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WW2 History: During the war the port city of Tobruk lay halfway between the British forces based in Egypt and the Axis forces based in Libya. It underwent three sieges and became a central point for the fighting in the desert campaigns. Its name is second only to Gallipoli for its significance in the history of the Australian army. |
Two Assaults on Tobruk
Normally a small and quiet port city on the north coast of Africa lying on the Mediterranean Sea, in 1941 the city of Tobruk became a symbol for both sides of the conflict in WW2. For Britain and the Commonwealth it was a symbol of victory and resistance. For the Axis powers its capture and control was vital to reasserting the dominance of arms.
The battles that raged around the city of Tobruk provide an interesting contrast in methods and results. By studying two attacks, one by Australian troops against Italian defenders and one made later by German troops against the Australians, we see very different results in battles fought over the same ground. In both cases the attacking force had a relatively equal superiority in weapons over the defender, and the momentum of war was clearly in favor in the attacker. The results however, were quite different.
Tobruk was strategically important for several reasons. It lay in a long stretch on the coast of North Africa that otherwise is not suited to defense. In addition, it lay on a good-sized harbour and provided a rare source of fresh water. Before the war Tobruk was part of the Italian overseas possessions, and served as a garrison town. It was improved with docks, municipal buildings, and water desalination plants.
When Italy declared war on Great Britain they hoped to take advantage of events in France and catch the British Empire at a moment of weakness. Egypt and the Suez Canal were the prize. The Italian advance was cautious but initially successful, and British troops were put on the defensive. In late 1940, however, the tide turned dramatically.
Italian tankers
In a prelude to the tactics used at Pearl Harbor British naval aircraft attacked the Italian fleet docked at Taranto, Italy, and caused serious losses. In battles at Beda Fomm and Sidi Barrani British forces largely destroyed the Italian army in Africa and ended the threat to Egypt. Strategically the British had little to gain by extending their advance into Italian territory, but politically the British people were desperate for victory, and Africa seemed to offer the only hope for such an opportunity. An advance into Italian territory would signal the capture of Axis lands, and so British troops pushed into Libya with Tobruk as their goal first objective.
Tobruk itself is not a natural fortress, having no mountains or rivers. The terrain is fairly flat, with three stepped-up plateaus leading from the desert to the sea, ending at an escarpment sheltering the city. Each shelf to the next plateau was cut with wadis (dry riverbeds) that provided some cover. The terrain was mostly bare, rocky earth with occasional brush.
The Italian forces had built a 30-mile long semi-circular defense that stretched from coast to coast at a line approximately 8 miles from the city. The perimeter was defended by two strings of mutually-supporting concrete outposts that each held several machineguns along with either an anti-tank gun or a small field gun. There were 128 of these posts, each surrounded by barbed-wire. One line of outposts was placed on the perimeter with the second line set back 600-800 yards. The perimeter itself was lined with 5' high double-wire, along with minefields and a partially completed anti-tank ditch.
A second line of defense, laying halfway between the perimeter and the town, was based on a several ancient Roman stone forts and modern underground bunkers. While these forts were generally placed on high ground overlooking the approaches from the perimeter, they were not mutually supporting and were not in a high state of repair.
Manning the defenses against the impending British assault was General Petasso Manella and a garrison of 25,000 men, of which 15,000 were infantry, mostly from the 61st Division. These men were not sufficient to man the defenses in depth, and so the bulk of the Italian fighting troops were deployed on the perimeter. There were, however, a large number of guns to provide support with 140 field guns and 68 medium and heavy pieces available. With so few infantrymen available to deploy on the second line Italian tanks were dug in to create lines of 'hull-down' pillboxes. While this filled gaps in the line it kept the armoured units from being used as a mobile counter-attack force by tying them down in static positions. Italian naval and air units had been neutralized and were not present in any size to aid the Tobruk defenders.
British troops & Matilda tanks
The responsibility for taking Tobruk was given to Major-General Iven Mackay, an Australian. He was given the 6th Australian Division for the assault with the 7th Armoured Division (Desert Rats) providing support. Substantial artillery, air and naval support was also provided. The continued British advance was dependent on taking Tobruk. Without the city's harbor and fresh water source the already extended supply lines from the Nile could not be maintained.
Significant preparations were made by Mackay prior to the assault. Extensive patrols were made of the Italian lines, finding suitable points of access, assessing the enemy's preparedness and defenses, and mapping their minefields and artillery concentrations. Australian infantrymen were shown examples of captured Italian mines and taught how to disarm or 'delouse' them.
The attack began at midnight on January 20th, 1941 when several Royal Navy warships crept close to the harbor began shelling the town. At the same time Royal Artillery batteries began shelling the Italian perimeter. Their objective was to keep the Italian garrison awake and to cover the sound of British troops moving into position along the perimeter. At 0300 on January 21st the Royal Air Force followed with a bombing pattern over Italian artillery parks.
While these preparatory barrages were underway the Australian assault units moved into position. Artillery batteries also moved forward to new locations that could strike deep into Italian held areas. Engineers moved up to the perimeter wire clearing out a 2000-yard wide section of the minefield.
The assault called for the 16th Australian Infantry Brigade (3 battalions) to establish a bridgehead through the wire. Two battalions would then turn to either side, rolling up outposts from the flanks as they widened their initial breech. The third battalion would push straight forward for several miles to clear out Italian artillery or anti-tank positions. As these objectives were being
cleared the 19th Australian Infantry Brigade, supported by tanks, artillery and machinegun carriers, would move through the gap and establish an assault position 5 miles inside the wire.
