North African campaign

The North African Campaign , also known as the Desert War , of World War II took place in the North African desert during 1940 - 1943 . The fighting in this region began with Italian attacks on British occupied areas. Following the terrible reverses suffered by the Italians, the German Afrika Korps came to their assistance. Following a back-and-forth control of Libya and parts of Egypt ; Commonwealth forces eventually pushed the Axis Powers back to Tunisia . Landings in north west Africa by United States and British forces in 1943 pincered the Axis forces and drove them out. During the period from 1940-1943, this was the only theatre in which the Western Allies were able to engage German and Italian ground forces.

During the Second World War , the North African Campaign took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 16 May 1943. It included campaigns fought in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts ( Western Desert Campaign also known as the Desert War) and in Morocco and Algeria ( Operation Torch ) and Tunisia ( Tunisia Campaign ). The campaign was fought between the Allies and Axis powers . The Allied war effort was dominated by the British Commonwealth and exiles from German–occupied Europe . The United States entered the war in 1941 and began direct military assistance in North Africa, on 11 May 1942. Fighting in North Africa started with the Italian declaration of war on 10 June 1940. On 14 June, the British Army 's 11th Hussars (assisted by elements of the 1st Royal Tank Regiment ) crossed the border into Libya and captured the Italian Fort Capuzzo . This was followed by an Italian offensive into Egypt and the capture of Sidi Barrani in September 1940 and then in December 1940 by a Commonwealth counteroffensive, Operation Compass . During Operation Compass, the Italian Tenth Army was destroyed and the German Afrika Korps , commanded by Field Marshal Erwin Rommel , was dispatched to North Africa, during Operation Sonnenblume , to bolster the Italian forces and prevent a complete Axis defeat. A back-and-forth series of battles for control of Libya and parts of Egypt followed, climaxing in the Second Battle of El Alamein when British Commonwealth forces under the command of Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery , delivered a decisive defeat to the Axis forces and pushed the Axis forces back to Tunisia . Following the Allied landings in North West Africa, Operation Torch , in late 1942 under the command of General Dwight Eisenhower , and after Allied battles against Vichy France forces (which subsequently joined the Allies), the combined Allied forces encircled the Axis forces in northern Tunisia and forced their surrender. By making the Axis powers fight on a second front in North Africa, the Western Allies provided some relief to the Soviet Union fighting the Axis on the Eastern Front . Information learned from the British Ultra codebreaking operation was a major contributor to Allied success in the North African campaign. United States losses from 12 November 1942 Feldgrau website.

During the Second World War , the North African Campaign took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943. It included campaigns fought in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts ( Western Desert Campaign , also known as the Desert War) and in Morocco and Algeria ( Operation Torch ) and Tunisia ( Tunisia Campaign ). The campaign was fought between the Allies and Axis powers , many of whom had colonial interests in Africa dating from the late 19th century. The Allied war effort was dominated by the British Commonwealth and exiles from German-occupied Europe . The United States entered the war in 1941 and began direct military assistance in North Africa on 11 May 1942. Fighting in North Africa started with the Italian declaration of war on 10 June 1940. On 14 June, the British Army 's 11th Hussars (assisted by elements of the 1st Royal Tank Regiment , 1st RTR) crossed the border from Egypt into Libya and captured the Italian Fort Capuzzo . This was followed by an Italian counteroffensive into Egypt and the capture of Sidi Barrani in September 1940 and then in December 1940 by a Commonwealth counteroffensive, Operation Compass . During Operation Compass, the Italian 10th Army was destroyed and the German Afrika Korps —commanded by Erwin Rommel —was dispatched to North Africa—during Operation Sonnenblume —to reinforce Italian forces in order to prevent a complete Axis defeat. A see-saw series of battles for control of Libya and parts of Egypt followed, reaching a climax in the Second Battle of El Alamein when British Commonwealth forces under the command of Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery delivered a decisive defeat to the Axis forces and pushed them back to Tunisia . After the late 1942 Allied Operation Torch landings in North-West Africa, and subsequent battles against Vichy France forces (who then changed sides), the Allies finally encircled Axis forces in northern Tunisia and forced their surrender. Operation Torch in November 1942 was a compromise operation that met the British objective of securing victory in North Africa while allowing American armed forces the opportunity to engage in the fight against Nazi Germany on a limited scale. In addition, as Josef Stalin had long been demanding a second front be opened to engage the Wehrmacht and relieve pressure on the Soviet armies, it provided some degree of relief for the Eastern front by diverting Axis forces to the African theatre, tying them up and destroying them there. Information gleaned via British Ultra code-breaking intelligence proved critical to Allied success in North Africa. Victory for the Allies in this campaign immediately led to the Italian Campaign , which culminated in the downfall of the fascist government in Italy and the elimination of a German ally. There are <ref group=nb> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a template (see the help page ).

