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โช
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As Hitler marched triumphantly
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across western Europe in
the early summer of 1940,
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his fellow dictator in
Italy, Benito Mussolini,
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dreamt of a similar
campaign further south.
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His dream was to build
a new Roman empire
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that would see Italy expand
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not only along the northern
Mediterranean coast,
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but south through North Africa.
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He would turn the Mediterranean
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into Mare Nostrum, our sea.
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But it was a dream that
would turn into a disaster.
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It would lead in due course
to Mussolini's death
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and fatally overextend
his German ally.
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At the start of the war
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Italy already controlled Libya
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and Abyssinia, Ethiopia today.
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Mussolini calculated
that if he could take
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British controlled
Egypt and Sudan,
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he would be able to
create a huge swathe
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of Italian-controlled territory.
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It looked like an easy campaign.
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Italy had ten times more troops
in the region than Britain.
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In September 1940,
Mussolini invaded Egypt
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and captured the small coastal
town of Sidi Barrani.
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There the Italians
stopped and dug in.
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Britain gathered all available
forces for a counterattack.
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On December the 6th, 1940,
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they moved in across the desert.
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Just four days later, they
overran the Italian defences.
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Nearly 40,000 Italians
were taken prisoner.
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It was the first sign
that the Italian Army
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was in poor fighting shape.
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The remainder of the
defeated Italians
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retreated back across
the Libyan border.
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The British followed
in hot pursuit.
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In barely a month, the
Western Desert Force,
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as it was called, had advanced
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almost 600 miles across Libya.
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It now paused and dug in
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at the Libyan coastal
town of El Agheila.
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Almost half of Italy's Libyan
empire had been seized
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and over 100,000 Italian
troops taken prisoner.
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Meanwhile, to the
south, British forces
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invaded Italian
controlled Abyssinia.
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The fighting lasted
for nearly 12 months.
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The rugged terrain
made communications
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and transport difficult.
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But in the end, the Italians
were forced to surrender.
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00:05:16,520 --> 00:05:19,176
But even as Abyssinia
was being secured,
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Mussolini's empire-building
was causing problems
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in another part of
the Mediterranean.
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Nearly two years
earlier in April 1939,
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as part of his plan for
a new Roman empire,
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Mussolini had occupied Albania.
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The following year he demanded
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Greece become an Italian colony.
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When the Greeks
refused, he invaded.
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The Greeks were outnumbered
more than two to one.
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But they swiftly turned
back the Italian advance.
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By the beginning of March 1941,
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the Italians had not only
been pushed out of Greece,
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but out of much of
neighbouring Albania too.
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Britain's Prime Minister
Winston Churchill
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promised help so the Greeks
could finish the job.
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But Britain's
forces were already
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heavily committed elsewhere.
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So it was that the British
units in North Africa
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were told to abandon
their Libyan adventure
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and ship much of the force
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across the Mediterranean
to Albania.
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As the Italian troops
were now pushed back,
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Mussolini's Balkan
ambitions fell apart.
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The Italians were
in deep trouble.
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It left Hitler with a problem.
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Should he divert troops
from elsewhere in Europe
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to support his most
important European ally
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or should he abandon
Mussolini to his fate?
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He decided to help.
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In April 1941, over half
a million German troops
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swept down into
Yugoslavia and Greece.
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For Germany, it would
prove to be the beginning
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of a fateful entanglement with
Mussolini's political dreams.
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But at first, all went well.
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The Greeks, despite
British help,
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were unable to hold
the Germans back.
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And in late April, the
Axis forces captured
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the Greek capitol of Athens.
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Some 30,000 men were evacuated
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to the British controlled
island of Crete.
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Hitler decided to
flush them out.
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He had at his command
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some 22,000 parachute
and glider borne troops
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backed up by 150
Stuka dive bombers.
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The landings began at first
light on May the 20th.
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00:09:15,800 --> 00:09:19,256
To begin with, they focused
on the main airfields.
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The Allied forces
were overstretched.
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There were incessant
German air attacks.
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The Germans soon
captured the airfields
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and began to fly
in reinforcements.
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The allies were pushed
back across the island.
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Two weeks later,
it was all over.
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00:10:02,560 --> 00:10:06,120
Fifteen thousand allied
troops had to be evacuated.
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A further 18,000
were taken prisoner.
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The Axis powers now controlled
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much of the Mediterranean
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and the critical supply
routes to North Africa.
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It looked as though
Hitler's decision
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to support Mussolini
had paid off.
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He was poised to drive Britain
out of the entire region.
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In February 1941, a
junior German general
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arrived at the Libyan
port of Tripoli.
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Erwin Rommel was one of the
rising stars of the German Army
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and had been chosen by Hitler
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as the man to rescue
his Italian ally
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and retake North Africa
for the Axis powers.
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The first units of his Afrika
Korps were soon landing.
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Some 16,000 men and
over 100 tanks
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had been diverted from
the European front.
