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J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth fantasy writings include many wars and battles set in the lands of Aman, Beleriand, Númenor, and Middle-earth. These are related in his various books such as The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales and other posthumously published books edited by his son Christopher Tolkien.

These are given below in an in-universe, fictional chronology:

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• 1First Age
  • 1.2The Kinslayings
• 2Second Age
  • 2.1War of the Elves and Sauron
  • 2.2The Great Armament
  • 2.3War of the Last Alliance
• 3Third Age
  • 3.1Disaster of the Gladden Fields
  • 3.2Wars with Angmar
  • 3.10War of the Dwarves and Orcs
  • 3.11Battle of Five Armies
  • 3.12War of the Ring

First Age[edit]

Battle of the Powers[edit]

The Battle of the Powers, also called the War of the Powers, occurred between the god-like Valar and their former member Melkor in primeval Middle-earth. After a long titanic conflict the Valar finally defeated Melkor, who was then confined in a massive chain for three ages. The battle caused massive changes to Middle-earth's original geography.This affected fanghorn for years to come.

The Kinslayings[edit]

The Kinslayings are the collective term for the three battles fought among the Eldar. (The civil war in Gondor in the Third Age called the Kin-strife is also sometimes called a Kinslaying.)

First kinslaying[edit]

The first battle, the Kinslaying at Alqualondë (Swanhaven), appears in print in The Silmarillion. It involves the NoldorinElves under their king, Fëanor, against their fellow Elves, the Teleri whose Lord was Olwë, who did not take part in the battle.

Against the will of the godlike Valar, Fëanor had induced the Noldor to leave Valinor to make war upon the Dark Lord Morgoth in revenge for the murder of his father Finwë and the theft of his Silmarilli jewels. As the easiest route to Middle-earth was by sea, Fëanor and his sons led one host of the Noldor to the city of Alqualondë and asked the seafaring Teleri of Alqualondë for their vessels. The Teleri refused to help them defy the Valar. Bitter fighting broke out (although it is not clear who began the fighting, the Silmarillion states that fighting began when the Noldor attempted to take control of the Teleri's ships) and eventually many (perhaps hundreds) of Elves on both sides were slain. Though the Teleri were lightly armed, they were able to defend themselves to some degree until a second host of the Noldor, led by Fëanor's half-nephew Fingon, arrived together with some of his father Fingolfin's people. Fingon's people assumed erroneously that the Teleri had attacked the Noldor under orders of the Valar. In the end, many of the Teleri were slain and the ships taken. Afterward, the sea rose and destroyed many of the boats to punish the Noldor for this cruel act. Though the Teleri forgave the Noldor by the end of the First Age of Middle-earth, they still refused to fight in the War of Wrath. All Elves that followed Fëanor and continued towards Middle-earth fell under the Doom of Mandos.

This episode appears in Tolkien's earliest Middle-earth-related writings, published in The Book of Lost Tales. In the earliest surviving version, the 'Noldoli' steal the ships of the 'Solosimpi' without any fighting. When a concept of a battle was developed, the location was first called 'Kopas Alqalunten'.^[1] In a late version of the legendarium, Galadriel fought on the side of the Teleri, her mother Eärwen's people, against the Fëanorians.

Second kinslaying[edit]

The second battle is the Sack of Doriath made by the Sons of Fëanor. Caranthir and Curufin died there, Celegorm dies killing Dior, the son of Beren and Lúthien. Although the Fëanorians won the battle, they did not manage to obtain the Silmaril.

Third kinslaying[edit]

The third battle in the Kinslaying is the attack by the Sons of Fëanor on the Mouths of Sirion where Elwing was attacked. The last Kinslaying is considered the cruellest of them all because many women and children were also murdered by the Fëanorians. And still the Silmaril is not taken back.

It was stated by Eönwë herald of Manwë that because of these evil deeds the remaining Sons of Fëanor had lost all right to the Silmarils, and when Maedhros and Maglor finally retrieved them, the Silmarils burned their hands, driving Maedhros to suicide and Maglor to wander the Earth forever.

Battles of Beleriand[edit]

The battles between the Elves of Beleriand and the forces of Morgoth are often referred to as the Battles of Beleriand, but also as the War of the Jewels as the Silmarilli were behind them all. The battles spanned the last several centuries of the First Age.

In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional Middle-earth, the First Battle of Beleriand^[2] was, as the name suggests, the first battle of the Wars of Beleriand, fought by the SindarinElves, led by Elu Thingol, King of Doriath and Lord of Beleriand, against the armies of Morgoth, the Great Enemy and original Dark Lord.

The First Battle of Beleriand was fought before the Noldor arrived, and was fought by the Sindar and Laiquendi Elves.

The Second Battle was Dagor-nuin-Giliath ('Battle-under-Stars'), fought by the Noldor following Fëanor and his Seven Sons, in which the Noldor were victorious but Fëanor was slain by Balrogs. During this battle the Battle of Lhammoth was fought by the host of Fingolfin.

The Third Battle was Dagor Aglareb ('Glorious Battle'), which led to the Siege of Angband. Various minor battles were fought during the Siege which are not counted.

The Fourth Battle was the Dagor Bragollach ('Battle of Sudden Flame'), in which the Siege was broken and Fingolfin was slain by Morgoth.

The Fifth Battle was the Nírnaeth Arnoediad ('Unnumbered Tears'), in which the Noldor were utterly defeated and Fingon, Azaghâl and Huor are killed and Húrin captured.

Years later, the Battle of Tumhalad, in which the elven forces under Orodreth and Túrin were defeated by Angband forces under Glaurung, led to the sack of Nargothrond. It was the last battle of the Elves of the kingdom of Nargothrond. It was fought on the plain of Tumhalad between the river Narog and its tributary, the river Ginglith.^[3]

In year 510 FA the Fall of Gondolin takes place, it was fought between the Elves of Gondolin led by Turgon their king and the city's houses leaders and the hosts of Morgoth swarmed from Angband led by Gothmog (who dies in the assault). At the end the elves are defeated, the city is lost, sacked and destroyed, the king, most of the houses' leaders, warriors and inhabitants perish. A slim host of Gondolindrim manages to escape through the mountains, and later will establish in the Mouths of Sirion.

The Last Battle of Beleriand, called the Great Battle and the War of Wrath, ended the First Age of Arda and destroyed Beleriand, for the wrath of the Valar was so great that it caused Beleriand to sink under the Sea. At last the rule of Morgoth is ended and his servants dispelled.

Second Age[edit]

War of the Elves and Sauron[edit]

The War of the Elves and Sauron^[4] was a great conflict fought in the Second Age. This is one of the great wars of Middle-earth, and it is sometimes informally referred to as the Invasion of Eriador. It is the war caused by the forging of the One Ring.

Sauron was at the pinnacle of his power, militarily, when he initiated the war. This conflict is perhaps the only time that Sauron managed to, for a short while, master most of the North of Middle-earth. However, the strength of Elves was still then great enough to provide significant resistance, and his forces were no match for the superior might of the Númenóreans.

Sauron advances[edit]

The war began in S.A. 1693, almost a century after Sauron had deceived the Noldor smiths of Eregion and had secretly forged the One Ring to rule over the other Rings of Power. When Sauron put on the One Ring, Celebrimbor, Lord of Eregion, realised that the Elves had been betrayed and revolted against the Dark Lord's influence. With his disguise uncovered, Sauron then demanded that all of the great rings in Eregion be surrendered to him, as all of them were made with Sauron's counsel, except the Three Rings of the Elves. Celebrimbor refused and sent the Three to Gil-galad and Galadriel, while Sauron raised a great force to invade Eriador.

Messages of the invasion were sent north to Lindon where the High King Gil-galad ruled, and he began amassing his forces, preparing for war. He also appealed for help from Tar-Minastir of Númenor and the latter obliged, but the Númenóreans were delayed.

In S.A. 1695 Sauron had reached Eregion, though his vanguard was temporarily driven off by Celeborn's sortie. Elrond had been sent to Eregion by Gil-galad but Sauron's host was great enough to ward him off while concentrating on the assault upon Eregion. In S.A. 1697 Celebrimbor tried to make a last stand at the doors of the Ost-in-Edhil, the main fortress of Eregion where the Noldor's chief works were held, but he was overwhelmed and taken captive. Placed under torment, he revealed the location of the Nine and Seven rings but would tell nothing about the Three, at which Sauron put him to death. It is clear that Sauron seized the Nine from Eregion, though it is less sure whether he or Celebrimbor had given the Seven to the Dwarves.