Campaign of WWII fought in North Africa Not to be confused with military operations in North Africa during World War I . The North African campaign of the Second World War took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943. It included campaigns fought in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts ( Western Desert campaign , also known as the Desert War) and in Morocco and Algeria ( Operation Torch ), as well as Tunisia ( Tunisia campaign ). The campaign was fought between the Allies and the Axis Powers . The Allied war effort was dominated by the British Commonwealth and exiles from German-occupied Europe . The United States officially entered the war in December 1941 and began direct military assistance in North Africa on 11 May 1942. Fighting in North Africa started with the Italian declaration of war on 10 June 1940. On 14 June, the British Army 's 11th Hussars (assisted by elements of the 1st Royal Tank Regiment , 1st RTR) crossed the border from Egypt into Libya and captured the Italian Fort Capuzzo . This was followed by an Italian counter-offensive into Egypt and the capture of Sidi Barrani in September and its recapture by the British in December following a British Commonwealth counteroffensive, Operation Compass . During Operation Compass, the Italian 10th Army was destroyed and the German Afrika Korps —commanded by Erwin Rommel , who later became known as "The Desert Fox"—was dispatched to North Africa in February 1941 during Operation Sonnenblume to reinforce Italian forces in order to prevent a complete Axis defeat. A fluctuating series of battles for control of Libya and regions of Egypt followed, reaching a climax in the Second Battle of El Alamein in October 1942 when British Commonwealth forces under the command of Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery inflicted a decisive defeat on Rommel's Afrika Korps and forced its remnants into Tunisia. After the Anglo-American landings ( Operation Torch ) in North-West Africa in November 1942, and subsequent battles against Vichy France forces (who then changed sides), the Allies encircled several hundred thousand German and Italian personnel in northern Tunisia and finally forced their surrender in May 1943. Information gleaned via British Ultra code-breaking intelligence proved critical to Allied success in North Africa. Victory for the Allies in this campaign immediately led to the Italian campaign , which culminated in the downfall of the fascist government in Italy and the elimination of Germany's main European ally. The North Africa campaign saw numerous atrocities and abuses by both German and Italian forces towards prisoners of war and local Jewish , Berber , and Arab populations. Canadian Military History . 25 (2): 1– 27. United States losses from 12 November 1942. There are <ref group=nb> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a template (see the help page ).

Major military campaign of WWII fought in North Africa Not to be confused with Military operations in North Africa during World War I . The North African campaign of World War II took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943, fought between the Allies and the Axis Powers . It included campaigns in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts ( Western Desert campaign , Desert War), in Morocco and Algeria ( Operation Torch ), and in Tunisia ( Tunisia campaign ). The Allied war effort was dominated by the British Commonwealth and exiles from German-occupied Europe . The United States entered the war in December 1941 and began direct military assistance in North Africa on 11 May 1942. Fighting in North Africa started with the Italian declaration of war on 10 June 1940. On 14 June, the British 11th Hussars and part of the 1st Royal Tank Regiment , (1st RTR) crossed the border from Egypt into Libya and captured Fort Capuzzo . This was followed by an Italian counter-offensive into Egypt and the capture of Sidi Barrani in September. The British recaptured Sidi Barrani in December during Operation Compass . The Italian 10th Army was destroyed and the German Afrika Korps was dispatched to North Africa in February 1941 in Operation Sonnenblume to reinforce the Italians and prevent an Axis defeat. Battles for control of Libya and Egypt followed, with advances and retreats until the Second Battle of El Alamein in October 1942 when the Eighth Army (Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery ) defeated the German–Italian Panzerarmee Afrika and forced its remnants into Tunisia. After Operation Torch , the Anglo-American landings in North-West Africa in November 1942 and fighting against Vichy France forces (which then changed sides), the Allies trapped about 250,000 German and Italian personnel in northern Tunisia, forcing their surrender in May 1943. Information gleaned via British Ultra code-breaking was important in the Allied victory in North Africa. The Italian campaign followed, culminating in the downfall of the Fascist government in Italy and the elimination of Germany's main European ally. German and Italian forces committed atrocities against prisoners of war and Maghrebi Jews , Berbers and Arabs . United States losses from 12 November 1942. There are <ref group=nb> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a template (see the help page ).

Major military campaign of WWII fought in North Africa Not to be confused with Military operations in North Africa during World War I . The North African campaign of World War II took place in North Africa from 11 June 1940 to 13 May 1943, fought between the Allies and the Axis powers . It included campaigns in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts ( Western Desert campaign , Desert War), in Morocco and Algeria ( Operation Torch ), and in Tunisia ( Tunisia campaign ). The Allied war effort was dominated by the British Commonwealth and exiles from German-occupied Europe . The United States entered the war in December 1941 and began direct military assistance in North Africa on 11 May 1942. Fighting in North Africa started with the British raids on Italian Libya on 11 June 1940 after Italy's entry into the Second World War on the German side. On 14 June, the British 11th Hussars and part of the 1st Royal Tank Regiment , (1st RTR) crossed the border from Egypt into Libya and captured Fort Capuzzo . This was followed by an Italian counter-offensive into Egypt and the capture of Sidi Barrani in September. The British recaptured Sidi Barrani in December during Operation Compass . The Italian 10th Army was destroyed and the German Afrika Korps was dispatched to North Africa in February 1941 in Operation Sonnenblume to reinforce the Italians and prevent an Axis defeat. Battles for control of Libya and Egypt followed, with advances and retreats until the Second Battle of El Alamein in October 1942 when the Eighth Army (Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery ) defeated the German–Italian Panzerarmee Afrika and forced its remnants into Tunisia. After Operation Torch , the Anglo-American landings in North-West Africa in November 1942 and fighting against Vichy France forces (which then changed sides), the Allies trapped about 250,000 German and Italian personnel in northern Tunisia, forcing their surrender in May 1943. Information gleaned via British Ultra code-breaking was important in the Allied victory in North Africa. The Italian campaign followed, culminating in the downfall of the Fascist government in Italy and the elimination of Germany's main European ally. German and Italian forces committed atrocities against prisoners of war and Maghrebi Jews , Berbers and Arabs . United States losses from 12 November 1942. There are <ref group=nb> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a template (see the help page ).