"For a while it looked like the the British would cut off Rommel's army but a sudden rain storm on 6th November turned the desert into a quagmire and the chasing army was slowed down." http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/Montgomery.html Anyone know more of this? Was the rain the main reason for letting Rommel escape?
I find that hard to believe. Said rain storm would also have slowed Rommel and his tanks down, so it would have been an even paced race. But from what i know of the battle, i dont think this was true. I have a book (the Battle of Al Alamein) but i have yet to read it!
My opinion for now but Monty has always been overly cautious so I would say that was the reason as to why Rommel was able to get away. Had it been Patton in Monty's place, Rommel would not have had anytime to rest. Patton would have been on Rommel like a flea on a dog!
Patton would have botched it, just like he did after Kasserine in the attacks on Gafsa, Maknassy & Sfax. I think there were a number of reason that Rommel escaped: Rommel himself, The Corps d'Chasse was tired after be part of the Alamein battle, 8th Army was only 4 months from being kicked out of Egypt and not yet a confident fighting machine, The Corps & Division Commanders didnt push hard enough-Monty hadnt yet learned that orders will not always be followed 100%, Monty organised the chase badly with too many tired troops rather than a smaller & fresher force,there were a number of dummy minefields which caused delay, plus it rained which affected the DAK less because they were on the road, not working on flanking moves through the desert. But dont forget that 8th Army had the battle won and the chase on before the TORCH landings, captured Tripoli with little loss. They stopped Rommels last counterattack at Medinine and suffered their first setback in the attack on the Mareth Line, well over 1000 miles from Alamein. While Pattons attacks caused a small distraction to the rear of DAK, the Blitz by the NZ Corps at El Hamma (well to the rear of the Mareth defences) and the night attacks by the Indians & Highlanders at Wadi Akarit was the culmination of the fantastic push by Monty into southern Tunisia. And Musso, I love informed opinion from people who havent read about the topic!
I have read about the topic, but not specifically about it. It is obviously mentioned in most books that cover the NA Campaign. I was just mentioning that i had a book that specifically deals with that particular battle, so upon reading it i'll have some hard facts to present. And wouldnt rain help while racing across sand? I've seen shows on TV about survival etc and one of the common things to do when a vehicle is stuck in sand is to wet the sand around the tires to give them more grip.
Now that the "theme" is here, well sort of..., must ask this one. Did Monty later on crush the enemy decisively after a won breakthrough battle by surrounding the enemy before it got away? I mean I only remember Falaise here. Ruhr?
Crushing the enemy doesnt have to mean surrounding them, destroying their ability to offer combat is the target. Surrounding a portion of the enemy isnt the panacea, look at the encirclements on the Eastern Front and the continuation of battles there. After Alamein, the DAK didnt counterattack until Medinine on the Mareth Line over 1000 miles of continued retreat, It offered battle at El Agheilia and Beurat but scarpered when flanking forces threatened them. It only held at Mareth, by using the French defenses which anchored on a major mountain range which was not easily flanked. Musso, desert doesnt mean Sand, look at the Antartica.In the Western Desert there's mud flats, beautiful in the Dry, mud heaps in the wet. Rocks, Rocks and more Rocks. Wadis which become raging torrents when it rains. Plus the movement of hundreds of AFV and trucks grind the soil into a talcum powder consistancy. Add to this the effect on the supporting air power which flew out of desert strips makes it hard to move across country . But, I will add that the British forces were "sticky" and may have been capable of more, who knows?