Elrond gathered with Celeborn and the survivors of Eregion and they were almost overwhelmed by Sauron's pursuit, but the Dark Lord's host was unexpectedly assailed in the rear by Elves of Lórien. Elrond managed to escape to the north and established Imladris.

Sauron's armies advanced, almost unopposed save for small bands of Men and Elves which his forces easily defeated. By S.A. 1699 virtually all of Eriador fell under Sauron's control. The Dark Lord had correctly guessed that the Three Rings were with Gil-galad in Lindon and sent his main host there, though it was weakened because he had to break off a detachment to keep Elrond pinned down at Imladris.

Arrival of the Númenóreans and the final battle[edit]

The next year, the great army of Númenor which was sent by Tar-Minastir landed in Lindon, at Tharbad on the Gwathló, and south near Pelargir. The intervention at Lindon was in the nick of time, as Gil-galad and Círdan were desperately holding Mithlond, but the arrival of the Númenóreans turned the tide and Sauron was heavily defeated and driven back. The Dark Lord was subsequently forced on the retreat after the great slaughter on the Brandywine. The Númenórean admiral Ciryatur landed forces further south at Lond Daer and hurried up the river to Tharbad, catching Sauron in the rear for the second time. At the resulting Battle of the Gwathló, Sauron was utterly routed and he fled back to Mordor with only his guard. His remaining army besieging Imladris was caught between the allies and destroyed. The war ended in S.A. 1701 but Eregion was gone, and most of Eriador was in ruins.

Aftermath[edit]

While Tar-Minastir's forces soon left to return home, the greater part of the Elves' main hosts survived (save for the destruction of Celebrimbor's company) and remained in Middle-earth. As Sauron's armies had been annihilated, he was unable to move out of Mordor for a time. In order to rebuild his former strength, Sauron decided against challenging the Númenóreans directly, only attacking their Middle-earth settlements after most of the Númenóreans departed as a shadow fell upon Númenor.

Some fifteen hundred years later, Sauron would exact his revenge against the Númenóreans by corrupting Ar-Pharazôn, the king, and causing the utter downfall of Númenor. However, a remnant (the Lords of Andúnië) escaped the ruin and established the kingdoms of Arnor and Gondor, the latter being close to Mordor. Meanwhile, the power of Gil-galad had spread east of the Misty Mountains to Greenwood the Great and even towards Mordor during Sauron's absence. Sauron attacked first, hoped to defeat his enemies before they could unite, but the power of his forces was not yet fully rebuilt, and he underestimated the strength of the Exiles and the Elves. His assault on the newfound realm of Gondor led to the Last Alliance of Elves and Men, which overthrew him.^[5]

In the Third Age, when Sauron returned, he was but a shadow of his former power as he had lost the One Ring. Still, he had greater forces than the Men and the Elves, with the former especially declining precipitously. Near the end of the Third Age, as told in The Fellowship of the Ring, Gandalf tells Frodo Baggins that Sauron needed to recover the One Ring in order to 'cover the lands in a second darkness'; the first darkness referring to the night itself, Sauron's invasion of Eriador, or Morgoth, the Great Enemy, during the First Age.

Around the end of the War of the Elves and Sauron, the great forests in Enedwaith and Minhiriath, which the Gwathló flows through, have been completely destroyed. The Númenóreans since Tar-Aldarion had already been felling many trees for shipbuilding, incurring the wrath of the locals when the extent of the devastation became known. Sauron allied himself with some of the tribes to harass the Númenóreans, setting fire in the woods and burning their wood-stores; the Númenóreans responded by ruthlessly felling timber without any thought of conservation or replanting.

Treatment in other media[edit]

Though both the 1978 animated film and the 2001 live-action film based on The Lord of the Rings show the forging of the Rings of Power, the War of the Elves and Sauron is skipped and the films go straight to the much later War of the Last Alliance.

The Great Armament[edit]

The Great Armament was the armada of warships and military forces prepared by the last King of Númenor, Ar-Pharazôn, for the purpose of invading the land of Aman to challenge the Lords of the West.

In S.A. 3261 Ar-Pharazôn invaded Middle-earth; by the following year Sauron submitted to him and was taken as prisoner to Númenor. Over the course of the next 48 years Sauron gradually seduced and corrupted the King and the majority of the Númenóreans. Feeling the coming of death, in S.A. 3310 Ar-Pharazôn initiated the construction of the Great Armament.^[6]

Preparations and omens[edit]

When preparation of the Armament became apparent, Amandil, father of Elendil became dismayed and attempted to sail into the West to beseech the Valar for mercy and deliverance from Sauron. His mission failed and he was never heard from again.

For nine years Ar-Pharazôn amassed his strength in the havens of western Númenor while Elendil gathered a fleet of nine ships in the east that held the wives and children of the Faithful as well as their heirlooms and a store of goods. In secret the ship of Isildur, Elendil's son, also held a scion of Nimloth, the White Tree.

As the Armament proceeded, omens appeared from the West – at first great clouds appeared in the shape of vast eagles, spreading darkness upon the land. As men hardened their hearts the clouds issued lightning that slew men, with one bolt smiting the dome of the Temple that Sauron had caused to be built in the capital city, Armenelos. Earthquakes shook Númenor and smoke poured from the summit of the Meneltarma, yet Ar-Pharazôn pushed all the more to complete his Armament.

The armada and the cataclysm[edit]

Finally, in S.A. 3319, the King boarded his flagship Alcarondas and led the armada into the West. So vast was the Númenórean fleet that it surrounded all of Tol Eressëa. Coming upon the silent shores of Valinor, Ar-Pharazôn almost wavered but his pride won out - he landed and claimed the land for his own. Manwë then called upon Ilúvatar who put forth his power: The world was changed with a vast chasm rending the ocean between Númenor and the Deathless Lands. The ships of the Great Armament were swallowed into the abyss while Ar-Pharazôn and his followers upon the shore were buried under falling hills.^[7]

The island of Númenor itself was drowned under the ocean, and the only Númenóreans to survive the downfall were those who were either already in Middle-earth or those few of the Faithful who escaped with Elendil and his sons Isildur and Anárion. The Great Armament would forever be remembered by those survivors among the faithful with shame and remorse, and it was the resulting devastation that led to the creation of the realms in exile of Arnor and Gondor.

War of the Last Alliance[edit]

The War of the Last Alliance was a conflict at the end of the Second Age in which Elves and Men formed an alliance in response to the threat of conquest by the Dark Lord Sauron. It included the Battle of Dagorlad and the Siege of Barad-dûr.

In The Lord of the Rings, Elrond describes the Last Alliance to Frodo Baggins, comparing it to the Host of Valinor that overthrew the Great Enemy Morgoth in the War of Wrath at the end of the First Age:

'I remember well the splendour of their banners ... It recalled to me the glory of the Elder Days and the hosts of Beleriand, so many great princes and captains were assembled. And yet not so many, nor so fair, as when Thangorodrim was broken, and the Elves deemed that evil was ended for ever, and it was not so.'^[8]

Earlier in the Second Age, Sauron had contended with the Elves and the Men of Númenor for mastery of Middle-earth and the Rings of Power in the War of the Elves and Sauron. During this war—in which he was defeated and driven out of Eriador in S.A. 1701—the Elves suffered great losses. Over the next 1500 years, Sauron extended his power eastward and the kingdom of Númenor on the island of Andor flourished, even receiving the submission of Sauron. It was eventually destroyed at the height of its military power due to the machinations of Sauron in the year 3319. Those who survived the catastrophe formed the realms in exile (i.e. Gondor and Arnor) in Middle-earth.

First stages[edit]

Sauron feared these kingdoms, and soon he attacked Gondor in S.A. 3429. While Sauron managed to take Isildur's bastion of Minas Ithil in a sudden assault, Anárion was able to hold Osgiliath and halt Sauron's advance. In response, Elendil (High King of the Dúnedain) and his sons Isildur and Anárion, formed an alliance with Gil-galad, the last High King of the Noldor, and they raised a great host to contest Sauron.

