This page intentionally left blank CONTENTS

MASTERSTROKE 1

TOBRUK — THE VERDUN OF THE DESERT 8

THE START OF THE RELIEF 17

THE SUNDAY OF THE DEAD 21

TOBRUK RELIEVED 23

EPILOGUE 26

ADDENDUM 31 UNITS OF THE TOBRUK GARRISON, 14 APRIL 1941 31 34 THE GERMAN DIVISIONS 38

BRIEF LIST OF SOURCES 41 THE ROAD TO TOBRUK — A SECOND WORLD WAR PERSPECTIVE by AKHIL KADIDAL

MASTERSTROKE

hen 1941 dawned on , it heralded a decisive moment in the WNorth African Campaign of the Second world War. British were optimistic. During the previous year, they had routed the poorly- led from the province of Cyrenaica and had made brisk MAGAZINE SIGNAL progress towards Tripolitania, in DESERT FOX The largely-empty desert Western Libya. But on February 8, playing field was ideally suited to General just as they reached the town of El ’s (with red tabs) idea of mobile Aghelia, elements of the German warfare. It was also be conducive to his great army began to arrive by ship in the flanks of the British positions. country’s capital, . General Erwin Rommel, the commander of the so-called , arrived himself at Tripoli on the 12th and found a battleground unlike anything that had been encountered before. The flat, sweeping desert plains, broken only by the tall, green hills of the Jebel Akhdar on the rounded bulb of the country seemed to extend to the horizon forever. A narrow strip of fertile coastal land hugged the sea, supporting most of the towns and the population. In fact, the entire place had been described by the British as a “place fit only for war.”1 A main coastal road, AFRIKA KORPS named the Via Balbia, connected most of the towns and had BADGE witnessed the majority of military movements. Rommel, however, planned to break with tradition. He saw the barren desert as a giant thoroughfare and a weakness in the thin british lines. He planned to punch through the enemy front with a concentrated fist of and motorized infantry and as the British reeled from the blow, drive back to . Little wonder then that Rommel’s English counterpart, General Sir Archibald Wavell, personally a brave man (he had lost an eye in the second battle of Ypres, and in 1 A title that the rebels in modern Libya would undoubtedly take exception to.

1 compensation had been given a ), faced a dilemma. Unlike the Italians, the Germans were highly motivated and had excellent arms - and worse - Wavell was actually losing troops. An important (RAF) unit, No. 202 Group, accompanied by army units were being sent across the Mediterranean to to counter other Italian ambitions in the Balkans. All Wavell had remaining was one British armoured , the infantry of the 9th Australian Division, a single RAF fighter squadron equipped with obsolete Gladiator biplanes and Hurricane fighters, and a bomber-reconnaissance squadron equipped with the hopelessly outdated and noisy Bristol Bombay. Wavell hoped for a respite, hoping that some of his units would be returned before the major fracas began. But then, on February 24, a small German reconnaissance battalion blundered into a British patrol and opened up, destroying three British scout cars. The Germans suffered no losses. Their reports to Rommel were optimistic; the British had only a thin covering force under Lt-General Philip Neame, VC, at El Aghelia. Rommel, who was still waiting for the greater part of his 15th Panzer Division to arrive, decided to attack with what he had. This was the sort of bravado that would make his reputation as a bold, swift commander, almost fearless in the execution of hastily- made plans. On March 24th, the German 5th Light Division with two Italian divisions for company, advanced out of Sirte and fell upon the British at El Aghelia. The orders to his troops were clear: captured capture Agedabia, and secure Cyrenaica. Split into three columns, the Germans and Italians streamed east, leaving a great trail of dust in their wake. On the very first day, one column overran El Aghelia and then March 24 harried the escaping British garrison all the way to Agedabia which it captured on April The German 5th (Right) OBSOLETE Vickers VI Light Division tanks from the 1st Royal attacks El Aghelia (RTR) in exercises with the 1/6th Rajputana Rifles of the 4th Indian Division in 1940.

(Below) Cyrenaica as it was in 1941-42. E777 MUSEUM WAR IMPERIAL

2 COLONIAL TRIPOLI, CIRCA 1930

Italian M-13

German PzIIIG MAIN AXIS TANKS BUNDESARCHIV; MAP: UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA UNIVERSITY OF MAP: BUNDESARCHIV;

OFF THE BOAT German Panzer III tanks are unloaded at the Tripoli docks. Later, Axis supplies would have a German PzIVF-1 harder time running the British blockade at Malta. 3 CALM COMMANDER Much of the 9th Australian’s resolve at Tobruk came from the its analytical, level-headed leader, Major-General Leslie Morsehead. His resoluteness and adherence to discipline earned him the nickname “Ming the Merciless,” by his men and the Germans had nothing but the highest praise for his leadership. After Tobruk, Morsehead went on to more successes at and the Pacific.

AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIAL WAR AUSTRALIAN April 3

2 with over 800 prisoners. The British 3rd Armoured Brigade (the solitary brigade of Shattered the 2nd Armoured Division) attempted to intervene but its two could muster remnants of the only 12 antiquated A-13 cruiser tanks, 20 captured “Eyetie” M-13’s (British slang for 3rd Armoured Italian) and 19 useless Vickers Mk VI tanks that looked as though they belonged in brigade . retreat east The 5th German Division smashed through their defense and reached Benghazi on the night of April 3. For Wavell at headquarters, worse news followed. That morning, an RAF reconnaissance plane had spotted dust plumes on the horizon and reported that several enemy motorized columns were racing towards a large British oil depot at Msus. On hearing the news, the allied force guarding the depot had panicked and set the stores ablaze. The next morning, when the badly battered survivors of the 3rd Armoured Brigade arrived to refuel, they were met by thick palls of black smoke. In reality there had never been any danger. The force spotted on the previous day had been a British LRDG () unit on patrol, and a recovery section of the 3rd Armoured out looking for salvageable tanks. Starved for gasoline, the tankers of 3rd Armoured were forced to abandon most of their tanks and push on to Mechili, 80 miles away, on foot. The journey was punishing. Amid the sweltering desert heat, the men were attacked time and again by German Ju- 87 Stuka dive-bombers. The RAF seemed nonexistent, but heavy aerial engagements were taking place all along the line. On the afternoon of April 3, seven Hurricanes from the newly-arrived Australian 3 Squadron were flying a patrol when they encountered eight Stukas of II/StG2 and an equal number of Me110 heavy-fighters2 strafing British troops at Derna. Flight Lt. Alan Rawlinson and one section went after the Stukas while the other section took on the escorts. The Australians shot down one Me110 and two Stukas for no loss. The engagement had been remarkable efficient and fortunate for the harried RAF, 2 From 7./ZG26 led by the newly appointed Staffelkapitän, Hauptmann Georg Christl. 4 but the army did not share in that luck. Although many British ground units were able to withdraw into the Gazala plains, most fell into enemy hands soon after, including the remains of the 3rd Armoured Brigade which reached Derna on April 6 only to have the ignominious honor of being captured there. Rommel had achieved fantastic gains, but his offensive across central Cyrenaica had not been easy; the severe terrain had taken its toll on both man and machine. His knack for changing orders at the last moment caused numerous breakdowns among the motorized elements which were pushed to the limit over treacherous terrain with limited fuel. At times even his most hardened troops seemed to reach the breaking point. Some of the forward British 2nd units, ordered to make for Derna and the coast road were in such a desperate state that they Armoured Division were forced to leave behind a large number of vehicles, instead siphoning what little fuel remained so that a small force could reach their objectives. Rommel’s attention now turned to the oasis of Mechili, below the Jebel Akhdar mountains. With the assault on the oasis scheduled to begin in just a few days time the German supply column started back for Tripoli, 620 miles away, for fuel and stores. When it became apparent that they would not reach the front in time, the attempted to fly in fuel to the 5th Panzer Regiment by landing on a nearby Wadi (an Arabic name for dry salt lake). RAF Hurricanes from the port-town of Tobruk and other airfields once again proved lucky and caught these massive Ju.52 transports on the ground. The result was a fiasco. Many of the Ju52’s were destroyed on the ground. Still, Rommel’s second column captured Msus on the April 7, and Mechili on the following day after a fierce three-day battle. They even overran the headquarters of the 2nd Armoured Division and captured its

THE ALLIED PERIMETER as it appeared in this period German map.