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00:11:41,560 --> 00:11:45,216
The Axis forces rapidly
outnumbered the British troops,
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00:11:45,240 --> 00:11:48,840
depleted by the war
in Greece and Crete.
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00:11:55,440 --> 00:11:57,696
Rommel advanced towards
the British positions
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00:11:57,720 --> 00:12:00,320
at El Agheila and attacked.
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00:12:14,520 --> 00:12:16,096
As the British fell back,
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00:12:16,120 --> 00:12:17,760
Rommel pursued them.
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00:12:21,520 --> 00:12:23,816
In a matter of weeks
the Allied soldiers
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had been pushed all the way
back to the Egyptian border.
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But in the retreat a division
of Australian troops
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had been cut off by the Germans
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00:12:37,320 --> 00:12:39,480
in the Libyan port of Tobruk.
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00:12:43,840 --> 00:12:46,576
The British Commander,
Sir Archibald Wavell,
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now launched two successive
attempts to relieve them.
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00:13:01,160 --> 00:13:05,456
Both were fought off by Rommel's
now well-encamped troops.
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00:13:09,320 --> 00:13:12,440
The Germans massively
out gunned the British.
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00:13:15,640 --> 00:13:18,416
Their 88 millimetre
anti-aircraft guns,
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00:13:18,440 --> 00:13:20,336
when used against tanks,
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00:13:20,360 --> 00:13:22,760
far outranged the British.
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00:13:25,000 --> 00:13:26,576
Moreover, Rommel took advantage
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00:13:26,600 --> 00:13:28,296
of the wide open landscape
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00:13:28,320 --> 00:13:31,296
to drive his tanks around
the British forces,
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00:13:31,320 --> 00:13:33,920
outflanking them
time and time again.
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00:13:35,920 --> 00:13:38,640
It would become his
trademark tactic.
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00:13:43,400 --> 00:13:47,216
The British press half
grudgingly, half admiringly,
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00:13:47,240 --> 00:13:50,280
nicknamed Rommel the Desert Fox.
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00:13:52,880 --> 00:13:55,040
For Wavell, it was too much.
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00:13:55,480 --> 00:13:59,760
Now exhausted, he was replaced
by General Claude Auchinleck.
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00:14:02,720 --> 00:14:05,176
Auchinleck came under
immediate pressure
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00:14:05,200 --> 00:14:08,400
to try and again to relieve
the allied troops in Tobruk.
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00:14:10,960 --> 00:14:14,640
But he refused until his
forces had been reinforced.
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00:14:20,880 --> 00:14:23,576
Then on November the 18th, 1941,
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he launched a major assault.
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00:14:39,120 --> 00:14:41,696
Operation Crusader,
as it was called,
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started with a lengthy
armoured dogfight.
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00:14:59,320 --> 00:15:03,120
Again, the British tanks
suffered heavy casualties.
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00:15:04,360 --> 00:15:07,520
But the infantry
slowly moved forward.
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00:15:12,680 --> 00:15:16,096
Finally, after a month
of confused fighting,
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00:15:16,120 --> 00:15:17,776
Rommel retreated.
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00:15:17,800 --> 00:15:19,960
Tobruk had been relieved.
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00:15:23,960 --> 00:15:26,696
The Axis units fell
back along the coast
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00:15:26,720 --> 00:15:29,920
all the way to their starting
point at El Agheila.
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00:15:38,240 --> 00:15:41,096
Auchinleck's military
command now assumed Rommel
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was a spent force, at
least for the time being.
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00:15:48,240 --> 00:15:51,416
Its units were dispersed
to bases along the coast
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00:15:51,440 --> 00:15:53,760
for a badly needed refit.
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00:15:58,880 --> 00:16:00,440
It was a mistake.
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00:16:05,440 --> 00:16:08,536
Two months later
in January 1942,
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00:16:08,560 --> 00:16:11,896
Rommel's Afrika Korps
was back on the attack.
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00:16:19,040 --> 00:16:21,896
It quickly brushed aside
the forward units
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00:16:21,920 --> 00:16:24,920
of a now unprepared
British Army.
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00:16:28,120 --> 00:16:30,096
The chase along the
coast of Africa
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00:16:30,120 --> 00:16:32,360
began all over again.
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00:16:37,320 --> 00:16:40,576
The allies fell back towards
a new defensive line
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just west of Tobruk.
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00:16:47,120 --> 00:16:49,936
Here a series of
defensive positions,
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known as the Gazala
Line, were constructed.
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00:16:55,480 --> 00:16:58,616
Rommel attacked it at
the end of May 1942.
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00:17:06,120 --> 00:17:10,016
Once again, he swung his armour
around the British forces
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00:17:10,040 --> 00:17:12,136
in a great outflanking movement
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00:17:12,160 --> 00:17:14,880
and came in behind the
British positions.
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00:17:20,760 --> 00:17:23,336
But this time the British
were prepared for it
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00:17:23,360 --> 00:17:26,320
and tried, in turn,
to outflank Rommel.
