World War 2 Talk - View Single Post - The Importance of the North African/Western Desert Campaign

craftsmanx · 09-05-2008, 09:14 AM

To really understand the North African campaign it's necessary to know what the terrain was like in Libya and the Western Desert. There is a tendency to compare it with the actions in Europe which was a completely different kettle of fish. Ground taken was never a major consideration the important thing being to hold positions od strength of which there are relatively few, hence the importance of Tobruk . The major British objective was always the defence of the Suez canal which made the loss of ground in Libya of little consequence. The other factor was always availability of water which dictated where strong points could be established.In the early 1960s the Libyan desert was widely used by the British Army as a training area and I was fortunate enough to spend about 18 months (not all together) on exercises over there. A retreat of 40 or 50 miles to the next defendable position was not uncommon so the constant statements that either the British or Germans retreated 500 miles in 4 days has little meaning strategically ,it is on a par with a retreat or advance in Europe of a few miles from one village to the next.

09-05-2008, 09:14 AM	#21 (permalink)
craftsmanx Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Staffordshire Posts: 11	To really understand the North African campaign it's necessary to know what the terrain was like in Libya and the Western Desert. There is a tendency to compare it with the actions in Europe which was a completely different kettle of fish. Ground taken was never a major consideration the important thing being to hold positions od strength of which there are relatively few, hence the importance of Tobruk . The major British objective was always the defence of the Suez canal which made the loss of ground in Libya of little consequence. The other factor was always availability of water which dictated where strong points could be established.In the early 1960s the Libyan desert was widely used by the British Army as a training area and I was fortunate enough to spend about 18 months (not all together) on exercises over there. A retreat of 40 or 50 miles to the next defendable position was not uncommon so the constant statements that either the British or Germans retreated 500 miles in 4 days has little meaning strategically ,it is on a par with a retreat or advance in Europe of a few miles from one village to the next.