Acroma (also Akramah and Ikrimah) is a town in northeastern
Libya
Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Suda ...
in
Butnan District
Butnan ( ar, البطنان ') sometimes called ''Tubruq District'' or ''Tobruk District'' from the former name, occasionally ''Marmarica'', is an administrative district (shabiyah) in eastern Libya. Its capital city is Tobruk.
In the north, B ...
, about 28 km west of
Tobruk
Tobruk or Tobruck (; grc, Ἀντίπυργος, ''Antipyrgos''; la, Antipyrgus; it, Tobruch; ar, طبرق, Tubruq ''Ṭubruq''; also transliterated as ''Tobruch'' and ''Tubruk'') is a port city on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near ...
.
On April 17, 1917, the
Treaty of Acroma
The ''modus vivendi'' of Acroma was a pair of agreements signed by the Sanūsī Order with Britain and Italy on 16 April 1917 at Acroma (ʿAkrama). E. E. Evans-Pritchard (1945), "The Sanusi of Cyrenaica", ''Africa'' 15(2): 61–79, esp. at 69.
...
, was signed by the Italian government (as occupying, colonial power) and
Mohammed Idris
Mohammed Idris Alkali (1960–2018), also known as Nuri, was a Nigerian retired Major general who was declared missing on 3 September 2018 and found dead on 31 October 2018. During his military career, he served as the Chief of Administration, A ...
(head of
Senussi
The Senusiyya, Senussi or Sanusi ( ar, السنوسية ''as-Sanūssiyya'') are a Muslim political-religious tariqa (Sufi order) and clan in colonial Libya and the Sudan region founded in Mecca in 1837 by the Grand Senussi ( ar, السنوسي ...
). The pact was an ambiguous ceasefire recognizing a de facto authority for Idris in
Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica ( ) or Kyrenaika ( ar, برقة, Barqah, grc-koi, Κυρηναϊκή παρχίαKurēnaïkḗ parkhíā}, after the city of Cyrene), is the eastern region of Libya. Cyrenaica includes all of the eastern part of Libya between ...
, while not excluding the overall Italian territorial sovereignty.
World War II
During the
North African Campaign of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, the area was the scene of heavy fighting on several separate occasions. Acroma was captured from
Axis forces
The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...
on December 10, 1941, by the
Polish Independent Carpathian Rifle Brigade.
Later, an intersection of two
Bedouin
The Bedouin, Beduin, or Bedu (; , singular ) are nomadic Arabs, Arab tribes who have historically inhabited the desert regions in the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, and Mesopotamia. The Bedouin originated in the Syrian Desert ...
paths south of Acroma, assumed strategic importance, and became known by the
Allied codename
A code name, call sign or cryptonym is a code word or name used, sometimes clandestinely, to refer to another name, word, project, or person. Code names are often used for military purposes, or in espionage. They may also be used in industrial c ...
''Knightsbridge''. The area was the focus of the
Battle of Knightsbridge, during June 1942.
Following the war's end,
Knightsbridge War Cemetery, containing Allied war dead, was built north of Acroma, near the main road linking Tobruk and Gazala.
Notes
External links
"Acroma, Libya. 1941-25. British Tanks of the 4th Brigade, 7th Armoured Division, Advancing Towards Enemy Positions in the Desert" photograph ''Australian War Memorial Collection'' #022438
Satellite map at Maplandia.com
{{Al Butnan
Populated places in Butnan District