Allied victory in North Africa. German tanks (PzKpfw III) in North Africa

The outbreak of the Second World War gradually drew many countries and peoples into its bloody orbit. The decisive battles of this war took place on the so-called. Eastern Front where Germany fought Soviet Union. But there were two fronts - Italian and African, which also hosted fighting. This lesson is devoted to events on these fronts.

World War II: African and Italian fronts

The battles of the Second World War took place not only in Europe, but almost all over the world. In 1940-1943. Allied troops (Great Britain and the United States, "Fighting France"), after heavy fighting, oust the Italo-German troops from Africa, and then transfer the fighting to Italian territory.

background

In the spring of 1940, the Second World War, which began with the German attack on Poland, enters a new phase: Germany conducts successful military campaigns against the countries of Western and Northern, and later Southern Europe, establishing control over most of the continent. Since the summer of 1940, the main events have been taking place in the Mediterranean.

Developments

Africa

June 1940 - April 1941- the first stage of hostilities in Africa, which began with the Italian attack on the British colonies in East Africa: Kenya, Sudan and British Somalia. Within this stage:
. the British, together with the forces of the French General de Gaulle, take control of most of the French colonies in Africa;
. British troops take control of the Italian colonies in Africa;
. Italy, failing, turned to Germany for help, after which their combined troops launched a successful offensive in Libya. After that, active hostilities stop for a while.

November 1941 - January 1942- the resumption of hostilities, British and Italo-German troops are fighting each other in Libya with varying success.

May - July 1942- Successful Italo-German offensive in Libya and Egypt.

In July, the Italo-German grouping under the command of Rommel is approaching Cairo and Alexandria, the main cities of Egypt. Egypt after the First World War was under the British protectorate. Egypt was of strategic importance: in the event of its capture, the Nazi coalition came close to the Middle Eastern oil fields and cut off the enemy's important communications - the Suez Canal.

July 1942- the advance of the Italo-German troops was stopped in the battles near El Alamein.

October 1942- in new battles near El Alamein, the British inflict defeat on the enemy grouping and go on the offensive. Subsequently, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill will say: “Before El Alamein, we did not win a single victory. Since El Alamein, we haven't suffered a single defeat."

In 1943, the British and Americans forced Rommel to capitulate in Tunisia, thereby freeing North Africa and securing the ports.

In July 1943, when a grandiose Battle of Kursk, Mussolini was arrested by order of the King of Italy, and a joint Anglo-American landing force landed on island of sicily thus opening the Italian front. The allies advanced towards Rome and soon entered it. Italy capitulated, but Mussolini himself was freed by a German saboteur Otto Skorzeny and shipped to Germany. Later, a new state was created in northern Italy, headed by an Italian dictator.

The North African and Italian military campaigns became the main military actions of 1942-1943. in the West. The successes of the Red Army on the Eastern Front allowed the allied Anglo-American command to carry out a number of successful operations and knock out the main ally, Italy, from the Hitlerite clip. The successes of the USSR, Great Britain and the USA inspired the anti-fascist forces in the occupied states to fight more actively. Thus, in France, military forces operated under the command of General de Gaulle. In Yugoslavia, partisans of a communist and a general (and then a marshal) fought with the Nazi troops Josip Broz Tito. In other conquered countries there was a movement resistance.

Every year in the occupied lands, the fascist terror became more and more unbearable, which forced the local population to go to fight the invaders.

Bibliography

1. Shubin A.V. General history. recent history. Grade 9: textbook. For general education institutions. - M.: Moscow textbooks, 2010.
2. Soroko-Tsyupa O.S., Soroko-Tsyupa A.O. General history. Recent history, 9th grade. - M.: Education, 2010.
3. Sergeev E.Yu. General history. Recent history. Grade 9 - M.: Education, 2011.

Homework

1. Read § 12 of the textbook by Shubin A.V. and answer questions 1-4 on p. 130.
2. Why did Germany and its allies begin to suffer defeat precisely in 1942-1943?
3. What caused the resistance movement?

1. Internet portal Sstoriya.ru ().
2. Internet portal Agesmystery.ru ().
3. Essays on the Second World War ().

The most unstable region on our planet in terms of wars and numerous armed conflicts is, of course, the African continent. Over the past forty years alone, more than 50 such incidents have occurred here, as a result of which more than 5 million people died, 18 million became refugees, and 24 million were left homeless. Perhaps nowhere else in the world have wars and endless conflicts led to such large-scale casualties and destruction.

General information

From the history of the Ancient World it is known that major wars in Africa have been fought since the third millennium BC. They began with the unification of the Egyptian lands. In the future, the pharaohs constantly fought for the expansion of their state, either with Palestine or with Syria. Three are also known, which lasted a total of more than a hundred years.

In the Middle Ages, armed conflicts greatly contributed to the further development of the aggressive policy and honed the art of war to perfection. Africa in the 13th century alone experienced three Crusade. The long list of military confrontations that this continent underwent in the 19th and 20th centuries is simply amazing! However, the most destructive for him were the First and Second World Wars. More than 100 thousand people died during one of them alone.

The reasons that led to military operations in this region were quite weighty. As you know, the First World War in Europe was unleashed by Germany. The Entente countries, opposing her pressure, decided to take away her colonies in Africa, which the German government had recently acquired. These lands were still poorly defended, and given that the British fleet at that time dominated the sea, they were completely cut off from their mother country. This could only mean one thing - Germany was unable to send reinforcements and ammunition. In addition, they were surrounded on all sides by territories belonging to their opponents - the Entente countries.

Already at the end of the summer of 1914, French and British troops managed to capture the first small colony of the enemy - Togo. Further invasion of the Entente forces into South-West Africa was somewhat suspended. The reason for this was the Boer uprising, which was suppressed only by February 1915. After that, she began to move forward rapidly and already in July forced the German troops stationed in South-West Africa to surrender. The following year, Germany also had to withdraw from Cameroon, whose defenders fled to the neighboring colony, Spanish Guinea. However, despite such a victorious advance of the Entente troops, the Germans were still able to put up serious resistance in East Africa, where fighting continued throughout the war.

Further fighting

The First World War in Africa affected many of the Allied colonies, as German troops had to retreat to territory belonging to the British crown. Colonel P. von Lettow-Vorbeck commanded in this region. It was he who led the troops in early November 1914, when the biggest battle near the city of Tanga (Indian Ocean coast). At this time, the German army numbered about 7 thousand people. With the support of two cruisers, the British managed to land a dozen and a half landing transports, but, despite this, Colonel Lettow-Forbeck managed to win a convincing victory over the British, forcing them to leave the coast.

After that, the war in Africa turned into a guerrilla struggle. The Germans attacked British forts and undermined railways in Kenya and Rhodesia. Lettov-Forbeck replenished his army by recruiting volunteers from among local residents who had good training. In total, he managed to recruit about 12 thousand people.

In 1916, having united in one Portuguese and Belgian colonial troops launched an offensive in eastern Africa. But no matter how hard they tried, they failed to defeat the German army. Despite the fact that the allied forces greatly outnumbered the German troops, two factors helped Lettow-Vorbeck to hold out: knowledge of the climate and terrain. Meanwhile, his opponents suffered heavy losses, and not only on the battlefield, but also due to illness. At the end of the autumn of 1917, pursued by the Allies, Colonel P. von Lettow-Vorbeck ended up with his army on the territory of the colony of Mozambique, which at that time belonged to Portugal.