Translations: Fort: Fortified weapons location

Kampstände: Anti-tank guns and Machine-gun post

Jn Felsen: Reinforced trench

Pakstände: Anti-tank group

Panzerabwehrgraben: Anti-Tank ditch

Drahtsperren: Concertina Wire with mines

Minenfelder: Minefield

5 commander, Major-General Gambier-Perry who now joined some 1,700 prisoners in the bag, including 70 officers and a good deal of badly-needed supplies. A few of the British, including the 1st Royal Horse managed to get away but the pursing Germans trailed not far behind and chased the British into the open, coastal plain of Gazala, about 40 miles west of Tobruk. By now, the third column, led by Lt-Colonel Count von Schwerin, was sent in a wide outflanking move through Ben Gania Australian 9th to Mechili and Derna. Their task was to cut off and trap any British units trying to evacuate Division Cyrenaica. They were highly successful. On the night of April 6, they took their most illustrious prisoners to date — Major-General Richard O’ Connor (the victor of the earlier The Australians campaign against the Italians) and Philip Neame — both of whom were captured outside under Lt-General Derna by an enterprising German motorcycle patrol. Both men went into captivity in . Morsehead Now the key port town of Tobruk lay within Rommel’s grasp but in his eagerness prepare to hold to get to the Libya-Egyptian frontier, he bypassed it, convinced that it could be easily Tobruk in the first mopped up by his rear-echelon forces. He took on April 11 and the coastal town week of April. of Sollum on the Egyptian frontier four days later. But he had made a serious mistake with Tobruk. Wavell had ordered Lt-General Leslie Morsehead of the 9th Australian Division to hold Tobruk and its massive store of supplies at all cost. A force from the 7th Australian Division (the 18th Brigade), joined Morsehead inside the fortified Tobruk perimeter. As they assembled, the squat, cool-headed general told his men that, “there will be no Dunkirk here. If we have to get out, then we will fight our way out. There is no surrender and no retreat!” Morsehead who would command the garrison until October 22, badly depriving Rommel of a forward deep-water harbor from which he could strike deep into

Polish Carpathian Rifle Brigade

The polish and the czechs arrived in tobruk in Mid- october as part of operation “cultivate.” they relieved Australians holding the western perimeter. AUSTRALIAN WAR MUSEUM 041853 MUSEUM WAR AUSTRALIAN

MULTINATIONAL FORCE Men from five countries formed the garrison at Tobruk at one time. These are: (from left), Polish, British, Indian, Australian and Czechoslovakian. 6 Egypt. Elsewhere too, the fighting spirit of the Allies rallied. On April 11, General Sir Noel Beresford-Peirse arrived from East Africa to take over command of the Western Desert Army and positioned his men along a new frontline near the Libyan-Egyptian border. After East Africa was cleared of other Italian troops in May, other British units rushed to Egypt to reinforce the desert army. In contrast, Rommel’s forces, began to suffer the same problem that had afflicted the British during their advance against the Italians — over- extended lines of communications and supplies.

By the Second week of april, rommel’s offensive had run out of steam and worse, supplies IMPERIAL WAR MUSEUM WAR IMPERIAL REPLACEMENTS Disheveled and weary-looking Allied replacements arrive in Egypt. The state of their kit either indicates a long sea voyage or frontline troops being reintroduced into a combat zone. 7 TOBRUK — THE VERDUN OF THE DESERT

or all sides fighting in the North Africa, the city of Tobruk, situated 75 miles west of the frontier with Egypt, was a pivot upon which the entire campaign for Cyrenaica rested. The port city was to be the dominant factor Fin the 15-month phase of the known to the British as the “Benghazi Handicap.” From opposite ends of the front, opposing forces chased each other to and fro over the desert, stopping only when they over-extended their supply lines. In these battles, Tobruk’s importance lay in its excellent deep-water harbor — where a ship unloading 5,000 tonnes of cargo was worth more than a dozen convoys of trucks. By April 11, Rommel had surrounded Tobruk along its 30 mile perimeter. Morsehead’s frontlines were based on the old-Italian defenses which included a 30- foot anti-tank ditch and about 70 strong-points. There were two lines of defense — an outer “Red Line” and an inner “Blue Line.” In between these was a minefield covered by barbed wire. The 23,000-strong Tobruk garrison included almost 15,000 Australians, over 500 Indians and the rest British. In addition, the defenders also had several heavy and light anti-aircraft batteries, and a small tank force whose men and equipment were drawn mainly from the 3rd Armoured Brigade’s 3rd Hussars Regiment and the King’s Dragoon Guards. In the early days of the siege, they also had four Hurricanes from 73 Squadron, but these were later shot down or withdrawn. For supplies, the defenders relied on the

Royal Navy, and although the Luftwaffe quickly MUSEUM WAR IMPERIAL 1207-09 established air superiority, the harbor was kept THE QUEENS OF THE open by the anti-aircraft gunners, who fired 3.7 BATTLEFIELD Matildas of the 7th RTR with troops of the 4th Indian Division.

EARLY VETERAN The Panzer III (the J version in this case) was Rommel’s best tank during the 1941 period. It was more reliable than the British Cruiser tanks and had better armor. Its only match was the well-protected British Matilda, whose armor could not be penetrated by the German tank’s 50mm gun. 8 BOVINGTON TANK MUSEUM TANK BOVINGTON DESERT HONEYS Newly-issued, American-made Stuart tanks of the 5th RTR (the British called the tanks, “Honeys”). The triangle of “A” Squadron is on the turret, while the famous Jerboa rat of the 4th Armored Brigade is on the fender.

Order of Battle, 18 November 1941 7th Armoured Division (Major-General William “Strafer” Gott) (Pictured on right)

4th Armoured Brigade (Brig. A. Gatehouse) IWM E2623 8th King’s Royal Irish Hussars (51 Stuart I) 3rd (52 Stuart I) 7th Support Group (Brig. J.C. “Jock” Campbell) 5th Royal Tank Regiment (52 Stuart I) 3rd Royal Horse Artillery (36 x 2pdr) 2nd Bn, 4th Royal Horse Artillery (24 x 25pdr) 2nd Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery 1st Bn, Kings Royal Rifle Corps 7th Armoured Brigade (Brig. G. Davy) 2nd Bn, The Rifle Brigade 7th Hussars (37 Cruiser II, 20 Crusader) 60th Field Regiment, RA (24 x 25pdr) 2nd Royal Tank Regiment (52 Crusader) 203 Bty, 51st Field Regiment, RA (12x25pdr) (49 Crusader) Divisional troops 22nd Armoured Brigade (Brig. J. Scott-Cogburn) 4th South African Armoured Car Regiment 3rd County of London Yeomanry (47 1st King's Dragoon Guards Crusader, 4 Cruiser) 4th County of London Yeomanry (Stuart) 102nd Royal Horse Artillery 2nd Royal Gloucestershire Hussars (47 1st Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, RA Crusader, 4 Cruiser)

9 inch heavy anti-aircraft guns at predetermined heights, joined by other light anti- aircraft batteries operating 40mm Borfors guns and captured 20mm and 40mm Italian Bredas, firing explosive tracers. Rommel decided to act fast before the British settled in, authorizing an attack on the first day of the siege — Good Friday, 11 April 1941. The 8th Machine Gun Battalion supported by about 20 Panzers made a probing attack but the Australians were well prepared and cut the assault down. Rommel then decided on a major attack on the April 14. Under the cover of darkness at 1 a.m., machine- gunners and engineers worked a gap through the southern perimeter. Five hours later, Stukas and an artillery bombardment fell upon the defenders, hoping to soften them up, and at 7.15 a.m., just as dawn started to break, the leading German assault parties moved stealthily forward into the attack. Unknown to them, their movements were being watched. Just as the forward parties came to within range, the Australians called in heavy artillery fire. Looses were heavy, but some of the Germans managed to force their way in, as one young Panzer officer later recorded: “the shells explode like fireworks. We travel Badge of the six miles with every nerve on edge… and suddenly we are in the gap. The tank is Royal horse going nose down in the first ditch…the motor whines, and I catch a glimpse of the artillery (RHA), stars through the shutter, then for the second time the tank goes down, extricating an illustrious itself backwards with a telltale thud, the engines grinding. We are through and branch of the immediately take up file in battle order.” which The leading panzer battalion fought its way for about 2 miles inside the dated back to 1793 perimeter before it was stopped. The Australian turned the Italian coastal guns and valorous inland, and joined by a host of 2-Pounders and 25-Pounder cannons, destroyed 16 service during the Napoleonic, Zulu and world wars. IMPERIAL WAR MUSEUM WAR IMPERIAL

STUKA RAID Tobruk’s harbor district feels the weight of German bombs. 10 of the 38 German tanks. Overhead, Italian fighters attempted to gain air superiority over Tobruk, only to meet their match at the hands of experienced anti-aircraft gunners. But Rommel’s ordeal was not yet over. By 12 p.m., the German and Italian forces had decisively retreated and many were sheltering in nearby wadis when the RAF air support arrived. Waves of British bombers came over, once every ten to 30 minutes, dropping heavy explosives on the tanks and men gathered below. German casualties were heavier than during the assault earlier that day, but this only drove Rommel’s desire to capture the city before more of his men became casualties. On April 30, he made a do-or-die attack. At 5.45 p.m., Stukas dive-bombed the forward perimeter and then the panzergrenadiers and assault pioneers rushed the southwestern part of the wire that night. But the allies had been forewarned by intelligence and counterattacked. The battle raged on through the next day and although the Germans managed to get a foothold on the outer defenses, their losses had been heavy. On May 4, Rommel called off the attack even though his troops held a 3 km (2mile) deep salient near Fort Pilastrino for the rest of the siege. The failure of Rommel to capture Tobruk – the forward base that he need so badly for his drive into Egypt was the Wehrmacht’s3 first setback of the war. To May 4 make matters worse, the sustained allied resistance at Tobruk constantly threatened Rommel’s lines of supply and drained resources and troops from the offensive Rommel ceases into Egypt. And he could scarcely afford to leave Tobruk unattended and push attacks on tobruk on to Egypt. Not content with remaining in their perimeter, the “Rats of Tobruk” after repeated as the Germans had started to call the garrison — a term which the Australians failures adopted with pride — began aggressive night patrols behind enemy lines, gathering information, killing troops and bringing back prisoners. The troops, from the foothills of the Himalayas, destined to go down in history as some of the fiercest soldiers of the British army, came to be particularly feared. They seldom

