Real Time History
Published 5 Jun 2026The Italian Army in North Africa is in disarray after the British Operation Compass. Hitler reluctantly sends help in the form of the newly formed Afrika Corps under Erwin Rommel. Despite his orders, he immediately goes on the offensive and pushes back the British who are also reeling from the Axis invasion of Greece and Yugoslavia. But Rommel’s bold leadership style has drawbacks and in May 1941, the vital port town of Tobruk still holds out.
» SOURCES
Büschleb, Hermann. “Feldherrn und Panzer im Wüstenkrieg: die Herbstschlacht Crusader” im Vorfeld von Tobruk 1941 Scharnhorst Buchkameradschaft, 1966De Vignani, Giovanni. “L’olocausto di Bardia. Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale, 1941”. Accessed on the 28.03.2026 at: https://www.idiariraccontano.org/estr…
Faldella, Emilio. L’Italia nella Seconda Guerra Mondiale. Cappelli Editore, 1941/1959.
Jentz, Thomas L. Tank Combat in North Africa: The Opening Rounds Schiffer Military History, 1998Kitchen, Martin. Rommel’s Desert War: Waging World War II in North Africa, 1941-1943, Cambridge University Press, 2009
Kriebel, Rainer. Inside the Afrika Korps: The Crusader Battles, 1941-1942 Frontline Books, 2016
Prior, Robin. Conquer We Must: A Military History of Britain, 1914-1945, Yale University Press, 2022
Spaulding, David E. “Early North African Campaigns 1940-1942: A Case Study”, US Army War College, 1992
Stockings, Craig. “The Battle of Bardia” Army History Unit, 2011
Tobino, Mario. Il deserto della Libia. Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, 1947/1995.
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October 28, 2026
Rommel’s Rampage – Battle for North Africa Spring 1941
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