End of hostilities

Nearing Africa and Asia, as well as Europe, suffered heavy casualties. By August 1918, the German troops, surrounded on all sides, avoiding meetings with the main enemy forces, were forced to return to their territory. By the end of that year, the remnants of Lettov-Vorbeck's colonial army, consisting of no more than 1.5 thousand people, ended up in Northern Rhodesia, which at that time belonged to Britain. Here the colonel learned of the defeat of Germany and was forced to lay down his arms. For the courage shown in battles with the enemy, he was greeted at home as a hero.

Thus ended the First World War. Africa, it cost, according to some estimates, at least 100 thousand human lives. Although the hostilities on this continent were not decisive, they continued throughout the war.

World War II

As you know, the large-scale military operations launched by fascist Germany in the 30-40s of the last century affected not only the territory of Europe. Two more continents were not spared by World War II. Africa and Asia were also drawn, albeit partially, into this grandiose conflict.

Unlike Britain, Germany by that time no longer had its own colonies, but always claimed them. In order to paralyze the economy of their main enemy - England, the Germans decided to establish control over North Africa, since this was the only way to get to other British colonies - India, Australia and New Zealand. Besides, probable cause What pushed Hitler to conquer North African lands was his further invasion of Iran and Iraq, where there were significant oil deposits controlled by Britain.

Start of hostilities

The Second World War in Africa lasted for three years - from June 1940 to May 1943. The opposing forces in this conflict were Britain and the United States on the one hand, and Germany and Italy on the other. The main fighting took place on the territory of Egypt and the Maghreb. The conflict began with the invasion of Italian troops into Ethiopian territory, which significantly undermined British dominance in the region.

Initially, 250 thousand Italian soldiers participated in the North African campaign, to which another 130 thousand German soldiers later arrived to help, having large quantity tanks and artillery pieces. In turn, the allied army of the US and Britain consisted of 300,000 American and more than 200,000 British troops.

Further developments

The war in North Africa began with the fact that in June 1940 the British began to deliver targeted attacks on the Italian army, as a result of which it immediately lost several thousand of its soldiers, while the British lost no more than two hundred. After such a defeat, the Italian government decided to give command of the troops into the hands of Marshal Graziani and was not mistaken with the choice. Already on September 13 of the same year, he launched an offensive that forced the British General O'Connor to retreat due to the significant superiority of his enemy in manpower. After the Italians managed to capture the small Egyptian town of Sidi Barrani, the offensive was suspended for three long months.

Unexpectedly for Graziani, at the end of 1940, General O'Connor's army went on the offensive. The Libyan operation began with an attack on one of the Italian garrisons. Graziani was clearly not ready for such a turn of events, so he could not organize a worthy rebuff to his opponent. As a result of the rapid advance of the British troops, Italy forever lost its colonies in northern Africa.

The situation changed somewhat in the winter of 1941, when the Nazi command sent tank formations to help their ally. Already in March, the war in Africa broke out with renewed vigor. The combined army of Germany and Italy inflicted swipe on the British defense, completely destroying one of the enemy armored brigades.

End of World War II

In November of the same year, the British launched a second attempt at a counteroffensive, launching Operation Crusader. They even managed to recapture Tripoletania, but already in December they were stopped by Rommel's army. In May 1942, a German general dealt a decisive blow to the enemy defenses, and the British were forced to retreat deep into Egypt. The victorious advance continued until the Allied 8th Army broke it off at Al Alamein. This time, despite all efforts, the Germans failed to break through the British defenses. Meanwhile, General Montgomery was appointed commander of the 8th Army, who began to develop another offensive plan, while successfully continuing to repel the attacks of the Nazi troops.

In October of the same year, British troops dealt a powerful blow to Rommel's military units stationed near Al-Alamein. This entailed the complete defeat of two armies - Germany and Italy, who were forced to retreat to the borders of Tunisia. In addition, the Americans, who landed on the African coast on November 8, came to the aid of the British. Rommel made an attempt to stop the Allies, but it was unsuccessful. After that, the German general was recalled to his homeland.

Rommel was an experienced military leader, and his loss meant only one thing - the war in Africa ended in complete defeat for Italy and Germany. After that, Britain and the United States significantly strengthened their positions in this region. In addition, they threw the liberated troops into the subsequent capture of Italy.

Second half of the 20th century

With the end of World War II, the confrontation in Africa did not end. One by one, uprisings broke out, which in some countries escalated into full-scale military operations. So, once flared Civil War in Africa can last for years and even decades. An example of this is the intrastate armed confrontation in Ethiopia (1974-1991), Angola (1975-2002), Mozambique (1976-1992), Algeria and Sierra Leone (1991-2002), Burundi (1993-2005), Somalia (1988). ). In the last of the above countries, the civil war has not yet ended. And this is only a small part of all the military conflicts that existed before and continue to this day on the African continent.

The reasons for the emergence of numerous military confrontations lie in local specifics, as well as in the historical situation. Starting from the 60s of the last century, most African countries gained independence, and in a third of them armed clashes immediately began, and in the 90s hostilities were already taking place on the territory of 16 states.

Modern wars

In this century, the situation on the African continent has not changed much. A large-scale geopolitical reorganization is still going on here, in the conditions of which there can be no question of any increase in the level of security in this region. The dire economic situation and an acute shortage of finance only exacerbate the current situation.

Smuggling, illegal deliveries of weapons and drugs flourish here, which further aggravate the already rather difficult crime situation in the region. In addition, all this is happening against the backdrop of extremely high population growth, as well as uncontrolled migration.

Attempts to localize conflicts

Now it seems that the war in Africa is never-ending. As practice has shown, international peacekeeping, trying to prevent numerous armed clashes on this continent, has proved to be ineffective. For example, we can take at least the following fact: UN troops participated in 57 conflicts, and in most cases their actions did not affect their end in any way.

As is commonly believed, the bureaucratic sluggishness of peacekeeping missions and poor awareness of the rapidly changing real situation are to blame. In addition, UN troops are extremely small and are being withdrawn from war-torn countries even before a capable government begins to form there.

Italian Marshal Rudolfo Graziani was nicknamed "Native Killer" after his campaign to pacify Libya long before the fighting began in North Africa. The captured native leaders were tied hands and feet, and then dropped from aircraft from a height of about 100 meters directly onto the rebel camps. Later, he used poisonous gases and bacteriological weapons in his attempts to pacify Ethiopia.
The Libyan tribes hated the Italians, who forced them into the desert from the fertile lands and pastures along the coast. In addition, the Italians, suspecting some Arab of assisting the British, invariably hung him on a hook by the jaw. This was their favorite punishment. That is why the nomads subsequently provided invaluable assistance to the allies.

In the desert between Benghazi and Tripoli, there were frequent skirmishes between German and British reconnaissance groups. Once a whole battle took place with the participation of armored vehicles - 3 armored cars on each side.
They say that 2 opposing parties met on the coast near El Agueila and, barely passing on a narrow section of the road, rushed next to each other, raising clouds of dust. The British commander exclaimed: "Thunder strike me! Did you see? It's the Germans!"
Then 3 British armored cars turned around and rushed at the enemy - 1 car along a narrow road, and 2 others to the right and left of it along the sands. German intelligence officers did the same. The result was discouraging for both sides: while 2 armored cars went on a frontal attack, pouring fire on each other, 4 flanks got stuck in the sand.
Then the lead vehicles returned, and after the redeployment, when everyone managed to get out on solid ground, the attack signal sounded again. Firing from weapons of all calibers, the detachments converged on parallel courses, and then each returned to his old place - the disposition was restored.
Since no one managed to achieve obvious success, no losses and hits on the target were recorded by the observers, the commanders decided not to continue the battle further, and returned to the disposition of their troops with a sense of accomplishment.