3 German land army.

DINKUM DIGGERS Australians from the 2/48th Battalion on the ship Kingston, departing Tobruk. The Men are believed to be: (from left) Private Jack Colin Curtis of Southwark, Private Jack Eunson Champion of Echunga and Cpl Roy Clifford Darley of Narridy, all from . Curtis later died of wounds in Egypt on

23 September 1942. 021160 MUSEUM WAR AUSTRALIAN 11 took prisoners, often returning with the ears of their victims as souvenirs. These tactics would tie up one German and four Italian divisions for the next nine months. Encouraged by the events, the main British Desert Army, bivouacked in Western Egypt, mounted its own drive back towards Tobruk, through the important Halfaya Pass, whose twisting road crossed 700 feet of high escarpments running from the Egyptian plains to the port of Sollum. By now, Rommel had lost almost 300 tanks and 38,000 men — almost twice that of the allies, and he considered pulling out. But at this critical moment, just as the pressure started to build, the British ran out of momentum. They had been forced to transfer troops elsewhere. In May, a force was sent to Iraq to quell a German sponsored rebellion there, and in June another force was dispatched to secure the Vichy French colony of . In May, however, Churchill sent a fast convoy hoping for the speedy destruction of the Afrika Korps and the permanent relief of Tobruk. Codenamed “Tiger,” the convoy docked in on May 12, and brought with it almost 400 new tanks and 50 Hurricane fighters. As these reinforcements assembled, Wavell planned to launch Operation “Brevity” — his first offensive action since 1940. The beginning of “Brevity’” announced the start of the second round of the Benghazi handicap and was meant to dislodge the Germans from their current positions along the border of Libya and provide a more Mid-May advantageous situation for the following operation, codenamed Operation “Battleaxe.” Although “Brevity” has been written off as nothing more than a minor operation, it With came at a time when Rommel was hard-pressed to repel it. After numerous losses in reinforcements, the assaults against Tobruk, the Germans were in no position to halt much less counter Wavell plans to any enemy action. Only a small force from the German 15th Motorcycle Battalion, mount a SERIES OF situated in inadequate positions, defended the tactically important Halfaya Pass, while counterattacks against Rommel THE UNDER-APPRECIATED GENERAL The architect of the triumphant British victory over the Italians in Libya in 1940, Archibald Wavell’s genius was overshadowed by a less-than -stellar performance against Rommel, who was nevertheless impressed by him. Churchill deemed him ineffectual after the failure of “Battleaxe” and relieved him of command. Transferred to , Wavell became Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army and in 1943, a MUSEUM WAR IMPERIAL Field Marshal and Viceroy. A progressive sort, he was an influential supporter of the famed Chindit leader, Charles Order Wingate, and was popular with the Indian masses for his quasi-support of independence. He remained as Viceroy until 1947.

12 the surrounding areas were held by poorly equipped Italian troops. “Brevity” went into effect on May 15, when the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment (RTR) equipped with 29 Cruiser IIs crossed the frontier and fought the Italians for , hoping to seal the enemy’s desert flank. At the same time, the 4th RTR, equipped 24 Matildas and supporting infantry attacked the Germans at Halfaya Pass. After two days of fighting, the Germans withdrew and both sides paused to re- group. On May 16, Rommel began to earn his nickname — the “Desert Fox,” when he cunningly sent two armoured battle groups totaling 160 tanks and infantry to the frontier. Fearing that the Germans would outflank them, the British beat a hasty retreat. As this happened, Rommel quickly dispatched the 8th Panzer Regiment, backed up by 88 mm anti-tank guns and retook Halfaya pass. He then fortified it with artillery and 88 mm guns, making the defenses so formidable that it would soon earn the British nickname of “Hellfire Pass’.” Rommel had won the opening round of the “Second Handicap,” but Wavell had already made preparations for his second attack, Operation “Battleaxe’.” On 1 June, Air Marshal Arthur Tedder replaced Longmore as commander of RAF Middle East, and was also made the supreme air commander in the theatre. His immediate priorities involved the re-equipment of his RAF squadrons in time for “Battleaxe.” American-made P-40 Tomahawks were being delivered in greater numbers and these May 15 replaced some of the older types in the RAF arsenal although its performance was only slightly better than the British Hurricane Mk I. Furthermore, Tedder realized Operation that army cooperation concepts had to be revised. The standard army cooperation “Brevity” Begins aircraft in RAF Middle East, the , was an extremely slow and vulnerable aircraft. Worse still, it required a constant fighter escort that wasted valuable resources. Something better was obviously needed. Tedder began to look into the concept of the fighter-bomber, which could carry bombs in support of the

FRONTLINE COMMANDER The key to Rommel’s success was his constant willingness to reconnoitre the situation on the frontline. Here he is on one of his forays. 13 army and serve as afterwards. The aircraft immediately suited for this role was the Mk IIB and IIC armed with 20mm cannons and capable of carrying a modest bomb-load. Tedder immediately requested them from England and the first arriving examples began to replace the Lysanders. They were just in time. On June 15, “Battleaxe” launched, using the tanks and aircraft brought in by “Tiger’.” The plan was for heavy Matilda infantry tanks from the 7th Armoured Brigade along with elements of the 4th Indian Division to attack Halfaya Pass, while some of the lighter and faster cruisers tanks of the 4th Armoured Brigade, along with lorried infantry covered the left flank. As this occured, other columns from the 7th Armoured Division were to advance on Hafid Ridge and recapture Fort Capuzzo. Beyond all these goals, the relief of Tobruk was still the primary objective. In support were five RAF fighter/fighter-bomber squadrons (fielding 116 aircraft), six light-medium bomber squadrons and one tactical-reconnaissance squadron using Hurricanes. In addition, the Nile delta-based Wellington heavy bomber units were available. Included in the aerial armada were the first squadrons of the South African Air Force. The operation would also be something of a baptism of fire for the new American-made Tomahawks and Marylands. Rommel meanwhile, had been warned by intelligence and moved in the newly arrived 15th Panzer Division with 80 tanksm backed by the Italian Bresica and JUne 15 Infantry Divisions. Facing them were the two British armoured brigades (both from the 7th Armoured Division) with 238 new tanks (100 Matildas and 90 Cruisers) and Operation almost 7,000 men from the 4th Indian Division. “Battleaxe” The battle was tough. Both side sustained heavy casualties. The Germans begins. at Halfaya fought hard against the Indians but by the end of the day they were cut- off and low on supplies. On the plateau, the 7th Armoured Division had succeeded in capturing Fort Capuzzo on the first day, but the 15th Panzer Division counter- attacked and threw them back after suffering considerable losses. The 5th Light Division then moved down to Hafid Ridge and on May 16 swept down to fight the 7th Armoured Brigade, which had blunted itself on the thick anti-tanks screen at the ridge. The two units quickly became enveloped in a prolonged battle near the town of Sidi Omar. The British offensive was quickly losing steam. Instead of striking out at the enemy, the armoured brigades had spent themselves against superior German anti-tank weapons. In the air, the situation was just as tenuous. The RAF’s less

HELLFIRE PASS A Flak 88 protects a sector of the front. These guns were instrumental in German victory at Halfaya Pass. (RIGHT) Indian survivors of the Pass make their feelings clear - “Khyber Pass to Hellfire Pass.” The heavy German fire prompted Halfaya’s Allied nickname: “Hellfire Pass.” PHOTOS: (LEFT) BUNDESARCHIV, (RIGHT) IMPERIAL WAR MUSUEM) 14 maneuverable Tomahawks and Hurricanes were paying a bitter price at the hands of the fast and more maneuverable Me109s. With the momentum of the attack lost, and British decided to withdraw from the battle on June 17. In an attempt to cut off their line of retreat, the 15th Panzer division swept south, but Wavell was one step ahead and left behind an armoured squadron of Matildas to hold off the weaker Panzer Mk IIs and IIIs. The RAF was called upon to support in the withdrawal, and at at 3.45 p.m., No. 202 Group dispatched a dozen Hurricanes to attack enemy lines of communication and attack supply dumps in the Sidi Omar area. Six of the aircraft were drawn from No. 33 Squadron led by Flight Lt. Vernon Woodward, two from 229 Squadron detachment, one from 73 Squadron, and the last, a detachment from 274 Squadron led by Flight Lt. Dudley Honor. Shortly after reaching the frontier, a large number of enemy aircraft were sighted — Ju87s from II/StG2 and 239th Squadriglia, with an escort provided by Me109s of 3/JG27 and Italian Fiat G.50s from the l50th Squadriglia. Facing to engage, three RAF pilots went after the Stukas. No. 229 squadron’s Douglas Edghill shot down two to bring his overall score to a total of seven, and Pilot Officer R. R. Mitchell claimed one. D. T. Moir from 33 Squadron caught up with a Stuka, blowing it to pieces. Meantime, the other nine Hurricanes had taken on June 17 the escorts. The Canadian Woodward, already an ace with 17 confirmed kills, shot down his last victory of the war — a Fiat fighter and damaged another that crossed Wavell decides his path. Sergeant Eric “Jumbo” Genders also of 33 Squadron, went after two more to call off “bandits” and managed to score hits on both. He claimed both as damaged but an the operation elated army troop on the ground later confirmed that both had crashed. Gender’s after total was now eight confirmed victories. suffering heavy losses in tanks and men. IMPERIAL WAR MUSEUM WAR IMPERIAL

