GAZALA LINE

British desert defense position about 30 miles west of Tobruk. It was formed by loosely connected “boxes” of infantry and minefields supported by dispersed armor. After stopping General Erwin Rommel’s initial assault on Tobruk the British dug in along the Gazala Line in February 1942. The box defense around Gazala was broken by the Germans in May, after which British 8th Army fell back to Mersa Matruh.
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Battle of Gazala, (26 May–13 June 1942)
Key North African battle between Axis and Allied forces. The Battle of Gazala of 26 May–13 June 1942 sprang from Operation VENEZIA. In the operation, Adolf Hitler sought to tie down as many Allied troops as possible in North Africa while German forces fought the decisive battle in the Soviet Union. Hitler also wanted to capture Allied forward airfields so that Axis forces might render Malta harmless. Axis forces for VENEZIA, formed into Panzerarmee Afrika or Armata Corazzata Africa, consisted of two Italian infantry corps, one Italian armor corps, and the German Afrika Korps. The Afrika Korps had recently received reinforcements and new equipment.

Italy had sent some of its best units and equipment to North Africa. It had retrained its units and altered some of their structures to replicate German tactics. An Italian infantry division now numbered only 7,000 men, but it had a heavier artillery component. Although its tanks were still of limited value, Italy sent some self-propelled artillery armed with 75 mm guns, and some Italian divisions boasted both 90 mm and German 88 mm antitank guns.

German Afrika Korps commander General Erwin Rommel, nominally under General Ettore Bastico, head of Comando Superiore Forze Armate Africa Settentrionale (high command armed forces in North Africa), planned to attack the Allied forces entrenched with the protection of heavy minefields along the Gazala Line. He hoped to outflank the line from the south and then drive on and capture Tobruk, all within 10 days. Rommel could call on 332 German and 228 Italian tanks. Rommel also had the advantage in the air.

Lieutenant General Neil Ritchie commanded the British Eighth Army. Ritchie had an armored corps of two divisions and an infantry corps built around three divisions. Another division was in reserve, attached to army headquarters. All were numerically larger then the Axis divisions. The Eighth Army had recently received 242 U.S.-built Grant tanks as well as improved 6-pounder antitank guns. Ritchie could call on 839 Allied tanks, with a further 145 moving up. Both sides added tanks during the battle. Each side also had a small amphibious element, but neither was deployed in that capacity during the battle.

Ritchie had hoped to mount an attack to relieve Axis pressure on Malta, but Rommel struck first. On 26 May, while Axis infantry held the line, Axis motorized units poured around the southern Allied flank. Achieving some small successes, they stalled at the Free French fort of Bir Hacheim. Positioning themselves in the Allied rear, the Axis motorized units then took up defensive positions while also operating against Bir Hacheim, which fell on 11 June after a heroic French defense. Meanwhile, Eighth Army tanks mounted a series of assaults against Axis armor in the so-called Cauldron, but the British were repulsed with heavy losses from Axis antitank artillery guns.

The Axis forces having opened a supply line and the Eighth Army reeling from heavy tank losses, Rommel resumed the offensive on 12 June. At Knightsbridge, he ambushed British armor, destroying 120 tanks and forcing a general Allied retreat. In less than three weeks, the Axis offensive had forced the Allies to withdraw into Egypt. This paved the way for a third assault on the port of Tobruk. Ritchie was relieved of command, and General Claude Auchinleck took command of the withdrawal.

References Greene, Jack, and Alessandro Massignani. Rommel’s North Africa Campaign. Conshohocken, PA: Combined Publishing, 1994. Montanari, Mario. Le Operazioni in Africa Settentrionale. Vol. 3, El Alamein. Rome: Ufficio Storico, 1989. Playfair, I. S. O., et al. The Mediterranean and Middle East. Vol. 3. London: Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, 1960.