly assisted in the Axis victories of Gazala, Tobruk, Mersa Matruh and Fuka. Unfortunately for Rommel, the deciphered daily reports to Washington coming from Colonel Bonner Fellers (US military attache in Cairo) [2] , stopped almost a week after the fall of Tobruk. To make matters worse, his divisions were now running low on fuel.

The scenario was soon set for a major Allied counteroffensive, that aimed to completely destroy the forward Italian divisions and the panzer and German motorized infantry divisions sent forward to assist. Contents Edit On 29 June 1942, Rommel started a drive from Mersa Matruh that brought him to El Alamein. Many of his soldiers were worn down by two years of constant strain and combat but on 15th, 22nd and 27th July, the Brescia, Trieste and Trento succeeded in pinning the 2nd New Zealand, 5th Indian, 9th Australian and 50th British Divisions. These divisions were pinned between the Italian strong points and German armor and brought another series of disastrous defeats for the British commanders. On 1 July 1942, the attack into El Alamein begin. However, the whole German advance was constantly attacked by Indians and South Africans, with the Indians managing to destroy eighteen German tanks and stopped the 21st Panzer Division . [3] The Germans managed to overrun the Indians by the evening, however, and continued their advance.

The 1st Armored Division clashes with the German 15th Panzer Division and drives them back west, somewhat hindering the German advance. Rommel ordered the offensive to be continued on 2 July 1942, but no significant gains were made and by the 5th, the Allies were regrouping and driving the Germans back. On 3 July, the 4th New Zealand Brigade, supported by four artillery batteries, overrun the Ariete Armoured Division positions deployed inside a large depression. The Italians retreat to new positions, but lose 531 men (about 350 were prisoners), 24 artillery guns and six or eight tanks. In a report to his superiors, Rommel greatly exaggerates the Italian tank losses, in order to drive home the need for more German armour in North Africa. [4] Determined to cut off the rest of the Ariete, the New Zealanders pushed on again on 5 July, but come under heavy fire from the Brescia Division at El Mreir.

The attacks by the New Zealand Division continued, and the remainder of the Indian 5th Infantry Division in the form of the 9th Brigade and 7th Motorised Brigade pushed north into Rommel's flank and in three days of fierce fighting almost reached Deir el Shein. A Maori battalion from the 2nd New Zealand Division made good progress in a night attack, but were unexpectedly counterattacked by the Pavia Division and forced to relinquish their gains. The New Zealand Official History confirms that "enemy forces seeping south threatened to outflank the Division" but reveals nothing more. [5] During the initial fighting, Major Terence O'Brien-Butler of the 3rd Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery displayed enormous control when surrounded by German armour, saving his battery from capture ajnd winning the Military Cross (MC) as a result. Tel el Eisa Edit Having rebuilt his strength, Auchinleck attacked again on the night of 10/11 July at Tel el Eisa in the north with the newly-arrived 9th Australian Division from Syria.

The German 621st Radio Intercept Company and 835 Italian troops from the Sabratha Division are captured by the Australian 2/48th Battalion under Lieutenant-Colonel Heathcote Hammer that advances under the covering fire from 100 artillery guns. [6] A battalion of the 7th Bersaglieri Regiment under Lieutenant-Colonel Ugo Scirocco is rushed forward to plug the gap and initially recovers part of the lost ground at Tel el Eisa and even takes 13 prisoners. According to the 2/48th Battalion war diary: "[a]t approx 2000 hrs enemy tks-number unknown-and inf attacked D Coy front. They overrun posn and enemy inf forced D Coy to withdraw and occupied their psn." While the Bersaglieri suffers heavy losses attacking the Australians, their sacrifice is not in vain and allows the Italian XXI Corps to send forward an infantry battalion and a company of tanks from Major Gabriele Verri's 11th Armoured Battalion from the Trieste Division to the affected sector and seal of the Australian breakthrough.

[7] On 14 July, Colonel Erminio Angelozzi's 1st Battalion (85th Infantry Regiment) from the Sabratha Division, counterattack the forces dug in on Tel el Eisa and succeeds in regaining the position. [8] The defending battalion withdraws, but the 9th Division in the form of the 2nd/23rd Battalion attempts to recover Tel el Eisa on 16 July, overruning a good part of the Sabratha strongpoint before finally withdrawing. In his diary, Rommel concedes:"Next day, the 16th July, the British attacked again, but this time only locally. After intensive artillery preparation, the Australians attacked in the early hours of the morning with tank support and took several strong-points held by the Sabratha.“ Australian historian Mark Johnston reports that the determined Australian attackers only withdrew after losing half their number, "On 16 July, they were ordered to retake it and the rest of Tel el Eisa Ridge.

After initial success, they suffered nearly 50 percent casualties and had to withdraw." On 17 July, the 9th Division resumed the advance in the Tel el Eisa sector, capturing 736 Italians [9] from the Trento and Trieste Division and supporting 7th Bersaglieri Regiment, but the 3rd Battalion ( 62nd Trento Regiment) counterattacks with a column of tanks from the Trieste, capturing 200 troops from the 2nd/32nd Battalion. [10] [11] Although the war diary of the 2nd/32nd Battalion describes the counterattack force as "German", the Australian historian Mark Johnston reports that German records indicate the Italians being responsible for capturing an Australian company that day. [12] [13] Barton Maughan, Australia's official historian of the Second World War minimizes the Italian success writing that "two forward platoons of the 2/32nd's left company were overrun, 22 men were taken prisoner" and implying the attackers were German.

