Action At Bir El Gubi (December 1941)

The Action at Bir el Gubi (December 1941) was fought near Bir el Gubi, Libya, between 3 and 7 December 1941, by Italian (later reinforced by German troops) and British forces. It followed the Action at Bir el Gubi (November 1941), a failed British attack on Bir el Gubi two weeks prior. Bir el Gubi was a position whose fall would have allowed the Allies to outflank the German–Italian forces in Cyrenaica. The battle was part of Operation Crusader.

Background

On 18 November, north of Bir el Gubi, Commonwealth forces started a new offensive, Operation Crusader. On 19 November in the Action at Bir el Gubi (November 1941) the 132nd Armored Division "Ariete" repulsed a British attack and on 23 November a great tank battle, ''Totensonntag'' (Sunday of the Dead), took place in the desert. The Battalion Group "Giovani Fascisti" and some Bersaglieri units took position in Bir el Gubi. A tank company of the I Battalion of the 32nd Tank Infantry Regiment of the "Ariete Division" with ten Fiat L3 tankettes and two M13/40 medium tanks was also sent in support.

The Italians strengthened the fortifications, building machine gun and anti-tank gun posts, building barbed wire barriers and digging trenches in the ground for all round defence. One of the two M13/40s and some of the L3 tankettes, immobilized by mechanical breakdowns, were dug in and used as defensive positions. The soldiers took post in the holes in the evening of 1 December, under torrential rain. The garrison also had ten 47/32 mm guns, 24 Breda Mod. 37 machine guns, 12 Mod. 35 anti-tank rifles, six Solothurn S-18/100 anti-tank rifles and eight 81 mm mortars.

Action

Following the withdrawal of the 2nd New Zealand Division, General Neil Ritchie had reorganised his rear echelon units to release the 4th Indian Infantry Division, the 5th Infantry Brigade and the 22nd Guards Brigade. By 3 December 11th Indian Brigade (4th Indian Infantry Division) was heavily engaged in action against a strongpoint near Bir el Gubi, about south of Ed Duda. The 1st and 2nd Battalions of Battalion Group "Giovani Fascisti" from this hilltop position repulsed attacks by the British tanks and Indian infantry during the first week of December.
At 12:00 on 3 December, British artillery started shelling the Italian positions, causing some losses (among them Major Fulvio Balisti, commander of the I Battalion of the Battalion Group "Giovani Fascisti", who was wounded). During the night, all the Italian units outside of the perimeter of Bir el Gubi were captured, along with their vehicles and equipment.

On the morning of 4 December, the British launched two attacks against Bir el Gubi. Hundreds of men from the Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders (part of the 11th Indian Infantry Brigade), supported by tanks and by an artillery barrage, attacked the positions of the I Battalion, while the rest of the 11th Indian Brigade, supported by Valentine tanks of the 7th Armoured Division, attacked the lines of the II Battalion, further north. The attacks were costly defeats but encircled the Italian positions. Around 14:00, a third attack began and in the evening the 4th Company had to withdraw from Point 188 to Point 184.

The L3 tankettes proved useful against infantry, thanks to their two machine guns and their armour, but were powerless against tanks, and all ten of them were destroyed. General Willoughby Norrie had an overwhelming superiority in the area, but he failed to concentrate and co-ordinate the action of his forces. The Italians coordinated the action of their infantry, artillery and light tanks.

During the fighting, Colonel Ferdinando Tanucci, commander of the "Giovani Fascisti", was wounded; Lieutenant Colonel Alfred Butler, of the Rajputana Rifles, was killed. Between 4 and 7 December XXX Corps attacked seven times, all repelled with heavy losses by the Italian defenders. Hunger and lack of supplies started to weaken the Italian garrison, which asked for reinforcements; Erwin Rommel decided to send the 15th Panzer Division and the 21st Panzer Divisions).

At dawn on 5 December, the first German armoured units arrive near Point 188, which they recaptured after a tank engagement. After this, the German tanks headed towards Bir el Gubi. The "Ariete" Division and the 101st Motorized Division "Trieste" were also sent, but the former was stopped by an Allied attack, and the latter lost its way in the desert. Crüwell was unaware that 4th Armoured Brigade (part of the 7th Armoured Division), now with 126 tanks, was over away and he withdrew to the west. The Indian Brigade was broken and had to be withdrawn to refit and arrangements made to bring 22nd Guards Brigade into their place. Tank clashes continued; during the following night the "Ariete" Division managed to reach Bir el Gubi and joined the German tanks. Their combined force repelled the last British attacks. With the arrival of the "Ariete", the British lost its numerical superiority and withdrew.

Aftermath

Crüwell had lost the opportunity to strike a heavy blow on 6 December as 4th Armoured Brigade (part of the 7th Armoured Division) made no move to close up to 22nd Guards Brigade; he waited too long and on 7 December the 4th Armoured Brigade closed up. Walter Neumann-Silkow, the commander of the 15th Panzer Division, was mortally wounded late on 6 December. Axis forces were later forced to abandon Bir el Gubi with the progress of Operation Crusader.

See also

* List of British military equipment of World War II
* List of Italian military equipment in World War II
* List of German military equipment of World War II

References

Sources

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bir el Gubi (December 1941), Action at
Conflicts in 1941
1941 in Libya
Western Desert campaign
Land battles of World War II involving the United Kingdom
Battles of World War II involving Italy
Battles of World War II involving Germany
December 1941 in Africa