Operation Battleaxe was a British Army operation during the Second World War in June 1941, to clear eastern Cyrenaica of German and Italian forces and raise the Siege of Tobruk. The sole remaining Allied position in Libya was the heavily fortified port of Tobru…
Work in progress. The Desert War began with a short Italian advance into Egypt, but the first major move was Operation Compass, a British offensive that turned from a minor raid into a full scale triumph. Operation Battleaxe was a British Army operation during the Second World War in June 1941, to clear eastern Cyrenaica of German and Italian forces and raise the Siege of Tobruk. Archibald Wavell's British 8th Army attempted to drive Erwin Rommel's recently-arrived Afrika Korps from eastern Cyrenaica and to relieve the Siege of Tobruk, but the British offensive ground to a halt and was defeated. Axis aircraft managed only six attacks that day. Background: Historical Outcome: Campaign Rules: Maps: Resources: Links: Background. Operation Battleaxe (15-17 June 1941) was an unsuccessful British offensive in North Africa, carried out in an attempt to raise the siege of Tobruk. Please replace links to Wikipedia in this article with links to this wiki. Operation Battleaxe (15-17 June 1941) was the first battle fought by Nazi Germany on the defensive during World War II, taking place in North Africa. Operation Battleaxe For this Thursday’s engagement I set up a little Blitzkreig Commander game nominally set during Operation Battleaxe.
In late March 1941, soon after the arrival of German forces (the Afrika Korps) in Tripoli, Libya to reinforce the Italians, their commander (General Erwin Rommel)—although ordered to remain on the defensive—quickly captured the British front line position at El Agheila. Papa Bach awaits with some Flak88's. On the eastern side, at 05:15, Coast Force—commanded by Brigadier Reginald Savoryand charged with capturing Halfaya Pass, started to …
A fast convoy was arranged which would sail by the most direct route thru the Straits of Gibralter instead of the usual long but safe route around Africa and thru the Suez Canal to Alexandria. The "Matildas" of C Sqdn, 4RTR bravely charge forward towards the defenses of Halfaya Pass. A Command Decision Wargames Campaign. It was hoped that a Nazi defeat would ease the Siege of Tobruk, but was nearly a complete disaster. Axis supply columns and airfields had been hit repeatedly up to the start of the attack and once the operation began, British columns were able to move unmolested from their starting points at Sofafi and Buq-Buq, to their destinations covered by RAF fighters.