The Elves of Lindon and the Men of Arnor built in the north the fortress and the watchtower of Amon Sûl, Weathertop, over two years while gathering their armies. Their great host then marched to Rivendell, where they made preparations and armaments for nearly three years.^[9][10] The Alliance host then crossed the bridge over the river Anduin,^[11] meeting the armies of the Silvan Elves of Lórinand and Greenwood the Great led by Amdír and Oropher, respectively.^[12] This great army marched south down the east bank where they eventually rendezvoused with the Men of Gondor; after the entire host was gathered, they then marched to meet Sauron's forces before Mordor.^[13]

Of the Dwarves few fought upon either side; but the kindred of Durin of Moria fought against Sauron.^[14]

While Isildur's elder son and heir, Elendur, accompanied his father throughout the entire conflict except the last challenge upon Orodruin, his younger brothers Aratan and Ciryon were not involved in the main assault. They were sent by Isildur to man the recaptured city of Minas Ithil, as a reserve in case Sauron tried to escape through the passes of the mountains.^[15]

Battle of Dagorlad[edit]

In S.A. 3434, the Alliance engaged and defeated Sauron's hosts in the Battle of Dagorlad, having fought over several months on the great plain of Dagorlad. However, the Silvan Elves would not place their armies under the supreme command of Gil-galad. Amdír's forces were cut and driven into the Dead Marshes, while Oropher led a reckless assault on Mordor in which he was slain. Rule of the Silvan Elves and field command of their remaining forces, barely a third of their original strength, passed to Oropher's son Thranduil. Alliance forces breached the Black Gate of Mordor, and besieged the Dark Lord's fortress of Barad-dûr. The shapes of the fallen remained in the water of the Dead Marshes into the later Ages. Gollum described it as '...a great battle. Tall Men with long swords, and terrible Elves, and Orcses shrieking. They fought on the plains for days and months at the Black Gates.'^[16]

Siege of Barad-dûr[edit]

After breaking the power of the Black Gates and entering into Mordor, the Alliance began the Siege of Barad-dûr, which lasted for seven years. During this time, the army of elves and men suffered heavy losses from missiles and fire cast from the tower, and Sauron also sent many sorties against the attackers. Anárion was killed by a stone cast from the tower, and his helm, a forerunner of the crown of Gondor, was destroyed.^[17]

Eventually Sauron emerged from the tower and engaged the Alliance forces personally near Orodruin, battling the commanders Gil-galad and Elendil, with only Elrond, Círdan, and Isildur standing by them. Gil-galad and Elendil were slain, with the latter's sword Narsil breaking beneath him as he fell. Sauron was also overthrown and then Elendil's son Isildur used the hilt-shard of Narsil to cut the One Ring from Sauron's hand. Sauron was defeated, for now.

Aftermath[edit]

Bereft of the power of the One Ring, Sauron's physical form was unbound and his dissipated spirit would not take form again in Middle-earth for two and a half thousand years. After the victory over Sauron, the death of Gil-galad and Elendil, and irreplaceable casualties to the Elves, the Last Alliance dissolved.

The Eldar mourned the victory as bittersweet for the loss of their king and that the One Ring was kept by Isildur, who was entrapped by its power and could not bear to think of its destruction; later, he perished and lost the Ring in the Gladden Fields. Thus, despite the sacrifice of the Elves and Men, the Ring was not destroyed and the opportunity to defeat Sauron once and for all was missed. The war resulted in the first weakening of Lindon and Arnor. The Second Age ended with the war's conclusion and the Third Age of the World began.

Depictions in other media[edit]

In Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, the details of the war are not included and only the final 'Battle of Mount Doom', as it is sometimes called, is shown. Notable differences from the book are: unidentified Gil-galad is briefly glimpsed, but his death is not shown; Sauron kills Elendil with his mace; Narsil is broken under Sauron's foot into many pieces, instead of two; Isildur cuts off most of Sauron's fingers on his outstretched hand, instead of just one; Sauron eventually explodes; Anárion and Círdan are omitted overall.

Third Age[edit]

Disaster of the Gladden Fields[edit]

The Disaster of the Gladden Fields, also known as the Battle of the Gladden Fields was a short battle that occurred on 5th 'October'^[18] in the second year of the Third Age. It took place in Wilderland, in the narrow land between the western eaves of Greenwood the Great (later known as Mirkwood) and the north-eastern fringes of the marshy Gladden Fields, after which the battle was named. It is a major turning point in the histories of Arnor, Gondor and the One Ring. Tolkien's detailed account of the battle is published in Unfinished Tales.

Prelude[edit]

The War of the Last Alliance left Isildur as High King of Arnor and Gondor. Following the War, Isildur remained in Gondor for two years before returning to Arnor, reordering the kingdom and instructing his late brother's son Meneldil, who became king after Isildur's departure from Gondor. Isildur had sent most of his army back home shortly after the war, and kept only some two hundred knights and soldiers for his own return. They set out for Arnor via Rivendell, as Isildur had left his youngest son and wife there, expecting to arrive there after a march of forty days.

Ambush[edit]

On the thirtieth day of the march, as the sun began to set, Isildur and his contingent prepared to make camp for the night. Suddenly a large band of orcs appeared out of the trees and attacked. The orcs had many more warriors than Isildur, and Isildur gave his late father's sword Narsil into the keeping of his squire, Ohtar, whom he commanded to escape to Rivendell. Ohtar escaped the orcs and came into Elrond's valley some months later.

Isildur and his army were able to easily beat off this attack with their superior tactics and armour. He was still concerned and the army moved down closer to the river, although they expected the orcs to send only scouts after Isildur's stronger force, as they would usually do after being defeated. However Isildur was carrying the One Ring, and it called out to all the servants of its recently fallen master, demanding to be rescued.

Main assault[edit]

The orcs attacked again after less than a mile, committing all of their forces, and they soon had the Dúnedain surrounded. Although the archers were taking out many of the orcs, there were far too few and the sun was setting. The orcs attacked at the sound of their trumpets but were kept back by the long reach of the Dúnedain weaponry. They drew back to reconsider and charged again. This time two or even more orcs would jump up at a single Dúnadan and crush him. The victim was then dragged out and killed. Isildur lost two sons this way.

Although the orcs paid as much as five-to-one, they could afford it. Isildur and Elendur, his last son in the battle, rallied the Dúnedain. Elendur convinced his father to don the Ring, becoming invisible, to flee—and sealed his own fate. Soon all of the remaining Dúnedain were dead, apart from two unnamed men who later escaped and Estelmo, the squire of Elendur. Elendur was clubbed to death, and was covered with the bodies of his comrades.

Escape attempt[edit]

Isildur was able to make his way to the Anduin before casting off his greatsword and armour. Still wearing the Ring, he swam to the other side; however, as he did, the One Ring slipped off his finger, and Isildur was shot through the throat by an Orc archer set there for just such a purpose. The Ring sank to the bottom of the Great River, where it would remain for the next 2500 years.

'Then suddenly he knew that the Ring had gone. By chance, or chance well used, it had left his hand and gone where he could never hope to find it again. At first so overwhelming was his sense of loss that he struggled no more, and would have sunk and drowned. But swift as it had come the mood passed. The pain had left him. A great burden had been taken away. His feet found the riverbed, and heaving himself up out of the mud he floundered through the reeds to a marshy islet close to the western shore.

There he rose up out of the water: only a mortal man, a small creature lost and abandoned in the wilds of Middle-earth. But to the night-eyed Orcs that lurked there on the watch he loomed up, a monstrous shadow of fear, with a piercing eye like a star. They loosed their poisoned arrows at it, and fled. Needlessly, for Isildur unarmed was pierced through heart and throat, and without a cry he fell back into the water. No trace of his body was ever found by Elves or Men.'

Aftermath[edit]

Thranduil, the Elf-king of Greenwood, hastened to the battle, hoping to save the Dúnedain, but he was unable to do anything beyond stopping the mutilation of their corpses.

As the result of the Disaster of the Gladden Fields, Arnor lost not only its new High King and his three eldest sons, but also a significant contingent of its best knights and soldiers. The weakening of Arnor enabled Gondor to proceed as an entirely independent kingdom.

Wars with Angmar[edit]

The Wars with Angmar were a series of battles between the Dúnedain of the north kingdom of Arnor and the evil realm of Angmar in the middle of the Third Age.

Division of Arnor[edit]

Arnor had never been as large or as powerful as its twin realm of Gondor, and following the War of the Last Alliance and the Disaster of the Gladden Fields it had never truly recovered from the grievous loss of manpower that it suffered. In the year T.A. 861 following the death of the eighth and last High-King of Arnor, Eärendur, dissension among his three sons was so great that the realm became divided into three successor kingdoms;^[19] Arnor, which had stretched across Eriador from the Misty Mountains almost to the Blue Mountains, became the realms of Arthedain, Cardolan, and Rhudaur. There was often strife between the three realms, especially over the tower of Amon Sûl and its palantír. While Arthedain was the most populous and powerful of these three realms and was still ruled by the heirs of Isildur, it alone could not match the former strength of Arnor when it had been united as a whole.