THINLY-ARMOURED RATS Cruiser Mk IIs and hopelessly obsolete Vickers Mk VI tanks of the 7th Armoured Division move up. The machines carry red and white recognition stripes. Lightly-armoured, both model of tanks were vulnerable. 15 But the fight had been tough. The RAF had lost four of its Hurricanes, and Flying Officer Eric Woods of 33 Squadron had been killed. No. 274 Squadron had been the hardest hit. They had claimed no victories and had lost two Hurricanes and their pilots — 2nd Lieutenant Robert Grasset of South Africa, and Pilot Officer Terrence Officer who was shot down outside Tobruk and taken prisoner. Operation “Battleaxe” had been an expensive failure. The push had seen no territory gained and in three days of heavy fighting had cost 91 tanks, 120 troops killed, with another 600 wounded and 260 reported missing or captured. On the other side, the Germans had lost 25 tanks, 93 men killed, 350 wounded and 235 missing. The failure of the operation spelt the end of Wavell as leader of Middle-East 7th Armoured Command. He was replaced by the popular General, Claude “The Auk” Auchinleck Brigade on 1 July 1941.

British Tanks USED AT THIS TIME

Vickers Mk VIB Fast, light tank, completely obsolete by the start of 1941. Used for reconnaissance. Armour: 4-14mm, Weapons: 1 x Hvy MG, 1 x 7.62mm MG, Top Speed: 35mph

Stuart M3 Light tank. Well-liked by its crew for small size and robust build. Used as a cruiser. Italian 132nd Armour: 13-25mm, Weapons: 1 x 37mm gun, 3 Ariete Armoured x 0.30cal MG, Top Speed: 36 mph Division

Cruiser Mk II Mechanically unreliable, unpopular cruiser tank. Estimated that 1-in-10 broke down. Armour: 7-30mm, Weapons: 1 x 2pdr gun, 2 x Besa MGs, Top Speed: 16 mph

Crusier Mk VI (Crusader) Better cruiser, but still under-gunned and under-armored. Mainstay of British tank forces from mid-1941 to early-1942. Armour: 7-49mm, Weapons: 1 x 2pdr gun, 1 x MG, Top Speed: 26 mph

Matilda Mk II Popular, well-armored support tank, hampered by weak firepower and lack of high-explosive rounds to support infantry. Armour: 13-78mm, Weapons: 1 x 2pdr gun, 1 x MG, Top Speed: 14 mph 16 THE START OF THE RELIEF

n the stalemate that followed the premature British offensives, both sides built up their forces for another inevitable offensive to come. Each side had planned on a winter campaign, but the British, who through decoded signals knew that Rommel Idesperately wanted to capture Tobruk, struck first. Their offensive, known as Operation “Crusader” was an ambitious plan to advance the massed armor of XXX Corps in a wide sweeping movement around the village of Gabr Saleh 40 miles southeast of Sidi Rezegh, and lure axis forces into a deadly tank battle while the infantry of XIII Corps accompanied by a tank brigade tied down German forces at Sollum, 70 miles east of Tobruk. This way, Lt-General Sir Alan Cunningham, the commander of the newly-formed Eighth Army (which replaced the Desert Army) hoped to defeat the armoured might of the Afrika Korps now commanded by Lt-General Ludwig Crüwell. Rommel had been promoted and moved to lead Panzergruppe Afrika (later known as Panzerarmee Afrika). Once the panzers had been destroyed, the infantry was to move up and relieve Tobruk, hence pinning the enemy between themselves, the Tobruk garrison and the victorious tanks of XXX corps. November 18 Numerically, the odds were in Allied favor — the ground forces could field 316 cruiser tanks, 165 American-made Stuarts and 132 heavy infantry tanks. In addition Operation the 32nd Army Tank Brigade, based inside Tobruk, had 32 cruiser tanks and 79 “crusader” heavily-armoured Matildas available for a breakout. These significantly outweighed the 4 begins 249 panzers from the 15th and 21st Panzer Divisions and 146 Italian M13 tanks from the Ariete armoured division. For Air support, the British had 1,100 aircraft while the Germans could field only 190 planes with another 320 machines from the Italian Regia Aeronautica, half of which were single-engined Macchi MC.200 and MC.202 fighters. Numerically the RAF’s Western was superior to the Axis air forces in North Africa, but its Tomahawks and Hurricanes were best used for ground support, and were no match for Germans fighters or indeed the new Italian MC.202 “Folgore” fighters. “Crusader” began on November 18, just before dawn. The RAF began a series

4 70 Mk IIs, 35 Mk IVs, 139 Mk IIIs and 5 captured Matildas. 1 2 3 4

British command in North Africa had the good fortune of having several elite divisions in the theatre when combat began. Intriguingly these were largely non-British units such as the (1) 2nd Division, (2) the 4th Indian (Red Eagle) Division and (4) the Scottish 50th (Northumbrian) Division. High hopes were also mustered for the 2nd South African division (3), equipped with the best South Africa had to offer, but the unit would go on to disgrace at Tobruk. Barring the 50th Northumbrians, the remaining units depicted above participated in “Crusader.”

17 of punishing airstrikes on German and Italian positions. At first light, the men and tanks of XIII Corps moved out into a driving rain, crossed the frontier into Libya and advanced on the enemy forts from Sidi Omar to Sollum on the coast. Cunningham chose to travel with XXX Corps headquarters as its 7th Armoured Division (to achieve stolen fame as the “Desert Rats”) drove north towards their objectives. The 7th Armoured Brigade along with rest of the divisional support group, in the meantime, drove for Sidi Rezegh, just 10 miles southeast of the Tobruk perimeter. The newly-formed 22nd Armoured Brigade headed for Bir el Gubi and the Stuarts of the 4th Armoured Brigade occupied the ground between the two corps at Gabr Saleh. But Rommel did not respond as Cunningham had hoped. At his forward

NOVEMBER 18

the 7th Armoured Division approaches Sidi Rezegh WELLINGTON LIBRARY, VICTORIA UNIVERSITY VICTORIA LIBRARY, WELLINGTON

HEAVY WEAPONS British 25 Pounder heavy guns open fire on the Germans at Sidi Rezegh. The German were unanimous in praise for these guns from “Jock” Campbell’s 7th Support Group which they credited with thwarting their counterattacks. For his leadership of the group, Campbell won the .

5 4 3 2 1

Rommel had his own elite formations, especially the crux of his force, the three German divisions. 1) 15th Panzer Division, 2) 21st Panzer Division, 3) 90th Light Division. In addition, despite the generally poor performance of the Italian majority in North Africa, several units performed admirably in the campaign, including the 102nd Trento Motorized Division (4), the 17th Pavia Infantry Division (5), the 101st Trieste Motorized and the 55th Savona Infantry Divisions.

18 BHARAT-RAKSHAK

PRISONER An Italian infantryman moves past a wrecked German Panzer III and into captivity with the 4th Indian Division.

