1942 ⟶ British Begin Withdrawal from Gazala Line
At the Gazala Line, the British position has become untenabl...
Year
1941
1942
🌵 Afrika Korps Advances to El Agheila
Afrika Korps starts to move eastward towards the advance British positions at El Agheila. The British in North Africa have been weakened by the transfer of some troops to Greece.⟶
North AfricaAfrika KorpsEl AgheilaMilitary CampaignDesert WarBritish ArmyMilitary Strategy
↩️ British Begin Withdrawal from Gazala Line
At the Gazala Line, the British position has become untenable, and General Auchinleck authorizes General Ritchie to make a concerted withdrawal from forward positions along the line.⟶
North AfricaGazalawithdrawalDesert WarBritish Armymilitary strategytactical retreat
🇬🇧 British Deploy Sherman Tanks at Gazala Line
British use American Sherman tanks in attempts to stop Rommel's attacks on the Gazala line.⟶
North AfricaGazala LineTank WarfareBritish ArmyAmerican EquipmentMilitary TechnologyBattle of GazalaRommel
⚔️ Battle of Gazala: British Counter-Attack Fails
At Gazala, British forces of the Eighth Army commanded by General Ritchie launch a major counter-attack against Rommel's forces in the Cauldron. The attack fails, partly because Rommel has already recovered his critical logistics situation and has established an excellent defensive position, but also in large part due to German anti-tank tactics; 32nd Army Tank Brigade, for example, loses 50 of 70 tanks. By early afternoon Rommel is clearly in control of the situation and attacks the British position known as "Knightsbridge" with the Ariete and 21st Panzer divisions. Several British tactical headquarters positions are overrun and command and control of the British forces becomes problematic; as a result, several brigades are stranded in the Cauldron when the British retirement begins. In addition, the British suffer further heavy tank losses.⟶
North AfricaBattle of GazalaEighth ArmyRommelTank BattleGerman ArmyBritish ArmyDesert WarfareMilitary Strategy
🛡️ British Forced Out of Knightsbridge
At Gazala, the British are forced out of the defensive position known as 'Knightsbridge;' it is only approximately fifteen miles from the Tobruk perimeter (some sources give a date of 13 June for this; the withdrawal may have been in operation on both calendar days).⟶
North AfricaGazalabattlesDesert WarBritish Armyarmored warfaremilitary tactics
💣 'Black Saturday' at Gazala
'Black Saturday' for the 8th Army at the Battle of Gazala; during the course of the day Rommel does great damage to the British armour. At the end of the day not only have unsustainably large amounts of British armour been destroyed, but both 50th Division and 1st South African Division, who have largely retained their forward positions along the Gazala Line, are threatened with envelopment. The position of 50th Division is especially grave since Rommel's armour now ranges freely between them and safety.⟶
North AfricaGazalabattlesDesert WarRommelarmored warfareBritish Armytank battle