The land of Angmar lay on the north-east of Arnor, close to Rhudaur. It was a desolate vale between a spur of the northern Misty Mountains and the Mountains of Angmar, and in the year TA 1300 Sauron's chief servant, the Witch-King, came to this land with the intention of destroying Arnor while Gondor in the south was strong.^[20] During the reign of the sixth king of Arthedain, Malvegil, evil began to multiply in Angmar, where there was gathered many Orcs, evil men, and other fell things.

Destruction of Amon Sûl[edit]

The son of Malvegil, King Argeleb I, reclaimed the kingship of all Arnor and took the prefix ar(a) (Sindarin for royal, or kingly) in token of this. Cardolan did not oppose this as there the Dúnedain had grown few, but the kingdom of Rhudaur resisted the claim by Argeleb, led by an evil hill-chief who was in secret league with Angmar. At this, Argeleb decided to fortify the Weather Hills to resist an invasion from the east by the forces of Angmar and Rhudaur, but he was slain in battle in the year T.A. 1356 along the frontier.

The son of Argeleb I, King Arveleg I continued his father's defence against Angmar along the fortified Weather Hills, the Great East Road, and the lower Hoarwell, and for many years he held back the assaults of Angmar and Rhudaur. It was also at this time that the Elven haven of Rivendell was besieged by the forces of Angmar. Arnor's capital of Fornost lay upon the North Downs only a few dozen miles away from the Weather Hills, and Angmar sought a way to break through the frontier and lay siege to the city. It was to this end that in the year TA 1409 a great host came out of Angmar, and crossing the river it entered Cardolan and surrounded Amon Sûl. After a fierce siege the Dúnedain of Arnor were defeated, the tower of Amon Sûl destroyed, and King Arveleg slain. The Witch-king's victory was not complete, as the palantír of Amon Sûl, the greatest of the three in the north, was carried back in retreat to Fornost.

After the destruction of Amon Sûl, the power of Arnor to resist the army of Angmar was severely weakened. The tower's destruction meant that the army of Angmar had now made the fortified line along the Weather Hills untenable, and its forces gained easy access to the heart of Arnor. Rhudaur was now absorbed by Angmar and populated by evil men subject to the Witch-King. The few Dúnedain who remained were either slain or fled far westwards, never returning to the lands now claimed by Angmar. The kingdom of Cardolan was ravaged by the forces of Angmar who entered its northern borders uncontested by the crippled army of Arthedain, and its people fled into hiding in the ancient Barrow Downs. It was in this desperate defence against Angmar that the last prince of Cardolan fell in battle, and he was entombed by the survivors among his people in what some say was the very same barrow that Frodo and his companions had been imprisoned during the War of the Ring.

Although the situation was dire, the young King Araphor, son of Arveleg I, defended the city of Fornost against the host of Angmar. Although he was still a youth by the reckoning of his people, Araphor proved valiant, and with the help of Círdan of Lindon he repulsed Angmar's army from the North Downs and won a great victory. It was at this time that Angmar was subdued by Elven-folk from Lindon, Rivendell, and even Lothlórien, for Elrond had brought help over the passes of the Misty Mountains. At the same time, the Stoors (one of the three peoples who were named Hobbits) who had previously dwelt in the Angle between the Hoarwell and the Loudwater fled south-westwards because of the wars and the dread of Angmar, and because the land and clime of eastern Eriador worsened and became unfriendly. Some of these returned to Wilderland and dwelt alongside the banks of the Gladden, becoming a riverside people of fishers. But others migrated westwards and, together with other Hobbits, settled in the land they named the Shire. This land, which had become sparsely populated by war, was granted to the Hobbits in T.A. 1601 by the eleventh king of Arthedain, Argeleb II.^[21] By the end of the Third Age the Hobbits became known for their love of peace and domesticity.

The Great Plague[edit]

In the year T.A. 1636, a dark and evil plague spread across the western lands of Middle-earth, afflicting both the lands of the Dúnedain and their enemies. Elsewhere in Middle-earth the plague decimated the peoples of Rhovanion and Gondor, but in the north it spread across Minhiriath and Cardolan and destroyed the remnants of the Dúnedain who were living on the Barrow-downs. This plague utterly eliminated the realm of Cardolan, and the Witch-king, seeing an opportunity, sent evil spirits out of Angmar to inhabit the land of the Dúnedain's burial grounds. These spirits became known as the Barrow Wights which would forever after become a source of dread for all those that lived nearby, and would make the once sacred Barrow-downs a place of great evil. The Hobbits who had only recently settled in the Shire suffered immense loss as well, with many thousands perishing as a result of the plague. The plague lessened in effect as it spread northwards, until the northern regions of Arthedain including Fornost were scarcely affected, and continued to repel the assaults of Angmar.

The next several centuries following the Great Plague were spent with both Arnor and Angmar recovering their strength for a final confrontation, although it proved to be that the evil folk that inhabited Angmar multiplied and made ready for war much faster than did the surviving folk of Arthedain. The final decades of Arthedain were spent in desperate battle with Angmar, and although King Araval won a great victory against Angmar in TA 1851 in conjunction with the Elves,^[22] it alone could only delay the inevitable.

Fall of Arnor[edit]

The final battle between Arnor and Angmar occurred in T.A. 1974, when a great army came out of Angmar with the intent of destroying Arnor's capital of Fornost. Warnings and calls for aid were sent to Arnor's sister realm of Gondor in the south in the fall of TA 1973, but by the time that aid could come to Lindon it was already far too late. Fornost had fallen, and the majority of the surviving Dúnedain of Arnor were slaughtered. Although the last king of Arthedain, Arvedui, had escaped the fall of his city, and his son fled westwards with the survivors of his people, the people of Arnor had been utterly defeated.

The ensuing Battle of Fornost saw the forces of Gondor and the Elves defeat Angmar, but Arnor was no more. All the vast lands of Eriador that had once been tamed by the Dúnedain fell wild and overgrown, and the only surviving peoples were those in the Shire and Bree, until the Reunited Kingdom reclaimed the land in the Fourth Age.

The Shire sent some Hobbit-archers to both battles of Fornost, but their role was minor.^[23]

Kin-strife[edit]

The Kin-strife was a disastrous civil war in Gondor.

The unrest that created the Kin-strife began when Valacar, the son of the Gondorian king Rómendacil II, married a woman of the Northmen: princess Vidumavi of Rhovanion. She bore him a son Eldacar, but many Gondorians of Númenórean heritage were angered by this mixing of blood of Middle Men and Númenóreans, especially in Gondor's royal family. The coastal provinces grew increasingly restless from T.A. 1366, when Valacar succeeded as King.

When in 1432 of the Third Age Eldacar succeeded his father the unrest grew into open rebellion, as many Gondorians saw Eldacar as a halfbreed who had no right to rule. The chief of them was his distant relative Castamir the Usurper, Captain of Ships, who in T.A. 1437 besieged Eldacar in Osgiliath and forced him into exile. During the siege Osgiliath was burned, and the great Dome of Stars was destroyed, and the palantír kept there was lost. Castamir also murdered Eldacar's son and heir Ornendil. Eldacar fled to his relatives in Rhovanion.

A full decade later, in T.A. 1447, a rebellion against Castamir's cruel rule took place, and Eldacar returned with Rhovanion troops. Many Dúnedain joined him. Eldacar managed to kill Castamir at the Battle of the Crossings of Erui, but Castamir's sons and many of their supporters fled south. After a siege lasting a year Pelargir fell to Eldacar and the surviving rebels left for Umbar. Eldacar could not follow them, as the fleet was under Castamir's control.

Not only did Gondor lose the city of Umbar for four centuries and gain a new enemy in the Corsairs of Umbar, descendants of Castamir's sons, but also many of the Númenóreans of purest blood were killed during the civil war, leaving Gondor weakened.

The Kin-strife was, along with the Great Plague, one of the chief reasons for the abandonment of the fortresses in and surrounding Mordor, and the first disaster leading to Gondor's slow decline. Another reason for the abandoning of the provinces of Gondor in Mordor was because of the increasing threat of the Ringwraiths.