Ob 22 July, the Australian 9th Infantry Division finally secures Tel el Eisa after much fierce fighting that almost lasteda fortnight. In the final action, Private Arthur Stanley Gurney from the 2nd/48th Australian Infantry Battalion wins posthumously the Victoria Cross for taking out three machine-gun posts holding up the advance of his battalion. [14] Ruweisat Edit On 14 July and 22 July, Auchinleck attacks Ruweisat Ridge in the centre. In the fist attack, the New Zealand 2nd Division and 5th Indian Division attack under the cover of darkness and capture 2,000 Italians, but are unable to completely break though the Pavia and Brescia Divisions due to unexpected fierce resistance from the Italians. [15] [16] With the arrival of daylight, reinforcements in the form of the 15th Panzer Division counterattack and capture 1,600 Allied troops, the majority from the 4th New Zealand Brigade.

In the fighting, Captain Charles Upham from the New Zealand 20th Battalion, wins the Victoria Cross for the second time (winning his first VC during the Battle of Crete) after single-handedly taking out with a hand-grenade a German truck filled with enemy reinfocements. Soon after the battle, the 4th/6th Rajputana Rifles ambush a strong German armoured column, accounting for a large number of tanks, armoured cars, anti-tank and anti-aircraft guns. [17] In the second battle, Colonel Gherardo Vaiarini's 65th Regiment along with Colonel Umberto Zanetti's 66th Regiment from the Trieste Division and the Brescia Division [18] play a decisive role in containing the attack of the New Zealanders long enough to allow the 21st Panzer Division to deliver a devastating counterattack. [19] In the German tank attack, the British 23rd Armoured Brigade comes under heavy fire and turning to avoid it, runs into a minefield.

Colonel Gerhard Mueller's 5th Panzer Regiment, in what one observer described as "a real balaclava charge" destroys more than forty British tanks. The rest of the 21st Panzer finishes off the remainder of the British armoured brigade. The failure of British armour to reach the infantry in time results in the loss of 800 men. More than 2,300 New Zealanders were killed, wounded, or captured in the two battles. Both Vaiarini de Piacenza and Zanetti are killed in the fighting and posthumously decorated (Gold and Silver Medals respectively) for their bravery. [20] In the same action, Private Günter Halm from the the 104th Panzergrenadier Regiment wins the Knights Cross and a commission, for single-handedly putting out of action at least six British tanks before the captured Russian 76.2mm anti-tank gun he was manning was destroyed in the return fire.

[21] Miteiriya Edit Auchinleck is determined to retain the initiative and orders another two strong attacks on the night of 26/27 July, planning to exploit through the supposedly demoralized Italian defenders. However, the attack against Miteiriya Ridge meets unexpected tough resistance from Italian machinegun and antitank gun teams and the attacks grounds to a halt with an infantry battalion forced to surrender when surrounded by armoured cars [22] from the Trieste Division, and with supporting British armour held-up in a minefield and unable to help the Australians. [23] The Australian 2/28th Battalion loses 65 men killed and 490 captured in the attack against the Trento and Trieste Divisions. The 8th Army is now completely exhausted, and by 31 July Auchinleck orders an end to offensive operations and the strengthening of the defences to meet a feared counter-offensive. Aftermath Edit With the Italians and Germans barely surviving the last British Commonwealth armour-infantry attacks, Rommel has no option but to orders his divisions to dig in and wait for reinforcements, giving the Germans and Italians much needed rest.

Having waited 3 weeks for a triumphant entry into Cairo, Mussolini flies back to Italy, but not before visiting a British prisoner of war camp in Derna. Rommel praises and decorates several German officers and soldiers and would admit that in the fighting to restore their broken lines, "the Italians were willing, unselfish and good comrades in the frontline. There can be no disputing that the achievement of all the Italian units, especially the motorised elements, far outstripped any action of the Italian Army for 100 years. Many Italian generals and officers earned our respect as men as well as soldiers." [24] The British commanders are disappointed with the outcome, but the Axis advance on Alexandria (and then Cairo) has been halted. The 8th Army had sustained over 13,000 casualties in the fighitng (including 4,000 in the New Zealand Division and 3,000 in Indian 5th Infantry Division) but had taken 7,000 prisoners and inflicted heavy damage on the Axis forces in terms of men and armour.

References Battle of El Alamein - World War II - HISTORY.com Battle of El Alamein A+E Networks Introduction The Battle of El Alamein marked the culmination of the World War II North African campaign between the British Empire and the German-Italian army. Deploying a far larger contingent of soldiers and tanks than the opposition, British commander Bernard Law Montgomery launched an infantry attack at El Alamein on Oct. 23, 1942. German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel returned to battle from illness and tried to halt the tide, but the British advantage in personnel and artillery proved too overwhelming. After Hitler blocked an initial retreat in early November, Rommel managed to escape annihilation by withdrawing his men to Tunisia. Google The Battle of El Alamein marked the culmination of the North African campaign between the forces of the British Empire and the German-Italian army commanded in the field by Erwin Rommel in World War II . Having taken Tobruk in June 1942, Rommel advanced into Egypt but had been checked and beaten at Alam Halfa in September; thereafter the initiative had passed.

Rommel mined and fortified a forty-mile line in considerable depth and strength–unusually, in a desert war, both flanks were sealed, by the Mediterranean in the north and by the Qattara Depression in the south. To break this line and destroy the Axis forces was the task of Bernard Montgomery, commanding the British imperial forces. The battle would be a set-piece affair–there could be little opportunity for maneuver. Rommel (on sick leave when the battle began but having personally planned the defense) commanded thirteen divisions and five hundred tanks, totaling about 100,000 men. Montgomery disposed of approximately double the number of tanks and men–an army of British, Australians, New Zealanders, Indians, and South Africans, together with some French and Greek units; Allied air superiority stood at about the same proportion. Battle began on October 23, and the result, after ten days of ferocious pounding, was complete Allied victory, although Rommel’s army escaped annihilation and slipped away from an unenterprising pursuit. El Alamein was a battle of World War I character–methodical, using massed artillery, with limited advances made good and counterattacks defeated until breakout. Its significance was great.

