April 1941, North Africa. The British forward line at Mersa Brega has collapsed, 2nd Armoured Division is in retreat, and Erwin Rommels Afrika Korps is on the move. What was supposed to be a cautious blocking force has turned into a fast-moving desert offensive threatening Benghazi, Mechili, and all of Cyrenaica.
In this episode of our WW2 in Real Time North Africa miniseries, we follow:
- Rommel as he ignores Hitlers orders and pushes east after Mersa Brega - The chaotic British retreat and fuel-starved tanks abandoning the desert - The fall of Benghazi without a fight - Wavells misjudgements and late reactions from Middle East Command - The race for Mechili, a vital crossroads and supply dump - The brutal reality of desert logistics where sand and distance destroy more vehicles than enemy shells
While Rommel drives his reconnaissance units toward Benghazi and Mechili, British commanders try to trade ground for time and avoid encirclement. At the same time, Italian commanders warn Rommel about overstretch, and German divisional leaders complain about fuel and breakdowns warnings he largely ignores.
By the end of this week in 1941, the Desert Fox is deep inside Cyrenaica, the British are burning their own supply dumps, and both sides are racing for the next key position. A clash at Mechili is imminent and so is a showdown at the Er Regima pass with the Devils Own Australians waiting in ambush.
This is Episode 9 of our North Africa 1941 miniseries part of our larger effort to cover WW2 week by week, in real time.
If you want to support this work and get deeper into the war in the desert and beyond, join the TimeGhost Army at timeghost.tv or patreon.com.
Hosted by: Indy Neidell Director: Astrid Deinhard Producers: Astrid Deinhard and Spartacus Olsson Executive Producers: Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson Co-produced by: James Newman Creative Director: Iryna Dulka Community Management: Anna Deinhard & Tom Aldis Written by: Sebastian Brandstetter Research by: Sebastian Brandstetter Map animations by: Daniel Weiss and Andreas Olsson Map research by: Tom Aldis, Andreas Olsson Edited by: Łukasz Zoń Color grading by: Łukasz Zoń Artwork by: Iryna Dulka Sound design by: Marek Kamiński
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