The Battle of El Alamein. The Battle of El Alamein, fought in the deserts of North Africa, is seen as one of the decisive victories of. World War Two. The Battle of El Alamein was primarily fought between two of the outstanding commanders of World. War Two, Montgomery, who succeeded the dismissed Auchinleck, and Rommel. The Allied victory at El Alamein lead to the retreat of the Afrika Korps and the German surrender in North Africa in May 1. Rommel studying maps during the battle at El Alamein. El Alamein is 1. 50 miles west of Cairo. By the summer of 1. Allies were in trouble throughout Europe. The attack on Russia – Operation Barbarossa – had pushed the Russians back; U- boats were having a major effect on Britain in the Battle of the Atlantic and western Europe seemed to be fully in the control of the Germans. Hence the war in the desert of North Africa was pivotal. If the Afrika Korps got to the Suez Canal, the ability of the Allies to supply themselves would be severely dented. The only alternate supply route would be via South Africa – which was not only longer but a lot more dangerous due to the vagaries of the weather. The psychological blow of losing the Suez and losing in North Africa would have been incalculable – especially as this would have given Germany near enough free access to the oil in the Middle East. El Alamein was a last stand for the Allies in North Africa. To the north of this apparently unremarkable town was the Mediterranean Sea and to the south was the Qattara Depression. El Alamein was a bottleneck that ensures that Rommel could not use his favoured form of attack – sweeping into the enemy from the rear. Rommel was a well respected general in the ranks of the Allies. The Allied commander at the time, Claude Auchinleck – did not command the same respect among his own men. Auchinleck had to send a memo to all his senior officers that ordered them to do all in their power to correct this: “. Churchill, despite his status, faced the prospect of a vote of no confidence in the House of Commons if there was no forthcoming victory anywhere. Churchill grasped the bull by the horns./ he dismissed Auchinleck and replaced him with Bernard Montgomery. The men in the Allied forces respected . He was described as “as quick as a ferret and about as likeable.” Montgomery put a great deal of emphasis on organisation and morale. He spoke to his troops and attempted to restore confidence in them. But above all else, he knew that he needed to hold El Alamein anyway possible. Rommel planned to hit the Allies in the south. Montgomery guessed that this would be the move of Rommel as Rommel had done it before. Over 1000 historic dates crucial to Britain. A detailed timeline of the events that have shaped British History we have aimed to have been as inclusive as possible. Account of the British attack on Algiers and the Barbary Pirates in 1816, with a focus on Midshipman Richard Calthrop. Julian Browning specializes in the sale of autograph letters, historical documents and manuscripts dating from about 1450 to1950. All historical autographs, letters. However, he was also helped by the people who worked at Bletchley Park who had got hold of Rommel’s battle plan and had deciphered it. By August 1. 94. 2, only 3. Rommel needed was getting through to him. Rommel was also acutely aware that while he was being starved of supplies, the Allies were getting vast amounts through as they still controlled the Suez and were predominant in the Mediterranean. To resolve what could only become a more difficult situation, Rommel decided to attack quickly even if he was not well- equipped. By the end of August 1. ![]() Montgomery was ready himself. He knew that Rommel was very short of fuel and that the Germans could not sustain a long campaign. When Rommel attacked, Montgomery was asleep. When he was woken from his sleep to be told the news, it is said that he replied “excellent, excellent” and went back to sleep again. The Allies had placed a huge number of land mines south of El Alamein at Alam Halfa. German Panzer tanks were severely hit by these and the rest were held up and became sitting targets for Allied fighter planes that could easily pick off tank after tank. Rommel’s attack started badly and it seemed as if his Afrika Korps would be wiped out. He ordered his tanks north and he was then helped by nature. A sandstorm blew up which gave his tanks much needed cover from marauding British fighters. However, once the sandstorm cleared, Rommel’s force was hit by Allied bombers that pounded the area where the Afrika Corps had their tanks. Rommel had no choice but to retreat. He fully expected Montgomery’s Eighth Army to follow him as this was standard military procedure. He was not ready for an offensive and he ordered his men to stay put while they held a decisive defensive line. In fact, Montgomery was waiting for the arrival of something that soldiers in the desert were only allowed to refer to as . In fact, they were Sherman tanks – 3. Royal Navy History. The history of the United Kingdom is the history of the Royal Navy. We are an island nation and sea has always been a vital factor. The Battle of Algiers reconstructs the events that occurred in the capital city of French Algeria between November 1954 and December 1957, during the. Allies. Their 7. 5 mm gun shot a 6lb shell that could penetrate a Panzer at 2. A number of these tanks were poor Italian tanks and could not match the new Sherman’s. The Germans were also short of fuel. The Allies had more than 2. They were also armed with a six- pound artillery gun which was highly effective up to 1. Between the two armies was the . This was a mine field laid by the Germans which was 5 miles wide and littered with a huge number of anti- tank and anti- personnel mines. ![]() Going through such a defence would prove to be a nightmare for the Allies. To throw Rommel off the scent, Montgomery launched . This plan was to convince Rommel that the full- might of the Eighth Army would be used in the south. Dummy tanks were erected in the region. A dummy pipeline was also built – slowly, so as to convince Rommel that the Allies were in no hurry to attack the Afrika Korps. Tanks were covered so as to appear as non- threatening lorries. Bertram worked as Rommel became convinced that the attack would be in the south. At the start of the real attack, Montgomery sent a message to all the men in the Eighth Army: “Everyone must be imbued with the desire kill Germans, even the padres – one for weekdays and two on Sundays.”The start of the Allied attack on Rommel was code- named “Operation Lightfoot”. There was a reason for this. A diversionary attack in the south was meant to take in 5. Rommel’s forces. The main attack in the north was to last – according to Montgomery – just one night. ![]() ![]() ![]() The infantry had to attack first. Many of the anti- tank mines would not be tripped by soldiers running over them – they were too light (hence the code- name). As the infantry attacked, engineers had to clear a path for the tanks coming up in the rear. Each stretch of land cleared of mines was to be 2. The engineers had to clear a five mile section through the . It was an awesome task and one that essentially failed. If we do this, there can be only one result – together, we will hit the enemy for six out of Africa.”The attack on Rommel’s lines started with over 8. German lines. Legend has it that the noise was so great that the ears of the gunners bled. As the shells pounded the German lines, the infantry attacked. The engineers set about clearing mines.