The Panzerarmee withdrew, ultimately to Tunisia; within days of El Alamein, Anglo-American forces landed in Morocco. By May 1943 the campaign was over and the Mediterranean dominated by the Allies. Meanwhile, in Russia the Germans were suffering disaster at Stalingrad : the two battles–Stalingrad and El Alamein–proved to be the watershed of the war against Germany. GENERAL SIR DAVID FRASER The Reader’s Companion to Military History. Edited by Robert Cowley and Geoffrey Parker. Copyright © 1996 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved. Tags Steel vs Steel - Top 10 Epic Tank Battles in History SHARE: Facebook Twitter The tank is one of the most resilient and devastating army weapons. To break the deadlock of trench warfare in the western front during the WWI, the concept of tank battle was developed. Britain and France simultaneously and separately developed the first tanks during the WWI. The name ‘tank’ was adopted for the British ‘land ships’ in 1915 to conceal the secrecy of the armored vehicles. In an effort to fool the enemy spies, British army propagated that they had been building ‘mobile water tanks’.

The world saw tanks in battle for the first time on September 15, 1916, when British Army deployed these armored land ships during the Battle of the Somme. Throughout 20th century, tanks have played a dynamic role for the army and it has seen fierce and devastating action. It is a strong mobile weapon platform with a large caliber rotating cannon capable of preventing enemy vehicles from advancing. It has also got heavy vehicle armor giving tanks to perform superbly during a tactical situation. From the the Battle of the Bulge, in WW II, in which over 2638 tanks and 902 armored fighting vehicles took part, to the 1981 Battle of Dezful during the 8 year long Iran-Iraq war, tanks performed as the most significant offensive weapons around the world. The Top 10 epic tank battle sagas in military history are shown here. (1) Battle of Cambrai (November 20, 1917 to December 7, 1917: WWI Battle of Cambrai in France in the Western Front was a British offensive . It was the first effective deployment of large number of tanks in any battle ever.

However, it was not the first time tanks were deployed. The world saw deployment of tanks for the first time in September 1916. Tanks were also deployed in large numbers by Britain during the third Battle of Ypres and by France in early 1917. But those deployments were less effective than in Cambrai where the British forces deployed 476 tanks. The British plan was to infiltrate the German Hindenburg Line. This defensive line was considered impenetrable previously. The British forces enjoyed successes on the first day of the battle. However, on the second day, mechanical problems with the British Mark IV tanks against German infantry defenses and artillery were exposed. 2 British Corps (A military formation that might typically consist of 20,000 to 40,000 soldiers) and 1 German Corps took part in the battle. Gains and losses for the opposing forces were roughly equal, by the end of the battle and the result of the battle was virtually a stalemate situation. The British had 44,000 casualties and the figure for the Germans was 45,000. 179 British tanks were destroyed.

Many lessons were learned from the battle, which resulted in improvements to British tank designs in 1918, where they were successfully used in the final offensives of the war. Image Used: The Germans captured a British Mark IV tank in November 1917 (2) Second Battle of El Alamein during WWII (October 23, 1942 to November 11, 1942): Tanks played a huge role in the Second Battle of El Alamein that took place near the Egyptian coastal city of El Alamein in 1942. The Allied forces deployed 195,000 combatants, 1029 tanks, 435 armored vehicles, 730 to 750 aircraft, 892 to 908 artillery units and 1,451 anti-tank guns. The Axis forces deployed 116,000 men, 547 tanks, 192 armored vehicles, 770 to 900 aircraft, 552 artillery units and 496 anti-tank guns.

The Axis forces wanted to gain access to the Persian and Middle Eastern oil fields by controlling North Africa. The Allied forces had total numerical superiority over the Axis forces during this battle in the Western Desert. The Allies also could overcome their quality factor of their equipment with the arrival of Spitfire, 6-pounder anti tank guns and Sherman tanks. The Axis forces lost 30,542 combatants, around 500 tanks, 254 guns and 84 aircraft. The Allies lost 13,560 combatants, 332 to 500 tanks, 111 guns and 97 aircraft. In this battle, the Allied forces achieved the first absolute victory against the Axis forces and the Germans lost any hope of seizing Suez Canal and Egypt. Winston Churchill said that there hadn’t been any allied victory before Alamein and there hadn’t been a defeat after it. This battle ultimately led to the Axis defeat in North Africa.

Image Used: American Sherman tanks moving at speed across the northern Egyptian desert as the Axis forces retreating on November 1, 1942 during the Second Battle of El Alamein (3) Battle of Raseiniai during WWII (June 23, 1941 to June 27, 1941: The Battle of Raseiniai in Lithuania was a tank battle fought between Soviet Union and Germany in the Eastern Front during WWII. The Soviet elements of the 12th Mechanized Corps and 3rd Mechanized Corps fought with 749 tanks against the German elements of the 4th Panzer Group which had 245 tanks. The Russian tanks were technically superior to their German counterparts. The Russians had over 50 Kliment Voroshilov KV-1 and KV-2 tanks which kept advancing. But the Germans systematically overpowered the Soviet tanks by means of air support from the Lutfwaffe. The Russian aircraft could not effectively counter the German Luftwaffe (air force) aircraft and the German Air fleet severely destroyed Soviet tanks and vehicles. The Germans suffered little damages while Soviet Union lost 704 tanks in the battle.

