| Original caption: “Colonel General Erwin Rommel on an inspection tour of the new defensive line bases in the desert in January 1942.” Generaloberst Erwin Rommel (November 15, 1891 – October 14, 1944) directs operations for the Gazala Offensive. Note the Kriegsberichter with the motion picture camera. By January 12, 1942, the German position in North Africa was improving, despite the heavy casualties suffered in Operation Crusader. The United Kingdom Royal Army, on the other hand, was at the end of a very long supply line. The Axis frontier garrisons were still holding out, tying down major Allied formations. Other top Allied formations, such as the 7th Armored Division and the New Zealand Division, had suffered such heavy losses during Operation Crusader that they had to be completely rebuilt. General Neil Ritchie (July 29, 1897 – December 11, 1983) had only 2 major units in the forward area of western Cyrenaica: the inexperienced 1st Armored Division, and the 201st Guards Brigade at Agedabia. The 4th Indian Division was held in reserve at Benghazi. These were all the forces the Allies would have if Rommel attacked. However, they considered the “Desert Fox” a spent force, and were not concerned about the possibility of a German resurgence. Nazi German intelligence did not remain unaware of this attitude for long. They could tell what the British were thinking by analyzing their poor troop dispositions. In the briefing of January 12, 1942, the Panzer Group Ic (Intelligence Department Chief), Lieutenant Colonel Friedrich von Mellenthin (August 30, 1904 – June 28, 1997) projected that the German forces on the front line would be superior to Ritchie’s advanced units until January 25. After that date, reinforcements would probably make the 8th Army the stronger antagonist. Rommel stayed up all that night in the captured Associated Equipment Company (AEC) Matador that served as his headquarters. “It’s in the small hours that my best new plans are hatched,” he wrote his wife Frau Lucia “Lucie” Mollin Rommel (June 5, 1894 – September 26, 1971) a few days later. No doubt he went over the intelligence estimates again. At 0530 Hours he went to sleep, but was up again by 0630 Hours. That morning he called in a very select group of staff officers. To their astonishment, he announced that he was going to attack again on January 21. He told them what some of them already knew: that United Kingdom Royal 8th Army General Claude] Auchinleck (June 21, 1884 – March 23, 1981) was preparing an offensive whose objective was to finish off the Axis empire in North Africa. “If we give the Tommies a break until February, they’ll chase us out of here. Nothing could stop the Eighth Army in that event…So we must not wait. We must throw a monkey wrench into Tommy’s plans.” Rommel’s battle plan was much like his 1st invasion of Cyrenaica the year before. The Afrika Korps would advance across the desert with its right flank on the Wadi el Faregh. Kampfgruppe Marcks, comprised of elements of 21.Panzer-Division and 90.Leichte Afrika-Division under Oberstleutnant Werner Marcks (July 17, 1896 – July 28, 1967) would advance along the Coastal Road. The 20th Italian Motorized Corps would fill the gap between these 2 forces and form the center of the attack. Generalmajor Richard Veith (June 13, 1890 – 1978) and the non-motorized elements of 90.Leichte Afrika-Division, along with the Italian infantry, would bring up the rear. The unique aspect of this offensive was that the Germans kept their plans secret, from friends as well as foes. The inability of the Italian Command to keep secrets from the British was already notorious. To stop these security leaks, Rommel did not give the Italians their marching orders until the very eve of the attack. To keep them from learning of the offensive through his enemies at Führer Headquarters, Rommel intentionally withheld the information from Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW) as well. Feldmarschall Wilhelm Keitel (September 22, 1882 – October 16, 1946), Chief of Staff at OKW, General der Artillerie Alfred Jodl (May 10, 1890 – October 16, 1946), Chief of the Operations Staff, and Generaloberst Franz Halder (June 30, 1884 – April 2, 1972), the Chief of the General Staff, all disliked Rommel and were jealous of his successes. Rommel knew that if he informed these men of his plans they would tell the Italians. These unusual precautions had some ugly repercussions later on, but they worked. When the panzers struck, they achieved complete surprise all along the line. Photo by Kriegsberichter Ernst A. Zwilling (September 25, 1904 – October 24, 1990). | |
| Image Filename | wwii0738.jpg |
| Image Size | 401.26 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 2737 x 1814 |
| Photographer | Ernst A. Zwilling |
| Photographer Title | Kriegsberichter |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | January 1, 1942 |
| Location | |
| City | |
| State or Province | |
| Country | Libya |
| Archive | Bundesarchiv |
| Record Number | 146-1989-095-13 |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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