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00:17:40,320 --> 00:17:42,336
The fighting lasted
for three weeks,
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00:17:42,360 --> 00:17:45,520
as each side tried to
outmanoeuvre the other.
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00:17:55,960 --> 00:17:59,600
Eventually, the British
were forced to retreat.
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00:18:01,840 --> 00:18:05,880
Three days later the Germans
overran the Allied positions.
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00:18:08,200 --> 00:18:10,440
Rommel pressed home
his advantage.
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00:18:20,320 --> 00:18:23,640
The British withdrawal
threatened to become a rout.
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00:18:27,320 --> 00:18:30,496
Finally, Auchinleck
turned to face his enemy
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00:18:30,520 --> 00:18:33,560
at the Egyptian village
of El Alamein.
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00:18:35,560 --> 00:18:38,736
His southern flank rested
on the Qattara Depression,
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00:18:38,760 --> 00:18:41,440
an area impassable to tanks.
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00:18:47,040 --> 00:18:49,536
On July the 1st, 1942,
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00:18:49,560 --> 00:18:51,296
Rommel attacked again.
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00:18:58,320 --> 00:19:01,176
But this time the
British defences held.
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00:19:15,040 --> 00:19:17,816
Rommel, with his
supply line stretched
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00:19:17,840 --> 00:19:20,576
and now seriously short of fuel
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00:19:20,600 --> 00:19:22,240
was forced to give up.
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00:19:27,000 --> 00:19:29,960
Now Auchinleck attempted
a counterattack.
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00:19:31,680 --> 00:19:35,056
For the rest of July the two
sides pushed at each other
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00:19:35,080 --> 00:19:37,416
like exhausted boxers.
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00:19:43,280 --> 00:19:46,576
Churchill was furious at the
lack of British progress
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00:19:46,600 --> 00:19:49,096
and now visited Egypt.
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00:19:58,000 --> 00:20:01,400
It was time for yet another
change of leadership.
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00:20:03,520 --> 00:20:07,520
Auchinleck was replaced by
not one but two generals.
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00:20:08,200 --> 00:20:12,200
General Harold Alexander as
Commander in Chief, Near East,
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00:20:13,080 --> 00:20:16,800
and General Bernard Montgomery
as commander of 8th Army.
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00:20:21,320 --> 00:20:23,496
The British and Axis forces
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00:20:23,520 --> 00:20:26,320
had fought each other
to a standstill.
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00:20:28,080 --> 00:20:29,976
There was no clear winner.
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00:20:30,000 --> 00:20:33,040
And the fate of North Africa
still hung in the balance.
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00:20:36,120 --> 00:20:38,816
Everything would now depend
on whether the British
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00:20:38,840 --> 00:20:41,296
could throttle the
Axis supply routes
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00:20:41,320 --> 00:20:43,240
across the Mediterranean.
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00:20:53,400 --> 00:20:55,936
For the first months
of World War II
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00:20:55,960 --> 00:20:59,096
the allies had enjoyed
unchallenged control
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00:20:59,120 --> 00:21:01,000
of the Mediterranean Sea.
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00:21:04,240 --> 00:21:06,656
Britain's own supplies
from the Middle East
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00:21:06,680 --> 00:21:08,856
passed through it undisturbed.
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00:21:08,880 --> 00:21:10,736
And communications
with the empire
220
00:21:10,760 --> 00:21:13,880
in India and the Far
East were secured.
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00:21:20,080 --> 00:21:24,040
Italy's entry into the
war changed all that.
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00:21:27,240 --> 00:21:30,520
Its naval fleet was
modern and well equipped.
223
00:21:34,440 --> 00:21:37,056
The Italians now
concentrated their fire
224
00:21:37,080 --> 00:21:39,096
on the strategically crucial
225
00:21:39,120 --> 00:21:42,040
British controlled
island of Malta.
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00:21:44,640 --> 00:21:47,296
The island was an
important refuelling base
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00:21:47,320 --> 00:21:49,296
for British submarines
and aircraft
228
00:21:49,320 --> 00:21:51,520
in the eastern Mediterranean.
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00:21:52,600 --> 00:21:55,536
It had become the centre
for Royal Navy attacks
230
00:21:55,560 --> 00:21:59,520
on Italian and German supply
convoys to North Africa.
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00:22:04,520 --> 00:22:08,056
In summer 1940, Italy bombed it.
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00:22:21,880 --> 00:22:24,696
It was the beginning
of a two-year assault
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00:22:24,720 --> 00:22:26,816
which would inflict
terrible suffering
234
00:22:26,840 --> 00:22:28,800
on the island's population.
235
00:22:36,480 --> 00:22:39,336
Yet for all Malta's
strategic significance,
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00:22:39,360 --> 00:22:41,520
Britain was caught on the hop.
237
00:22:49,000 --> 00:22:51,576
There were no fighter
aircraft on the island
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00:22:51,600 --> 00:22:53,720
to beat off the attacks.
