MWiF Leaders - Rommel

[Greyshaft]

Aged 47 in 1939. Field Marshall Erwin Johannes Eugen Rommel wanted to be an engineer but his father opposed the idea so in 1910 Rommel enrolled in the Gerrman Army. He fought in France and in Italy, rising from Lieutenant to Captain and winning the Iron Cross (First and Second Class) and Prussia's highest medal, the Pour le Mérite, along the way. After WWI he remained in the Army as an instructor at the Infantry School in Dresden and later at the Potsdam War Academy. In October 1935 he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel and after Hitler read his 1937 book 'Infantry Attacks' Rommel was appointed to command Hitler's HQ staff during the Austrian, Czechoslovakian and Polish campaigns. In 1940 Rommel commanded the 7th Panzer Division, nicknamed the 'Ghost' division because the enemy (and often his superior officers) did not know where he was. Rommel's panzers lead the breakthrough from the German border to the Channel and then travelled down the French coast to the Spanish border. He was promoted to General and sent to command the Deutsches Afrika Korps which was forming in Africa. The next two years saw Rommel battling Generals Wavell, Auchinleck and Montgomery in a see-saw battle along the African coastline from Tunis to El Alamein. Rommel won many of the battles but lost the crucial round against Montgomery at the second battle of El Alamein and was forced to retreat back to Tunisia. After falling sick he was repatriated to Europe and escaped the final surrender of the Afrika Korps. After a period of recovery Rommel was appointed as commander of Army Group B in France with specific responsibility for coastline defence. The task was enormous but Rommel threw himself into it. He disagreed strenuously with Hitler's decision to hold armored units as a central reserve arguing that Allied air superiority would prevent the movement of reserves to the invasion beaches. Despite Rommel's best efforts the Allied invasion of Normandy succeeded. On July 17th, 1944 Rommel's staff car was strafed by a RCAF Spitfire, and he was hospitalized with major head injuries. The failure of the July 20th plot against Hitler lead to a far-reaching enquiry and purging of the German officer corp. When Hitler found out that Rommel had known of the plot but not reported it, he offered Rommel the choice between a public trial (with inevitable conviction and subsequent execution), or a private suicide with a State Funeral. Rommel chose suicide. Ironically Rommel had been asked to join the plot but had refused, preferring that Hitler be arrested rather than assassinated. Rommel's strengths were his undoubted tactical genius and his ability to inspire his men. There is some evidence that Rommel's victories in Africa were more a result of accurate pre-battle intelligence than an intuitive ability to determine and foil the intentions of his enemies during the battle, but this does not detract from the Rommel legend.(489)

[wosung]

wow,

lots of information!!

Just a short add-on:

Whereas most of the other German Field-Marshalls were Prussian-protestant Aristocrats, Rommel background was that of a catholic Suabe burgeois without General-staff Experience.

In Afrika and later on, foremost he was a creature of NS-Propaganda, which desperatedly needed military successes, (because of Stalingrad etc.).

In a way, he was lucky to command in North-Africa and not on the Eastern Front: It made him well-known. Also, it seems, he was not directly active in racial motivated war-crimes. (He even ignored OKW orders to kill captured German-Austrian Legionaires Etrangeres at Bir Hacheim)

And according to officers under his DAK-command: He was not liked by his soldiers - because of his wild military ambitions.

In short: a military self-made man, who was used by the NS system and used it himself.

Source: Maurice Philip Remy, Mythos Rommel, München 2002, Ulstein Publishing House.

Regards

[Froonp]

Greyshaft, why not make a "Name this MWiF Leader", or "Name this MWiF HQ" thread where you would put your description without the name, and ask people to guess who is the leader ?
Rest assured that I know a lot less in WWII generals than in WWII planes [;)]

[terje439]

another fact is that Rommel was never member of the Nazi party, and that he chose suicide to protect his family not his own reputation.

[Greyshaft]

ORIGINAL: Froonp
Greyshaft, why not make a "Name this MWiF Leader", or "Name this MWiF HQ" thread where you would put your description without the name, and ask people to guess who is the leader ?
Rest assured that I know a lot less in WWII generals than in WWII planes [;)]

OK, I'll try it but I'm not sure how it'll go. Leaders have too many unique experiences "commanded the 6th Army at Stalingrad" to make them anonymous. My main objective is to get these biographies written for the game... the Trivia competition is secondary.