Battle of the Camp[edit]

The Battle of the Camp is recounted in The Silmarillion, the Appendices of The Return of the King, and Unfinished Tales. 'Battle of the Camp' refers mainly to the final battle of the conflict of Gondor with the Wainriders. This battle took place in northern Ithilien in Cermië ['July'] T.A. 1944.^[24]

In the year 1944 of the Third Age, the Wainrider people from the east made an alliance with the Haradrim, and a dual attack was launched on Ithilien, the easternmost province of Gondor. While the Wainriders assaulted Ithilien from the north, the armies of the Haradrim crossed the Poros and invaded South Ithilien.

The northern assault of the Wainriders was met by the King of Gondor himself, Ondoher, with his two sons Artamir and Faramir. The Easterlings swept through Gondor's forces, cutting down the King and his heirs and routing his army. Their victory complete, and with Gondor seemingly defenceless before them, the Wainriders paused in North Ithilien to celebrate their conquest.

Their allies in the south had met with much less success. The Gondorian Captain Eärnil had led Gondor's smaller Southern Army to victory over the Haradrim, destroying their army in South Ithilien, to the north of the Poros. After his victory, Eärnil turned north.

The feasting Wainriders suddenly found their success reversed, as Eärnil appeared with his Southern Army, reinforced by fleeing members of Ondoher's defeated northern troops. Eärnil's army descended on the unprepared Wainriders, driving many of them into the swamplands of the Dead Marshes. That eastern people, for so long a dreaded enemy of Gondor, never marched against Gondor again. The battle was named after where it had taken place: the Battle of the Camp.

Because there was no heir apparent to the throne, Ondoher and his sons having been killed in the battle, Eärnil was chosen as King by Pelendur, the Steward of Gondor. Eärnil was elected king for his deeds, heritage, and because of the Steward's influence. Eärnil was of the royal house since he was a direct male-line descendant of King Telumehtar Umbardacil, but was not of the ruling line, as his great-grandfather Arciryas was the brother of Narmacil II.

The initial attack by the Wainriders is expanded in more detail in the Unfinished Tales chapter Cirion and Eorl. There, it states that the Wainriders attempted two invasions of Gondor. In both wars, the Éothéod (a people of the Northmen) were allies of Gondor, long before the formal pact of Cirion and Eorl which saw them move to Rohan.

During the first attack, Narmacil II was slain but his son Calimehtar (Ondoher's father) rallied the armies of Gondor and counter-attacked forty years later at Dagorlad. In the nick of time, the famed cavalry of the Éothéod attacked the Wainriders in the flank and caused the latter to break and flee. Calimehtar then withdrew as his army had lost one third of its strength, but the Éothéod harried the Wainriders as they fled, inflicting great loss on the Easterlings. The Éothéod had their own feud with the Wainriders, who had captured and enslaved many of their homes before the invasion of Gondor. Simultaneously as Calimehtar fought the Wainriders, the Northmen captives rebelled, though since the insurgency was made up of mostly boys and old men, they suffered heavy losses against the Easterling guards.

The second attack was where Ondoher was slain and Eärnil destroyed the Wainriders in the Battle of the Camp. Though Gondor had raised an army to meet the threat, and also divided up the forces to deal with the southern attack from Harad, Ondoher had underestimated the direction and suddenness of the initial Wainrider charge and was slain along with his son Artamir and most of his guard. Indeed, the unanticipated success of the Wainriders' assault was also their undoing, as Ondoher's nephew Minohtar managed to rally the disorderly forces of Gondor, preventing their wholesale destruction. As the situation improved for the time and as they were joined with their Éothéod allies, Minohtar gave an order to be sent to Minas Tirith which proclaimed that Faramir was now the King. It was then that the leader of the Éothéod said that Faramir had been slain. Faramir had been ordered to remain in Minas Tirith as regent, but he went to battle in disguise and was killed; the Éothéod found tokens on his body indicating that he was the Prince. On the thirteenth day of battle, Gondor's rearguard was unable to check the Wainriders' advance into Ithilien and Minohtar was slain by an arrow. The men of Gondor carried his body out of the fray and fled, but the Wainriders halted their advance to hold a feast.

Battle of Fornost[edit]

The Battle of Fornost was fought in the year T.A. 1975 by an army under Eärnur, Crown-Prince of Gondor, against Angmar, under its Witch-king, the Lord of the Ringwraiths.

While the battle was a success in the fact that Angmar was defeated, it came too late for Gondor's brother-realm of Arnor (the last remaining part of Arnor, Arthedain had been conquered a year before in 1974, and the last King of Arnor, Arvedui, had drowned in the Ice-Bay of Forochel).

The battle was named for Fornost, the old capital city of Arthedain, and was fought in the plains before the city. With Gondor came Men from Rhovanion, Elves from Lindon, and the remainder of the Dúnedain of Arnor (among them Aranarth the Crown-Prince of Arthedain), and, according to the Hobbits, a company of archers from the Shire, who never returned.

Angmar rode west to meet the assault, and seeing this, the cavalry of Gondor under Eärnur rode north into the Hills of Evendim to wait in ambush. As the main army of Gondor met the enemy and the battle began, the cavalry of Gondor attacked Angmar in the rear. Realizing that his forces were being completely destroyed, the Witch-king of Angmar fled away east. Eärnur rode after him, but his horse shied away. Then Glorfindel attacked, and the Witch-king fled east to escape Glorfindel's wrath, disappearing from the north. At this time Glorfindel prophesied the Witch-king would fall not 'by the hand of man'. The Witch-king was later killed in the Battle of the Pelennor Fields by Merry and Éowyn, who were a Hobbit and a woman respectively and were as such 'no man.'

Thus the north was freed from the evil of Angmar, but Arnor was no more: those that remained of its people became the Rangers of the North.

Fall of Khazad-dûm[edit]

By the middle of the Third Age, the Dwarf realm of Khazad-dûm had become the longest surviving city in all of Middle-earth. Since its foundation in the First Age by Durin the Deathless, the wealth and power of Khazad-dûm had greatly increased. The great fortune of Khazad-dûm had always been built upon the seemingly endless veins of mithril that had been found there, for it could not be mined anywhere else in Middle-earth. Mithril was coveted by all the peoples of Middle-earth; it was traded with the men from the kingdoms of Gondor and Arnor for great value, and it was loved by the Elves, who created many fair things out of it such as the ithildin that was to be found on the West-gate of Khazad-dûm.

The source of Khazad-dûm's power and prestige was also its downfall. As the centuries passed, the Dwarves mined deeper and deeper for mithril, and their mines extended far below into the roots of the Misty Mountains. It was during the year TA 1980, when Durin VI was king in Khazad-dûm, that the mining of mithril awoke a great terror that had slumbered beneath the mountains since the end of the First Age of the world; a Balrog of Morgoth. The Dwarves had unknowingly caused their own doom, and although they tried to resist with all the power at their disposal, the Balrog was too great and terrible a foe. Durin VI was slain, and the year after in TA 1981 his son Náin I was killed as well in a desperate defence of his kingdom.

Thus it was that the people of Khazad-dûm were either slain or fled far away. Some of the remaining refugees settled in the Dwarf-colony of Erebor, but most fled northeastwards and came to settle in the Grey Mountains, or Ered Mithrin. Khazad-dûm itself became a dark and abandoned place, and was thereafter named Moria by the Elves, which is Sindarin for the Black Pit. Although Durin's Folk long afterwards sought to reclaim their ancestral home from the Balrog that had claimed it, they were unsuccessful until the Fourth Age when an expedition led by Durin VII finally re-settled it until the days of the Dwarves were ended.

Battle of the Field of Celebrant[edit]

The Battle of the Field of Celebrant was a fierce battle which ultimately led to the creation of the kingdom of Rohan. It was fought on the Field of Celebrant, a region of grassland in western Wilderland; this region was bordered in the east by the great river Anduin, to the north by the wood of Lothlórien, to the south by the river Limlight and to the west by the Misty Mountains. The date of the battle was 15th Viressë ['April'] T.A. 2510.^[25]

In the year 2510 of the Third Age, a fierce group of Easterlings, known as the Balchoth, waged open war against a weakened Gondor, and had already overrun most of Gondor's northern provinces. Gondor had no allies left east of the Anduin, and against hope had sent three pairs of messengers north to the Éothéod, ancient allies of Gondor.