November 19 headquarters at Gambut, midway between Tobruk and the coastal fortress of Bardia, he initially dismissed reports of strong British armoured forces advancing from the Rommel becomes south as a diversion, and planned to concentrate on his own attack on Tobruk. As a aware of the result, Cunningham, heeding the advice of Lt-General Willoughby Norrie of XXX threat posed by Corps, deepened the penetration. “Crusader” Then on the next day, November 19, the 22nd Armoured Brigade came upon the tanks of the Italian Ariete Division at Bir el Gubi. This was the brigade’s first battle and it showed. Its three regiments knocked out 34 enemy tanks but also lost 25 of their own to minefields and artillery. In addition, another 30 of the new crusader tanks broke down and the brigade had to withdraw. Meanwhile, the British 7th Armoured Brigade moved forward and took the airfield at Sidi Rezegh. The Italians were caught completely by surprise. Many of their planes were destroyed on the ground by the charging tanks, although 19 were captured intact. The brigade then tried to make contact with the Tobruk garrison, but the Italian forces in between them held firm. The RAF in the air was faring well; large numbers of light-bombers escorted by Hurricanes went after supply dumps and motorized columns in the enemy’s rear, while Tomahawks swooped in and hammered vehicle convoys in the desert. Rommel, by now concerned with the reconnaissance information coming in, sent Kampfgruppe Stephen — named after its commander Lt-Colonel Fritz Stephen — with some 85 tanks, supported by anti-tank guns and artillery to engage the 4th Light Armoured Brigade at Gabr Saleh. There occurred the first large-scale tank battle of the desert war, when German’s Mk III’s took on the lighter and less well-armed Stuarts, “JOCK” CAMPBELL destroying 23 British tanks for little loss. (IWM E8263) Rommel had finally woken up to the menace of “Crusader.” He quickly called off his attack on Tobruk and ordered the 15th and 21st Panzers to concentrate on 19 Gabr Saleh and then head west to Sidi Rezegh. This was exactly where Cunningham had intended to trap the Panzers, but Rommel was throwing in the might of two panzer divisions against a single British brigade5. Only the British artillery of the Lt- Colonel Jock Campbell’s Support Group, which had dug in on the airfield, prevented the complete destruction of the 7th Brigade. As the British artillery pummled the Germans, the 4th and 22nd Brigades rushed in to reinforce the 7th. When they arrived, only 15 of the 7th Brigade’s 71 cruisers still operational. Seeing these masisve reinforcements, the Germans withdrew, unanimous in praise for the Campbell’s Support Group. “The British Artillery are the best trained and best commanded element in the British Army,” one officer said. No doubt, Campbell had saved the day, but the fighting around the Sidi Rezegh only ended on November 22, with the Germans once again in possession of the airfield. The three British brigades had lost two-thirds of their troops and could muster only 150 tanks between them. 5 The 7th Armoured Brigade

POPULAR COMMANDER November 19-21 Claude Eyre Auchinleck, or Lt-COlonel “Jock” “The Auk” as he was named Campbell’s 7th by his admiring troops, came Support Group into an Ulster-Scots family saves the day at from County Fermanagh. Sidi Rezegh, Auchinleck himself was born at . By the 23rd, A graduate from Campbell’s Sandhurst, he joined the command had been Indian Army in 1903 and virtually overrun quickly picked up a variety of and in danger of dialects. Seeing action during being reduced to the First World War on the nothing. It was a Iraq front against the Turks, he tenuous moment won the Distinguished Service for the british, as Order for bravery. After the Rommel continued war, he stayed in the army to press home his and at the start of the Second attack. World War broke out, was sent to command a doomed Allied operation in Norway. NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY, LONDON GALLERY, PORTRAIT NATIONAL Recalled to England to head Southern Command, he clashed with his subordinate, Lt-General and in July 1941, took over Allied forces in North Africa. Although “The Auk’s” cool leadership undoubtedly saved the situation at Tobruk and later, during the first battle of El Alamein, Churchill was suspicious of his abilities and Auchinleck returned to India, where he served as commander-in-chief of the Indian army until the end of the war. 20 THE SUNDAY OF THE DEAD

nknown to the Allies however, the worst was yet to come. On the next day, November 23, a Sunday, Crüwell led his forces to link up with the Ariete division at Bir el Gubi. Thrusting through the gap between XXX Corps at Gabr Saleh Uand XIII Corps at Sollum, he found the 5th South African Infantry Brigade in a stretch of open desert 6 miles-long. In some of the fiercest fighting of the desert war, the South Africans, in a heroic last stand, faced down the German tanks and infantry with rifles, bayonets and hand- — somehow destroying 45 tanks before they were overrun. The remnants of the 22nd Armoured Brigade were also caught in the gap, together with its 34 tanks and some 100 artillery guns from the Campbell’s Support Group. Deciding to crush them once and for all, Crüwell formed his vehicles, including 160 panzers and 100 Italian M-13s, into a line abreast formation and charged. But he had seriously underestimated his opponents. The British held firm, destroying 70 of Crüwell’s tanks before retiring from the fray. The plains around the Sidi Rezegh airfield reeked of death, with a thick fog of smoke and dust drying away the rains of the previous week, hiding the carnage of war. Some 3,400 South Africans had been killed or captured and isolated units held out among The British 8th the smoldering vehicle wrecks of three nations — Germany, Italy and Britain. The allied Army came into forces in the Sidi Rezegh area were cut-off, and Rommel watching the battlefield from existence in the high plains at dawn on the 24th, later recorded: “Twilight came…and hundreds of September 1941, burning vehicle, tanks and guns lit up the field ofTotensonntag [Sunday of the dead].” bringing all Heavy fighting continued around Sidi Rezegh for the next 24 hours, and both allied units sides suffered heavy losses. Cunningham, by now, realized that he had lost the all- in the Western important tank battle that had been the essential component of “Crusader.” In four days, Desert and his army had lost 530 tanks, while the enemy still had 250 (170 of them German) from the Libya under one original 356. At this critical moment, Cunningham lost his nerves. unified command. Amid his incessant pleas to withdraw from battle to “save Egypt,” General Sir It would go onto , the charismatic Commander-in-Chief of , took the become on the control and immediately ordered the men at Sidi Rezegh to hold out till the end, dashing most famous of German hopes for a speedy victory. Auchinleck’s order brought matters to a head for British armies’s Rommel. He was fast running out of resources and manpower and Tobruk had not even during the war, ending the conflict in Italy in 1945. BUNDESARCHIV

RECCE A German reconnaissance troop skirts the edge of the battlefield. 21 been captured yet. But during a November 24 meeting with Crüwell, Rommel received an optimistic report of Sidi Rezegh. Crüwell believed that the British had suffered terrific casualties and sought permission to finish the job. Rommel agreed, and later that day, the 106 remaining tanks of the Afrika Korps and the Ariete division gathered and repeated the tactics that had made them victors in all previous engagements: A bold, concentrated thrust which indeed took them past the British frontline. But then, instead of withdrawing to protect their flanks as the Germans had hoped, the British allowed Rommel’s leading units to pass through their lines before reforming to smash his rear column of supply vehicles. Then before Rommel knew what had happened, the British armoured brigades, which Crüwell had believed to be destroyed, swung into action. For days, British workshops and tank recovery teams had achieved the miraculous: fixing and delivering whole batches of new or repaired tanks to the frontline. Despite its serious losses of the past week, the 4th Brigade now had 77 Stuarts while the 22nd Brigade had 44 cruisers. Rommel, meanwhile, had reached the barbed-wire line stretching for 400 miles, marking the Egypt-Libyan border. Now he discovered that it had all been a futile dash and even worse, that he had had been cut-off from his headquarters for four crucial days. On the British side, Auchinleck sacked Cunningham, replacing him with the youthful , who at 44 years of age was Britain’s youngest general. Cunningham, meantime, went straight into a hospital for mental exhaustion. 26-29 November Ritchie, (under the guidance of Auchinleck) in his first act as commander, immediately ordered the kiwis of the veteran 2nd to push on to Decimated by near the coast — to take Belhamed, El Duda, Sidi Rezegh and relieve Tobruk. It was the first constant attacks decisive step towards a British victory. by armor and infantry at sidi rezegh, the suffered four entire battalions overrun or destroyed. PETER MCINTYRE, ZEALAND 1941/NEW PETER ARCHIVES ASSAULT! New Zealanders attack a blockhouse at Sidi Rezegh. The division suffered heavily to enemy armored counterattacks intent on driving them back. 22 TOBRUK RELIEVED

ack at Tobruk, Morsehead and his 9th Australian Division had been evacuated by sea that autumn, their place taken by the British 70th Infantry Division under Major-General . This new garrison Bwas not prepared to sit by idly and watch the New Zealanders hog all the glory. Scobie ordered his men to break-out, and thousands of defenders crammed into Bren Carriers, trucks and jeeps, and fought their way southeast through axis lines, accompanied by heavy Matildas and Valentine tanks of the 32nd Army Tank Brigade. Many of the defenders advanced on foot, intent on clearing out the Italian Trieste infantry division from El Duda Ridge, 5 miles northwest of Sidi Rezegh. By mid-day on November 26, the last of the Italians had been beaten off the ridge. One RAF Hurricane pilot flying over the area saw “massed allied infantry swarming towards the ridge…the roads were thronged with all types of vehicles and the dust cloud VICTORIA UNIVERSITY thrown up by the advance stretching on for miles behind them.” SCOBIE (LEFT) RAF fighters, receiving instructions from ground controllers, dived down and with Morsehead attacked groups of enemy soldiers and vehicles; one favored target were vehicle in tobruk. convoys and many were left in shambles. After tobruk, By the evening of the 26th, the Kiwis had managed to link up with the the 70th division Tobruk garrison outside El Duda, but Rommel refused to give in. Gathering went on to india pockets of his troops, he mounted a determined counterattack against the 4th and where it became 6th New Zealand Brigades. the basis for the On the 29th, at 1 p.m., more German tanks approached El Duda from the expanded chindit west as motorized enemy infantry from the 115th Regiment came up from the force in 1944. south. Scobie’s 1st Bn, had assumed control of the sector and now the battalion struggled to hold on. B Company found itself under siege by 15 panzers about 300 yards away. A long-range duel began between one of the Essex’s Anti-Tank troops and a group of 30 German tanks. The Germans won. With the anti-tank screen out of the way, the German closed in. Alarmed, the senior British commander in the sector, Brigadier Willison, radioed Scobie for help, especially for tanks from the 7th Armoured. But Scobie offered no