[buckyzoom]

I recently read Gilbert's history of WWII and there's some interesting information about Rommel's defeat at El Alamein. Apparently, the Allies had already cracked the German codes and had accurate information about his plan of attack. It sounds like Montgomery knew where he was going to attack and was able to set up his defenses far in advance of this. I mention this because because it seems ironic that he should be credited with accurate pre-battle intelligence, but ultimately be defeated by his opponents use of it.

Cheers

[Caranorn]

Just on Normandy, as far as I recall Rommel and Hitler were of the same mind concerning the mobile forces' deployment. The central reserve position was held by another field marshal (maybe Model, I'd have to check), the final dispositions were a compromise between Rommel and Model (or other FM if I got that name mixed up).

One interesting note to add might be that until recently a german destroyer was named after Rommel, a rare feat for a WWII era general officer.

[terje439]

ORIGINAL: buckyzoom

I recently read Gilbert's history of WWII and there's some interesting information about Rommel's defeat at El Alamein. Apparently, the Allies had already cracked the German codes and had accurate information about his plan of attack. It sounds like Montgomery knew where he was going to attack and was able to set up his defenses far in advance of this. I mention this because because it seems ironic that he should be credited with accurate pre-battle intelligence, but ultimately be defeated by his opponents use of it.

Cheers

Sir Lidell Hart claims the same in his "history of the second world war", and of course it did not help Rommel that Montgomery had aprox 10-1 in forces either

[terje439]

ORIGINAL: Caranorn
One interesting note to add might be that until recently a german destroyer was named after Rommel, a rare feat for a WWII era general officer.

He was also one of the very few german officers from WWII which was used when the german army needed case studies after WWII.

[PanzerMax]

v. Rundstedt, I beleive.

ORIGINAL: Caranorn

Just on Normandy, as far as I recall Rommel and Hitler were of the same mind concerning the mobile forces' deployment. The central reserve position was held by another field marshal (maybe Model, I'd have to check), the final dispositions were a compromise between Rommel and Model (or other FM if I got that name mixed up).

One interesting note to add might be that until recently a german destroyer was named after Rommel, a rare feat for a WWII era general officer.

[tigercub]

Rommel's defeat at El Alamein was all ways going to happen out number in tanks,planes,men,arty very low on fuel...

[Montbrun]

ORIGINAL: Caranorn

Just on Normandy, as far as I recall Rommel and Hitler were of the same mind concerning the mobile forces' deployment. The central reserve position was held by another field marshal (maybe Model, I'd have to check), the final dispositions were a compromise between Rommel and Model (or other FM if I got that name mixed up).

One interesting note to add might be that until recently a german destroyer was named after Rommel, a rare feat for a WWII era general officer.

Panzer forces were under the direction of Panzergruppe West which was commanded by General der Panzertruppen Leo Geyr von Schweppenburg.

[Neilster]

ORIGINAL: Brad Hunter

ORIGINAL: Caranorn

Just on Normandy, as far as I recall Rommel and Hitler were of the same mind concerning the mobile forces' deployment. The central reserve position was held by another field marshal (maybe Model, I'd have to check), the final dispositions were a compromise between Rommel and Model (or other FM if I got that name mixed up).

One interesting note to add might be that until recently a german destroyer was named after Rommel, a rare feat for a WWII era general officer.

Panzer forces were under the direction of Panzergruppe West which was commanded by General der Panzertruppen Leo Geyr von Schweppenburg.

Yes, and during lulls in the desperate armoured battles he invented "Schweppervescence", that intangible, delicious component of a certain post-war lemonade. [:'(]

http://www.retrojunk.com/details_commercial/199/

Cheers, Neilster

[composer99]

In Afrika and later on, foremost he was a creature of NS-Propaganda, which desperatedly needed military successes, (because of Stalingrad etc.).

I seem to recall reading somewhere that his successes were also played up by the British from time to time, adding to his post-war mystique; also I recall that he was apparently a good tactician but not a great logistician (compounded by the constant supply problems the Axis faced in North Africa).

[Neilster]

It might have been Halder who described Rommel's movements in North Africa as (from memory) "such an unholy muddle that I doubt future historians will be able to make head nor tail of it"

Cheers, Neilster