Their task was very dangerous as one mine was inter- connected with others via wires and if one mines was set off, many others could be. The stretch of cleared land for the tanks proved to be Montgomery’s Achilles heel. Just one non- moving tank could hold up all the tanks that were behind it. The ensuing traffic jams made the tanks easy targets for the German gunners using the feared 8. The plan to get the tanks through in one night failed. The infantry had also not got as far as Montgomery had planned. They had to dig in. The second night of the attack was also unsuccessful. He was given a simple ultimatum – move forward – or be replaced by someone more energetic. But the rate of attrition of the Allied forces was taking its toll. Operation Lightfoot was called off and Montgomery, not Lumsden, withdrew his tanks. ![]() When he received the news, Churchill was furious as he believed that Montgomery was letting victory go. However, Rommel and the Afrika Korps had also been suffering. He only had 3. 00 tanks left to the Allies 9. Australian units attacked the Germans by the Mediterranean and Rommel had to move his tanks north to cover this. The section of the North African coast to the west of Egypt has been known as Libya for several millennia. Much of its population has. A Lancashire Infantry Museum Narrative History © Lancs Inf Museum & Lt Col E J Downham MBE BA DL. THE REGIMENTS IN WORLD WAR II. S hortly after the. The Australians took many casualties but their attack was to change the course of the battle. Rommel became convinced that the main thrust of Montgomery’s attack wouldbe near the Mediterranean and he moved a large amount of his Afrika Korps there. The Australians fought with ferocity – even Rommel commented on the “rivers of blood” in the region. However, the Australians had given Montgomery room to manoeuvre. He launched . This was a British and New Zealander infantry attack made south of where the Australians were fighting. Rommel was taken by surprise. Armoured Brigade attacked the German lines. But a sandstorm once again saved Rommel. Many of the tanks got lost and they were easy for the German 8. Brigade was lost. But the overwhelming number of Allied tanks meant that more arrived to help out and it was these tanks that tipped the balance. Rommel put tank against tank – but his men were hopelessly outnumbered. By November 2nd 1. Rommel knew that he was beaten. Hitler ordered the Afrika Korps to fight to the last but Rommel refused to carry out this order. On November 4th, Rommel started his retreat. Germans and Italians had been killed or wounded in the battle and 1. Allied troops in the Eighth Army. BBC - Primary History - Vikings. The Norse myths. When the Vikings came to Britain, they had their own pagan religion. They worshipped many gods. The old stories they told about gods, giants and monsters are known as Norse myths. In one story, Thor, the god of thunder, tries to prove his strength to the Giant King by attempting to lift a giant cat. But he could only lift one of its paws! Back to top. Norse gods and goddesses. Odin was the ruler of the gods, and the god of magic, poetry and war. His wife was the motherly Frigg, and their son was Balder, who was kind and gentle. He had iron gloves, a magic belt and a hammer. Kurt Vile & Courtney Barnett Touring Together This Fall, Collaboration LP Out Later This Year. Kurt Vile & Courtney Barnett Touring Together This Fall, Collaboration.People loved Thor but did not trust Loki, the mischievous 'trickster god'. By a trick, Loki caused the death of Balder. Some Viking chiefs were given ship- burials, with treasure, weapons, and favourite dogs and horses buried with them. Odin sent his warror- maidens, the Valkyries, riding through the skies to bring dead warriors to Valhalla. The gods and goddesses lived in a sky world called Asgard. Linking Midgard with Asgard was a rainbow bridge. Odin rode a magical horse named Sleipnir, which had eight legs. It's thought they had 'magic trees' and perhaps wooden temples. Some Vikings may have killed captives as human sacrifices. These old pagan customs died out after Vikings became Christians. People in Britain had been Christians long before Vikings settled here in the 9. Soon most Vikings too became Christians. Viking leaders founded churches and put up painted stone crosses. However, some Vikings continued to follow their old religion at the same time.
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