This bank demonstrated the importance of air support for tanks in a battle. Image Used: A single KV-2 heavy tank managed to cut off the German 6th Panzer Division for one day during the Battle of Raseiniai (4) Battle of the Valley of Tears during the Yom Kippur War (October 6, 1973 to October 9, 1973), around 1436 tanks took part: Israel and the Arab coalition forces led by Egypt and Syria fought in the Yom Kippur War in October 1973. Battle of the Valley of Tears was part of this conflict between Israel and Syria at the Syrian Golan Heights. Tanks were central to the surprise attack that took place at the Valley of Tears on the holiest day in Judaism called ‘Yum Kippur’. Syria deployed 1 infantry division with around 500 tanks and vehicles while the Israel engaged 1 armored brigade with around 100 tanks. The Syrian forces were backed up by 900 more tanks and the total Syrian tank participation in the battle is estimated to be 1260.

400 of the Syrian tanks were T-62s, the most modern Soviet tanks during that time. The Syrian forces started the offensive and 100 aircraft also took part in a Syrian airstrike. Israeli forces initially managed to deploy only 176 tanks. Though the Syrians gained much ground during the first offensive of the battle, they failed to move their tanks across the Israeli anti-tank ditches. The Syrian war planners expected an Israeli reinforcement after at least 1 day. However, Israeli forces received reinforcement within just 15 hours after the battle started. The Israeli Air Force also took part in action. The Syrian forces withdrew on the Fourth day. The Israeli forces lost 60-80 tanks while the Syrian forces lost total over 500 vehicles including 260 to 300 tanks. Poor defensive tactics of the Syrian forces, IAF (Israeli Air Force) superiority and also an Israeli threat of a nuclear strike on Syria were pointed out by different analysts to be the causes of the Syrian defeat.

Image Used: A destroyed Syrian T-55 tank at Nafakh on the Golan Heights during the Battle of the Valley of Tears in October 1973 (5) Battle of Brody during WWII (June 23, 1941 to June 30, 1941), 4250 tanks took part: Until the Battle of Kursk in 1943, the Battle of Brody in Western Ukraine had been called ‘The largest tank warfare of WWII’. Germans had 750 tanks lined up against 3,500 Soviet tanks. An army corps and a motorized army corps were deployed by the Germans. On the other hand, five ‘mechanized corps’ were deployed by Soviet Union during this warfare. Though Red Army inflicted significant damages on the German forces, the German forces outmaneuvered the Soviets and caused 4 times more tank damages. German Air Supremacy, poor Soviet military logistics and lack of proper chain of command resulted in a victory for German armed forces.

German forces lost around 200 tanks while the Red Army lost around 800 tanks, 201 of which were destroyed by German Luftwaffe airstrikes. Numerical superiority of the Soviet T-34 tanks could not overcome the German firepower and Axis forces pressed forward. It was one of the most intense tank battles during the first phase of ‘Operation Barbarossa’, code name for Hitler’s invasion of Soviet Union. Image Used: German forces advancing during the Battle of Brody in June 1941 Video Used: A US newsreel film about the Red Army’s resistance against Nazi forces in 1941. Continues on Page 2 BBC - History - World Wars: World War Two: The Battle of El Alamein Print this page Introduction Military history, like so much else, is prey to the dictates of fashion. There was a time when El Alamein and the desert war loomed large in British historiography. After all, it had all the classic ingredients of a good story. In the person of Montgomery, we had a charismatic British commander, matched by Rommel, one of the most striking German generals.

The theatre of war was both harsh and romantic, the classic tactician's paradise and quartermaster's nightmare. A British rifleman told a chum that it was: 'A different kind of war. There were no civvies mixed up in it. It was clean. When we took prisoners we treated them fine and they treated us fine. We had a go at them, and they had a go at us. Then one of us f***ed off.' The late Ronald Lewin, both a veteran of the campaign and a distinguished military historian, acknowledged his own compassion when Axis forces eventually surrendered in North Africa in May 1943, for '...this had been a good enemy.' And, of course, there was a famous victory: El Alamein, which encouraged Winston Churchill to declare that we had neither a victory before it nor a defeat after it. Military history, like so much else, is prey to the dictates of fashion. But the tide of fashion ebbed away. Books like Correlli Barnett's The Desert Generals were (generally rightly) critical of the British high command, and as more information on British ULTRA intelligence became available, so repeated failure seemed all the more remarkable.

Rommel's own character and performance were critically assessed, and the once-romantic 'Desert Fox' increasingly emerged as ambitious, crabby, and tainted by his association with Hitler. And as our knowledge of the fighting on the Eastern Front grew, thanks first to the pioneering work of John Erickson and, more recently, as additional Russian archival material has become available, it became all too easy to dismiss the fighting in North Africa as a mere sideshow. I am unrepentantly revisionist as far as the desert war is concerned. Firstly, because there was nowhere else where, after the fall of France in 1940, British and Commonwealth troops could engage the Germans and Italians on land. The humbling of Mussolini was an important objective in its own right, and after the German invasion of Russia in 1941, there was a strong case, military and political, for preventing the Germans from concentrating on the Eastern Front.

Next, Egypt sat, like a spider in its web, at the centre of a crucial geo-strategic network that included the Eastern Mediterranean, Abyssina (invaded by the Italians in 1936 and liberated by the British in 1941), the Middle East and the Suez Canal. Advance and retreat British troops in action in 1942 © There was even talk of an Axis offensive through Egypt linking up with a German drive down from Russia. A German mountain infantryman declared that the objective of the German thrust in south Russia in mid-1942 was simple: 'Down the Caucasus, round the corner, slice the British through the rear, and say to Rommel, "Hello, General, here we are!" ' Even if this was a strategic improbability, the psychological impact of the British loss of Egypt would have been enormous. Lastly, Hitler certainly did not regard North Africa as a sideshow, and his decision to send massive reinforcements to the theatre after El Alamein would eventually result in Axis losses in North Africa being greater than they were at Stalingrad.

