65 years ago today Rommel attacked the garrison at Tobruk. Using tactics that had won all through Poland and France, the tanks breached the outer defences......... or so they thought. In fact, the Australian infantry had allowed the tanks to break through. Their orders, kill the follow up infantry. The following up infantry pretty much expected to be taking the Australian's surrender. This was how it had worked in Europe so why not here? Instead they were met by rifle and machine gun fire and many were killed before they could even get their weapons ready. The panzers continued on without their support. The leader of the garrison, the Australian general Morshead, had worked out where the Germans would attack and concentrated the majority of the artillery in that sector. It was a gamble that paid off. The German tanks were met by anti tank fire from all directions as they drove forwards. Reports state that many of the tanks had their turrets swinging widely from side to side, as if they couldn't work out what to shoot at. Finally it was too much and the tanks retreated. Not to be outdone by the defenders in the outer perimeter, the British AA gunners also put up a good show. With orders to never leave their guns, even in the event that a Stuka was dive bombing them, the AA gunners made short work of many of the German bombers who it seems lost their nerves and dropped their bombs at a higher altitude than what was accurate. By the end of the battle the Germans had lost about a dozen planes, 17 panzers, 110 killed and about 250 captured. The Australians had lost 26 killed and about 50 wounded (sorry, don't know the British losses). It was the first defeat of the blitzkrieg during WW2 and many of the Germans could not believe that they had been defeated.
Damned fine show chaps. Do you remember a few years ago, was it the 50th Anniversery when Gaddafi wouldn't allow the old Veterns into Libya? That was heart-breaking to see the old Diggers and British Veterans in tears at the Airport because they couldn't visit their Mates who didn't come home. Did Gaddafi relent later and let them return to Tobruk?
Damned fine show chaps. Do you remember a few years ago, was it the 50th Anniversery when Gaddafi wouldn't allow the old Veterns into Libya? That was heart-breaking to see the old Diggers and British Veterans in tears at the Airport because they couldn't visit their Mates who didn't come home. Did Gaddafi relent later and let them return to Tobruk? I don't actually know. Someone from my family died there.