70th Infantry MARGINAL Division LEADERSHIP The 8th Army’s initial career was marred by poor leadership, first from Alan Cunningham (far left) and then by Neil Ritchie (Left), from whom great things

VICTORIA UNIVERSITY VICTORIA (RITCHIE) HMSO (CUNNINGHAM), had been expected. 23 reassurances except to order Willison to hold El Duda at all costs. By now two companies of Essex had been completely overrun and in desperation, Willison sent in the Australian 2/13 Battalion to counterattack. It was nightfall before the Australians could reach the frontline and by now the German had dug-in. Brilliant moonlight fell upon the desert as a group of nearby British infantry tanks finally pulled out of their hull-down positions and fell upon the Germans. Panic erupted within the German ranks as the tanks milled about, shooting and running over men and machines. Abruptly the Australian infantry were among the Germans, shooting and bayonetting. A wild battle began and as tracers flashed into the dark sky, the Australians discovered that they had attacked two entire battle-groups of the 115th Regiment. But the chaos of the tank attack had worked in the Australians’ favour. An “undetermined number” of Germans were killed, and about 167 captured. The surviving German retreated, but losses had been so grievous that a second attack on El Duda was vetoed because of a shortage of troops. The battle around Tobruk raged for another and by December 1, both sides had suffered terrific casualties. The Kiwis were so battered that they were withdrawn from combat. Only 3,500 men returned to Egypt. The 70th Division too, had suffered terribly. Aside from the Essex, the 2nd and the 2nd York and Lancashire Regiments, in particular, had been sorely bruised. On the November 28-29 German side, some units had suffered 70 percent casualties since the beginning The 70th Division secures the link-up with the Kiwis at El Duda. IMPERIAL WAR MUSEUM WAR IMPERIAL

RELIEF Britons from the 70th Infantry Division take a moment to shake hands with the departing Australians of the . 24 of “Crusader.” In all, Axis forces lost more than 4,000 men and 170 armoured vehicles. The situation became a stalemate, but the Eighth Army continued to fight, battling tenaciously for every inch of ground between Sidi Rezegh and Tobruk while the RAF’s bombers and single-engined fighters concentrated on Rommel’s armour, destroying large numbers of them even before the army reached the area. Left with only 40 serviceable tanks, Rommel decided to retreat. Abandoning their positions, Italian and German troops fled westward, towards and Benghazi, harried by artillery and the RAF all the way. The German Luftwaffe was in no position to stop the air raiders. Allied planes on the island of Malta had destroyed many of the supply ships carrying fuel. In fact the Germans could muster on average only a measly 100 sorties per day during “Crusader.” On December 10, the victorious Eighth Army entered Tobruk, more than eight months after the start of the siege. At the same time, Rommel’s retreating troops reached El Aghelia from where they had started out a year ago. “Crusader” had achieved its objectives and more. British troops entering the Cyrenaican port of Benghazi were stunned at the devastation — mostly at the hands of RAF Wellington bombers. Sunken ships littered the bay and the port installations had been wiped out, denying Rommel badly-need supplies and worse, a base from December 10 whence to reclaim lost ground. When he restarted his advance in early 1942, it would be from gates of eastern Tripoltania, as before. Tobruk is On the surface, it appeared as though Rommel had spent an entire year, officially with the deaths of countless thousands on his conscience, only to start out from relieved by the where he had once begun early in his career in North Africa. 8th Army. FRANTISEK EMMERT: CESI U TOBRUKU CESI EMMERT: FRANTISEK SECURED STREET With the road link to Egypt established again, supply trucks began to appear once again on Tobruk’s streets. 25 EPILOGUE

Despite his failure to take Tobruk in 1941, Rommel returned in 1942 to finally capture the city that summer. But there were several key factors that allowed the Germans to do this. For one, the British-Australian garrison had been replaced by inexperienced troops from the 2nd South African Division, who were far from prepared for the realities of modern warfare. And they were careless. On 18 June 1942, when Rommel once again surrounded Tobruk, German artillerymen — to their amazement, came across ammunition dumps and arms depots that had been abandoned by them in their retreat that previous December. Cameron The South Africans had made little effort to secure them. Of even graver Highlanders concern, both successive Allied and South African commanders had allowed the port defenses to become run-down, either through carelessness or lack of foresight. And there were other factors. Under the Australians and Scobie’s 70th Division, Tobruk had held out for nine months in 1941 under supply from the Royal Navy. But in 1942, naval officers had stated that they could not make same commitment. Auchinleck viewed the defence of Tobruk as a superfluous undertaking and conveyed this understanding to Ritchie. A main defensive line built down into the desert from Gazala on the coast (behind which lay Tobruk) was expected to contain Rommel’s renewed advance and so great an emphasis was Mahratta Light placed on the supposed invulnerability of this line, that no one had apparently Infantry foreseen that Rommel would simply outflank it from the south. Even worse, the myth of the “Gazala Line” had ensured that Tobruk’s perimeter defences had been allowed to deteriorate. At the crack of dawn at 5:30 a.m. on June 20, massed artillery struck Tobruk’s southeastern defenses. Even before the dust settled over 100 Stukas and Ju88 based at the captured airfields at El Adem swept in and made highly concentrated strikes in the area between the defensive posts R58 and R63 (the proposed break-in points), for two and a half hours. The Indians of the 2/5th Mahratta Regiment and the Scots of the 2nd Cameron Highlanders guarding the posts were completely neutralized, and proved powerless to stop Axis sappers from clearing a path through the anti-tanks ditch towards them. At 8:30, the first tanks of the 15th Panzer Division appeared, crossed over the ditches and wiped out the center company of the Indians who fought till the end. Undaunted, the surviving Mahrattas and the Cameron Highlanders refused to budge from their positions, and were some of the last of Tobruk’s defenders to surrender. The fierce battle at the wire allowed the defenders a valuable SOUTH AFRICAN Major-General respite from which to plan a counterattack. But the South African NATIONAL WAR H. Klopper. senior leadership wasted further time in organizing a defense and MUSEUM His previous although a counterattack was ordered, there was considerable experience debate as to whether it should be solely by tanks alone or with amounted to tanks and infantry combined. By the time the decision was made, training commands. and the 32nd Army Tank Brigade ordered to attack at 9.30, it was

26

PETER MCINTYRE, ZEALAND 1941/NEW PETER ARCHIVES

MOBILE ANTI-TANK Taking a cue from mobile German anti-aircraft units who mounted 20mm guns on flatbed trucks and raced into the battlefield, the British mounted 2-Pounder anti-tank cannons on their own lorries. The conversions proved successful as was later attested by combat photographs.

ALLIED AND AXIS TANKS STRENGTHS Operation BRITISH GERMAN-ITALIAN Operation “Battleaxe” 200 170 (0 Italian) Operation “Crusader” 700 399 (150 Italian) Tank Strengths during the Gazala Campaign Pz II 50 Pz III 242 Pz IV 40 Italian M-13/40 228 German Reserves 77

Stuart I 149 Lee-Grant 167 Crusader 257 Valentine 166 Matilda II 110 British Reserves 145 994 637

B too late. The Germans were too firmly entrenched inside the perimeter. The brigade nevertheless, went into the attack, only to be wiped out when 88 mm guns were brought forward. Fifty Matildas were destroyed in minutes. Rommel’s tanks then pushed on to the important cross road of King’s Cross, which held the intersections of via Balbia (the coastal road in North Africa) and the road to El Adem. King’s Cross was captured at 1.30 p.m., and the road into Tobruk city lay open. The 21st Panzer advanced on the city. At the harbour, Brigadier Thompson, the 88 Sub-Area commander in-charge of the supply and fuel depots, radioed for permission to destroy the holdings. The permission came soon enough and the whole port shook as fuel dumps, ammunition dumps, field guns and stores went up in flames. A thick pall of black smoke covered the city. As all this went on, the 15th Panzer division headed in westerly direction along the Pilastrino ridge, closing in on the 2nd South African divisional headquarters in the underground caves at Fort Pilastrino and its distraught leader, Major-General Henry Klopper. By 4 p.m., the tanks had come to within striking distance and Klopper became convinced that his command was in danger of being overrun in a matter of minutes. He ordered his to destroy all sensitive documents and at the telephone exchange, the signals troops destroyed all 7 p.m., June 21 communications gear. But abruptly the tanks changed direction and the moved southwest towards the 4th South African Brigade. Klopper hastily evacuated his The leading headquarters to the 6th Brigade’s command sector in the north. elements of the With his nerves returning, Klopper decided that a stand could be made in The 21st Panzer the western sector of the perimeter. But by nightfall the situation was dire. Half of Division enter the Tobruk perimeter had been overrun and some of Klopper’s staff had become Tobruk. increasingly negative, repeatedly calling on him to surrender. Torn between IMPERIAL WAR MUSEUM MH5856 MUSEUM WAR IMPERIAL