And to the assertion that Montgomery, with numbers of men and equipment on his side, was bound to win at El Alamein, I respond that there were previous occasions when the British should have won the desert war but had failed to do so. Sometimes politicians were to blame. In 1941, after a British offensive had bundled the Italians from the Egyptian frontier deep into Libya, the troops that might have clinched victory were diverted to Greece at Churchill's behest. However, sometimes the responsibility lay with the generals. In the Gazala battles of mid-1942 the British time and time again snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. Small wonder that the Army was indeed, as Churchill described it, 'brave but baffled'. So in the overall scheme of things, El Alamein mattered, and among the strengths of that prickly and opinionated general, Bernard Montgomery, was a determination to resist political pressure to attack before he was ready. His insistence on fighting a well-prepared 'teed up' battle was properly understood by his soldiers. Lastly, Hitler certainly did not regard North Africa as a sideshow ...

Even today the road that runs along the very edge of North Africa, with the Mediterranean on the one hand and the desert on the other, is not exactly a super-highway. During World War Two, it was a good deal worse. But it was the umbilical cord that linked the armies that fought for Egypt and Libya with their main logistic bases, and the tide of war ebbed and flowed along it. In 1940 the Italians advanced from Libya and crossed the frontier of British-protected Egypt, where they halted and dug in. There were attacked by Major General Richard O'Connor's Western Desert Force which drove them back to El Agheila, half way to Tripoli. However, with the British weakened by the diversion of troops to Greece, in March 1941 the newly-arrived Rommel counter-attacked and recaptured much of the lost territory, though the important port of Tobruk, garrisoned by Australians, held out. In May a limited British offensive, codenamed Brevity, proved disappointing, and the large-scale Battleaxe, following month, saw the loss of 220 British tanks to only 25 German.

In July 1941 Sir Archibald Wavell, C-in-C Middle East, was replaced by General Sir Claude Auchinleck, and in November, the 8th Army at last mounted a successful offensive, Operation Crusader, which relieved Tobruk and pushed on to El Agheila. But Rommel was not slow in striking back, first in an offensive which took him to line just west of Tobruk and then, in a complex, swirling action between Gazala and the desert outpost of Bir Hacheim, in a battle which eventually saw 8th Army in full retreat. Top Arrival of Montgomery Captured Afrika Korps troops © Tobruk fell - Churchill called the loss 'one of the heaviest blows I can recall during the war' - and the British did not stop until they reached a position covering the 30 miles of desert between the impassable Qattara depression and the coast, where road and railway run through the little village of El Alamein. Rommel had been brought to a halt by what Kenneth Macksey has called 'the logistics equaliser'. However, the British were not to know just how weak he was.

In Cairo there was something of a panic on 1 July, which became infamous as Ash Wednesday. The British Embassy and GHQ burnt piles of classified papers, showering the city with ash and charred documents. The sorry episode was followed by the replacement of Auchinleck by General the Hon Sir Harold Alexander. Montgomery became head of the 8th Army. He was actually Churchill's second choice - the first choice, 'Strafer' Gott, had been killed on his way to assume command. There will be no more belly-aching, and no more retreats. It was entirely characteristic of Montgomery that immediately he took command, he signalled Cairo that he had ordered the destruction of all plans for withdrawal. Furthermore he announced: 'There will be no more belly-aching, and no more retreats.' He also set about improving relations between the army and the Desert Air Force, ensuring that there would henceforth be a unified army-air plan. When Rommel attacked at Alam Halfa at the end of August he was deftly repulsed. Montgomery set about building up the material superiority he needed for his own offensive.

Rommel had about 105,000 men and 500 tanks to the 195,000 men and 1,000 tanks of the 8th Army. He knew that an attack was inevitable, and did his best to prepare for it. He sheltered his force behind a deep and complex minefield covered by lightly held forward posts and backed by strong anti-tank gun positions. His seven German and Italian infantry divisions manned the front line, with four armoured divisions behind them and another two in reserve in the north. He went to Germany on sick leave on 23 September, leaving his deputy in command. Montgomery planned a set-piece attack in two main phases. The first, code-named Operation Lightfoot, would be preceded by a powerful artillery bombardment which was entirely consistent with Montgomery's desire to let metal, not flesh do his business wherever possible. On its heels, the infantry divisions of XXX Corps would attack in the north, and those of XIII Corps in the south. They would open gaps in the minefield through which the armoured divisions of X Corps were to pass. With the armour protecting them, the infantry would widen the minefield gaps and eliminate the infantry positions.

This was a process that Montgomery called 'crumbling.' The bombardment began on the night of 23-4 October, and although the sheer depth of the Axis position absorbed much of it, its bowel-loosening ferocity helped inspire the attack and discourage the defence. Rommel's deputy died, probably of a heart attack, while on his way forward. The crumbling process proved more difficult than had been expected. There was very heavy fighting in the heart of the Axis position as 8th Army ground its way forward. On the night of 1-2 November the second phase of the attack, Operation Supercharge, was launched, with the armoured divisions breaking through the last crust of defence. Even now it was no easy business, and on 3 November 9th Armoured Brigade lost 102 of its 128 tanks. Although the surviving elements of Rommel's mobile forces got away as Montgomery, again characteristically, took no risks in the pursuit. His opponents were also helped by the filthy weather. However, the bulk of the Axis infantry was captured. Top Victory in the Middle East Destroyed German tank © El Alamein was not the end.