239
00:23:01,240 --> 00:23:06,136
Then almost by accident four
gladiator fighter biplanes
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00:23:06,160 --> 00:23:08,520
were found in crates
on the island.
241
00:23:10,840 --> 00:23:12,880
They were hastily assembled.
242
00:23:19,840 --> 00:23:22,480
The aircraft put up a
fierce resistance.
243
00:23:26,880 --> 00:23:30,560
For three weeks the fate of
Malta remained uncertain.
244
00:23:36,440 --> 00:23:39,976
Then finally, British fighter
reinforcements arrived.
245
00:23:40,000 --> 00:23:43,896
And the Italian bombers were
temporarily beaten off.
246
00:23:53,320 --> 00:23:55,576
But it was now obvious
to the British
247
00:23:55,600 --> 00:23:57,376
that they had to do something
248
00:23:57,400 --> 00:24:00,320
if they were to keep a
toehold in the region.
249
00:24:05,960 --> 00:24:08,496
That winter Britain
launched what it hoped
250
00:24:08,520 --> 00:24:12,016
would be a knockout blow
against the Italian Navy.
251
00:24:18,520 --> 00:24:20,736
On the evening of
November the 11th,
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00:24:20,760 --> 00:24:23,296
twenty-one Swordfish
torpedo bombers
253
00:24:23,320 --> 00:24:26,000
lifted off an aircraft carrier.
254
00:24:36,040 --> 00:24:38,536
They swept in on
the Italian fleet,
255
00:24:38,560 --> 00:24:40,856
anchored in its base at Taranto.
256
00:24:44,920 --> 00:24:47,320
The Italians hadn't expected it.
257
00:24:54,560 --> 00:24:57,600
Three of Italy's six
battleships were crippled.
258
00:25:01,480 --> 00:25:04,440
Four months later,
Britain struck again.
259
00:25:09,080 --> 00:25:12,096
The Italian fleet was
again caught off guard
260
00:25:12,120 --> 00:25:13,840
off the coast of Greece.
261
00:25:29,000 --> 00:25:32,480
A fourth Italian
battleship was damaged.
262
00:25:40,520 --> 00:25:44,120
Mussolini's challenge to the
British Navy was finished.
263
00:25:49,160 --> 00:25:51,680
It was a turning point
for Hitler too.
264
00:25:53,600 --> 00:25:55,696
It was now clear that
Italy could no longer
265
00:25:55,720 --> 00:25:59,040
be depended on to maintain
control of the Mediterranean.
266
00:26:01,240 --> 00:26:03,496
It meant his supply
lines to North Africa
267
00:26:03,520 --> 00:26:05,720
were at risk of being cut off.
268
00:26:07,280 --> 00:26:10,520
Germany decided to
take a direct hand.
269
00:26:17,840 --> 00:26:22,296
In early 1941, the
Luftwaffe bombed Malta.
270
00:26:38,760 --> 00:26:41,480
The island took another
severe battery.
271
00:26:43,960 --> 00:26:47,336
The attacks continued
month after month.
272
00:26:51,440 --> 00:26:53,640
Yet the British
garrison hung on.
273
00:26:58,240 --> 00:27:00,856
During an interlude in
the German bombardment
274
00:27:00,880 --> 00:27:05,136
in autumn 1941, it even managed
to step up its attacks
275
00:27:05,160 --> 00:27:08,176
on the Axis supply
convoys to North Africa.
276
00:27:17,520 --> 00:27:20,720
Then the Luftwaffe
resumed the assault.
277
00:27:30,240 --> 00:27:32,096
But despite the battering,
278
00:27:32,120 --> 00:27:34,480
the people of Malta held on.
279
00:27:40,120 --> 00:27:43,096
The following spring
in April 1942,
280
00:27:43,120 --> 00:27:45,896
they received a unique
honour for the heroism
281
00:27:45,920 --> 00:27:47,696
they had shown on
the four months
282
00:27:47,720 --> 00:27:50,680
of devastating Axis bombardment.
283
00:27:54,480 --> 00:27:57,296
The island was awarded
the George Cross,
284
00:27:57,320 --> 00:28:00,680
Britain's highest award
for civilian courage.
285
00:28:08,200 --> 00:28:10,496
But by the summer of 1942,
286
00:28:10,520 --> 00:28:14,320
Malta was running short of
supplies and ammunition.
287
00:28:18,080 --> 00:28:20,976
In mid-June the British
Navy sent convoys
288
00:28:21,000 --> 00:28:24,160
from Gibraltar and
Egypt to relieve it.
289
00:28:28,960 --> 00:28:30,840
But the Germans were waiting.
290
00:28:45,040 --> 00:28:48,720
Just two of the 17
ships got through.
291
00:28:51,880 --> 00:28:54,816
The situation on the island
was getting desperate.
292
00:28:54,840 --> 00:28:57,520
It was time for some
decisive action.
293
00:29:00,320 --> 00:29:03,616
In August, Britain launched
Operation Pedestal,
294
00:29:03,640 --> 00:29:06,440
the biggest convoy
ever sent to Malta.