MEDICAL PIONEER The first German vehicle into Tobruk was this MV2 medical car. 27 making a stand and breaking out, Klopper changed his mind at 8 p.m. and decided that a defence was impossible. He sent out orders that all mobile units should prepare for a breakout at 2 in the morning. But then the breakout plan never came about and at 6 that morning, Klopper radioed Ritchie for guidance, telling him that the situation was a “shambles.” But if he was looking to Ritchie for guidance, he had picked the wrong man. “Every day and hour of resistance materially assists our cause,” was all Ritchie said. “I cannot tell the tactical situation and must therefore leave you to act on your own judgment regarding capitulation.” Klopper, now more distressed then ever called his staff together and told them: “I’m sorry boys, but we will have to pack it up,” adding: “It would be foolish to carry on. I propose to surrender, in order to save useless bloodshed.” Some words about preserving the flower of South African manhood were also said. He ordered all remaining codebooks and wireless sets to be destroyed. When this was done, he and his staff abandoned the headquarters and headed west just as Rommel drove towards Tobruk in his open staff car; goggles pushed up around his cap, his browned, dusty face, defiant. A few hours later on the via Balbia road, lined with allied prisoners, he encountered Klopper, who was by now a prisoner and who by now had formally announced the surrender of Tobruk. As a white flag was hoisted over Fort 9:45 a.m., June 21 Pilastrino, a great cry of anguish and despair came from the Allied troops still fighting — most, especially those on the western perimeter, hadn’t even received Klopper information about the depth of the German penetration. Rommel later told a formally band of captured allied officers: “Gentlemen, you have fought like lions and been surrenders to led by Donkeys!” Rommel. BUNDESARCHIV BILD 1011-785-0299-08A BILD BUNDESARCHIV

VICTORY Rommel enters Tobruk in triumph. Here he stops to confer with some of his men who have paused by what appears to be Allied dead. For Rommel’s success, Hitler promoted him to Field Marshal, making him the youngest in the German army. Rommel’s response, in a letter to his wife was: ”I would much rather he [Hitler] had given me one more division.” 28 Other Allied units, infuriated at Klopper’s incompetence, resolved to fight on. The 2/7th and the 2nd Cameron Highlanders kept fighting until the threat of massed artillery aimed at them, forced them into capitulation. The Gurkhas held on until June 22. The Highlanders proudly marched into the stockade in parade formation, with the pipes playing, “The March of the Cameron Men.” In the center of the perimeter, a force of 199 men from the 3rd led by Major Sainthill decided to ignore the surrender order. Fighting their way out, they picked up 188 stragglers from other units and actually reached Egypt. Another group from the Kaffrarian Rifles walked to the coast and dodging German patrols for the next 38 days, reached El Alamein in Egypt. The capture of Torbuk was a tremendous blow to British morale. Churchill, in Washington at the time of the capitulation, was stunned. President Roosevelt was sympathetic and immediately ordered 300 new Sherman tanks and 100 self-propelled guns to be dispatched to Egypt. But it was a late gesture. The fall of Tobruk had yielded much need fuel, food and supplies for the victors — including 5,000 tonnes of provisions, over 2.25 million liters (500,000 A German paper gallons) of fuel, 32,000 prisoners (19,000 British, 10,000 announces the South Africans and 2,500 Indians) and more than 2,000 serviceable vehicles. news Hitler instantly promoted Rommel to Field Marshal on the next day, June 22. But more importantly, Rommel had gained a vital deep-water port and had opened up the way for the conquest of Egypt. Only a slim Allied victory at El Alamein would force the Germans back towards Tripoli and beyond Tobruk in the winter that followed. For the British Government, the loss of Tobruk represented the second largest British capitulation of World War II and cast grave doubts on South Africa’s military ability and its loyalty to the Allied cause. This was not lost on many of the captured men. When Klopper was finally allowed to address them, they booed and heckled him from having sold them out to the enemy. BUNDESARCHIV BILD 1011-785-0294-32A BILD BUNDESARCHIV INTO CAPTIVITY South Africans are marched away to POW camps. 29 Soon enough all this outrage settled in captivity. Many of the white South African officers, concerned with settling into new roles are prisoners of war, and appalled at being quartered with their black troops, were soon demanding to be segregated from them. Rommel, who not without a sense for irony (for he was well aware of the Afrikaner relationship with the blacks), refused, telling them that since they all wore the same uniform, they would all be held in the same camps. 6 Tobruk, meantime, would remain in Rommel‘s hands until 11 November 1942, when the Allies recaptured it for the last time following the Second Battle for El Alamein - an epic affair that is rightly, another story.

6 One of the black soldiers, Corporal John Maseko, a delivery-man from Springs, proved his loyalty to the Allied cause when in late-July, while being worked at the Tobruk docks, he and other prisoners placed improvised explosives into the thick of fuel drums and blew up a German ship, sinking it. Maseko was later awarded the British Military Medal. BUNDESARCHIV BILD 1011-786-0305-28 BILD BUNDESARCHIV THE NEW MASTERS Germans at Tobruk harbour salute happily. Theirs has been a difficult victory, punctuated by several months of bitter combat and painful retreat.

There is an account of Australians from the 9th Division running into South Africans at a crowded Cairo pub after the battle. In the words of one of the Australians, Barrie Pitt, “Everything goes quiet. A chair scrapes “as a Digger stands up. ‘Hello mate,’ he says, ‘Have a seat, I'll buy you a beer. You look done-in. Have you run all the way from Tobruk?’ Thus ensued a fight worthy of a Hollywood Western.” Pitt himself suffered a split lip and several broken ribs in the fracas. “ 30 ADDENDUM

UNITS OF THE TOBRUK GARRISON, 14 APRIL 1941

9th AUSTRALIAN DIVISION & TOBRUK FORTRESS

3rd British Armored Brigade (60 x tanks working; another 26 tanks in repair) 3d Hussars/5th Royal Tanks (4 x light tanks and 18 x cruisers) (15 x light tanks and 19 x cruisers) 1st Kings Dragoon Guards (30 x armored cars) 4th Royal Tank Regiment(Troop of 4 x infantry tanks)

18th Indian King Edward’s Own Cavalry Regiment

Royal Horse Artillery 1st RHA Regt (16 x 25-pounders) 3d RHA (minus one btry) (16 x 2-pounder antitank guns) 104th RHA Regt (16 x 25-pounders) 107th RHA Regt (16 x 25-pounders) 51st Field Regt (12 x 18-pounders and 12 x 4.5 inch how) 2-3d Aust Antitank Regt (Unknown numbers of Bofors (minus one btry) 40mm guns; Breda 47/32-mm and 2-pounders)

Royal Australian Engineers 2-3d Aust Field Company 2-7th Aust Field Company 2-13th Aust Field Company 2-4th Aust Field Company 2-4th Aust Field Park Company 2-1st Aust Pioneer Battalion 9th Australian 18th Australian Infantry Brigade Division Badge 16th Antitank Company 2-9th Infantry Battalion 2-10th Infantry Battalion 2-12th Infantry Battalion

20th Australian Infantry Brigade 20th Antitank Company 2-13th Infantry Battalion 2-15th Infantry Battalion 2-17th Infantry Battalion

31 24th Australian Infantry Brigade (minus 2-25th Inf Bn which was still in Australia) 24th Antitank Company 2-28th Infantry Battalion 2-43d Infantry Battalion

26th Australian Infantry Brigade 26th Antitank Company 2-23d Infantry Battalion 2-24th Infantry Battalion 2-48th Infantry Battalion

1st Royal Northumberland Fusiliers (Machine Gun Bn-British)

Australian Army Service Corps (AASC) 9th Australian Division Supply Column 9th Australian Division Ammunition Co 9th Australian Division Petroleum Co Composite Co AASC 7th Australian Division Supply Column 2-3d Australian Field Ambulance Co 2-8th Australian Field Ambulance Co 2-11th Australian Field Ambulance Co 2-5th Australian Field Ambulance Co 2-4th Field Hygiene Co 9th Australian Div Provost Co 9th Australian Division Protection Platoon 9th Australian Division Empl Platoon 9th Australian Division Postal Unit 9th Australian Salvage Unit

FORTRESS TROOPS

Royal Artillery

4th Antiaircraft (AA) Bde 13th Light AA Regt 14th Light AA Regt 51st Heavy AA Regt 3d Aust Light AA Regt

Nottinghamshire Yeomanry (coast defense)

Royal Engineers (under chief royal engineer, 9th Aust Div) 295th Field Co 551st Tps Co Royal Engineers 4th Field Sqd Royal Engineers 143d Field Park Troops

32 Signals (under Cdr Signals, 9th Aust Div)

K Base Section 27th Line Maintenance Section

Royal Army Service Corps (RASC) 309th Reserve Motor Co 345th Reserve Motor Co 550th Co RASC 4th Lt AA Bde RASC Sec 13th Lt AA Regt No. 1 Water Tank Co

Medical 16th MAC

Ordnance (Royal Army Ordnance Corps [RAOC]) 2d Armored Div Workshops RAOC Y Army Tank Receiving Section, RAOC 2d Spt Gp Ord Field Park Sec, RAOC A Sec Ord Field Park AAOC 2-1st AFW AAOC Det 2-2d AFW AAOC

TOBRUK SUB-AREA

1st Libyan Refugee Battalion 2d Libyan Refugee Battalion 4th Libyan Refugee Battalion HQ 45th Group 1205th Indian Pioneer Company 1206th Indian Pioneer Company 1207th Indian Pioneer Company Libyan Work Battalion Army Post Office H Adv Stationary Depot Transit Camp

Misc Detachments: Greek Civilians POW Cage

Source: Miller, Colonel Ward A., The 9th Australian Division Versus the Africa Corps: An Infantry Division Against Tanks —Tobruk, Libya, 1941, U.S. Command and General Staff College, 1986.

