"the end of the peninsula, when they were halted by a smaller Japanese force and the offensive was a total failure. In North Africa the Axis forces attacked in May, defeating the Allies in the Battle of Gazala in June and capturing Tobruk and 35,000 prisoners. The Eighth Army retreated over the Egyptian border, where the German advance was stopped in the First Battle of El Alamein. Claude Auchinleck, who had assumed command of the Eighth Army following the defeat at Gazala, was sacked and replaced by General Sir Harold Alexander, who became C-in-C Middle East, at the same time"
"early November 1942, the Second Battle of El Alamein, to defeat the Germans forcing them to retreat westwards towards Libya and Tunisia. The German's strategic goal had been to slice through Egypt, capture the Suez Canal, enter the British Mandate of Palestine, activate an Arab uprising against the British, and finally link up with German forces thrusting south from Southern Russia. All this was foiled by Montgomery's victory over Rommel at El Alamein. The leadership of the United Kingdom's General Bernard Montgomery at the Second Battle of El Alamein, or the ""Battle of Alamein"" at El Alamein in Egypt, marked"
"Army Group with Harold Alexander in command. The failure of British First Army forces in the run for Tunis in December 1942 led to a prolongation of the North African campaign which would not end until the Italian-German forces in North Africa capitulated in May 1943. Second Battle of El Alamein The Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October – 11 November 1942) was a battle of the Second World War that took place near the Egyptian railway halt of El Alamein. The First Battle of El Alamein had prevented the Axis from advancing further into Egypt. In August 1942,"
"an offensive in North Africa from Italian-controlled Libya into British-controlled Egypt. However, the British smashed the Italians and were on the verge of taking Libya. Hitler decided to help by sending in a few thousand troops, a ""Luftwaffe"" division, and the first-rate general Erwin Rommel. Rommel managed to use his small force to repeatedly smash massively superior British forces and to recapture the port city of Tobruk and advance into Egypt. However, Hitler, embroiled in his invasion of the Soviet Union, refused to send Rommel any more troops, causing Rommel to retreat and preventing him from seizing the Middle East,"
"Fomm, Churchill ordered the advance to halt there. The Axis had invaded Greece and Wavell was ordered to send all available forces there as soon as possible to oppose this. Wavell took the 6th Australian Division, along with part of 7th Armoured Division and most of the supplies and air support for this ultimately doomed operation. XIII Corps HQ was wound down and in February 1941 O'Connor was appointed General Officer Commanding-in-Chief the British Troops in Egypt. Matters were soon to become much worse for the British. By March 1941, Hitler had dispatched General Erwin Rommel along with the German"
"western flank and repulsing a big German counter-attack in the centre. On the third day, the British narrowly avoided disaster by withdrawing just ahead of a German encircling movement. The failure of Battleaxe led to the replacement of British General Sir Archibald Wavell, Commander-in-Chief Middle East, by Claude Auchinleck; Wavell took Auchinleck's position as Commander-in-Chief, India. In late March 1941, soon after the arrival of the ""Afrika Korps"" in Tripoli, Libya to reinforce the Italians, the Axis forces quickly captured the British front line position at El Agheila and by mid-April, had reached as far as Sallum, Egypt. The British"
"theatre from Germany as the Afrika Korps. However, the bulk of the Axis army in North Africa was still Italian. Rommel was at first very successful, reaching the Egyptian border again in less than a fortnight as he caught Wavell off-guard. Another British offensive was crushed, and Rommel made his way to El Alamein. This made Mussolini believe the end was near, as he flew to Africa, planning to enter the capital of Egypt triumphantly, only to wait three weeks, then fly back to Rome. Field Marshal Montgomery won at El Alamein in October 1942 for the British. This victory"
"Force in Egypt The Force in Egypt was a British Army formation established in August 1914 to administer garrisoning armed forces in Egypt at the beginning of the First World War. The force had the objective of protecting the Suez Canal and was originally commanded by Major General Julian Byng, but he was replaced by General J. Maxwell, who took command on 8 September 1914. Initially, the main threat to the Suez came from Germany and throughout the early months several of the force's elements were sent to Europe to take part in the fighting on the Western Front. On"
