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The Scoop
Operation Crusader was a British offensive mission to relieve the 1941 Axis siege of Tobruk. According to a dispatch submitted to the British Secretary of State for War in June of 1941, General Archibald P. Wavell sees an attack on Tobruk as “justified on both operational and administrative grounds”. Wavell, the Commander in Chief of operations in the Middle East, states that there were Italian forces stationed at Tobruk, armed with anti-aircraft units and coastal defense, as well as divisions from the “forward areas”. After Wavell’s plan to take Tobruk as an Allied victory in June failed, Winston Churchill replaced him. Wavell’s replacement, General Claude Auchinlek, created Operation Crusader that was to repeat the attempts of his predecessor. This was to be the second major British campaign in North Africa. Auchinlek’s force included battalions from New Zealand, Poland and South Africa. The Axis side of things: General Rommel was commander of the Nazi and Italian forces (Panzergruppe Afrika) in North Africa. Rommel would be the one to oversee Axis defense strategy upon Operation Crusader. The British attack in November was a surprise. However before giving up Tobruk Rommel was able to extract most of his weapons, artillery and men to defense positions in El Agheila. On December 6, the Afrika Corps formed a new defense line just west of Tobruk at Gazala. Further gunfire in the western region, leading to dense British casualties, resulted in Axis retreat to Tripolitania. Was the Mission Complete? The intended goal for Operation Crusader, to relieve the Italian and German positions at Tobruk, was reached. Yet, Auchinlek’s forces faced severe losses and were not able to damage the Rommel’s forces as much as wished. In fact, Churchill later blamed Auchinlek for the “unsuccessful” mission. This could mostly be tied to the fact that Rommel was able to recover, coordinate and adapt his troops to retreat quickly into defensive positions. Rommel's troops outgunned Auchinlek's men, using his artillery to pin down the British while retreating. Months after the operation, Rommel led a counterattack in January that resulted in German and Italian positioning back at Gazala. Although the British were able to end the Axis siege of Tobruk, a huge counterattack by Rommel's forces leading to loss of British positions west and south largely undermined any positive results of Operation Crusader.
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Allied tank passes burning German Panzer IV tank during Operation Crusader, 1941.
Rommel converses with his men near El Agheila in 1942.
British crew takes a break during fighting at Tobruk in November, 1941.
Tanks of British troops moves on the outside of the perimeter at Tobruk, 18 November 1941.
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Gallery
Primary Source:
To see dispatch mentioned to above, refer to document below:
To see dispatch mentioned to above, refer to document below:
| Dispatch 1941, General Wavell, London Gazette |