A large Anglo-American force landed in French North Africa in early November, and thereafter the much-reinforced Axis forces in the theatre were compressed between 8th Army advancing from the east and British and American troops moving in from the west. There were yet more swirls of fortune. In February 1943, the Americans were roughly handled at the Kasserine Pass. However, in May, over 250,000 German and Italian troops laid down their arms. It deserves remembering, and with justifiable pride. El Alamein had not simply secured Egypt and the Middle East, but it contributed to what was, by any standards, a major Axis defeat in North Africa. It did much to restore British self-confidence and prestige, which had been badly battered by defeat in France in 1940 and by the collapse in the Far East in 1941-2 - which culminated in the loss of Singapore. It also established Montgomery as a shaman whose spells actually worked. As a man who, at least for the moment, could make the current of war flow his way. It deserves remembering, and with justifiable pride. Find out more Books El Alamein by Field Marshal Lord Carver.

The author of this was both a participant in the battle and an shrewd commentator on it. His book now shows its age, but it is still a good starting-point. Dilemmas of the Desert War by Field Marshal Lord Carver. Full of wise insights. The Desert Generals by Correlli Barnett. This was deeply controversial when it first appeared, but the passage of time has reinforced many of its judgements. El Alamein: Ultra and the Three Battles by Alexander McKee. It throws useful light on the contribution made by secret intelligence. Cairo in the War by Artemis Cooper. It is a gem of a book about Cairo, with the war as it's backcloth. The 8.15 to War by Peter Roach. A personal accounts of the fighting, which I especially like. Fire-Power by Shelford Bidwell and Dominick Graham. The authors are experienced artillery officers who subsequently became military historians. They give a penetrating view of the British theory and practice of war during this period. Top About the author Richard Holmes is professor of military and security studies at Cranfield University.

His books include The Little Field Marshal: Sir John French and Riding the Retreat, and he is general editor of The Oxford Companion to Military History. He enlisted into the Territorial Army in 1965 and rose to the rank of brigadier. He was the first reservist to hold the post of Director of Reserve Forces and Cadets in the Ministry of Defence, until he retired in 2000. About the War - Code Talker Code Talker Work Cited Famous Battles of World War II Battle of River Plate- This was the first major naval battle of World War II. The people there fought in the South Atlantic. It was on December 13, 1939. Battle of Britain- This was one of the most famous battles of World War II. It took place in August and September of 1940. The Battle of Gazala- This battle was fought in North Africa. It took place in February to mid-May of 1942. The Battle of El Alamein- This battle was fought in North Africa as well. The Allied powers defeated the German on May 1943. The Battle of Moscow- This battle started on October 2, 1941.

It took place in Russia, Moscow. The Battle of Stalingrad- This was the turning point of World War II. This was when Germany was conquered. The Fall of Singapore- This was one of the most amazing defeats in history. It was Britain's worst defeat ever against Japan. It was the fall of Singapore in 1942. The Battle of Kursk- This battle was the biggest tank battle in World War II. It was hard for Natzi Germany to succeed. The Battle of Brittany- The only reason there was a battle at Brittany was because of its naval bases. It started between August and October of 1944. The Battle of Arnhem- This battle was a plan to end the war early, but it did not work. The end of the war was when the atomic bomb was dropped on Japan. The Battle of the Bulge- This battle was the last major battle against the Natzi's and the Allied Powers. This battle was from 1944 to 1945. The Battle of Berlin- This battled met that it would be the end of World War II in Europe. This battle was fought between April and May of 1945.

The Battle of Coral Sea- The Japanese succeeded at Coral Sea. This allowed the Japanese to take over New Guinea. This was in May of 1942. The Battle of Midway- This destroyed Japan's naval strength because the Americans broke four of their aircraft carriers. This battle was fought in June of 1942. The Battle of Guadalcanal- It took the Americans six months to defeat the Japanese here. This battle took place in 1942. The Battle of the Philippine Sea- This battle was said to be the last great carrier battle in World War II. It was fought in June 19th and 20th of 1944. The Battle of Iwo Jima- This battle was fought against Japan and the United States. This war met that the Americans were winning the war in the Far East. This battle took place in February 1945. The Battle of Okinawa- This battle was one of the major battles in World War II. It was a very bloody war. Also, this battle met that the United States was on their way to victory. It started in April 1945.

*For more information, click on this link for good resources about the battles of World War II. Iwo Jima in World War II This picture became very popular during World War II. It met that the war was going to be over soon and that the United States would experience a victory. There is a statue of this picture in Washington D.C to show our love and thanks towards all of the Marines who risked their life in the war. The Leaders during World War II Adolf Hitler Hitler was a German leader of the Natzi Party. He was the dictator of Germany from 1934 to 1945. He started concentration camps. They were a large group of people that we prisoners there. During the concentration camps Hitler tried to kill every Jew that he could. He was very prejudice. Benito Mussolini Mussolini was an Italian politician. He was Italy's dictator from 1925 to 1945. The Allied Powers attacked his empire. Franklin D. Roosevelt Roosevelt was the 32nd president of the United States. He was president from 1933 to 1945 right before the World War II had ended. He was a leader of the Democratic Party.

He was the only president of the United States that was elected more than two terms. They thought he was an amazing president. Winston Churchill Churchill was the prime minister of Britain during World War II. He was one of Britain's heroes. He fought in the British army. He lived from 1874 to 1965. Dwight D. Eisenhower Eisenhower was the 34th president of the United States. He was president from 1953 to 1961. He was also a general in the United States Army. Joseph Stalin Stalin was the leader of the Soviet Union, in Russia, during World War II until his death in 1953. He was also part of the Russian Revolution. The revlution led to the establishment of the Soviet Union. Harry S. Truman Truman is the 33rd president of the United States. He took the place of Franklin D. Roosevelt after he died. He was the president that concluded World War II. After the war the United States experienced tensions with the Soviet Union. This was the beginning of the Cold War.