In T.A. 2510 the Balchoth crossed Anduin, via the shallow Undeeps, passing into the Wold in the north of the Gondorian province of Calenardhon. They met little resistance as Calenardhon had been sparsely populated since the Plague of T.A. 1636, and by the time the North Army of Gondor appeared from the South of Calenardhon, the bulk of the Balchoth army had already crossed. The North Army counter-attacked, and was driven north over the River Limlight and onto the Field of Celebrant, cut off from later reinforcements by the Balchoth host. By the time the South Army appeared, the North Army had come under attack by an Orc band which by chance or design had descended from the mountains, and the Dúnedain had their backs against the river in a hopeless situation.

At this time, the Éothéod under their leader Eorl the Young suddenly appeared, unexpected by friend or foe. Eorl had received the message from the last messenger, Borondir (the only one to survive the journey), and had rushed south. The Éothéod also crossed the Anduin at the Undeeps of the river, and broke on the rear of the Balchoth. The Balchoth were completely defeated and the Gondorian armies saved. The Éothéod continued their foray into northern Gondor, scattering and destroying all the Balchoth in Calenardhon.

After the battle, the Steward of GondorCirion gave the Éothéod the entire land of Calenardhon to dwell in as thanks. Eorl and Cirion swore an oath of eternal allegiance on the hill of Amon Anwar. The Éothéod founded the kingdom of Rohan.

War of the Dwarves and Dragons[edit]

The War of the Dwarves and Dragons was fought from the year 2570 to 2589 of the Third Age between the Dwarves of the Grey Mountains and the great fire-drakes that came down from the Northern Waste.^[26]

After the Fall of Khazad-dûm in T.A. 1981, the majority of those Dwarves who fled their downfallen kingdom escaped through the East Gate of Moria and into the vast lands of Rhovanion. These refugees were under the leadership of Thráin I, the new king of Durin's Folk. The Dwarves of Khazad-dûm had already had many well established mining colonies scattered throughout the lands east of the Misty Mountains, which included the colony of Erebor, the Lonely Mountain, as well as the rich mines and delvings in the Ered Mithrin to the far north. Thus it was that in the centuries that followed the greater part of the Dwarves relocated to their many halls in the Grey Mountains, which were rich in many ores, and they prospered and grew powerful in relative peace.

However, the lands to the north of the Grey Mountains were the abode of the great fire-drakes known as the dragons. The defeat of Morgoth in the War of Wrath left the Dragons few and weak, hiding in the far north of Middle-earth. But over the millennia the Dragons multiplied and became strong once again. Even centuries before the beginning of the war, the Dragon Scatha had stolen treasure from the Dwarves and kept it in his hoard. Therefore, when the dragons of the north felt their power was enough to overcome the Dwarves, and having heard tell of the great treasure hoards that the folk of Durin were amassing, they descended upon the Dwarves and brutally attacked their halls and mines. The dragons sought all that which the Dwarves had lusted after, their great stores of gold and jewels and precious ores, and these they found in abundance. In all the war lasted for almost twenty years, but in T.A. 2589 the Dragons attacked the halls of King Dáin I, and outside the city a great Cold-drake killed the king and his second son Frór.

After this defeat, most of Durin's folk abandoned the Grey Mountains. The new king Thrór and some of his followers went back to the former Dwarvish settlement of Erebor, while his younger brother Grór led others to the Iron Hills. After this the Dwarves of the Iron Hills as well as the Dwarves of Erebor managed to prosper for the next couple of centuries, however the threat of Dragons would revisit them. In T.A. 2770, Smaug flew south from the North with a force like a hurricane and attacked the wealthy kingdom of Erebor, driving the Dwarves from yet another of their ancestral halls.

Battle of Greenfields[edit]

The Battle of Greenfields was fought in the year 2747 of the Third Age in the Shire's Northfarthing. A band of Orcs from the Misty Mountains, led by a chief called Golfimbul, was confronted by Bandobras 'Bullroarer' Took, younger brother to the Thain of the Shire, and a force of hobbits. Golfimbul was killed and the orcs were defeated. According to legend, Bullroarer decapitated the orc chieftain with one swing of his club; Golfimbul's head rolled down a rabbit hole, and thus the game of golf was allegedly invented.^[27] This event preceded the War of the Ring by more than 250 years.^[27]

War of the Dwarves and Orcs[edit]

The War of the Dwarves and Orcs was a great war fought between the two races. Accounts of the war are found in The Lord of the Rings Appendix A and History of Middle-earth Volume XII.

Prelude[edit]

The War began when the elderly exiled Dwarf-king Thrór, heir of Durin, wandered alone into Moria and was murdered by Azog the Orc in 2790 of the Third Age. Not only did Azog murder him, but branded his own name upon the Dwarf's severed head—the body was hacked to pieces and fed to crows. Azog gloated over this act and not only prevented the Dwarves from recovering Thrór's head but insultingly tossed a money bag in mock 'payment' for the head.

From T.A. 2790 to 2793 the Longbeards that were Durin's folk responded to this insult by gathering their forces, calling on all the other Dwarf houses for help.

Six years of war[edit]

In T.A. 2793 the combined armies of the Dwarves attacked, sacking one by one all the Orc-holds of the Misty Mountains from Mount Gundabad in the north to the peak of Methedras in the south.

Most of the war was fought underground, in the great mines and tunnels of the Misty Mountains, where Dwarves excel in combat, and as such they went unaided by the other Free Peoples. The war was said to be very terrible, with neither side showing any mercy. The Dwarves had the upper hand, thanks to their prowess and their superior weapons and the great wrath that was in them.

Final battle: Azanulbizar[edit]

The war climaxed in T.A. 2799, when a final battle was fought in the large valley outside the eastern gates of Moria: the Battle of Nanduhirion (using the Sindarin name of the valley) or Battle of Azanulbizar (Khuzdul). It was later said that the memory of that battle still causes 'Orcs to shudder and Dwarves to weep.' The battle initially went against the Dwarves, for the Orcs had the high ground and the greater numbers, and being a dark day in winter there was no sun to bother the orcs. The tide was only turned when a last contingent of fresh warriors from the Iron Hills, led by Náin son of Grór, arrived to reinforce the wavering Dwarves. Azog was slain by Dáin Ironfoot, son of Náin, and his head stuck on a pike with the money bag stuck inside the mouth. The Orc-host suffered vast casualties with some 10,000 killed and the remnant routed.^[28]

The battle features in the film The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.

Aftermath[edit]

After the battle, Thráin II son of Thrór wanted to enter Moria and reclaim it, but the Dwarves not of Durin's folk refused, saying they had honoured Durin's memory by fighting, and this was enough. What remained of Durin's folk could not alone muster a force strong enough to enter Moria. Most importantly Dáin, who alone had looked into the threshold of Moria, saw that the Balrog called Durin's Bane was still present. Since the Balrog was too powerful for the Dwarves to defeat (as they had learned to their cost when it drove them from Moria more than eight hundred years before), Thráin was forced to withdraw.

The war was also very costly for the Dwarf race, as nearly half of those involved were killed or seriously wounded.^[29] Thráin II himself lost an eye, and his elder son Thorin earned his epithet 'Oakenshield' after he used an oak branch to defend himself after being wounded.

After the battle, the Dwarves stripped their dead, and lacking the time or resources for proper tombs, cremated them. These dead were subsequently revered in memory as the Burned Dwarves. The fatalities included Náin (who had led the late contingent from the Iron Hills), Frerin (the second son of Thráin II), and Fundin (the father of Balin).

The war proved something of a Pyrrhic victory, since while Thrór was avenged, the cost to the Dwarvish race had been grievous, and they remained exiled from Moria (due to the Balrog) and the Lonely Mountain (due to Smaug). Though Durin's folk would regroup at the Blue Mountains and regain some prosperity after the war, it would be another one hundred and forty years before Thráin's son Thorin led the expedition that retook Erebor and more than two hundred until Gandalf finally destroyed the Balrog, clearing the path to retaking Moria.

During the conflict, many Orcs had fled south through Rohan, trying to find refuge in the White Mountains beyond, and troubled the Rohirrim for two generations. In T.A. 2799 a contingent of Orcs found their way to the south of the White Mountains, but they were met by the forces of Dol Amroth; the sixteenth Prince of Dol Amroth was killed in the battle.^[30] Other effects of the war were that the Orcs of the Misty Mountains virtually disappeared as a threat for Eriador and Wilderland: the goblins of the High Pass near Rivendell were some of the few survivors.