"16 September 1940, the Italians advanced 60 miles across the border. However, in December, the British launched Operation Compass and, by February 1941, the British had cut off and captured the Italian 10th Army and had driven deep into Libya. A German intervention prevented the fall of Libya and the combined Axis attacks drove the British back into Egypt until summer 1942, before being stopped at El Alamein. Allied intervention against Vichy French-held Morocco and Algeria created a two-front campaign. German and Italian forces entered Tunisia in late 1942 in response, however forces in Egypt were soon forced to make"
"and long supply lines. The British, with their backs against the wall, were very close to their supplies, and had fresh troops on hand. In early September 1942 Rommel tried again to break through the British lines during the Battle of Alam el Halfa. He was decisively stopped by the newly arrived British commander, Lieutenant General Bernard Montgomery. With British forces from Malta interdicting his supplies at sea, and the massive distances they had to cover in the desert, Rommel could not hold the El Alamein position forever. Still, it took a large set piece battle from late October to"
"at the end of August 1942 at Bir Ridge at the Battle of Alam el Halfa. The Second Battle of El Alamein lasted from 23 October to 5 November 1942 and was a watershed in the Western Desert Campaign. the Allied victory at El Alamein ended Axis hopes of occupying Egypt, controlling access to the Suez Canal and gaining access to Middle Eastern oil fields. The defeat at El Alamein marked the end of Axis expansion in Africa. Following the First Battle of El Alamein, which had stalled the Axis advance, Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery took command of the British Eighth"
"of Stalingrad and the Guadalcanal Campaign. The Panzer Army Africa (""Panzerarmee Afrika""), composed of German and Italian infantry and mechanised units under ""Generalfeldmarschall"" Erwin Rommel, had struck deep into Egypt by 12 July 1942 after its success at the Battle of Gazala. This threatened the British Empire's control of the Suez Canal and Mandatory Palestine. General Claude Auchinleck withdrew the Eighth Army to within of Alexandria to a point where the Qattara Depression came to within of El Alamein on the coast. This gave the defenders a short front to defend and provided secure flanks because tanks could not traverse"
"First Battle of El Alamein The First Battle of El Alamein (1–27 July 1942) was a battle of the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War, fought in Egypt between Axis forces (Germany and Italy) of the Panzer Army Africa (, which included the under Field Marshal () Erwin Rommel) and Allied (British Imperial and Commonwealth) forces (Britain, British India, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand) of the Eighth Army (General Claude Auchinleck). The British prevented a second advance by the Axis forces into Egypt. Axis positions near El Alamein, only from Alexandria, were dangerously close to the ports"
"had based forces in Egypt since 1882 but these were greatly reduced by the terms of the Anglo-Egyptian treaty of 1936. A small British and Commonwealth force garrisoned the Suez Canal and the Red Sea route, which was vital to British communications with its Indian Ocean and Far Eastern territories. In mid-1939, General Archibald Wavell was appointed General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C) of the new Middle East Command, over the Mediterranean and Middle East theatres. Wavell was responsible for the defence of Egypt through the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, British Troops Egypt, to train the Egyptian army and co-ordinate military operations with"
"of the new army. Western Desert Force The Western Desert Force (WDF) was a British Army formation active in Egypt during the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War. On 17 June 1940, the headquarters of the British 6th Infantry Division was designated as the Western Desert Force. The formation consisted of the British 7th Armoured Division and the 4th Indian Infantry Division. The force was commanded by Major-General Richard Nugent O'Connor. In September 1940, at the time of the Italian invasion of Egypt, the Western Desert Force consisted of roughly 36,000 soldiers and about 65 tanks. From early"
"stabilised the Allied position at the First Battle of El Alamein, but after a visit in August 1942, the Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, replaced him as C-in-C with General Sir Harold Alexander and William Gott as commander of the Eighth Army in the Western Desert. However, after Gott was killed flying back to Cairo Churchill was persuaded by Brooke, who by this time was Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS), to appoint Montgomery, who had only just been nominated to replace Alexander as commander of the British First Army for Operation Torch, the invasion of French North Africa. A"
"Operation Brevity order of battle This is the order of battle for Operation Brevity, a World War II battle between the British Commonwealth and the European Axis Powers of Germany and Italy in North Africa between May 15–16, 1941. General Officer, Commanding in chief, Middle East Command - General Archibald Wavell HQ Western Desert Force - Lieutenant-General Noel Beresford-Peirse Operational command - Brigadier William Gott The British and Commonwealth force were drawn mainly from the 7th Armoured Division's, 7th Armoured Brigade and 7th Support Group and from the independent 22nd Guards Brigade. They were organised into three groups: Supreme Commander"