Create a free website The Most Important Battles of World War 2 The Most Important Battles of World War 2 By tyler 1.9k votes 232 voters 17k views 31 items tags f t p @ Battles that changed the natural course of WW2 List Photo: user uploaded image 7 ReRanks 2 See list ranked by Z G Options B Comments & Embed 2rerank list 1 Battle of Stalingrad Photo: Freebase /Public domain Hitlers 1942 Russian offensive proves to be the greatest blunder of the war. Instead of going for Moscow, or the vital ports up north, he chooses the Caucasus oil fields as his target. Hitler then changes his mind and makes the priority Stalingrad, the city named after his rival Stalin. However, without bothering to bolster the Sixth Army's flanks, the entire army is cut off inside the city of Stalingrad. To make things worst, Hitler then orders the army to keep fighting in the city, even though the Russians were pushing all Germans in the area back. The result is the surrender of the Sixth army, and Germany's failure to conquer Russia.

The Battle of Stalingrad was a major battle of World War II in which Nazi Germany and its allies fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad in Southern Russia, on the eastern boundary of Europe. Marked by constant close quarters combat and direct assaults on civilians by air raids, it ... more Battle of Kursk Photo: Freebase /Public domain The biggest tank battle of all time fittingly took place between the Germans and the Soviets. Thousands of tanks on each side fought each other in a battle that could change the course of the eastern front. Model attacked the Russian bulge from the North, and Von Manstein attacked from the south. The Russians under general Rokossovsky, knew where the Germans would attack and built defenses accordingly. Model failed to concentrate his forces enough to break thru the Russian defenses, but Von Manstein had cut behind enemy lines and was about to cut off the Russian army. Hitler, in one of the greatest blunders of the war, however ordered Manstein to retreat and called off the entire attack. The result was that the Germans handed the Russians the initiative for the rest of the war.

The Battle of Kursk was a World War II engagement between German and Soviet forces on the Eastern Front near Kursk in the Soviet Union during July and August 1943. The German offensive was code-named Operation Citadel and led to one of the largest armoured clashes in history, the Battle of Prokhorovka. more Battle of Britain Photo: Freebase /Public domain The Luftwaffe attempts to destroy the Royal Air Force so Germany can invade Britain. The Germans use their vast numbers to force the British to choose its battles carefully. The British however, had already developed radar which allowed them to figure out where the Luftwaffe would attack. Oddly enough, the turning point of this battle did not happen in Britain, but in Germany. Berlin was bombed, which sent Hitler into a rage and led to the bombing of major British cities, saving the RAF from destruction. Sparing the RAF ended up being a terrible blunder, as the British retook the superiority in the air and made a invasion into Britain impossible. The Battle of Britain is the name given to the Second World War air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940.

The Battle of Britain was the first major campaign to be fought entirely by air forces, and was also the largest and most sustained ... more Operation Barbarossa Photo: Freebase /Public domain A surprise attack on the Russians that Hitler had been planning for some time. German solders trapped and encircled millions of Russian solders and pushed the Russians back hundreds of kilometers. The Germans took Smolensk, Kiev and Odessa among other key cities. Operation Typhoon, the final assault on Moscow, ended however with the Germans having to retreat west for the winter. While failing to achieve its final objectives, it still left the Germans with the initiative in the spring of 1942 to attack even further into Russia. The brutal treatment by the Germans to the Russians, the "Final Solution" called for the death of every Russian, that fell in the German blitz creates an anti-German fever, that united a divided Soviet Union to counter this horrible threat. Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Nazi Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II, commencing on 22 June 1941.

Over the course of the operation, about four million soldiers of the Axis powers invaded Soviet Russia along a 2,900 km front, making it the largest invasion in the ... more Battle of Midway Photo: Freebase /Public domain A decisive American victory, destroying Yamamoto's 4 aircraft carriers. Yamamoto made one of the worst blunders of the war when he used his bombers on Midway and let an American carrier, whose aircraft would destroy his entire fleet, off the hook till his dive bombers could refuel. Often called one of the most stunning and unforseen victories in all of naval warfare. The Battle of Midway was a crucial and decisive naval battle in the Pacific Theatre of World War II. Between 4 and 7 June 1942, only six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea, the United States Navy under Admirals Chester Nimitz, Frank Jack Fletcher, ...

more National Academic Quiz Tournaments, LLC You Gotta Know These World War II Battles European Theater: Battle of Britain (July 1940-October 1940) The Battle of Britain saw the British Royal Air Force (RAF) defeat the German air force, known as the Luftwaffe, effectively saving Britain from a proposed German amphibious invasion codenamed Operation Sea Lion. The primary German fighter plane was the Messerschmitt Bf 109, which engaged in numerous dogfights against British pilots flying Hurricane and Spitfire aircraft. Effective use of radar helped to repel German forces, forcing the Luftwaffe into nighttime raids against civilian targets in a campaign known as "the Blitz". Battle of Stalingrad (August 1942-February 1943) With about two million casualties, the Battle of Stalingrad is often cited as the bloodiest battle in history.

The battle arose out of Germany's summer campaign to capture vital oil supplies in the Caucasus Mountains, but Friedrich Paulus's 6th Army became bogged down in intense street fighting in the city, allowing Soviet Marshal Georgy Zhukov to launch Operation Uranus, which encircled Paulus's men by defeating the Italian, Hungarian, and Romanian forces guarding their flank. In the final days of the battle, Hitler promoted Paulus to field marshal, a not-so-subtle suggestion that Paulus should either fight to the death or commit suicide, as no German field marshal had ever been captured; Paulus surrendered anyway. Battle of El Alamein (October 1942-November 1942) The Second Battle of El Alamein marked the turning point in the African campaign. Named for an Egyptian coastal town 65 miles west of Alexandria, it saw the British Eighth Army under Bernard Montgomery defeat the German Afrika Korps under Erwin Rommel, preventing the Nazis from capturing the Suez Canal and oil fields in the Middle East. Following the battle, Allied forces landed in Morocco and Algeria as part of Operation Torch, and by May 1943 all Axis forces in North Africa had surrendered.