295
00:29:09,200 --> 00:29:11,856
Fourteen merchant ships
entered the Mediterranean
296
00:29:11,880 --> 00:29:13,800
through the Straits
of Gibraltar.
297
00:29:16,040 --> 00:29:18,920
They were accompanied by
a large naval escort.
298
00:29:23,920 --> 00:29:27,240
Almost immediately they ran
into German opposition.
299
00:29:32,920 --> 00:29:35,936
For three days there was
a ferocious sea battle
300
00:29:35,960 --> 00:29:38,136
as Axis submarines and aircraft
301
00:29:38,160 --> 00:29:41,056
attempted to stop and
sink the convoy.
302
00:30:00,320 --> 00:30:02,696
Finally, on the fourth day,
303
00:30:02,720 --> 00:30:04,936
five of the British
merchant ships
304
00:30:04,960 --> 00:30:06,896
made it into port.
305
00:30:15,880 --> 00:30:18,536
They brought with them
just enough supplies
306
00:30:18,560 --> 00:30:20,720
to keep the island going.
307
00:30:23,560 --> 00:30:25,520
Malta had been rescued.
308
00:30:27,240 --> 00:30:29,536
It meant the allies could
continue to harass
309
00:30:29,560 --> 00:30:31,936
the Axis supply lines
to North Africa.
310
00:30:37,120 --> 00:30:40,096
It was a strategic advantage
that would prove crucial
311
00:30:40,120 --> 00:30:42,120
to future events in the region.
312
00:30:52,480 --> 00:30:55,896
In North Africa, Churchill's
orders to his new team,
313
00:30:55,920 --> 00:30:59,696
Generals Alexander and
Montgomery, were simple.
314
00:30:59,720 --> 00:31:03,400
Destroy the army commanded
by Field Marshall Rommel.
315
00:31:09,480 --> 00:31:11,296
Almost immediately
they were informed
316
00:31:11,320 --> 00:31:14,496
by the team that had broken
Germany's enigma code
317
00:31:14,520 --> 00:31:17,560
that Rommel was preparing
to attack them.
318
00:31:24,960 --> 00:31:27,136
Montgomery assumed
the Desert Fox
319
00:31:27,160 --> 00:31:30,056
would try another of
his outflanking moves
320
00:31:30,080 --> 00:31:33,056
and fortified the
ridge of Alam Halfa,
321
00:31:33,080 --> 00:31:35,640
just to the southeast
of El Alamein.
322
00:31:40,320 --> 00:31:43,016
It was, he hoped,
the rock on which
323
00:31:43,040 --> 00:31:45,480
the Axis forces would be broken.
324
00:31:55,000 --> 00:31:58,720
When it came, the fighting
lasted for three days.
325
00:32:06,040 --> 00:32:10,320
This time Allied ground forces
were helped by air power.
326
00:32:13,640 --> 00:32:17,760
The RAF played havoc with
the advancing German tanks.
327
00:32:22,800 --> 00:32:24,736
Rommel was forced to give up.
328
00:32:24,760 --> 00:32:28,160
And short of fuel
again, he pulled back.
329
00:32:34,800 --> 00:32:37,560
It was now Rommel's
turn to dig in.
330
00:32:41,080 --> 00:32:43,456
He chose a line between
the impassable
331
00:32:43,480 --> 00:32:45,616
sand sea of the
Qattara Depression
332
00:32:45,640 --> 00:32:47,640
and the Mediterranean coast.
333
00:32:53,320 --> 00:32:57,160
Great belts of minefields
were covered by artillery.
334
00:32:59,280 --> 00:33:00,536
Rommel's Panzer divisions
335
00:33:00,560 --> 00:33:03,056
were held back as
a mobile reserve
336
00:33:03,080 --> 00:33:06,160
to destroy any Allied
breakthroughs.
337
00:33:08,720 --> 00:33:12,360
Montgomery was well aware it
was a formidable barrier.
338
00:33:13,040 --> 00:33:16,520
He also knew it was
impossible to outflank it.
339
00:33:21,920 --> 00:33:24,896
His only option is
to punch his way
340
00:33:24,920 --> 00:33:28,520
directly through the middle
of the Axis defences.
341
00:33:33,000 --> 00:33:35,376
He was helped by a
flood of new equipment
342
00:33:35,400 --> 00:33:37,096
from the United States,
343
00:33:37,120 --> 00:33:40,896
which included the new
American Lee and Sherman tanks
344
00:33:40,920 --> 00:33:43,120
with 75 millimetre guns.
345
00:33:46,200 --> 00:33:48,616
At last, the Allies had a weapon
346
00:33:48,640 --> 00:33:50,680
which could match the Germans.
347
00:34:03,120 --> 00:34:07,336
Finally, on the evening of
October the 23rd, 1942,
348
00:34:07,360 --> 00:34:10,376
the British opened up an
artillery bombardment
349
00:34:10,400 --> 00:34:12,400
on Rommel's positions.