33 OPERATION CRUSADER

BRITISH EIGHTH ARMY Lt-General Alan Cunningham (succeeded on 26 Nov by Lt-General Neil Ritchie)

XXX Corps (Lieutenant-General Willoughby Norrie) 7th Armoured Division (Major-General ) — See page 9

XIII Corps (Lieutenant-General Reade Godwin-Austen) 2nd New Zealand Division (Major-General Bernard Freyberg) 4th New Zealand Infantry Brigade (Brigadier E Pittick) 18th Infantry Battalion 19th Infantry Battalion 20th Infantry Battalion 5th New Zealand Infantry Brigade (Brigadier J Hargest) 21st Infantry Battalion 22nd Infantry Battalion 23rd Infantry Battalion 6th New Zealand Infantry Brigade 24th Infantry Battalion 25th Infantry Battalion 26th Infantry Battalion

4th Indian Infantry Division (Major-General ) 5th Indian Infantry Brigade (Brigadier D Russell) 1st Bn, The Buffs 3rd Bn, 1st Punjab Regiment 4th Bn, (Outram's) 6th Rajputana Rifles 7th Indian Infantry Brigade (Brigadier HR Briggs) 1st Bn, 4th Bn, 11th Sikh Regiment 4th Bn, 16th Punjab Regiment 11th Indian Infantry Brigade (Brigadier A Anderson) 1st Bn, (Wellesley’s) 6th Rajputana Rifles 2nd Bn, Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders 2nd Bn, 5th Mahratta Light Infantry Divisional troops The Central India Horse (21st King George V's Own Horse) (Recce) 1 Field Regiment, 25 Field Regiment, Royal Artillery 31 Field Regiment, Royal Artillery

1st Army Tank Brigade (Brigadier HRB Watkins) 8th Royal Tank Regiment (Matilda II) 42nd Royal Tank Regiment (Matilda II)

34 Tobruk Fortress 70th Infantry Division (Maj-General Ronald Scobie) 14th Infantry Brigade (Brigadier BH Chappel) 1st Bn, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment 2nd Bn, Black Watch 2nd Bn, York and Lancaster Regiment 16th Infantry Brigade (Brigadier CEN Lomax) 2nd Bn, King's Own Royal Regiment 2nd Bn, Leicestershire Regiment 2nd Bn, Queen's Royal Regiment 23rd Infantry Brigade (Brigadier CHV Cox) 1st Bn, 1st Bn, Essex Regiment 4th Bn, Border Regiment

Polish Independent Carpathian Rifle Brigade(Maj-General S. Kopanski) I Carpathian Rifle Battalion II Carpathian Rifle Battalion III Carpathian Rifle Battalion No. 11 Czechoslovakian Infantry Battalion 2/13 Australian Infantry Battalion Carpathian Machine Gun Battalion Carpathian Field Regiment

32nd Army Tank Brigade (Brigadier A.C. Willison) STRENGTH: 69 Matildas and 30 Armored Cars total 1st Royal Tank Regiment (Matilda II) 4th Royal Tank Regiment (Matilda II) ‘D’ Squadron, 7th Royal Tank Regiment

Oasis Force (Brigadier Denys Reid) 29th Indian Infantry Brigade 6th South African Armoured Car Regiment

Army Reserve 2nd South African Division (Major-General Isaac de Villiers) 3rd South African Infantry Brigade (Brigadier C.E. Borain) 1st Imperial Light Horse 1st Durban Light Infantry 1st Rand Light Infantry 4th South African Infantry Brigade (Brigadier A.A. Hayton) Umvoti Mounted Rifles 2nd Royal Durban Light Infantry The Kaffrarian Rifles 6th South African Infantry Brigade: (Brigadier F.W. Cooper) 2nd Transvaal Scottish 1st South African Police Battalion

35 2nd South African Police Battalion Division Troops 7th South African Reconnaissance Battalion (less det) 1st South African Field Regiment 2nd South African Field Regiment 5th South African Field Regiment South African Anti-Tank Regiment1 2nd South African Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment 5th Battery 6th Battery Die Middellandse Regiment (machinegun battalion)

Sources: Agar-Hamilton, J.A.I. & L.C.F. Turner, The Sidi Rezegh Battles 1941, London: Oxford, University Press, 1957. Joslen, Lt. Col. H.F., Orders of Battle, Second World War, 1939-1945, London: HMSO, 1960.

AXIS FORCES

Italian XX Mobile Corps (Lt-General Gastone Gambara) 132nd Armoured Division “Ariete” (General Mario Balotta) 132nd Armoured Regiment VII Tank Battalion VIII Tank Battalion IX Tank Battalion 32nd Light Armoured Regiment 8th Bersaglieri Regiment (Motorised) 132nd Artillery Regiment

101st Motorised Division “Trieste” 65th Infantry Regiment 66th Infantry Regiment 9th Bersaglieri Regiment 21st Artillery Regiment

RECAM (Reconnaissance Unit of the Mobile Army Corps)

Bersaglieri badge 36 Panzer Group Afrika (General der Panzertruppe Erwin Rommel)

German Afrika Korps (Generalleutnant Ludwig Crüwell) 15th Panzer Division (Generalmajor Walter Neumann-Silkow — KIA 6 December, Generalmajor Gustav von Vaerst) 8th Panzer Regiment 115th Infantry Regiment 33rd Artillery Regiment

21st Panzer Division (Generalmajor Johann von Ravenstein — POW 29 November, Generalmajor Karl Böttcher) 5th Panzer Regiment 104th Infantry Regiment 155th Artillery Regiment

Special Purpose Division Afrika (Renamed 90th Light Division on 28 November 1941) (Generalmajor Max Sümmermann — KIA 10 December (killed in action), Generalmajor Richard Veith) 155th Infantry Regiment 361st Infantry Regiment

Italian 55th Infantry Division “Savona” (General Fedele de Giorgis) 15th Infantry Regiment 16th Infantry Regiment 12th Artillery Regiment

Italian XXI Corps (Lt-General Enea Navarrini) 17th Infantry Division “Pavia” 27th Infantry Regiment 28th Infantry Regiment 26th Artillery Regiment

25th Infantry Division “” 39th Infantry Regiment 40th Infantry Regiment 205th Artillery Regiment

27th Infantry Division “Brescia” 19th Infantry Regiment 20th Infantry Regiment 55th Artillery Regiment

102nd Motorised Division “Trento” 61st Infantry Regiment 62nd Infantry Regiment 46th Artillery Regiment

37 THE GERMAN DIVISIONS

15th Panzer Division 30 January 1942

38 21st Panzer Division 30 January 1942

39 90th Light Division 26 November 1942

40 BRIEF LIST OF SOURCES

Bellis, Malcolm A., Divisions of the British Army 1939-45, Cheshire: Privately Published, 1986. Bishop, Chris, German Panzers in World War II, Gloucestershire: Amber Books, 2008. Bradford, George R., Rommel’s Afrika Korps: El Aghelia to El Alamein, Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2008. Büschleb, H., Nordafrika 1941: Panzer Zwischen Tobruk und Halfaya Pass, Friedberg: Podzun-Pallas, 1966. Emmert, Frantisek, Cesu u Tobruku, Prague: Ivsehrad, 2008. Forty, George, The Desert War, Gloucestershire: Sutton Publishing, 2002. “------” The Armies of Rommel, London: Arms & Armour Press, 1997. Kurowski, Franz, Das Afrika Korps, Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2010. Murphy, W.E., The Relief of Tobruk, Wellington: War History Branch, Department of Internal Affairs, 1961. Stapleton, Timothy J., A Military History of South Africa, Oxford: Praeger, 2010. Stock, James W., Tobruk: The Siege, New York: Ballantine Press, 1973.

The Tobruk story carries on in world postage.

41 42