During the siege of El Mekili, Erwin Rommel ordered that bundles of trees and bushes on long cables be tied to all auxiliary vehicles and to some light Italian tanks. The Italian tanks moved in the first line, one after the other, followed by auxiliary vehicles, a field kitchen and staff vehicles.
Bundles of trees and shrubs kicked up huge clouds of dust. For the British, it looked like a full-scale attack of large forces. The British not only retreated, but also removed additional forces from other sectors of the defense. At the same time, Rommel attacked from a completely different direction with the forces of the German panzer divisions. The British were completely disoriented and defeated.

Before the first attack on Tobruk, which began on April 30, 1941, General Paulus, Halder's deputy, flew to Rommel. The visit was due to the fact that Halder was not interested in any action in Africa that might require reinforcements from German troops engaged in the main theater of operations and preparing at that time to attack Russia.
He also had an instinctive distaste for Hitler's tendency to support dynamic commanders like Rommel who did not want to follow the patterns laid down by the High Command. General Paulus flew to Africa to "prevent this soldier from completely losing his mind," Halder wrote caustically in his diary about Rommel.

Before Operation Battlex, which began on June 15, 1941, Erwin Rommel set up his 88 mm Flak-88 anti-aircraft guns behind the Yu-shaped sandy ramparts and dug them into the ground. Moreover, they were dug in so deep that the trunk rose above the level of sand by only 30-60 cm.
Then, around each gun position, a light awning was stretched to match the color of the sand, so that even with binoculars it was impossible to determine the firing positions in the sand. When the British saw many of these sand dunes, they were not worried, as they did not know of any German heavy weapons with such a low silhouette.
Rommel then sent his light tanks in a mock attack on the British positions. The British cruiser tanks, sensing an easy victory, rushed towards them, while the German light tanks turned around and retreated behind the line of 88mm guns. When the distance between the Flaks and the Allied tanks was reduced to a minimum, the trap slammed shut and the guns opened fire.
The first message from the commander of the tank battalion by radiotelephone: "They are tearing my tanks to pieces" became the last report. This tank trap was rightly called by the British soldiers the "hellfire pass", at one point of the breakthrough out of 13 Matilda tanks only 1 survived.

If even a 76 mm captured gun was a thunderstorm for the Allied tanks, then the 88 mm gun became something unimaginable in general. This gun "Flak-88" was created by Krupp in 1916 as an anti-aircraft gun.
The Model 1940 was also considered an anti-aircraft gun and was used in that role before Rommel started using them against tanks in France. These guns were not as mobile as the 50 mm, but their firing range was much higher. The 88-mm gun sent its 10 kg projectile to a distance of 3 km with exceptional accuracy.
For example, in the battle of Sidi Omar, during the Battle of the Crusader, or as it is also called the Battle of Marmarica, in November 1941, a British tank regiment lost 48 out of 52 tanks. All of them were destroyed by 88-mm guns. None of the British tanks even managed to get close enough to fire on the German guns.
A soldier of the 9th Lancers wrote: "A direct hit (from an 88-mm gun) was like hitting a huge sledgehammer on a tank. The projectile pierced a neat round hole about 10 cm in diameter, a whirlwind of red-hot fragments burst into the tower. Such a hit usually meant death ... Until the very end of the war, 88-mm guns remained our most dangerous enemy ... ".

A. Moorhead recalled the battle for Marmarika, which came to completely anecdotal situations. For example, a German soldier is driving an English truck with captured South Africans, loses control on a difficult section of the highway and crashes into an Italian car, from the back of which the New Zealanders jump out and free the South Africans.
Or trucks with German infantry at dusk are attached to a British convoy and several tens of kilometers ride side by side with the enemy until they notice their mistake and hide in the desert.

From the diary of the German corporal O. Seibold: "October 21. We are in Mozhaisk ... An African division arrives in cars painted in the color of the desert. This is either bad sign, or a sign that we, remaining 100 km from the Kremlin, will nevertheless overcome ... ".
From the documents of the Bryansk Front on the actions north of Kastornoye: “From the testimony of the captured Nazis, we learned that German and Italian units were operating in this direction. The troops of the notorious fascist General Rommel, hastily transferred to the Soviet-German front from Libya, were fighting here. It also became clear why they were against German tanks, painted in yellow- the color of the sand of the desert ... ".
V. Kazakov in his work “In the Battle for Moscow” wrote: “Having familiarized himself with the latest intelligence, Rokossovsky established that in front of the front of the 16th Army the situation had not changed in recent days (November 10, 1941). The exception was the 5th Panzer Division enemy She arrived 2 days ago from Africa ... ".
However, many authors were wrong when they said that the 5th Panzer Division was removed from the front in Africa, where it had never fought (There was a 5th Light Division in Africa). In fact, the Wehrmacht command only planned to give it to help Rommel, but soon decided to throw it near Moscow. This did not tip the scales in favor of the Reich, but it did deprive Rommel of the long-awaited and so precious reinforcements that he so badly needed.

Given the fact that Italian tanks were not suitable for serious combat, by 1942 they were called "self-propelled coffins". In private, Rommel claimed that his hair stood on end when he familiarized himself with the equipment that Mussolini sent to his troops.
There was even a joke in the Afrika Korps:
Question: Which soldiers are the bravest in the world?
Answer: Italian.
Question: Why?
Answer: Because they go into battle with the weapons they have.

In June 1942, when Rommel's 15th Panzer Division surrounded the 10th Indian Brigade on the Aslag Ridge, Brigadier General Buchera escaped with 2 Indians. They spent the night in a wrecked truck. In the morning they tried to slip through to their units.
During a hasty flight, Bucher noticed a German battery and realized that there were positions of German artillery around and the fugitives decided to hide. Bucher soon found a trench and covered the two Indians with sand. They used reeds for breathing. Then the General himself hid in a similar way.
A few minutes later, another German battery arrived. As the fighting continued, the RAF attacked the German guns and one of the gunners jumped into the same trench.
After the British planes had left, the gunner saw one of Bucher's shoes sticking out of a pile of sand. He decided to take them for himself, and for this it was necessary to dig up the alleged corpse. One can only imagine the amazement of the German when, instead, he found a completely alive British Brigadier General! After that, both comrades surrendered.

Due to a shortage of tanks, Rommel's troops often fought in captured tanks. From the memoirs of a British officer: “We lost the Pisa tank - during a sharp turn, its right track and suspension turned into a bunch of separate parts. With a close burst of a shell, my driver hit the gun mount and fell under the levers with a crushed jaw.
Twilight came on. We picked up the crew of the broken down car and rushed back to the appointed place where the night camp of the squadron was located. As soon as we drove off, 2 German T-IIIs headed towards the abandoned "A-13". The Hans also loved trophies.
Around midnight, the German evacuation brigade dragged the Pisa tank to the mobile repair unit. After 5 days we saw him again - with a black cross on his side and with a crew consisting of Axis soldiers.

After the capture of Tobruk and 33,000 prisoners, a group of South African officers demanded that they be placed in a special POW camp, separate from the coloreds.
Rommel rudely rejected this demand, replying that the blacks were also soldiers of the Union of South Africa. If they are good enough to wear uniforms and fight alongside the whites, they will enjoy equal rights in captivity. So the Allies hated not only the Germans, but also each other.