"Western Desert Force The Western Desert Force (WDF) was a British Army formation active in Egypt during the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War. On 17 June 1940, the headquarters of the British 6th Infantry Division was designated as the Western Desert Force. The formation consisted of the British 7th Armoured Division and the 4th Indian Infantry Division. The force was commanded by Major-General Richard Nugent O'Connor. In September 1940, at the time of the Italian invasion of Egypt, the Western Desert Force consisted of roughly 36,000 soldiers and about 65 tanks. From early December 1940 to February"
"war took a completely different turn. ("""" p. 1-50.) Adolf Hitler sent his army to North Africa starting in February 1941 (see Operation Sonnenblume). Nazi Germany's General Erwin Rommel's Deutsches Afrikakorps coming from victories at Tobruk in Libya, and in a classic ""blitzkrieg"", comprehensively outfought British forces. Within weeks the British had been pushed back into Egypt. Rommel's offensive was eventually stopped at the small railway halt of El Alamein, just 150 miles from Cairo. In July 1942 the First Battle of El Alamein was lost by Rommel because he was suffering from the eternal curse of the desert war,"
"Second Battle of El Alamein The Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October – 11 November 1942) was a battle of the Second World War that took place near the Egyptian railway halt of El Alamein. The First Battle of El Alamein had prevented the Axis from advancing further into Egypt. In August 1942, General Claude Auchinleck was relieved as Commander-in-Chief Middle East Command. When Lieutenant-General William Gott was killed on his way to replace Auchinleck as commander of the Allied Eighth Army, Lieutenant-General Bernard Law Montgomery was appointed command in his place, and led the Eighth Army in a"
"(German-Italian Armoured Army, aka Panzer Armee Afrika for the Germans) to Fuka. By nightfall, the Axis had only thirty-two tanks operating along the entire front. John Cecil Currie Brigadier John Cecil Currie (1898 – 26 June 1944) was a British Army officer who fought in both World War I and World War II. As part of Iraqforce (or Paiforce in Persia), Currie commanded the 9th Armoured Brigade during the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Persia. His brigade was part of ""Hazelforce"" commanded by Brigadier John Aldam Aizlewood. During the Battle of El Alamein in late 1942, he played a key part in"
"south of Alexandria and north of Cairo. Musketeer would require thousands of troops, leading the British to seek out France as an ally. To destroy the 300,000-strong Egyptian Army in his planned battle of annihilation, Stockwell estimated that he needed 80,000 troops, while at most the British Army could spare was 50,000 troops; the French could supply the necessary 30,000 troops to make up the shortfall. On 11 August 1956, General Keightley was appointed commander of Musketeer with the French Admiral Barjot as his deputy commander. The appointment of Stockwell as the Allied Task Force commander charged with leading the"
"a German armoured brigade from the front line to provide rear area security. In January 1941, an ""ad hoc"" force of 2,000 commandos known as Layforce was sent from Great Britain to take part in raiding operations in the Mediterranean. Under the command of Colonel Robert Laycock, the force comprised No. 7 Commando, No. 8 (Guards) Commando, No. 11 (Scottish) Commando, a troop from No. 3 Commando and the Folbot section. On their arrival in Egypt in March 1941, the force was strengthened by the amalgamated No. 50 Commando and No. 52 Commando. To avoid the Axis powers becoming aware"
"what really happened to Rommel during the final years of his life: when Young wrote his book, it was believed that Rommel had died as a result of the wounds he had suffered when an Allied fighter strafed his staff car. The film flashbacks to 1941 and 42, as the British prepare to counterattack Egypt, directed by General Bernard Montgomery: The Germans are defeated at El Alamein in 1942. The situation is made worse when Rommel is ordered by Adolf Hitler (Luther Adler) to stand fast and not retreat, even in the face of overwhelming Allied superiority in men and"
"Operation Brevity Operation Brevity was a limited offensive conducted in mid-May 1941, during the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War. Conceived by the commander-in-chief of the British Middle East Command, General Archibald Wavell, Brevity was intended to be a rapid blow against weak Axis front-line forces in the Sollum–Capuzzo–Bardia area of the border between Egypt and Libya. Although the operation got off to a promising start, throwing the Axis high command into confusion, most of its early gains were lost to local counter-attacks, and with German reinforcements being rushed to the front the operation was called off after"
