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blitzkrieg
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07 Mar 2022, 3:48 am

naturalplastic wrote:
What made you think of El Alamein out of the blue?

Right now the Eastern Front seems more relevant since Putin is duplicating (but in the opposite direction) the invasion routes of Napoleon and Hitler, and is marching westward.

Also tensions with China make the US led war in the Pacific against Japan relevant to study in order understand the strategies involved in the near future containment of China.


My granddad served in world war two, from 1939 at the beginning of the war until the end, and stayed in the British Army even after the war had ended.

He survived the battle of El Alamein. A tank he was manning was blown up, and his two fellow serviceman were blown into human chunks, leaving him with PTSD. He dived out of his tank hole, and a wild Scorpion came from the distance to meet, greet & eat him.

Despite his aversion to driving after his unfortunate incident, he went on to drive a HGV truck & then a double-decker bus and made much money doing so.

A true hero.



Last edited by blitzkrieg on 07 Mar 2022, 3:59 am, edited 4 times in total.

Pepe
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07 Mar 2022, 3:49 am

kitesandtrainsandcats wrote:
blitzkrieg wrote:
Pepe wrote:
blitzkrieg wrote:
Pepe wrote:
Image


Montgomery kicked his ugly, German ass.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernard_Montgomery


It took him 4 times the attacking force. 8)


Source?


I can give you a different number with a source, my Vietnam and Cold War veteran Dad said in the 1970s and 80s that in order to successfully attack a defended position with typical Army forces the attacker needs 6 times the defender's unit size.


And Rommel was desperately short of supplies. 8)



blitzkrieg
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07 Mar 2022, 3:55 am

Pepe wrote:
kitesandtrainsandcats wrote:
blitzkrieg wrote:
Pepe wrote:
blitzkrieg wrote:
Pepe wrote:
Image


Montgomery kicked his ugly, German ass.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernard_Montgomery


It took him 4 times the attacking force. 8)


Source?


I can give you a different number with a source, my Vietnam and Cold War veteran Dad said in the 1970s and 80s that in order to successfully attack a defended position with typical Army forces the attacker needs 6 times the defender's unit size.


And Rommel was desperately short of supplies. 8)


Rommel was at a disadvantage, yes.

Who cares anyway?

He was a Nazi.



Pepe
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07 Mar 2022, 4:22 am

blitzkrieg wrote:
Pepe wrote:

And Rommel was desperately short of supplies. 8)


Rommel was at a disadvantage, yes.

Who cares anyway?

He was a Nazi.


You may not want to read this:
Quote:
Whilst many suggest that his advances were worthwhile regardless, I would argue that the decisive Allied victory at El Alamein, which began a colossal retreat by his army (which to his credit was conducted very efficiently) and ultimate defeat in Africa, was caused more by the exhaustion of his own troops rather than the skill of Allied forces. Either way, most, if not all, of Rommel’s defeats were caused by logistical faults that could have, and perhaps should have, been prevented.

https://thegsaljournal.com/2020/06/02/t ... r-fiction/



Pepe
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07 Mar 2022, 4:24 am

Quote:
The aspect of the myth that can be confirmed from the war in Africa is Rommel’s reputation for chivalry. Although treatment of African POWs at the hands of Italian guards is reported by some to have been appalling, Rommel would have been in no position to stop it, for his authority over Italian forces extended only to the battlefield. Furthermore, he regularly enquired about the condition of POWs in all camps, although did this with limited success. He seems to have been widely respected by British troops as a humane general, and there are numerous tales from both Allied and Axis troops describing how Rommel ensured that injured Allied soldiers received medical supplies.


https://thegsaljournal.com/2020/06/02/t ... r-fiction/



Pepe
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07 Mar 2022, 4:29 am

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The idea that Rommel was a conspirator has since been rejected by many, and most historians today believe that although he was sympathetic towards the conspiracy, he was never directly involved. However, evidence unearthed in 2018 suggests a deeper involvement, with a collection of photos, eyewitness accounts and British records all pointing towards a conclusion I personally agree with: that Rommel was a conspirator in the attempt to kill Hitler.


https://thegsaljournal.com/2020/06/02/t ... r-fiction/



blitzkrieg
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07 Mar 2022, 11:39 am

Pepe wrote:
blitzkrieg wrote:
Pepe wrote:

And Rommel was desperately short of supplies. 8)


Rommel was at a disadvantage, yes.

Who cares anyway?

He was a Nazi.


You may not want to read this:
Quote:
Whilst many suggest that his advances were worthwhile regardless, I would argue that the decisive Allied victory at El Alamein, which began a colossal retreat by his army (which to his credit was conducted very efficiently) and ultimate defeat in Africa, was caused more by the exhaustion of his own troops rather than the skill of Allied forces. Either way, most, if not all, of Rommel’s defeats were caused by logistical faults that could have, and perhaps should have, been prevented.

https://thegsaljournal.com/2020/06/02/t ... r-fiction/


Well, even if Rommel's armed forces were defeated because of how much pressure he was under from Bernard Montgomery - in war, that is still a win for the allied forces, or any military force for that matter (if a different military force were to be in the same situation). The rules are the same for the entire international order of military wars, the jurisdiction of which includes every country on planet Earth.

A military force does not lose because an enemy retreats - they win, and it is considered a victory in any case, regardless of what occurred in a particular region.



Last edited by blitzkrieg on 07 Mar 2022, 12:06 pm, edited 1 time in total.

blitzkrieg
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07 Mar 2022, 11:45 am

^ I shall add to that. A straight out supremacy victory is no better than a war won via attrition, in my view.