During the Allied retreat to Alexandria in 1942, some of the soldiers of the British battery were surrounded and forced to surrender. The German captain who kept them under siege captured a high-ranking British officer (this prisoner was Desmond Young, who later, becoming a Brigadier General, wrote one of best books about Field Marshal Rommel).
The German officer at gunpoint demanded that Jung order the other units to surrender and lay down their weapons, but Jung sent him to the "damn grandmother". Suddenly, the dust rose like a column, a staff car appeared ... and Rommel himself got out of it.
The captain reported the situation. The "Desert Fox" thought and said, "No, such a demand would undermine the spirit of chivalry and run counter to the honest rules of warfare." He ordered his subordinate to find another solution to the problem, and then offered Jung iced lemon tea from his own flask.

At the first collision on November 26, 1942, American and German tankers in World War II, a tragicomic incident occurred. During the battle, 6 American "Stuarts" were hit and immediately flared up. The Germans also knocked out at least 6 T-4 tanks and several T-3 tanks.
They either lost their tracks or had their engine bay shutters blown out. However, not a single German tank was destroyed. The shells bounced off their armor like peas. This puzzled the Americans. But they didn’t know that real armor-piercing shells were lying quietly in the port, and only training blanks were in the tanks.

The American tank "Grant" was a thunderstorm for German tankers. Despite this, he had many shortcomings, especially in the sands of North Africa.
The biggest drawback was the rubber-metal tracks. During the battle, rubber burned out on the hot sand of the desert, as a result of which the caterpillar fell apart, turning the tank into a stationary target.
For example, Soviet tankers, having tested the "Grants" on the sands, dubbed them "a mass grave for six." An example is the report of the commander of the 134th tank regiment Tikhonchuk dated December 14, 1942:
"American tanks work extremely poorly in the sand, the tracks are constantly falling off, getting stuck in the sand, losing power, due to which the speed is extremely low."

The British talked about booty after the battles in North Africa. The dead Germans gave them tobacco, chocolate and canned sausages. Their fallen brothers in arms supplied them with cigarettes, jam and sweets.
Italian trucks were considered "Jack-pot". They supplied them with delicacies such as canned peaches and cherries, cigars, Chianti and Frascati wines, Pellegrino sparkling water, and even sweet champagne.
In the desert, as everyone thinks, there were no women, although this is not so - about 200 women worked in the rear hospital in Derna. Their skill was very much needed by the German soldiers during the upcoming battles. But these were not the only women in Africa!
It is a well-known fact that in Tripoli on Via Tassoni, house 4, there was a rear brothel of the Wehrmacht, which most of the "Africans" never saw it. Recruited Italian women worked there, who agreed to go to the desert, but according to eyewitnesses, none of them were beautiful.

In a narrow circle of people close to him, Marshal often recalled Hitler's critical remarks about the fact that Paulus should have shot himself as a sign of loyalty to the Fuhrer, and not surrender.
Rommel always said that he understood and approved of Paulus' actions. If the Fuhrer's order had not withdrawn him from Africa, and he managed to survive during the fierce battles, he, like Paulus, would have shared the bitter fate of his soldiers in enemy captivity:
“It takes a lot more courage to surrender with your army than just putting a bullet in your head.

To conduct military operations on the African continent, two groups of Italian troops were deployed: one - in the Northeast, the other - in North Africa.

1 S. Roskill. Fleet and war, vol. 1, pp. 27,31.

2 V. Smirnov. "Strange War" and the defeat of France. M., 1963, p. 340, "Revue militaire generale", 1961, fevrier, p. 254.

3 G.Long. To Benghazi. Canberra, 1952, p. 94-95; H. Moyse-Bart-1 e t t. The King's African Rifles. Aldershot, 1956, p. 479.

In Northeast Africa, against British Somalia, Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Uganda and Kenya, a large grouping of troops was concentrated under the command of the Viceroy of Italian East Africa, the Duke of Aosta (2 Italian divisions, 29 separate colonial brigades, 33 separate battalions), which had approximately 300 thousand soldiers and officers, 813 guns of various calibers, 63 medium and light tanks, 129 armored vehicles, 150 combat aircraft 1.

The strategic position of fascist Italy in Northeast Africa was not strong: the communications of the Italian troops turned out to be stretched and vulnerable to the English fleet; colonial formations and units (over two-thirds of the troops) are poorly armed and poorly trained; the internal situation in its East African colonies remained extremely tense. Despite the brutal repression by the invaders and the lack of a centralized leadership, the guerrilla movement in Ethiopia by the time Italy entered the war began to gain strength again. In most provinces of Ethiopia - in God-jam, Begemdor, Shoa, Wolleg and Tigris - occupation regime remained only in those cities and towns where there were strong garrisons. Many of them were so firmly blocked by partisans that the Italians supplied the troops in them only with the help of aircraft. All this limited the operational capabilities of the Italian troops and made it difficult to carry out the aggressive plans of the fascist command. In May 1940, Bonacorsi, head of the Blackshirts in Italian East Africa, warned the government: “If at any point in our empire a detachment of the British or French appears with a banner unfurled, they will need very few, if not at all, soldiers to fight against the Italians. because most of the Abyssinian population will join them" 2.

The second operational-strategic grouping of Italian troops (commander Marshal I. Balbo, from August Marshal R. Graziani) was in Libya. There, in Cyrenaica and Tripolitania, large forces were stationed - two field armies. On the border with Egypt, east of Tobruk, the 10th Army was deployed under the command of General I. Berti, which included 6 divisions (including one blackshirt and two colonial); the 5th army (commander General I. Gariboldi) was aimed against Tunisia, numbering 8 divisions, of which 2 were blackshirts. The Libyan group consisted of 236 thousand soldiers and officers, it was armed with over 1800 guns of various calibers and 315 aircraft 3.

The British command was well aware of Italy's intentions to seize the Suez Canal and the British colonies in Northeast and East Africa, but, having concentrated the bulk of the troops in Europe, they could not ensure the timely deployment of sufficient forces in this area. By June 10, 1940, the troops of the British Empire, including parts of the dominions and colonies, were dispersed over a vast territory: bo thousand - in Egypt (including 30 thousand Egyptians), 27.5 thousand - in Palestine, and thousand - in Egypt. - in the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, 22 thousand - in Kenya, about 1.5 thousand - in British Somalia, 2.5 thousand - in Aden 4.

1 L "Esercito italiano tra la la e la 2a guerra mondiale, p. 192, 332, 335; G. V o c -c a. Storia d" ltalia nella guerra fascista 1940-1943. Barry, 1969, p. 209.

2 R. Greenfield. Ethiopia. A New Political History. London, 1965, p. 249.

3 In Africa Settentrionale. La preparation al conflict. L "avanzata su Sidi el Bar-ram (ottobre 1935 - settembre 1940). Roma, 1955, p. 87-88, 194-196., 4 Calculated from: G. L about n g. To Benghazi, p. 94- 95.

4 H. Moyse-Bart-1 e t t. The King's African Rifles, p. 479.

The troops stationed in Sudan, Somalia and Kenya had neither tanks nor anti-tank artillery. The air force of England, which had 168 aircraft in Egypt and Palestine, and only 85 aircraft in Aden, Kenya and Sudan, 1 was significantly inferior to Italian aviation.

Given the lack of forces, the British command sought to tie down the Italian troops stationed in East Africa using Ethiopian partisans. For this purpose, in March 1940, on the instructions of the British War Office, General Wavell developed a plan of "rebellion and propaganda", which provided for measures to expand the resistance movement in Ethiopia. In June 1940, the British began negotiations with the Emperor of Ethiopia, Haile Selassie I, who was in exile, as a result of which he arrived in Sudan to directly lead the movement to expel the invaders.

