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Military commentators on the North African Campaign, in general focus on the actions of General Erwin Rommel who was an acknowledged master of maneuver. His [[Afrika Korps]] became legendary, so much so that in many accounts of the fighting, Italians seem relegated to support roles and they were much depreciated in the Allied Official Histories of the war.

Military commentators on the North African Campaign, in general focus on the actions of General Erwin Rommel who was an acknowledged master of maneuver. His [[Afrika Korps]] became legendary, so much so that in many accounts of the fighting, Italians seem relegated to support roles and they were much depreciated in the Allied Official Histories of the war.

During [[Operation Compass]], the British commanders were able to capitalize on the initial success in December 1940, plan and execute the next phase of the advance in January 1941, before the Italian commanders had fully grasped the implications of the British offensive. The Italian command was consequently continually off balance, reacting to information that was already out of date. The same thing happened to the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) during the [[Fall of France (1940)]] and the Russian Army in [[Operation Barbarossa]]. Equally large numbers of Allied and Russian soldiers were forced to retreat or surrender as a result. But the British, and Russian Armies have largely escaped criticism, their soldiers, according to historians, being defeated largely because of the the untenable positions they were placed in.

During [[Operation Compass]], the British commanders were able to capitalize on the initial success in December 1940, plan and execute the next phase of the advance in January 1941, before the Italian commanders had fully grasped the implications of the British offensive. The Italian command was consequently continually off balance, reacting to information that was already out of date. The same thing happened to the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) during the [[Fall of France (1940)]] and the Russian Army in [[Operation Barbarossa]]. Equally large numbers of Allied and Russian soldiers were forced to retreat or surrender as a result. But the British, and Russian Armies have largely escaped criticism, their soldiers, according to Allied official war histories, being defeated because of the untenable positions they were placed in.

Not all the British commanders depreciated the fighting skills of their Italian adversaries. During the [[Battle of Calabria]] in mid-June 1940, Admiral [[Andrew Cunningham]], called off further operations when Italian bombers appeared. The British commander never underestimated the Italian airmen in this type of attack. with Cunningham writing that, '''"Italian high-level-bombing was the best I have ever seen, far better than the Germans."''<ref>"The Commander-in-Chief never underestimated the Italian airmen in this type of attack. "Italian high-level-bombing",  he wrote, "was the best I have ever seen, far better than the Germans."" Forgotten Battles: Italy's War of Liberation, 1943-1945, Charles T. O'Reilly, p. 31, Lexington Books, 2001</ref>  

Not all the British commanders depreciated the fighting skills of their Italian adversaries. During the [[Battle of Calabria]] in mid-June 1940, Admiral [[Andrew Cunningham]], called off further operations when Italian bombers appeared. The British commander never underestimated the Italian airmen in this type of attack. with Cunningham writing that, '''"Italian high-level-bombing was the best I have ever seen, far better than the Germans."''<ref>"The Commander-in-Chief never underestimated the Italian airmen in this type of attack. "Italian high-level-bombing",  he wrote, "was the best I have ever seen, far better than the Germans."" Forgotten Battles: Italy's War of Liberation, 1943-1945, Charles T. O'Reilly, p. 31, Lexington Books, 2001</ref>