"invasion of German-occupied Europe scheduled for 1942 which, due to lack of resources, was postponed until 1943. While in England the 509th trained alongside and became closely associated with the British 1st Airborne Division, commanded by Major General Frederick A. M. ""Boy"" Browning, the father of the British Army's airborne forces. Due to the tough training course he gave the paratroopers in the 509th (and his stocky physique), Raff was nicknamed ""Little Caesar"" by his paratroopers. He first saw combat in November 1942 in Operation Torch, the Allied invasion of French North Africa, as the commander of the 509th Parachute"
"on Nazi Germany made it the dominant partner. In the spring of 1941, Axis forces under Rommel pushed the British back to Egypt except for the port of Tobruk, where the Siege of Tobruk took place until it was relieved during Operation Crusader. The Axis forces were forced to retire to where they had started by the end of the year. In 1942 Axis forces drove the British back again and captured Tobruk after the Battle of Gazala but failed to gain a decisive victory. On the final Axis push to Egypt, the British retreated to El Alamein, where at"
"Egypt, slowed by British delaying actions until the First Battle of El Alamein in July, where the Axis advance was stopped. Both sides used the battle for propaganda, Winston Churchill renamed the Free French as the Fighting French and Hitler called the French the second best fighters after the Germans. At the beginning of 1942, after its defeat in western Cyrenaica during , the Eighth Army (Lieutenant-General Neil Ritchie) faced the Axis troops in Libya roughly west of the port of Tobruk, along a line running from the coast at Gazala, southwards for about . Both sides accumulated supplies for"
"- General Italo Gariboldi Following the British attacks General Rommel ordered the following force, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Hans Crammer, to the frontier to defeat the British. During the morning of May 16, Rommel ordered further forces to the frontier. Operation Brevity order of battle This is the order of battle for Operation Brevity, a World War II battle between the British Commonwealth and the European Axis Powers of Germany and Italy in North Africa between May 15–16, 1941. General Officer, Commanding in chief, Middle East Command - General Archibald Wavell HQ Western Desert Force - Lieutenant-General Noel Beresford-Peirse"
"some 70 British warships under the command of Admiral Lord Keith, ""Cameleon"" among them, together with transports carrying 16,000 troops, anchored in Abu Qir Bay near Alexandria. The objective of the operation was the defeat of the French expeditionary force that had remained in Egypt after Napoleon's return to France. Bad weather delayed disembarkation by a week but, on 8 March, Captain Alexander Cochrane of HMS ""Ajax"" gave the signal and deployed 320 boats, in double line abreast, to bring the troops ashore. French shore batteries opposed the landing, but the British were able to drive them back. During the"
"August 1942 the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, accompanied by a senior delegation including the Chief of the Imperial General Staff, General Alan Brooke, held discussions in Cairo which resulted in a reorganisation of Middle East Command. This included the replacement of Auchinleck in his role as GOC-in-C Middle East by General Harold Alexander and in his role as British Eighth Army commander by Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery and the splitting of Middle East Command to create a new Persia and Iraq Command. Aware that the Commander-in-Chief, Middle East Command needed to devote his full attention to halting the German-Italian forces"
"General Sir Archibald Wavell Commander Western Desert Force: Lieutenant-General R. N. O'Connor 11 December 1940) Italian invasion of Egypt The Italian invasion of Egypt () was an offensive in the Second World War, against British, Commonwealth and Free French forces. The Italian invasion ended border skirmishing and began the Western Desert Campaign (1940–1943) proper. The goal of the Italian forces in Libya was to seize the Suez Canal by advancing along the Egyptian coast. After numerous delays, the scope of the offensive was reduced to an advance as far as Sidi Barrani, with attacks on any British forces in the"
"for a long war or the occupation large areas of Africa. The British had based forces in Egypt since 1882 but these were greatly reduced by the terms of the treaty of 1936. A small British and Commonwealth force garrisoned the Suez Canal and the Red Sea route, which was vital to British communications with its Indian Ocean and Far Eastern territories. In mid-1939, Lieutenant-General Archibald Wavell was appointed General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C) of the new Middle East Command, over the Mediterranean and Middle East theatres. Until the Franco-Axis Armistice of 22 June 1940, French divisions in Tunisia faced the"