The unfolding struggle for the liberation of Ethiopia found a wide response among the Africans, forcibly or fraudulently mobilized by the Italians into the army. Desertion and the transition of colonial soldiers to the side of the patriots began to take on a mass character. To save the colonial troops from complete collapse, the Italian command death penalty for propaganda in favor of the allies.

Collaboration with Haile Selassie and leaders of the English guerrilla movement ruling circles intended to use in order to establish their political dominance in the area after the expulsion of the Italians from there. That is why they in every possible way prevented the creation of a regular Ethiopian army and agreed to the formation of only a symbolic armed forces of Ethiopia consisting of three battalions 2. Ethiopian patriots who fled to Kenya to join the army were considered by the British authorities as prisoners of war and were used in the construction of roads. Under the pretext of the need to strengthen the partisan movement with military personnel, British intelligence tried to remove local leaders from practical guide this movement. In August 1940

the British command sent a secret mission to Ethiopia, headed by General D. Sandford, who was instructed to "coordinate the development of the uprising" within the country. Somewhat later, scout captain O. Wingate was appointed commander of the Ethiopian units and detachments operating from the territory of Sudan and Kenya. However, the further steps of the British intelligence service met with stubborn resistance from the Ethiopian authorities and most of the partisan leaders, who sought to establish equal allied relations between England and Ethiopia.

In early July 1940, Italian forces began to advance from Ethiopia deep into the Sudan and Kenya. The purpose of this offensive was determined by the directive of the Chief of the Italian General Staff, Marshal Badoglio, dated June 9: to capture the important strongholds of Kassala, Gallabat, Kurmuk in the Sudanese border zone, and Todenyang, Moyale, Mandera on Kenyan territory.

On the northern sector of the Sudanese operational direction, two infantry brigades and four cavalry regiments of the Italian colonial troops (6.5 thousand people), supported by 24 tanks, armored vehicles, artillery and aviation, tried on July 4 to capture the city of Kassala, which was defended by a detachment of Sudanese infantry and police (600 hours)

1 G.Long. To Benghazi, p. 96.

2 D. V about b l and to about in. Ethiopia in the struggle to maintain independence (I860 1960). M., 1961, p. 134.

Lovek), reinforced by six tanks 1. Despite the small number, the Sudanese put up stubborn resistance to the enemy. Italian troops captured the city, but lost over 500 people and 6 tanks 2.

The garrisons of other cities also stubbornly defended themselves. However, the forces were unequal. The Sudanese and Kenyan troops could not withstand the onslaught of a numerically superior, technically better equipped enemy and were forced to switch to guerrilla tactics.

With the outbreak of hostilities, a partisan movement broke out with renewed vigor on the territory of Ethiopia itself. Soon the entire north-west and central regions of the country were covered by a broad insurrectionary movement, which fettered the Italian troops stationed there.

The resistance of the British colonial troops and the population of Sudan and Kenya, as well as freedom movement Ethiopian people forced the Italian fascists to abandon further offensive in the area. Having decided to go on the defensive here, the Italian command decided to launch an offensive against British Somalia, for which they concentrated a 35,000-strong group (26 battalions, 21 artillery batteries and 57 aircraft) to the south and west of it. In British Somalia there were 5 British colonial battalions (no more than 6 thousand soldiers)3. On August 4, 1940, three columns of Italian infantry, reinforced by artillery and tanks, simultaneously moved to Hargey-su, Odwepna and Zeila. The African and Indian colonial units defended stubbornly, but, having received no reinforcements from the British command, after two weeks of heavy fighting, they were forced to evacuate across the strait to Aden on August 18.

Having achieved some success in East Africa, the Italian command decided to launch an offensive in North Africa to capture the main base of the British fleet of Alexandria and the Suez Canal. The offensive began on September 13, 1940.

Italian troops were advancing from Libya to the east along the coastal 60-kilometer strip with the forces of the 10th Army, consisting of five divisions and a separate regimental group, reinforced by six tank battalions. Two formations were in the army reserve. In total, 9 Italian divisions were concentrated in Kirenaikek on September 7, 1940. They were opposed by an English group consisting of two divisions and two separate brigades. However, of these forces, only one division (the 7th Armored) was deployed on the Egyptian border with Libya. Lacking the strength to organize an effective defense, the British troops, after a short resistance, began a general withdrawal. Formations of the Italian army, advancing after the retreating British units, on the very first day of the offensive captured the important stronghold of Es Sallum, and on September 16 they reached Sidi Barrani. However, the loss of control of the mobile forces operating on the southern flank of the Italian grouping, interruptions in the supply of troops, and the lack of transport forced the Italian command to stop further offensive. Nevertheless, the British troops continued to retreat and stopped only at previously prepared positions near the city of Mersa Matruh. As a result, a "no man's" zone 130 km wide was formed between the belligerents.

1 I. R 1 a y f a i r. The Mediterranean and the Middle East. Vol. I. London, 1954, p. 170-171; A. Barker. Eritrea 1941. London, 1966, p. 38.

2 H. J a c k s o n. The Fighting Sudanese. London, 1954, p. 59.

3 La guerra in Africa Orientale, giugno 1940 - novembre 1941. Roma, 1952, p. 52; A. Barker. Eritrea 1941, p. 51.

4 K. Macksey. Bedda Fomm: The Classic Victory. London, 1972, p. 47.

Meanwhile, in Egypt, Sudan and Kenya, more and more units arrived from England, India, Australia and New Zealand. The military districts (commands) created on the territory of British Africa were hastily engaged in the formation and training of new colonial units. In a short time, 6 infantry brigades (including 2 reinforced ones) were created in East Africa and 5 in West Africa. The indigenous people of South Africa formed the basis of the units and service units of the army of the Union of South Africa. A large number of African auxiliary and service units became part of the British formations.

In the autumn of 1940, the British troops in Kenya already numbered 77 thousand people, of which 42 thousand were Africans. By the beginning of 1941, partisans and East African units had completely cleared the northwestern part of Kenya from the Italian invaders.

In North Africa, the British Nile Army, having received reinforcements of up to two divisions, on December 9, 1940, launched a counteroffensive. As a result of a covertly carried out bypass maneuver of the British troops from the south and a blow from the front, the 10th Italian army was completely defeated. On December 16, 1940, the city of Es-Sallum fell. On January 5, 1941, the Libyan fortress of Bardia was taken by the British, and on January 22, Tobruk. A few days later, British tanks entered Cyrenaica. The advanced formations quickly crossed the desert and, cutting off the escape routes of the rest of the Italian forces in Libya, captured Benghazi on February 6. Two days later they reached the approaches to El Agueila. The Italo-fascist troops, who had poor combat skills, were quickly cut off from their rear by the British armored regiments, fell into a panic and were unable to offer the enemy serious enough resistance.

As a result of the offensive, the British troops advanced more than 800 km within two months, suffering minor losses: 475 people were killed, 1225 were wounded and 43 were missing. The Italian army lost more than 130 thousand soldiers and officers only as prisoners, about 400 tanks, 1290 guns3. Having concentrated up to 150,000 mainly colonial troops4 in the Sudan and Kenya, the British command decided to launch offensive operations in East Africa as well. On January 19, 1941, Anglo-Indian and Sudanese troops went on the offensive on the border with Eritrea - two divisions and two large motorized groups, supported by Free French units (mainly African). In early February, British African troops (three divisions) crossed the border between Ethiopia and Italian Somalia. From the west, mixed Sudanese-Ethiopian units and partisan detachments entered the territory of Ethiopia. Sudanese, East African detachments and colonial units from the Belgian Congo operated from the south.