350
00:34:20,320 --> 00:34:23,336
The Battle of El
Alamein had begun.
351
00:34:31,360 --> 00:34:33,296
Under cover of the bombardment,
352
00:34:33,320 --> 00:34:36,576
Allied engineers moved
forward to clear paths
353
00:34:36,600 --> 00:34:38,576
through the Axis minefields.
354
00:34:50,240 --> 00:34:52,896
The British, Australian,
New Zealand,
355
00:34:52,920 --> 00:34:54,696
and South African divisions
356
00:34:54,720 --> 00:34:57,720
fought to drive a hole
through Rommel's defences.
357
00:35:04,880 --> 00:35:08,280
Rommel's artillery
took a terrible toll.
358
00:35:08,840 --> 00:35:11,680
Casualties mounted
on both sides.
359
00:35:16,440 --> 00:35:19,696
The Axis forces were harried
by Allied air power.
360
00:35:28,120 --> 00:35:30,896
Finally, after ten
days of fighting,
361
00:35:30,920 --> 00:35:33,480
the Allied forces broke through.
362
00:35:37,480 --> 00:35:40,840
The following day
Rommel retreated.
363
00:35:46,960 --> 00:35:49,816
It was Germany's
first major defeat
364
00:35:49,840 --> 00:35:52,280
at the hands of the
western allies.
365
00:35:55,000 --> 00:35:57,280
Churchill was triumphant.
366
00:35:58,760 --> 00:36:01,896
No, this is not the end.
367
00:36:01,920 --> 00:36:05,520
This is not even the
beginning of the end.
368
00:36:06,240 --> 00:36:09,400
Though what it is perhaps
the end of the beginning.
369
00:36:15,360 --> 00:36:16,936
For two and a half months
370
00:36:16,960 --> 00:36:18,696
Montgomery chased Rommel west
371
00:36:18,720 --> 00:36:21,920
along the North African
coast towards Tunisia.
372
00:36:33,360 --> 00:36:35,776
Meanwhile, an Anglo
American force
373
00:36:35,800 --> 00:36:38,176
had landed a thousand
miles to his rear
374
00:36:38,200 --> 00:36:42,120
in French North Africa,
Morocco and Algeria today.
375
00:36:48,880 --> 00:36:51,720
It was code named
Operation Torch.
376
00:36:59,200 --> 00:37:01,536
The Allied 1st Army was soon
377
00:37:01,560 --> 00:37:04,320
moving eastwards
towards Tunisia.
378
00:37:09,600 --> 00:37:12,520
Rommel was in danger of
being attacked from behind.
379
00:37:21,520 --> 00:37:23,576
Over the next few days
the Germans flew in
380
00:37:23,600 --> 00:37:26,496
tens of thousands of
troops from Europe
381
00:37:26,520 --> 00:37:28,816
to save Rommel and shore up
382
00:37:28,840 --> 00:37:31,200
the German position
in North Africa.
383
00:37:33,600 --> 00:37:36,696
Finally, in late February 1943,
384
00:37:36,720 --> 00:37:40,416
Rommel, reinforced, set
up a new defensive line
385
00:37:40,440 --> 00:37:42,936
a hundred miles inside Tunisia
386
00:37:42,960 --> 00:37:46,600
and turned to attack
Montgomery's advancing forces.
387
00:37:52,800 --> 00:37:54,696
But Montgomery had
been forewarned
388
00:37:54,720 --> 00:37:56,976
by the enigma code breakers.
389
00:37:57,000 --> 00:37:58,856
And his troops were waiting
390
00:37:58,880 --> 00:38:01,200
as the German tanks
rolled forward.
391
00:38:09,520 --> 00:38:11,616
British artillery
broke up the assault
392
00:38:11,640 --> 00:38:14,240
and the Panzers were
quickly halted.
393
00:38:18,480 --> 00:38:21,960
It was Rommel's last
battle in North Africa.
394
00:38:29,760 --> 00:38:31,496
He now returned to Germany
395
00:38:31,520 --> 00:38:35,120
to beg Hitler to abandon the
North African campaign.
396
00:38:37,800 --> 00:38:39,640
But Hitler refused.
397
00:38:45,000 --> 00:38:46,920
It was a misjudgement.
398
00:38:51,360 --> 00:38:54,896
As Montgomery's 8th Army now
pushed up from the south,
399
00:38:54,920 --> 00:38:58,760
the Anglo American 1st Army
squeezed in from the west.
400
00:39:03,880 --> 00:39:07,520
On May the 7th, US forces
took the port of Bizerta.
401
00:39:10,280 --> 00:39:12,176
The British 7th Armour Division,
402
00:39:12,200 --> 00:39:15,920
the famous Desert Rats,
drove into Tunis.
403
00:39:26,680 --> 00:39:29,016
The Allies pincer closed,
404
00:39:29,040 --> 00:39:31,960
and the Axis troops
were trapped.
