The Panzer Army Africa ( German: ''Panzerarmee Afrika''; Italian: ''Gruppo Corazzato Africa'') was a joint German-Italian

field army A field army (also known as numbered army or simply army) is a military formation in many armed forces, composed of two or more corps. It may be subordinate to an army group. Air army, Air armies are the equivalent formations in air forces, and ...

that fought in the

North African campaign The North African campaign of World War II took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943, fought between the Allies and the Axis Powers. It included campaigns in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts (Western Desert campaign, Desert Wa ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. It consisted of one German corps and three Italian corps. On 1943, during the

Tunisian campaign The Tunisian campaign (also known as the battle of Tunisia) was a series of battles that took place in Tunisia during the North African campaign of the Second World War, between Axis and Allied forces from 17 November 1942 to 13 May 1943. Th ...

, the ''Panzerarmee Afrika'' was changed to as the ''Army Group Africa'', and was consisted of the newly-formed German 5th Army and the Italian 1st Army. During the campaigns in North Africa, the ''Panzerarmee Afrika'' was subordinated to the Italian command, as well as to German command headquarters in the Mediterranean.

History

Panzer Group Africa

When the ''

Afrikakorps The German Africa Corps (, ; DAK), commonly known as Afrika Korps, was the German expeditionary force in Africa during the North African campaign of World War II. First sent as a holding force to shore up the Italian defense of its African ...

'' was formed on 11 January 1941 it was subordinated to the Italian chain of command in Africa. In the middle of 1941 the

Oberkommando der Wehrmacht The (; abbreviated OKW ː kaːˈveArmed Forces High Command) was the Command (military formation), supreme military command and control Staff (military), staff of Nazi Germany during World War II, that was directly subordinated to Adolf ...

(OKW, Armed Forces High Command) created a larger command structure in Africa, forming a new headquarters, Panzer Group Africa (, ). On 15 August 1941, Panzer Group Africa was activated with newly promoted

Erwin Rommel Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel (; 15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944), popularly known as The Desert Fox (, ), was a German '' Generalfeldmarschall'' (field marshal) during World War II. He served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of ...

in command. The Panzer Group controlled the and other units that were sent to North Africa.

Panzer Army Africa

Panzer Group Africa was renamed Panzer Army Africa (, ) on 30 January 1942. (A German Panzer group was an army-level headquarters. As the war progressed all of the Panzer groups were renamed Panzer Armies.)

German-Italian Panzer Army

Panzer Army Africa was renamed ''German-Italian Panzer Army'' (, ) and subordinated to the

Comando Supremo ''Comando Supremo'' (Supreme Command) was the highest command echelon of the Italian Armed Forces between June 1941 and May 1945. Its predecessor, the ''Stato Maggiore Generale'' (General Staff), was a purely advisory body with no direct control ...

and to the

Oberbefehlshaber Süd The Commander in Chief South () was a high-ranking position in the Luftwaffe of Nazi Germany. All Luftwaffe units based in the Mediterranean and North African theatres of World War II fell under this command. The command was subordinate to the ...

in October 1942 during the long retreat after the defeat at the

Second Battle of El Alamein The Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October – 11 November 1942) was a battle of the Second World War that took place near the Egyptian Railway station, railway halt of El Alamein. The First Battle of El Alamein and the Battle of Alam el Halfa ...

during the

Western Desert Campaign The Western Desert campaign (Desert War) took place in the Sahara Desert, deserts of Egypt and Libya and was the main Theater (warfare), theatre in the North African campaign of the Second World War. Military operations began in June 1940 with ...

Army Group Africa

In February 1943, the headquarters was expanded and called Army Group Africa (, ) to manage the defence of

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

during the final stages of the

North African Campaign The North African campaign of World War II took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943, fought between the Allies and the Axis Powers. It included campaigns in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts (Western Desert campaign, Desert Wa ...

. Army Group Africa included the German Fifth Panzer Army () under General

Hans-Jürgen von Arnim Hans-Jürgen Bernard Theodor von Arnim (; 4 April 1889 – 1 September 1962) was a German general in the Wehrmacht during World War II who commanded several armies and was the last commander of Axis forces in North Africa. He was a recipi ...

and the Italian 1st Army under General

Giovanni Messe Giovanni Messe (10 December 1883 – 18 December 1968) was an Italian field marshal and politician. In the Second World War, he was captured in Tunisia but made chief of staff of the Italian Co-belligerent Army after the armistice of September ...

. Command of the Army Group was turned over from Rommel to General von Arnim in March. Both General von Arnim and Messe surrendered on May 1943, and the Army Group Africa was disbanded. Thus, ending the Axis presence in Africa.

Order of battle

Panzer Group Africa

*During the Western Desert Campaign (in 1941): **

Deutsches Afrika Korps The German Africa Corps (, ; DAK), commonly known as Afrika Korps, was the German expeditionary force in Africa during the North African campaign of World War II. First sent as a holding force to shore up the Italian defense of its African ...

** Italian XX Army Corps ** Italian XXI Army Corps

Panzer Army Africa

* During the Western Desert Campaign (in 1942): **

** Italian XX Army Corps ** Italian XXI Army Corps ** Italian X Army Corps

Army Group Africa

* During the Tunisian Campaign (in 1943): ** German Fifth Army ** Italian First Army

Commanders

Footnotes

{{Armies of the German Army North African campaign Western Desert campaign German units in Africa Field armies of Italy in World War II PA Military units and formations established in 1941 Military units and formations disestablished in 1943 Army groups of the German Army in World War II

History

Panzer Group Africa

Panzer Army Africa

German-Italian Panzer Army

Army Group Africa

Order of battle

Panzer Group Africa

Panzer Army Africa

Army Group Africa

Commanders

See also

Footnotes