The Battle of El Alamein

Floor Plan

Floor Plan

Introduction

The Battle of El Alamein was the turning point battle of World War Two in the southern front. It occured in late 1942 in El Alamein, Egypt. The battle led to allied success in North Africa by allowing additional allied forces to land in North Africa, boosting morale, and convincing the French to join the war effort. Early campaigns in North Africa left the axis troops led by Erwin Rommel stopped at El Alamein. After receiving reinforcements and General Montgomery, the allied forces began the Battle of El Alamein on October 23, 1942. The battle lasted until November 11, 1942. General Montgomery used a simple war tactic to take advantage of his superior equipment and soldiers, and crumble the axis forces. This was the first clear cut win for the allies, and boosted morale in the British army. In addition, it convinced the French army to join the allied campaign in North Africa. This decisive victory also allowed allied troops to land safely in North Africa. From this point forward, axis troops had no chance of victory in North Africa and no chance of reaching the Suez Canal and the Middle East. Axis forces were pushed back into Italy, and the allies had turned the tide in the southern front.

Early Campaigns

This artifact explains the events leading up to the Battle of El Alamein, and sets the stage for the most important battle on the southern front. To summarize the main events described in the transcript of the interactive map:

1940: The British forces capture the port of Tobruk in Libya.

1941: Hitler sends Africa Korps who drive the allies back to Egypt.

1942: Rommel recaptured Tobruk but is halted at El Alamein.

August 1942: General Montgomery arrives.

General Montgomery

Interactive

Imagine you are a British Soldier fighting in North Africa.

Would you like General Montgomery's leadership style and personality?

General Montgomery

In this comment from a fellow soldier on General Montgomery, he is described as cold, rigid, and arrogant. He is unreceptive, and has a simple approach to war. Although these traits may have made him an unlikeable person, they allowed him to be very successful and earn the respect of fellow soldiers and war opponents.

Attrition in Afrika Korps

This quote shows the harsh, unrelenting war strategy of the allies, and the devastation it caused in the German forces.

"The battle is going very heavily against us. We're being crushed by the enemy weight... We are facing very difficult days, perhaps the most difficult that a man can undergo." - Erwin Rommel (11-2-1942)

Operation Supercharge

The Battle

This description of the final phase of the battle and the surrender of the German army explains the tactic used by General Montgomery and how it was successful in forcing Rommel to withdraw his troops.

"On the night of 1 November, Montgomery launched the second phase of his attack, Operation Supercharge, which was designed to break through the last part of the German defences. The infantry units cleared the way for the armoured divisions, and Rommel, his army depleted and his petrol almost finished, decided the battle was lost.

At midday on 4 November, Rommel's last defences caved in and that evening he received orders from Hitler to withdraw."

Morale Boost

This is an image of German prisoners of war taken after the Battle of El Alamein. The battle of El Alamein was one of the first clear allied victories, as shown by the evidence of German soldiers being taken as prisoners. This decisive victory was vital in re-establishing morale in tired and hopeless British soldiers.

Morale Boost

The French

German prisoners of war under guard by a signpost to El Alamein, 1942

In addition to boosting morale, the surrender of the German forces at El Alamein convinced the French army to join the allied campaign in North Africa.

Operation Torch

The victory at El Alamein allowed additional allied troops to land safely in North Africa and force the German army in North Africa to fight on two fronts. This is a picture of a division of troops that landed in North Africa after the battle of El Alamein. These new troops that landed in 1943 put the axis troops in an impossible position in North Africa. Even though Hitler sent more troops to aid them, they were forced to surrender in May. In total, the German army lost around 240,000 troops that became prisoners of war.

Operation Torch

4th Indian Division in action, April 1943

The Aftermath - So What?

"Before Alamein we never had a victory, after Alamein we never had a defeat." - Winston Churchill

Aftermath of El Alamein and North Africa

This comment from Winston Churchill effectively illustrates the importance of The Battle of El Alamein. The Battle of El Alamein turned the tide of war in the southern front, and World War Two in general. It cut off the German army from oil and supplies in the Middle East, and eventually forced the Germans in Europe to fight a war on multiple fronts.

Works Cited

4th Indian Division in action, April 1943. National Army Museum, Apr. 1943, collection.nam.ac.uk/detail.php?acc=1992-08-37-21. Accessed 7 Apr. 2021.

"Crumbling." National Army Museum, www.nam.ac.uk/explore/battle-alamein. Accessed 7 Apr. 2021.

German prisoners of war under guard by a signpost to El Alamein, 1942. 1942. National Army Museum, collection.nam.ac.uk/detail.php?acc=2008-12-200-80. Accessed 7 Apr. 2021.

"How El Alamein changed the war." BBC NEWS, 23 Oct. 2002, news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/2347801.stm. Accessed 7 Apr. 2021.

"Map of the Med & N.Africa 1940-1945." National Archives, www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/worldwar2/theatres-of-war/mediterranean/1939/. Accessed 7 Apr. 2021.

"Second Battle of El Alamein." BBC, 2014, www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/ff5_second_alamein.shtml. Accessed 7 Apr. 2021.

"WHAT KIND OF MAN WAS FIELD MARSHAL MONTGOMERY?" National Archives, www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/worldwar2/theatre-assets/mediterranean/pdf/m-monty-task.pdf. Accessed 7 Apr. 2021.