The 70,000th grouping of Italians in Eritrea was so exhausted by the beginning of the British offensive by constant partisan raids

1 Calculated from: H. J o s I e n. Orders of Battle. Vol. II. London, 1960, p. 419-446.

2 R. Woolcombe. The Campaigns of Wavell. London, 1959, P- "*"" J. Bingham, W. H a u p t. Der Afrika - Feldzug 1941 - 1943. Dorheim/H-1968, S. 29.

3 G. L o n g. To Benghazi, p. 272.

4 Calculated no: H. J o s 1 e n. Orders of Battle, vol. II, p. 50, 419-441, J. Bingham, W. H a u p t. Der Afrika-Feldzug 1941-1943, S. 29; Belgian Cong0 at War. New York, 1949, p. 3, 24-26; R. Collins. Lord Wavell (1883-19411-A military biography. London, 1947, p. 215-216.

and the rebels, which was able to offer only minor resistance to the British troops. The Italian command hastily withdrew its troops to the previously created fortifications in the Keren area.

Regular Ethiopian units that entered their native land became the core of a large rebel army. While the British troops were besieging Keren, Ethiopian guerrillas cut the road leading north from Addis Ababa, along which the Italians were moving reinforcements to the besieged. By April, Ethiopian troops, overcoming the resistance of the 35,000th Italian group, cleared the province of Gojjam from the enemy. The Ethiopian army at that time numbered about 30 thousand people, while the total number of rebel forces, according to historians, reached from 100 to 500 thousand1.

The African units that entered Somalia and South Ethiopia from the territory of Kenya were opposed by five Italian divisions with a total number of 40 thousand people and a large number of irregular detachments. Of these, 22,000 took up defensive positions on a heavily fortified line along the Juba River (Somalia) and to the north of it,2 where stubborn two-week battles (February 10-26, 1941) ended with a breakthrough of the Italian defense. Having crossed the river in several places and reached the rear of the Italian troops, the African troops captured the port of Kismayu, several airfields and bases, the cities of Jumbo, Jelib and rushed to Mogadishu. Inspired by the successful offensive, the population of Somalia rose up in arms against the Italians, who began to roll back first to Harar, and from there to Addis Ababa, throwing weapons and equipment on the way.

Fearing the retribution of the Ethiopian people and being unable to withstand the onslaught of the rebels advancing towards the capital, the Italian colonial authorities and command turned to the British for help. They asked them to quickly enter Addis Ababa and send punitive detachments to suppress the uprising. April 6, 1941 British colonial troops entered the capital of Ethiopia. Hurrying the British, the Italians at the same time stubbornly resisted the Ethiopian troops advancing on the capital from the west. Several partisan detachments, having fought their way through the mountains, managed to enter the capital at the same time as the British formations.

Fulfilling Hitler's demand - to pin down as many British troops as possible in Northeast Africa - the Italian command continued hostilities even after the surrender of Addis Ababa. Defense lines of the Italian troops that survived the defeat were created in the most inaccessible mountainous regions of the country: in the north - near Gondar, in the northeast - in Dessie and Amba Alagi, and in the southwest - in the province of Gallo Sidamo.

The capture of the last defensive lines of the Italian units was entrusted to the African troops of England - the 11th and 12th divisions, the Sudanese and Congolese units, the regular and partisan forces of Ethiopia. At the end of April, the siege of the Italian fortifications near Amba-Alagi began. At the cost of heavy losses, the enemy defense was broken. On May 20, 1941, the Italian troops, led by the Duke of Aosta, capitulated. The fighting was fierce in the province of Gallo Sidamo, where during the offensive of the 11th division from the north, from Addis Ababa, and the 12th division -

1 V. Yagya. Ethiopia in 1941 - 1945 The history of the struggle for the strengthening of political independence. M., 1969, pp. 29 - 33; Ethiopia Observer, 1968, no. 2, p. 115.

2 N. M o u s e - V a g t 1 e t t. The King's African Rifles, p. 505; A. Haywood, F. Clarke. The History of the Boyal West African Frontier Forces. Aldershot, 1 "64, D. 335; "Ethiopia Observer", 1968, No. 2, p 119.

from the south, from Kenya, African troops covered 640 km, captured 25,000 prisoners and a large amount of military equipment1.

The widespread use of African troops in operations, which were actively supported by the local population, which raised an uprising against the Italian invaders in Ethiopia and Somalia, allowed the British command in difficult mountainous conditions to defeat the enemy army, which, according to British experts, was stronger than Graziani's troops in Libya .

The operational-strategic and political results of the operation of the Allied forces in Northeast Africa turned out to be more significant than the British command had expected. Thanks to the auxiliary strike of the patriotic forces through Western Ethiopia and the active actions of the partisans in the rear of the Italian troops, the Allies managed to carry out a deep bilateral coverage of the Italian grouping and defeat it with little loss for themselves.

An important political result of this operation was that, as a result of the active participation of the people of Ethiopia in the war, the prerequisites were formed for launching a struggle to restore the independence of the Ethiopian state against British imperialism, which was striving to take the place of the Italian colonialists in Ethiopia. The victories of the British armed forces, the troops of the "Free French" and the Belgian Congo over the fascist aggressors in North and Northeast Africa were the first and only at this stage of the Second World War. On February 11, 1941, the British Defense Committee decided to stop the advancing British troops in Libya near El Agheila. Instead of completely driving the enemy out of North Africa, the British ruling circles decided to take advantage of the defeat that the Italian troops suffered in Greece at that moment and create a strategic base there in order to then put the entire Balkan Peninsula under their control.

The termination of the successful offensive at El Agheila and the transfer of the most combat-ready British units from Egypt to Greece saved Graziani's troops from complete defeat, and the Italian government from the loss of North Africa.

The defeat of the Italian armed forces in Africa greatly worried the Nazis. At the beginning of 1941, the Nazi German leadership began to transfer to North Africa (in Tripoli) its expeditionary forces (the Afrika Korps under the command of General E. Rommel) consisting of two divisions: tank and light infantry, as well as units of front-line aviation. Two new Italian divisions were also sent here: tank and infantry. The leadership of the Italian troops (instead of the dismissed Marshal Graziani) was taken by the commander of the 5th Italian army, General Gariboldi.

At the end of March, the Italo-German troops, two armored and one infantry divisions, went on the offensive. For the British command, it turned out to be unexpected. Within fifteen days, the British troops - two weakened divisions and one brigade - withdrew to the Egyptian border, leaving a garrison of up to one and a half divisions blocked by the Italo-German forces in Tobruk.

Italo-German troops, especially tank and air forces, were not enough to complete the operation undertaken on Rommel's initiative and reach Cairo. But the Nazi command refused to send additional forces to Africa, since at that time full swing was preparing Nazi Germany to attack the Soviet Union.

1 N. Moyse-Bartlett. The King's African Rifles, p. 553. 154

On June 21, 1941, Hitler told Mussolini: "An attack on Egypt is out of the question until autumn." This saved the British army "Nile" in 1941 from complete defeat, and England from the loss of Egypt and the Suez Canal. The front line in North Africa temporarily stabilized near the Libyan-Egyptian border.