405
00:39:36,200 --> 00:39:39,096
Five days later, a
quarter of a million
406
00:39:39,120 --> 00:39:42,680
German and Italian
soldiers surrendered.
407
00:39:43,720 --> 00:39:45,216
It was more than
twice the number
408
00:39:45,240 --> 00:39:48,720
that had surrendered at
Stalingrad four months earlier.
409
00:39:51,160 --> 00:39:55,040
For Germany, it was another
momentous disaster.
410
00:39:57,760 --> 00:40:00,816
The following day, the British
regional commander in chief,
411
00:40:00,840 --> 00:40:02,896
General Harold Alexander,
412
00:40:02,920 --> 00:40:04,696
signalled Winston Churchill,
413
00:40:04,720 --> 00:40:07,296
"Sir, it is my duty to report"
414
00:40:07,320 --> 00:40:10,536
that all enemy
resistance has ceased.
415
00:40:10,560 --> 00:40:14,080
"We are the masters of the
North African shores."
416
00:40:25,240 --> 00:40:27,536
Mussolini's gamble
in North Africa
417
00:40:27,560 --> 00:40:31,160
had taken a terrible toll
on German resources.
418
00:40:37,200 --> 00:40:40,856
It was about to have even
more serious consequences
419
00:40:40,880 --> 00:40:43,760
for both him and Germany.
420
00:40:53,960 --> 00:40:56,816
In January 1943, at a conference
421
00:40:56,840 --> 00:40:59,216
in the Moroccan
city of Casablanca,
422
00:40:59,240 --> 00:41:02,856
Churchill and Roosevelt
agreed to open a new front
423
00:41:02,880 --> 00:41:05,080
on German dominated Europe.
424
00:41:09,480 --> 00:41:11,960
The obvious target was Italy
425
00:41:12,520 --> 00:41:15,880
seriously weakened by its
North African failures.
426
00:41:17,960 --> 00:41:21,680
The only question was where
should the invasion begin?
427
00:41:22,160 --> 00:41:25,720
Should the route go via
Sardinia or Sicily?
428
00:41:29,520 --> 00:41:32,896
The Allied high command
chose the Sicilian route.
429
00:41:32,920 --> 00:41:34,976
But to throw the
Germans off the scent,
430
00:41:35,000 --> 00:41:37,320
they organised a deception plan.
431
00:41:42,920 --> 00:41:45,680
Operation Mincemeat
was launched.
432
00:41:47,720 --> 00:41:50,656
A corpse was dropped off
the shores of Spain
433
00:41:50,680 --> 00:41:52,720
carrying false papers.
434
00:41:55,200 --> 00:41:58,296
When it was washed
ashore in May 1943
435
00:41:58,320 --> 00:42:00,656
and the papers passed
to the Germans,
436
00:42:00,680 --> 00:42:05,336
they revealed that the Allies
would pretend to attack Sicily
437
00:42:05,360 --> 00:42:08,480
but that their real
target was Sardinia.
438
00:42:15,800 --> 00:42:18,656
Enigma code breakers
soon confirmed
439
00:42:18,680 --> 00:42:21,136
the Germans had fallen for it.
440
00:42:28,800 --> 00:42:32,696
Six weeks later, the British
8th Army under Montgomery
441
00:42:32,720 --> 00:42:36,040
landed in the southeast
corner of Sicily.
442
00:42:45,920 --> 00:42:49,560
The Italian coastal troops
presented few problems.
443
00:42:59,920 --> 00:43:04,800
Further west, the US 7th Army
landed in the Gulf of Gela.
444
00:43:13,880 --> 00:43:16,896
The Italian resistance
was again overwhelmed.
445
00:43:24,320 --> 00:43:27,296
For the Italian people
the invasion of Sicily
446
00:43:27,320 --> 00:43:29,416
was the final humiliation.
447
00:43:33,960 --> 00:43:37,736
Mussolini was overthrown
in a popular uprising.
448
00:43:40,000 --> 00:43:42,496
The new government now
opened secret talks
449
00:43:42,520 --> 00:43:44,536
with the Allies
for an armistice.
450
00:43:51,320 --> 00:43:54,200
For Hitler, it was
another nightmare.
451
00:43:54,680 --> 00:43:58,536
He was now forced to pour in
yet more scarce resources
452
00:43:58,560 --> 00:44:01,080
to protect his southern flank.
453
00:44:04,680 --> 00:44:07,616
He told his commanders that
even if Italy surrendered,
454
00:44:07,640 --> 00:44:09,680
they should fight on.
455
00:44:17,560 --> 00:44:21,200
Within five weeks the Germans
had been pushed out of Sicily.
456
00:44:25,080 --> 00:44:27,496
The Allies now crossed
to the main land
457
00:44:27,520 --> 00:44:29,720
and pushed up through
the country.
458
00:44:36,000 --> 00:44:39,120
US troops moved
up the west side.
459
00:44:42,920 --> 00:44:45,840
British troops
moved up the east.
460
00:44:50,520 --> 00:44:53,416
The Germans fought back
savagely all the way.