Battle of Kursk (July 1943-August 1943) Fought in western Russia, the Battle of Kursk was the largest tank battle in history, with about 6,000 tanks engaged. Thanks to a complex spy network, the Soviet leadership was well-informed about German plans to launch Operation Citadel against the Kursk salient, and constructed massive defensive fortifications. After the German advance was stopped, a successful Soviet counterattack was launched. The German Army never again was able to mount a major attack on the Eastern Front. D-Day (June 6, 1944) Also known as Operation Overlord, this was the largest amphibious assault in history, as Supreme Allied Commander Dwight Eisenhower's forces attacked the German Atlantic Wall defenses on the beaches of Normandy, France. Due to his wife's birthday, German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel was absent at the start the invasion, which saw American forces land at Utah and Omaha Beaches, British forces land at Gold and Sword Beaches, and Canadian forces land at Juno Beach. After the landings, Allied forces erected prefabricated artificial Mulberry harbors to aid in transporting goods to France.

Battle of the Bulge (December 1944-January 1945) The Battle of the Bulge resulted from Germany's last major offensive operation on the Western Front. The German plan to sweep through the Ardennes Forest and capture the port city of Antwerp, Belgium, benefited from Allied aircraft being grounded due to poor weather. During the battle, English-speaking German troops under Otto Skorzeny attempted to disguise themselves as Allied troops and infiltrate enemy lines. German forces also besieged the Belgian town of Bastogne and requested its surrender, to which U.S. Army Brigadier General Anthony McAuliffe replied "Nuts!"; the siege was eventually lifted by forces commanded by George Patton. Other notable battles in Europe included the Battle of France, the Siege of Leningrad, the Battle of Moscow, the Battle of Anzio, the Battle of Monte Cassino, Operation Market Garden, and the Battle of Berlin.

Pacific Theater: Attack on Pearl Harbor (December 7, 1941) On what President Franklin Roosevelt declared would be "a date which will live in infamy," Japanese carrier-based aircraft launched, without a formal declaration of war, a surprise attack on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. The attack sank four battleships, most notably the USS Arizona , but all of the U.S. Navy's carriers were at sea and were unattacked. Shortly after the attack, Japan began invasions of Guam, Wake Island, the Philippines, and the British colony of Singapore. On December 8, with only Montana Representative Jeannette Rankin dissenting, the U.S. Congress declared war on Japan. Battle of the Coral Sea (May 1942) Resulting from a Japanese plan to capture Port Moresby in New Guinea, the Battle of the Coral Sea was fought entirely by carrier-based aircraft, making it the first major naval battle in history in which the two opposing fleets never directly fired upon (or even sighted) each other. The U.S.

Navy's carrier Lexington was sunk, and the Yorktown heavily damaged, while the Japanese Navy lost the light carrier Shoho and saw its large carriers Shokaku and Zuikaku damaged. Ultimately, the invasion of Port Moresby was cancelled and the temporary loss of two Japanese carriers gave the U.S. an edge at the subsequent Battle of Midway. Battle of Midway (June 1942) Universally considered the turning point in the Pacific Theater, the Battle of Midway saw the Japanese lose four aircraft carriers, a blow from which they never fully recovered. Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto planned to lure the U.S. fleet into a trap, but the Americans had broken the Japanese code, allowing them to pull off a stunning victory, with dive bombers from the Enterprise sinking the carriers Kaga, Akagi, and Hiryu, while those from the hastily-repaired Yorktown sank the carrier Soryu. Battle of Leyte Gulf (October 1944) By some measures the largest naval battle in history, the Battle of Leyte Gulf resulted from the Japanese Sho-Go plan to halt the American reconquest of the Philippines.

The plan nearly worked when American Admiral William "Bull" Halsey was baited into moving all of his battleships and large carriers away from the landing site, but an American force of small escort carriers and destroyers held off a Japanese task force that included four battleships. Another Japanese force tried to pass through the Surigao Strait, but, in the last ever combat between opposing battleships, the American Seventh Fleet crossed their "T" and annihilated the force. Battle of Iwo Jima (February 1945-March 1945) The Allies sought to capture Iwo Jima, a small island midway between the Mariana Islands and the Japanese home islands, to provide an airbase for the eventual invasion of Japan. Under the leadership of General Tadamichi Kuribayashi, the island's defenders built a complex network of underground tunnels and well camouflaged artillery pieces that enabled them to hold out for a month against vastly superior forces. The battle is best known for Joe Rosenthal's photograph showing six American servicemen raising a flag atop Mount Suribachi.

Battle of Okinawa (April 1945-June 1945) The largest amphibious assault of the Pacific Theater, the Battle of Okinawa featured massive casualties among both combatants and civilians. The Japanese launched over 1,500 kamikaze attacks against the U.S. fleet, and even sent the massive battleship Yamato on a one-way suicide mission; it was sunk by aircraft before reaching Okinawa. On the American side, both war correspondent Ernie Pyle and Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner, Jr., the commander-in-chief of the ground forces, were killed. Somewhat uniquely, the battle also saw large numbers of Japanese troops surrender, although many were native Okinawans forced into fighting. Other notable clashes and incidents in the Pacific included the Bataan Death March, the Battle of Guadalcanal during the Solomon Islands campaign, the Battle of the Philippine Sea, and the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This article was contributed by NAQT writer Aaron Cohen.

Question: The Battles of Alamein, Britain and the Bulge took place in which war?
Answer: World War II