Battle of Alam el Halfa

1942 CE.

Shown on the map at 30.667°, 29.167°.

The Battle of Alam el Halfa took place between 30 August and 5 September 1942 south of El Alamein during the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War. Panzerarmee Afrika (Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel), attempted an envelopment of the British Eighth Army (Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery). In Unternehmen Brandung (Operation Surf), the last big Axis offensive of the Western Desert Campaign, Rommel intended to defeat the Eighth Army before Allied reinforcements arrived. Montgomery knew of Axis intentions through Ultra signals intercepts and left a gap in the southern sector of the front, knowing that Rommel planned to attack there. The bulk of the British armour and artillery was dug in around Alam el Halfa Ridge, 20 mi (32 km) behind the front. Unlike in previous engagements, Montgomery ordered that the tanks were to be used as anti-tank guns, remaining in their defensive positions on the ridge. When the Axis attacks on the ridge failed and short on supplies, Rommel ordered a withdrawal.

Text from the Wikipedia article Battle of Alam el Halfa, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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