One hundred and fifty years later, the Orcs of the North still had not fully recovered, but their population was further reduced during the Battle of Five Armies in 2941, where Bolg, son of Azog, tried to avenge his father, but was killed by Beorn.

Battle of Five Armies[edit]

The Battle of Five Armies was fought in Dale and on the Lonely Mountain in late T.A. 2941. The battle forms the climax of The Hobbit.

Participants[edit]

The conflict was named the 'Battle of Five Armies' because its main forces were from five different Middle-earth races: Goblins (Orcs), Wargs, Elves, Men and Dwarves.^[31]

On one side were the Goblins and Wargs. The Goblins, who had come from their lairs in the Misty Mountains, were led by Bolg, and their 'banners were countless, black and red'. They were supported by vampire bats.

On the other side, the allies, the Elf-army was from Mirkwood; it was led by their King Thranduil, and they had a green banner. The army of Men was from Lake-town; they were led by Bard the Bowman, and their banner was blue. The Dwarves were those of Durin's folk, and were led by Dáin Ironfoot and Thorin Oakenshield. The hobbitBilbo Baggins and the wizard Gandalf the Grey were involved on the side of the allies. The allies were also supported by the Eagles of the Misty Mountains, who showed up while the battle was in progress, and Beorn the 'skin-changer', who showed up late in the battle.

Prelude[edit]

Smaug was a dragon who in T.A. 2770 had destroyed the dwarf-kingdom of Erebor, which was centred under the Lonely Mountain (SindarinErebor), and the neighbouring wealthy town of Dale. Smaug stole all the treasure of Erebor and Dale, gathering it into a deep chamber under the Mountain, where he lived thereafter. King Thrór and the surviving Dwarves of Erebor (Durin's Folk) were driven into exile.

Many years later, and some weeks before the Battle of Five Armies, Thrór's heir Thorin Oakenshield arrived in Erebor with his companions, including Bilbo. They provoked Smaug, who flew off and attacked Esgaroth (the town of the Men of the Long Lake) in retaliation for their assistance to Thorin. Bard the Bowman, the heir of the Lords of Dale, killed the dragon, although the town was destroyed in the process.

The Wood elves learned that Smaug was dead, and wanted a share of the dwarves' ancient treasure. Hearing of the Lake Men's trouble, they changed course and left supplies there. The surviving Men of the Long Lake marched with the Elves north to the Mountain to claim some of the treasure on Bard's behalf and to obtain compensation for the destruction of their town. However, Thorin refused them any treasure.

Thorin's company was then trapped in a bloodless siege, with the Elvenking and Bard hoping to force the dwarves to share the treasure by trapping them inside the fortress without access to supplies. Thorin sent messages of his plight to his relatives using talking messenger ravens that lived on the Lonely Mountain. These reached Dáin II Ironfoot of the nearby Iron Hills, and he marched to Erebor with over 500 heavily armed dwarves, most of them skilled veterans of the War of the Dwarves and Orcs.

The day of the battle[edit]

When Dáin's forces arrived, the two sides nearly clashed, but at the last moment Gandalf intervened and revealed that while they were bickering amongst themselves, the Goblins of the Misty Mountains and Grey Mountains under Bolg were using the opportunity to march against them. They had been incited by Gandalf's earlier slaying of the Great Goblin, and had now mobilized for a full-scale attack after hearing news of the death of the Dragon and the now relatively unguarded treasure hoard.

The three commanders agreed to put their disputes with each other on hold in order to face the Goblin threat together. They arranged their forces on the two spurs of the Mountain that lined the valley leading to the now-sealed off great gate, which was the only entrance to the Mountain. The Dwarves and Lake-men formed up on one spur and the Elves on the other (Ravenhill), while a light rear-guard lined up across the mouth of the valley to lure the Goblins between the two other armies, and thus envelop them. Bilbo Baggins hid himself with his ring, hoping to avoid the battle.

The Goblins and Wargs arrived, and at first the plan worked: they were lured into the choke point by a thin line of men of Lake-town and took heavy losses. But the allied Free Folk lacked the numbers to hold on to this position against the intensifying Goblin and Warg attack. The second wave of Goblins and Wargs was even larger than the first, and many Goblins scaled the mountain from the opposite side in order to attack the Free Folk defenders from above and behind as the main wave pressed forward. Thorin and his twelve Dwarf companions inside the mountain collapsed their barricade onto the Goblins, killing many of them. The dwarves then charged into battle, having obtained armaments from the treasure hoard. Thorin's company advanced through the Goblins' ranks all the way up to the gigantic Goblins that formed the bodyguard of Bolg, but he was unable to overcome them. The Goblins outflanked and surrounded Thorin, forcing him to re-form his troops into a great circle.

As the battle was turning fully against the Free Folk, a large force of Eagles of the Misty Mountains arrived, led by the Lord of the Eagles. Bilbo was the first to spot them, but shortly after alerting the other troops he was knocked unconscious by a stone thrown by a goblin. With the support of the Eagles, who cast down the goblins from the mountain itself, the Free Folk were able to concentrate and fight on just one front in the valley rather than have to divide themselves as before. The battle was still not going well for the allies, but the tide turned when Beorn arrived in the form of a huge bear, killing many Wargs and Goblins and ultimately routing them when he killed Bolg. Large numbers of remaining Goblins were killed when they were driven into the river and swamps or hunted down by pursuing troops.

Thorin had been mortally wounded and carried off the field by Beorn and his nephews Fíli and Kíli died defending Thorin as he lay on the ground.

Aftermath[edit]

Thorin died the day after the battle, after meeting Bilbo one last time. Thorin was succeeded as King of Durin's folk by Dáin Ironfoot, who then began refounding the Dwarvish kingdom of Erebor under the Mountain. Bard the Bowman re-established the Mannish city of Dale.

One of the first actions of the victors, after treating their wounded and burying their dead, was to divide the fabulous treasure of Erebor. Bard took Bilbo's one-fourteenth share of the gold and silver in return for the Arkenstone, whereupon he shared his reward with the Master of Lake-town and gave the Elven-king Thranduil the emeralds of Girion. Although Bilbo had forfeited his share, the surviving members of Thorin's company (who each received their own fourteenth share) offered him a rich reward for helping them out of many dangers during the course of their adventure. But knowing that it would be difficult to transport so much back home, and claiming not to be too fond of treasure in any case, Bilbo only accepted two small chests of gold and silver and his small suit of chain-mail, made of mithril.

Depictions in other media[edit]

The battle is featured in Rankin/Bass' 1977 version of The Hobbit. Seven of Thorin's company are killed with Bombur being the only one named.

TSR, Inc. released two editions of a war-game based on 'The Battle of Five Armies,' designed by Larry Smith in the 1970s using cardboard tokens and a map of the area around the Lonely Mountain as a game area. The game was criticized for a lack of clarity in the rules, and praised for evoking the onslaught of the Warg and Goblin army.^[32]

In 1985 Iron Crown Enterprises released their version of The Battle of Five Armies^[33] developed by Richard H. Britton, Coleman Charlton, and John Crowell, again taking the theme of a wargame and using card counters and a paper map.

The multi-Origin Award-winning Middle-earth Strategic Gaming (formerly Middle-earth Play-by-Mail) uses the Battle of Five Armies as an introductory scenario to the full game and includes characters and armies from the book.^[34]

In 2005, Games Workshop released a Battle of Five Armiestabletop wargame, designed by Rick Priestley using highly detailed 10 mm figures sculpted by Mark Harrison, based on Games Workshop's Warmaster rules and designed for the home player.^[35][36]

The Battle serves as the climax of Peter Jackson's 'Hobbit' trilogy. The third film in the series is The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies. The battle is considerably altered: two of the five armies in the book are the Orcs and Wargs, fighting as one force, but in the movie there are two separate Orc armies. The main Orc army marches north from Dol Guldur, while the second is an auxiliary army composed of Orcs from Mount Gundabad, 'goblin mercenaries' and giant bats led by Bolg, arriving from the west. Azog (who is alive in the films) is the Orc commander, and his strategy is to use his main army to pin down the Elves, Men, and Dwarves in front of Erebor, then catch them in a pincer movement when his secondary army attacks them in the rear. This doesn't happen, however, because the army of Eagles arrives (along with Radagast and Beorn), who directly attack and counter the second goblin/bat army before it can link up with the main battle taking place before the gates of Erebor. Meanwhile, Azog tries to divide and weaken the Free Folk armies by splitting off much of his main army to attack the ruins of Dale, where the refugees from Lake-town have taken shelter. As he intended, this causes the Elves and Men to return to Dale to try to defend the women, children, and wounded now trapped in the city, leading to heavy street fighting. The Dwarf army under Dáin is pushed back to the gates of Erebor, but then Thorin & Company burst through the gate and join the battle, rallying the Dwarves into a counter-charge that successfully stops the momentum of the Orc assault. Thorin then climbs Ravenhill to take out Azog, and in a protracted duel Thorin finally kills Azog while taking a mortal wound himself. His nephews, Fíli and Kíli, have also been killed, by Azog and Bolg respectively.