World War II. 1939–1945 Story great war Shefov Nikolai Alexandrovich

Africa is losing Africa

Africa is losing Africa

As defensive battles raged at Stalingrad and around Guadalcanal, a turning point was also brewing in the North African theater of operations. With access to the approaches to Alexandria, the Italian-German grouping "Africa" ​​under the command of Field Marshal Rommel was unable to break through the British positions at El Alamein and went on the defensive. She could not continue the offensive, as she needed to be replenished with personnel, military equipment, weapons, ammunition, and fuel. However, due to heavy fighting on the Soviet-German front, the German leadership could only send a small amount of weapons and equipment to Africa.

And even those few transports sent from Italian ports to North Africa were subjected to continuous attacks by Anglo-American aircraft. During September, only 2/3 of Italian ships reached their destination through the Mediterranean Sea, in October - only a third, and not a single tanker. In addition, the difficulties of supplying Rommel's army were exacerbated by the great stretch of its communications. Thus, the distance from the nearest ports of unloading to the troops was hundreds of kilometers. On these deserted roads, English planes also waited in the air for transports.

Meanwhile, the British 8th Army (commanded by General B. Montgomery) through the Suez Canal freely received people and military equipment. She built up her power, preparing for a counteroffensive, which was planned to begin in the second half of October 1942. Even before the start of the British offensive, Rommel handed over the command of the Army "Africa" ​​to General von Stumme and left for Berlin. On the eve of the offensive, the British troops had an almost threefold superiority in personnel. They had 2.5 times more tanks and 4 times more planes. With such forces, Montgomery could seriously count on success.

On October 23, 1942, after a three-day preliminary aviation and 20-minute artillery preparation, the British troops went on the long-awaited offensive. However, despite the overwhelming superiority in the breakthrough areas, the British failed to achieve quick success. The positions of "Afrika" were fortified in advance, and its soldiers fought with enviable tenacity. The breakthrough resulted in a slow gnaw through of the Italo-German defense. The plan of General Montgomery to launch a diversionary strike in the south, and then quickly break through the northern part of the position and bring tank formations into the gap, failed. The advance of the British was stopped in the depths of the main line of defense.

On the evening of October 25, Rommel arrived at the German troops, who interrupted his vacation and again took command instead of Stumme, who died on the very first day of the offensive. By counterattacking the reserves located behind the northern flank, as well as pulled from the south, Rommel managed to limit the deep penetration of the British for several days. On October 27, Montgomery was forced to withdraw his tank formations to the rear in order to put them in order and regroup forces. The British infantry divisions suffered heavy losses, three hundred tanks were put out of action.

But the position of "Africa" ​​was much worse. She suffered no less losses, which, in the conditions of the general superiority of the British, were catastrophic. German gasoline supplies were running out. The planes remaining at Rommel selflessly tried to impede the actions of the attackers, but were driven away by superior forces of British aviation and barrage of anti-aircraft guns.

Despite the withdrawal of part of the British forces to the rear, the fighting continued. In the coastal sector, success accompanied the 9th Australian Division, which surrounded the formations of the 90th Light Brigade and threatened to break through its defenses. To rectify the situation, Rommel threw the last tank reserve here on October 28. Fighting here continued until November 1. On the same day, Montgomery completed the regrouping of forces.

In a letter to his wife dated October 29, Rommel wrote: “I have little hope left. At night I lie wide open eyes and I can not sleep from heavy thoughts. During the day I feel deadly tired. What happens if things go wrong here? This thought torments me day and night. If that happens, I don't see any way out."

At dawn on November 2, the British troops launched a new offensive. Now they struck the main blow on the Italian sector of the front, where the British commander hoped to meet less stubborn resistance. This "knockout" blow, called Operation Overattack, lasted until November 4th. A large number of tanks thrown forward, at the cost of heavy losses, overcame the last minefields. With the blows of a tank, aviation and artillery hammer, Montgomery methodically destroyed the positions of Africa. Rommel's forces were dwindling, and there was nowhere to find support for them.

The British gradually defeated the Italian infantry divisions and wedged into the German defenses. The Germans were no longer able to eliminate these wedgings. They had only 35–40 combat-ready tanks left. Then Rommel, despite Hitler's order to "keep to the end", ordered his troops to retreat. The continuation of the massacre threatened "Africa" ​​with complete destruction. During the battle of El Alamein, the Italian-German troops lost 55 thousand people. (of which more than 30 thousand prisoners), 320 tanks and more than 1 thousand guns. British troops - 13 thousand people. and 432 tanks. The British victory at El Alamein changed the situation in North Africa and the Mediterranean in favor of the Allies.

Montgomery had a golden opportunity to cut off and destroy the remnants of the Afrika. However, the British commander acted too cautiously and did not vigorously pursue Rommel's troops, who retreated west almost nonstop. On the night of November 12-13, the British occupied Tobruk.

Although Rommel successfully evaded attempts to cut off his escape route, his troops were too weak to create a serious line of defense in Cyrenaica. The real fighting forces of "Africa" ​​at that moment consisted of about 5 thousand Germans and 2.5 thousand Italians. They had 22 tanks and 70 guns.

However, the British did not particularly annoy the retreating. Montgomery's offensive was more of a follow-up than a pursuit. The English commander sought to avoid unnecessary losses and cared more about establishing his sprawling communications. Yes, and the glory of Rommel, coupled with his unexpected counterattacks, created a proper halo, which served as an additional protective belt for the veterans of the North African campaign.

On November 20, 1942, the British entered Benghazi, having covered 850 km in fourteen days. A day earlier, in the Volga and Don steppes, a fateful counteroffensive began. Soviet troops near Stalingrad. Rommel, meanwhile, withdrew to his old positions at Ghasr el Brega. Montgomery was in no hurry with the assault. His army was greatly stretched. It took time to concentrate, which took several weeks. The supply through Tripoli somewhat increased Rommel's forces, but not enough to successfully resist Montgomery, who was growing stronger every day.

On December 11, British aviation began to bombard the positions of the Italo-German troops, and three days later Montgomery went on the offensive with three divisions (difficulties with transportation did not allow the use of large forces so far). Two of them advanced frontally, and one (tank) took a deep detour. Fierce fighting ensued, and the German rearguard units escaped encirclement only thanks to a successful counterattack. But the position at Gasr el Brega had to be abandoned.

Again there was a long pause before the British army deployed in front of Rommel's new position at Buerat el-Hsun. She covered the approaches to the capital of Libya - Tripoli. On January 18, the British launched an offensive, again combining a frontal attack with a detour. Then Rommel continued to retreat, leaving the capital of the Italian colony to its fate. On January 23, the British entered Tripoli. With the loss of the Libyan capital, the Italians lost the remnants of their colonial empire in Africa, which they had worked so hard to create for half a century.

However, the German commander was far from the experiences of the Italian leadership and was not going to lay down the heads of German soldiers for the sake of prolonging for some moment the imperial illusions of his allies. He was concerned about more pressing issues. He sought to quickly withdraw to Tunisia to the new equipped positions of the French fortified zone in Maretta. It had a length of 35 km, in the northeast it adjoined the sea, and in the southwest - to the mountains of Ksur (up to 800 m high), impassable for wheeled vehicles.

But, despite all the efforts of Rommel, the last hour of his "Africa" ​​has already struck. Anglo-American troops were inexorably advancing on the German positions in Tunisia from the west. The Allied offensive in French North Africa was carried out on the basis of an agreement between Great Britain and the United States on joint actions in this region. In the days when Montgomery launched an offensive near El Alamein, sea transports with Allied troops left the English ports.

They were to land on the coast of the French colonies in North Africa, from Casablanca to Algiers. The total number of troops landed on the coast at the same time exceeded 100 thousand people. It was the largest landing operation up to that time. She received the name "Torch" ("Torch"). General command landing troops carried out by the American General D. Eisenhower.

