✦ History

Western Desert campaign

June 11, 1940 – February 4, 1943

Result Allied victory

The desert war between the British Commonwealth and the Italian and German armies along the coast of Egypt and Libya, from Italy's entry into the war to the fall of Tripoli and the Eighth Army's arrival in Tunisia.

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Battles 18

September 9–16, 1940
Italian invasion of Egypt Italian victory Egypt Archibald Wavell, Richard O'Connor, Rodolfo Graziani
December 1940 – March 21, 1941
Siege of Giarabub Commonwealth victory Jaghbub
December 9, 1940 – February 9, 1941
Operation Compass British victory Sidi Barrani Archibald Wavell, Richard O'Connor, Rodolfo Graziani
December 10–11, 1940
Battle of Sidi Barrani British victory Sidi Barrani Archibald Wavell, Richard O'Connor, Rodolfo Graziani
January 31 – March 1, 1941
Capture of Kufra Allied victory Kufra Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque
February 6 – May 25, 1941
Operation Sonnenblume Axis victory Cyrenaica Archibald Wavell, Erwin Rommel, Philip Neame
April 10 – November 27, 1941
Siege of Tobruk Allied victory Tobruk Erwin Rommel, Leslie Morshead, Ronald Scobie
May 15–16, 1941
Operation Brevity Inconclusive Libya Archibald Wavell, Erwin Rommel, Maximilian von Herff
May 26–27, 1941
Operation Skorpion German victory Maximilian von Herff, William Gott
November 10–18, 1941
Operation Flipper Axis victory Italian Libya Erwin Rommel, Robert Laycock
May 26 – June 21, 1942
Battle of Gazala Axis victory Gazala Willoughby Norrie, 1st Baron Norrie, Erwin Rommel, Albert Kesselring
June 21, 1942
Axis capture of Tobruk Axis victory Tobruk Erwin Rommel, Walther Nehring, Neil Ritchie
June 29, 1942
Battle of Mersa Matruh German–Italian victory Marsa Matruh Erwin Rommel, Claude Auchinleck, Walther Nehring
July 1–27, 1942
First Battle of El Alamein Stalemate El Alamein Erwin Rommel, Claude Auchinleck, Walther Nehring
July 27, 1942
Raid on Sidi Haneish Airfield Allied victory Sidi Haneish Airfield George Jellicoe, 2nd Earl Jellicoe
August 30 – September 5, 1942
Battle of Alam el Halfa British victory El Alamein Bernard Montgomery, Erwin Rommel, Giuseppe De Stefanis
September 13–14, 1942
Operation Agreement Axis victory North Africa
October 23 – November 11, 1942
Second Battle of El Alamein Allied victory El Alamein Bernard Montgomery, Erwin Rommel, Harold Alexander

Key commanders

Axis 19

Erwin Rommel military commander Gastone Gambara military commander Georg Stumme General, Commander of Panzer Army Africa, 22 September - 24 October 1942; died of a heart attack at the battle's outset Curio Barbasetti di Prun military commander Rodolfo Graziani Marshal, Commander of the Italian 10th Army Annibale Bergonzoli military commander Giuseppe Tellera military commander Sebastiano Gallina military commander Albert Kesselring military commander Italo Balbo belligerent leader Ugo Cavallero belligerent leader Italo Gariboldi military commander Ettore Bastico military commander Walther Nehring military commander Giuseppe De Stefanis military commander Maximilian von Herff military commander Ludwig Crüwell military commander Ettore Baldassarre military commander Fritz Bayerlein military commander

Allies 17

Leslie Morshead military commander Ronald Scobie military commander Bernard Montgomery military commander Harold Alexander General, Commander-in-chief, Middle East; Montgomery's superior Archibald Wavell General, Commander-in-chief, Middle East Richard O'Connor Lieutenant General, Field commander of the Western Desert Force Henry Maitland Wilson, 1st Baron Wilson military commander Claude Auchinleck military commander Alan Cunningham military commander Neil Ritchie military commander William Gott military commander Philip Neame military commander Willoughby Norrie, 1st Baron Norrie military commander Brian Horrocks military commander Robert Laycock military commander Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque military commander George Jellicoe, 2nd Earl Jellicoe military commander