Map of Initial Australian Advance
(Click to view large map)
At 0540 the infantry moved forward towards the perimeter. They were supported by 160 guns, the largest artillery bombardment ever seen in Africa to that date. The ground was so flat that the advancing troops could simultaneously see the flash from the guns behind them and the explosion of their rounds ahead. The infantry crept up to the anti-tank ditch as over a ton of shells was dropped on each Italian outpost. At exactly 0605, using the last moments of darkness for cover, engineers rushed forward with bangalore torpedoes and blew gaps in the wire. The infantry rushed through and by 0640 had taken five forward posts. The engineers continued their work by clearing out minefields and wire in the captured area to allow follow-on forces quick access.
The Italian defenders appeared to be taken by surprise, and could not organize an effective defense in the early morning darkness. After the initial breech was made the Australian infantry turned to either side and began assaulting along the line of the perimeter. Led by a creeping barrage (artillery fire that advances slowly across the ground) and supported by tanks, the infantry cleared Italian outposts with grenades and bayonets. As the day wore on and their supporting tanks withdrew with mechanical failures and their supporting artillery was redirected for the follow-on attack these flanking moves became much less effective. The Italian defenders, now backed by artillery and fully alerted, were able to put up heavy resistance.
As the gap in the perimeter was being widened the 19th Australian Infantry Brigade formed up to attack the high ground overlooking the port. Here too the infantry moved forward behind a creeping barrage reminiscent of the First War. The tactic proved to still be valuable, often allowing the Australian infantry to appear out of the swirling dust into Italian gun positions while the gunners were still recovering from the barrage. British tanks and Universal Carriers mounted with both a Vickers and Bren gun roamed ahead and to the flanks of the 19th Brigade's advance, shooting up any targets they came across and confusing the defenses.
After several hours of steady advance the Australian infantry reached the second line of defenses centered on the Roman forts and lines of entrenched tanks. This line protected the bulk of the Italian artillery, so the defenders were well supported. At this time (and some would argue throughout the war) Commonwealth troops lacked an effective platoon-level anti-tank weapon. The standard A/T support was the Boyes Anti-Tank Rifle, an enormous bolt-action rifle that fired .50 cal rounds. These were only effective at the closest ranges and against relatively thinly armoured tanks.
While the British carriers and armour provided covering fire the Australian infantry crept up to the entrenched Italian tanks and destroyed them with hand grenades dropped through the hatches. This unavoidable tactic was costly and slow, but at the time there was little option. By noon the 19th Brigade had taken its objectives, and now paused to reform and allow the artillery to move forward and support a further advance.
Map of Australian afternoon gains
(Click to view large map)
The entire western section of the Italian defenses was still untouched, and as the Commonwealth troops paused the Italian commander gathered his armour and infantry reserves for a counter-attack. Having uncontested control of the air gave the Commonwealth forces early warning of this move, and when the counter-attack developed it was met by a prepared and active defense. British artillery forced the Italian tanks to retire, and without armoured support the Italian infantry faded in the face of the Australian infantry lines. With this threat dissipated the Australian attack resumed at 1600.
The three battalions of the Australians' 19th Brigade fanned out across the plateau. To the left the 8th Battalion aimed at the fort at Pilastrino and the capture of the road that connected the western defenses with the city of Tobruk. They were supported by British Matilda tanks and captured Italian medium tanks. They were met with intense mortar and machinegun fire which was able to stop their advance several times. By dusk, however, the 8th Battalion was able to advance 15 miles and achieve its objectives. The Australian field commander was able to shift armour and artillery resources to this flank when its advance faltered, allowing it to overcome local resistance. Nevertheless, the 8th Battalion took over 100 casualties, twice as many as any other Australian battalion that day.
The 4th Battalion attacked north-west toward the Italian headquarters at Solaro. Their advance was greatly aided by the 8th Battalion's movements to their left flank, which shielded them from Italian attacks. With the support of British tanks and anti-tank guns mounted on trucks they were in possession of the former headquarters by 1800 hours.
The 11th Battalion attacked towards Tobruk itself, reaching the escarpment overlooking the town by nightfall. There they could only watch as the Italian troops in the city destroyed supplies and equipment. The sight of Australian troops in possession of the high ground over the city also signaled the end of formal resistance within the perimeter. Italian troops stationed in the town began to surrender and march out to the Australian lines. The water treatment plants nearby were quickly seized before they could be destroyed; a vital factor for later events around Tobruk.
The next day saw three Australian infantry brigades within the perimeter, but resistance was not organized and there was little fighting. Total Australian casualties for the assault were 41 dead, 205 wounded and 2 missing.
Australians & destroyed Italian tanks
The plan had been carried out very successfully, and this can be attributed to several causes. The Commonwealth attacks were aggressive and well-coordinated, with ample supporting artillery and armour. The element of surprise was gained, and the speed used in the advance kept this element intact as troops appeared at Italian positions unexpectedly. Due to a lack of adequate infantrymen the Italian defense could not be prepared in depth. Once their outer shell on the perimeter was cracked their position was untenable. Australian forces were able to concentrate on objectives, split the enemy's forces and take their artillery and command structure out of the fighting.