Of great importance for the success of the operation was the position of the 200,000-strong French army in North Africa, which was subordinate to the Vichy government. Neither Oran nor Syria were forgotten here, when the British sank French ships and killed French soldiers for their own interests. Therefore, it was planned to conduct the operation as if it were a matter of landing exclusively American troops. "Torch" was prepared in the strictest confidence. In the interests of security, the Allies did not even inform the Free French of their plans.

The Allied invasion came as a complete surprise to the uninitiated and achieved its goal. November 8, 1942 there was a simultaneous landing in the area of ​​Oran, Algiers and Casablanca. At 10 o'clock in the morning, American President Roosevelt spoke on the radio. He reassured the French that the Americans were not seeking territory and encouraged them to cooperate.

In Algiers, the landing went almost unhindered. At Oran, the French capitulated after three days of fierce fighting. In Casablanca, French naval forces resisted for 2 days. At this time, the commander of the Vichy troops, Admiral J. Darlan, went over to the Allied side and on November 10 ordered all French units in Africa to stop resistance. The way for the allies to Tunisia was opened, and Rommel, who was then still in distant Cyrenaica, found himself "between two fires." During the landing, the losses of the allies amounted to about 4.5 thousand people.

At the news of the landing of the Allies in North Africa, Hitler, who no longer harbored hopes of involving Vichy France in his defense system, ordered its occupation. German troops quickly took over Southern France, and six Italian divisions entered it from the east. The German invasion of southern France only served to strengthen the position of the Allies in Africa, as it shocked the local French commanders. From that moment on, the Allied advance in North Africa was unopposed. Moreover, the 200,000-strong French contingent here went over to their side. With the news of the German invasion, the French sailors also managed to sink the part of the fleet remaining in Toulon Bay, which could be a good help for the Axis countries at this stage of the struggle in the Mediterranean.

Nevertheless, determined to defend North Africa to the end, Hitler acted quickly and vigorously. He immediately ordered the transfer of additional troops to Tunisia. Already on November 9, German aircraft with military personnel began to arrive in Tunisia. Since November 11, the scale of airlift has increased to 1 thousand people a day. The neighboring French units were disarmed, and tanks, guns, vehicles and ammunition began to flow into the Tunisian port of Bizerte by sea. By the end of the month, 15,000 German and about 9,000 Italian soldiers arrived, as well as about 100 tanks.

When the advanced units of the Allies entered Tunisia from the west towards the end of November, they met organized resistance there. Their advance stalled, and American hopes of wresting Rommel's last supply line in Tunisia were dashed. The front has stabilized. From the German-Italian units transferred to North Africa, the 5th Panzer Army was created under the command of General Yu. Arnim. It was later merged with Rommel's forces into Army Group Africa. Eisenhower lost the race with the Germans for Tunisia. Although this was an undoubted success for Germany, it only delayed and even exacerbated the unfavorable finale for her in North Africa.

Until February 1943, both sides refrained from decisive action, building up forces. Ironically, Rommel received significant reinforcements at the very moment when they could no longer decide anything radically. By early February, the Italo-German forces in Tunisia had grown to 100,000 (74,000 Germans and 26,000 Italians). The total number of tanks was 280 vehicles.

However, the Italo-German positions, stretched from north to south for almost 500 km, were extremely vulnerable. With a strike from the west, the Allies could easily split the Italo-German positions in two, cutting off the southern grouping on the Marett Line from the 5th Army of Arnim stationed in the north.

For this reason, but mainly in order to strike the enemy in the west with a heavy and if possible crushing blow, before Montgomery on the other side of the front accumulated forces to a dangerous concentration, Rommel launched an offensive against the Eisenhower group. Having made a risky maneuver, the German commander withdrew part of the troops from the Marett line and attacked the American positions in the Faid area with the main forces.

On February 14, German tanks broke through the defenses of the American recruits. They could not resist the blow of the German veterans tested in battles and retreated, having lost about 4 thousand people. (of which more than half were captured) and about 100 tanks. Then Rommel's forces fought their way through the Kasserine Pass in order to enter the rear of the Allied positions from the south. On February 20, their situation became so threatening that Montgomery was ordered to immediately launch a diversionary strike on the Marette Line. During the strike of Montgomery's 8th Army, the German troops, who were still defending in front of the Marette Line, were driven back to this line. At the same time, Rommel's troops met with ever-increasing resistance from superior Allied forces. The blow from the north, from the side of the 5th German army of Arnim, was late. All this predetermined the failure of Rommel's February offensive.

The German field marshal withdrew his units back to the Maretta line, from where on March 6 he tried to strike at Montgomery's 8th Army. But the British repelled the onslaught, inflicting heavy losses on the attackers, especially in technology. After the failure of his last offensive, on March 9, Rommel, citing ill health, handed over the command of "Africa" ​​to Arnim and flew to Europe. The field marshal hoped to convince Mussolini and Hitler of the need to evacuate troops from Africa before it was too late, but was actually removed from command of Army Group Africa.

In mid-March, the Allies outnumbered the Italo-German troops in infantry - twice, in artillery - three times, in tanks - four times. On March 20, 1943, the British 8th Army launched an assault on the Marett Line. The fate of this stubborn battle was largely decided by the New Zealand Corps bypassing the Italian-German positions from the south. To avoid encirclement, the Italo-German troops abandoned this position on 27 March.

Successfully conducting rearguard battles and delaying the Anglo-American units at intermediate lines, the southern part of "Afrika" retreated to the north.

On April 13, she approached units of the 5th tank army. After the unification, the Italo-German troops occupied a bridgehead in the Bizerte-Tunis region. It had 130 km from north to south, and 60 km from west to east. On this bridgehead, the last stage of the struggle of the Axis powers on the African continent unfolded.

By that time, the Allies had a 300,000-strong grouping at the front with 3,000 aircraft that had complete air supremacy, as well as 1,100 tanks and about 2,000 guns. Against them, the Italo-German troops could put up only 120 tanks and 500 guns. According to Allied intelligence, the total number of combat-ready German divisions was no more than 60 thousand people.

Despite this superiority, the offensive launched by the Allies on April 22 did not develop as planned. The Germans stubbornly defended themselves and held the front for two weeks. Meanwhile, their resources were rapidly running out. Due to the complete dominance of Allied aviation in the sky, the supply of goods to Tunisia for the Italo-German troops almost completely stopped.

After regrouping, the allied command delivered a powerful blow on May 6 on a narrow sector of the front near Mejez el-Bab. Anglo-American troops broke through the front and occupied Tunisia and Bizerte the very next day. The remnants of the Italian-German group retreated to Cape Bon. Deprived of the opportunity to evacuate by sea, they capitulated here on May 13, 1943. Up to 240 thousand people surrendered to captivity. (including 125 thousand Germans).

The total losses of the Italo-German troops in the Tunisian campaign amounted to 300 thousand people. The Allies lost 70 thousand people. In general, the struggle for North Africa cost the Axis countries 620 thousand people. (of which a third are Germans). It cost the Allies 260 thousand people. (of which: the British lost 220 thousand people, the French - 20 thousand people, the Americans - 18.5 thousand people).

For Germany, the loss of North Africa was the second major defeat after Stalingrad. The main reason for the failure of Hitler and Mussolini in North Africa, as well as before Napoleon in Egypt, was the lack of reliable sea communications and a powerful navy. The loss by the Axis countries of their southern outpost and the liquidation of their main grouping in Tunisia opened the way for the Allies to invade Italy.