Difference between revisions of "Tunisian Campaign"
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| − | The Tunisian Campaign consisted of a series of battles that took place between November 1942 and May 1943. The Axis forces, often called the ''Panzer Armee Afrika'', consisted of German and Italian units and were led by Field Marshal Erwin Rommel and General Giovanni Messe. In November, [[Operation Torch]] brought in 125,000 American and British forces in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia and joined the attack, hoping to | + | The Tunisian Campaign consisted of a series of battles that took place between November 1942 and May 1943. The Axis forces, often called the ''Panzer Armee Afrika'', consisted of German and Italian units and were led by Field Marshal Erwin Rommel and General Giovanni Messe. In November, [[Operation Torch]] brought in 125,000 American and British forces in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia and joined the attack, hoping to capture Tunis and Bizerte before the Germans and Italians could send reinforcments into Tunisia. The Allies consisted of American, British, New Zealand and Free French forces and were led by Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery and Generals George Patton and Bernard Freyberg. |
Initially, the Axis forces under Field Marshal Erwin Rommel succeeded in defeating the Allies quickly in the Tunisian Campaign, driving Allied forces back 50 miles through the Kasserine Pass and capturing 4,000 Allied soldiers<ref>"They had captured 4,026 prisoners, 61 tanks and half-tracks, 161 motorized vehicles, 36 guns, 45 tons of ammunition, and huge amounts of fuel, lubricants and other equipment." Blitzkrieg No Longer, Samuel Mitcham, Pen and Sword, 2010</ref>in the attack lead by the Italian ''Littorio'' Armoured Division. | Initially, the Axis forces under Field Marshal Erwin Rommel succeeded in defeating the Allies quickly in the Tunisian Campaign, driving Allied forces back 50 miles through the Kasserine Pass and capturing 4,000 Allied soldiers<ref>"They had captured 4,026 prisoners, 61 tanks and half-tracks, 161 motorized vehicles, 36 guns, 45 tons of ammunition, and huge amounts of fuel, lubricants and other equipment." Blitzkrieg No Longer, Samuel Mitcham, Pen and Sword, 2010</ref>in the attack lead by the Italian ''Littorio'' Armoured Division. | ||
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| + | With Ninth and Twelfth Air Forces in the battle, the Allies drove the Germans and Italians back into a pocket around Bizerte and Tunis, where Axis forces surrendered in May | ||
On May 13th, over 275,000 prisoners were in Allied custody, thus bringing and end to the Battle of Tunisia. | On May 13th, over 275,000 prisoners were in Allied custody, thus bringing and end to the Battle of Tunisia. | ||
Revision as of 05:46, September 16, 2016
The Tunisian Campaign consisted of a series of battles that took place between November 1942 and May 1943. The Axis forces, often called the Panzer Armee Afrika, consisted of German and Italian units and were led by Field Marshal Erwin Rommel and General Giovanni Messe. In November, Operation Torch brought in 125,000 American and British forces in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia and joined the attack, hoping to capture Tunis and Bizerte before the Germans and Italians could send reinforcments into Tunisia. The Allies consisted of American, British, New Zealand and Free French forces and were led by Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery and Generals George Patton and Bernard Freyberg.
Initially, the Axis forces under Field Marshal Erwin Rommel succeeded in defeating the Allies quickly in the Tunisian Campaign, driving Allied forces back 50 miles through the Kasserine Pass and capturing 4,000 Allied soldiers[1]in the attack lead by the Italian Littorio Armoured Division.
With Ninth and Twelfth Air Forces in the battle, the Allies drove the Germans and Italians back into a pocket around Bizerte and Tunis, where Axis forces surrendered in May
On May 13th, over 275,000 prisoners were in Allied custody, thus bringing and end to the Battle of Tunisia.
Kasseerine Pass
n February 19th, Rommel attacked the U.S. 2nd Army Corps defending Kassarine Pass. The plan was for the Panzer Armee Afrika to get to Tebessa and Thala. Rommel sent the 5th Bersaglieri Regiment Battalion into the pass to fight Colonel Anderson Moore's 19th Combat Engineer Regiment defending the pass. The Germans were not able to advance through the Sbiba Pass but did manage to exploit Italian success through Kassarine Pass. German battlegroups tried to press on to Thala and Tebessa but were stopped in fierce fighting. Rommel was satisfied that he had managed to cause a significant amount of damage and casualties to the Allied forces, so he decided to withdraw his troops back to their startlines, covered by Bersaglieri. The damage done to the Allies was disastrous, but this was not a complete Axis victory for the Germans were unable to reach Thala and Tebessa.
Gradually, after much hard fighting, the 1st Army advancing from the west and the 8th Army advancing from the south pushed the Axis forces into a pocket around Tunis.
Notes
- ↑ "They had captured 4,026 prisoners, 61 tanks and half-tracks, 161 motorized vehicles, 36 guns, 45 tons of ammunition, and huge amounts of fuel, lubricants and other equipment." Blitzkrieg No Longer, Samuel Mitcham, Pen and Sword, 2010
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