1941 ⟶ Rommel Attacks Gazala Line, Tobruk Holds

Rommel attacks the Gazala defence line and crosses into Egyp...
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Year
1941
1942

🇩🇪 Rommel Attacks Gazala Line, Tobruk Holds

Rommel attacks the Gazala defence line and crosses into Egypt; Tobruk continues to hold however.⟶
North AfricaDesert WarRommelGazala LineTobrukAxisBritishEgyptMilitary CampaignAfrika Korps

🇩🇪 Rommel's Victory at Halfaya Pass

Rommel wins an important victory at Halfaya Pass, close to the Egyptian border.⟶
North AfricaDesert WarRommelAxisBritishEgyptMilitary VictoryTank WarfareAfrika Korps

🇩🇪 Rommel Halts Tobruk Offensive

Rommel is ordered to cease attacks on Tobruk after another failure.⟶
North AfricaDesert WarRommelTobrukAxisBritishEgyptMilitary CampaignAfrika KorpsFailed Offensive

🔄 Rommel Retreats and Tobruk Relieved

After his brief dash into Egypt, Rommel retreats to Bardia for refuelling; it is during this brief withdrawal that Tobruk is temporarily relieved when the 8th Army meets with the besieged garrison there.⟶
North AfricaTobrukBardiaDesert WarRommelMilitary StrategyAlliesAxis

⚔️ Rommel's Spring Offensive Begins at Gazala Line

Rommel begins a Spring offensive at the Gazala line (west of Tobruk). It opens with "Rommel's Moonlight Ride," a dramatic mechanized dash around 1st Free French Brigade Group positions at Bir Hakeim on the British left (desertward) flank, conducted by moonlight during the night of 26/27 May. In the process Rommel disperses 3rd Indian Motorized Brigade, some six hundred of whom are taken prisoner and then released in the desert, and who will make their way to Bir Hakeim. The offensive lasts well into June and ends with a total victory for Rommel.⟶
Rommel's Spring Offensive Begins at Gazala Line (1942)
North AfricaDesert WarAfrika KorpsMilitary OffensiveBattleTank WarfareBir HakeimRommelGazala Line

🪖 Rommel Attacks Bir Hachim

Rommel turns his troops to Bir Hachim on the south edge of the Gazala line; once it is taken, he can move north and destroy the Allied emplacements in the line.⟶
North AfricaDesert WarAfrika KorpsMilitary OffensiveBattleTank WarfareBir HakeimRommelGazala Line