461
00:45:00,440 --> 00:45:03,056
Even so, Naples
fell to the Allies
462
00:45:03,080 --> 00:45:05,520
on October the 1st, 1943.
463
00:45:11,920 --> 00:45:13,896
But then their
progress was slowed
464
00:45:13,920 --> 00:45:18,296
by autumn rains and skilful
German rear guard attacks.
465
00:45:25,120 --> 00:45:27,096
It was not until the
end of November
466
00:45:27,120 --> 00:45:31,096
that Allied forces finally
reached the Gustav Line,
467
00:45:31,120 --> 00:45:34,576
the first of a series of
German defensive positions
468
00:45:34,600 --> 00:45:36,400
cutting across Italy.
469
00:45:40,960 --> 00:45:42,896
British troops managed
to break through
470
00:45:42,920 --> 00:45:44,696
at the eastern end of the line,
471
00:45:44,720 --> 00:45:46,816
but winter was setting in.
472
00:45:46,840 --> 00:45:49,280
And bad weather
forced them to halt.
473
00:45:55,160 --> 00:45:57,896
Nevertheless, in the
west, US forces
474
00:45:57,920 --> 00:46:00,256
attempted to outflank
the German defences
475
00:46:00,280 --> 00:46:02,240
by taking to the sea.
476
00:46:10,840 --> 00:46:14,656
They landed on January
the 22nd, 1944,
477
00:46:14,680 --> 00:46:17,920
sixty miles to the north
of the point of Anzio.
478
00:46:26,240 --> 00:46:28,896
But here, amidst
fierce fighting,
479
00:46:28,920 --> 00:46:33,280
they were pinned down and nearly
driven back into the sea.
480
00:46:39,720 --> 00:46:42,096
The Americans remained
trapped at Anzio
481
00:46:42,120 --> 00:46:45,440
for the rest of the winter
and into the spring.
482
00:46:51,120 --> 00:46:53,656
Meanwhile, in the
centre of Italy,
483
00:46:53,680 --> 00:46:56,096
the key to breaking
the Gustav Line
484
00:46:56,120 --> 00:46:59,760
was the towering Monte
Cassino mountain complex.
485
00:47:07,320 --> 00:47:09,736
As spring came,
there was a series
486
00:47:09,760 --> 00:47:11,696
of attempts to capture it.
487
00:47:19,920 --> 00:47:21,696
Each assault failed.
488
00:47:26,480 --> 00:47:28,736
In desperation,
the Allies bombed
489
00:47:28,760 --> 00:47:30,920
a historic monastery
on the summit.
490
00:47:48,920 --> 00:47:50,760
But the Germans hung on.
491
00:48:11,320 --> 00:48:14,576
Finally, in late spring 1944,
492
00:48:14,600 --> 00:48:17,336
as the weather improved,
the Allied forces
493
00:48:17,360 --> 00:48:19,720
broke through the German lines.
494
00:48:22,840 --> 00:48:26,120
Simultaneously, the Americans
broke out of Anzio.
495
00:48:30,320 --> 00:48:34,440
The Allied forces now moved
swiftly north to Rome.
496
00:48:39,320 --> 00:48:41,376
The Italian capitol
was liberated
497
00:48:41,400 --> 00:48:44,536
on June the 4th, 1944.
498
00:48:54,400 --> 00:48:57,616
For Hitler, it was another blow.
499
00:48:57,640 --> 00:49:01,120
He was now hanging on to
Italy by his fingernails.
500
00:49:05,880 --> 00:49:08,600
The Allies continued
to push north.
501
00:49:23,000 --> 00:49:25,496
The German defenders
finally fell back
502
00:49:25,520 --> 00:49:27,816
to the formidable Gothic Line,
503
00:49:27,840 --> 00:49:29,640
just north of Florence.
504
00:49:37,280 --> 00:49:41,400
Here bad weather again brought
the Allied advance to a halt.
505
00:49:47,440 --> 00:49:50,856
It wouldn't be until
the spring of 1945
506
00:49:50,880 --> 00:49:52,896
that the campaign could resume
507
00:49:52,920 --> 00:49:55,216
and Italy was finally won.
508
00:50:06,200 --> 00:50:09,920
By then the Italians had
had enough of Mussolini.
509
00:50:10,880 --> 00:50:14,920
He was captured by Italian
partisan forces and shot.
510
00:50:20,640 --> 00:50:23,960
His corpse was hung by
its heels in Milan.
511
00:50:27,000 --> 00:50:29,856
Mussolini's war had
been a catastrophe
512
00:50:29,880 --> 00:50:32,240
for himself and his country.
513
00:50:33,560 --> 00:50:36,096
It had also left the
German southern flank
514
00:50:36,120 --> 00:50:38,200
dangerously exposed.
515
00:50:39,520 --> 00:50:42,096
The German Army was
now overcommitted,
516
00:50:42,120 --> 00:50:46,480
short of troops, and
retreating on all fronts.
40836
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