War of the Ring[edit]

The War of the Ring was fought between Sauron and the free peoples of Middle-earth for control of the One Ring and dominion over the continent. It took place at the end of the Third Age. Together with the Quest of Mount Doom, it is one of the overarching events of The Lord of the Rings.

First Battle of the Fords of Isen[edit]

Théodred, son of King Théoden of Rohan, was alerted by his scouts to the mustering taking place in Isengard. He manned both sides of the strategic ford across the Isen, and went forward leaving three companies of riders to guard the eastern side. Early in the morning, he crossed over to the western side with a force mainly consisting of archers and cavalry. He planned to take the forces of Uruk-hai by surprise.

However, Saruman had tricked the scouts; his army was already marching out to attack the ford. Twenty miles to the north of the ford, Théodred encountered the vanguard of the Uruk-hai and quickly cut through their lines. He then charged at the main force, who were prepared for the attack and were stationed behind trenches planted with pikes. Reinforcements came out of Isengard and outflanked the cavalry, nearly surrounding them. Hastily, Théodred ordered a retreat; but the Uruk-hai could not be shaken off that easily. Grimbold, who was in command of the Rohirrim rearguard, had to cut down their pursuers many times.

Saruman's eastern force was much smaller but more dangerous. It contained mounted Dunlendings, Warg riders, half-orcs, and Uruk-hai berserkers. The Rohirrim guard on the eastern side of the ford had been driven into retreat, and their attackers recrossed the ford to attack Théodred on both sides. Théodred and his men had dismounted on an islet to cover Grimbold's retreat. At the same time Grimbold's force was being attacked from the western side, and as Grimbold looked east, he saw Théodred's force being driven from the islet to a hill. Grimbold and a few men raced toward Théodred's position. Théodred was cutting his way through the Uruk-hai lines. But by the time Grimbold reached him, Théodred had fallen, cut down by a giant orc. Grimbold slew the orc and then found himself defending Théodred's body from orcs. He himself would have been killed had it not been for Elfhelm.

Elfhelm had been leading four companies towards Helm's Deep, when it was reported to him that two Warg Riders had been spotted. He rode at full speed to the ford and, seeing the situation, ordered his men to charge. Before long his men held the western side of the ford. They then charged on the islet. From this surprise attack most of the Uruk-hai retreated toward Isengard. When they reached the islet they found Grimbold defending Théodred's body against two huge orcs. Elfhelm rushed to his aid and felled one orc while Grimbold slew the other.

When they lifted Théodred's body, they found he was still alive. He lived long enough only to say, 'Let me lie here—to keep the ford until Éomer comes.' The enemy attack ended by nightfall. The Rohirrim had held the ford, but suffered heavy losses and were now leaderless.

Second Battle of the Fords of Isen[edit]

The command of the ford was given to Erkenbrand of the Westfold. Until he arrived from Helm's Deep, Grimbold held the position. Elfhelm did not want to hold the Fords, as he argued that it provided little defence, but Grimbold was not willing to wholly abandon it, partially due to the tradition of Westfold. The two commanders later reached a compromise.

Grimbold decided to place foot soldiers at the ford and put Elfhelm's men on the east side where he expected the attack to come from.

Saruman sent a small force, but which was still enough to outnumber the defenders. The attackers forced Grimbold to retreat across the ford with heavy losses. Grimbold held the eastern side of the ford and waited for Elfhelm to come to his aid. More than half of Saruman's force was attacking Grimbold's position.

Some warg riders and their followers pushed through the gap between the two Rohirrim forces and tried to surround Elfhelm. Although he knew Grimbold was in danger, Elfhelm retreated eastwards. Grimbold was still holding his position when he saw torches coming from the north and from Isengard—the vanguard of Saruman's reinforcements advancing towards him. Before he knew it, they had crossed the ford. He could not hold the ford so he retreated to his camp and made a shield wall around it.

Even though the Rohirrim were surrounded, the forces of Isengard could not break through. Grimbold knew he could not hold out forever. With no sign of Elfhelm and no help from Erkenbrand, he decided to try to break out. He mounted all the riders for whom he had horses and made a gap on the east side of the wall through which the riders passed. They formed into two groups and attacked the north and south sides simultaneously. In the ensuing confusion, the remaining Rohirrim retreated on foot as quickly as they could in the dark.

Destruction of Isengard[edit]

The Destruction of Isengard is a fictionalbattle from J. R. R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth legendarium. It is an important event in the War of the Ring because it signifies the destruction of Saruman's army production facilities.

After a three-day-long Entmoot, an army of Ents and Huorns set off for the tower-fortress of Isengard, making terrifying music. They arrived and began their attack on March 2. The time of their attack was fortunate because they arrived just when the wizard Saruman was emptying Isengard for a final assault on Rohan. As a result, there were few left to defend Isengard besides Saruman himself.

Once the army of Isengard had left for Rohan, the Ents launched their attack on the walls. Attempts were made to hinder them with arrows, but these only served to irritate the attackers further, and, in a matter of minutes the gate and much of the southern wall was reduced to ruin. As Merry and Pippin later recounted to their friends, Ents are so strong that their punches can crumple iron like tinfoil, and they can tear apart solid rock like breadcrusts. A ring of Huorns surrounded Isengard and killed all escaping Orcs.

Once the gate and walls had been reduced to rubble, a young Ent named Bregalad or 'Quickbeam' in the Westron tongue, spotted Saruman, and made for him, shouting 'The Tree Killer!', for his people and all Fangorn forest in general had suffered from heavy deforestation to fuel the furnaces of Saruman. He was followed by other Ents, but Saruman narrowly succeeded in escaping into the tower of Orthanc. Once in the tower, he activated spouts and vents all over the plain, scorching many Ents who had entered the fortress. One ent, Beechbone, was unlucky enough to be caught fully in one of the fiery blasts, and the death of this ent by Saruman's fire caused the ent host to go berserk. The hobbitsMeriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took, who were present there and later narrated the battle to the Three Hunters, recounted the fury of the Ents, saying that their enraged roars were enough to crack the stones. They destroyed the buildings and machinery on the plain, but could do nothing to hurt the tower itself.

At this point the Ents took counsel, and came up with a new plan of attack. By digging trenches and destroying Saruman's dam, the Ents and Huorns diverted the course of the river Isen itself, causing it to flood the 'bowl' of Isengard, submerging everything but the tower and filling in all the tunnels and holes where the machinery of war had been. The destruction of Isengard was complete, although Saruman was still untouched in the tower.

Saruman’s sound defeat at the Battle of the Hornburg and the destruction of his fortress rendered him incapable of causing the West any military harm, although he still had the power of his persuasive and commanding voice, with which he could still do (and did do) further harm. Had the Ents not destroyed Isengard, although Saruman's main army had been destroyed he could still have withstood a siege with his few remaining forces behind Isengard's normally impregnable walls, and bided his time until he could renew his strength. In the films by Peter Jackson, Saruman is stabbed by Wormtongue (who perishes from an arrow from Legolas) and falls to his death from the top of Orthanc.

Tolkien later noted that the destruction of Isengard by the Ents was based on his disappointment in Macbeth; when 'Birnham Wood be come to Dunsinane', Tolkien was less than thrilled that it amounted to men walking on stage with leaves in their hats. He decided that when he did that scene for himself, he would do it right.

Battle of the Hornburg[edit]

The Battle of the Hornburg is a fictional battle in J. R. R. Tolkien's novel The Lord of the Rings. Published in the volume The Two Towers, it is recounted in the chapter 'Helm's Deep', and the aftermath is briefly shown in the next one, 'Flotsam and Jetsam'.

The battle pitted the forces of the WizardSaruman against the Rohirrim under King Théoden, who had taken refuge in the mountain fortress of the Hornburg at Helm's Deep.

After being released from his malevolent adviser Gríma Wormtongue's influence by the benevolent Wizard Gandalf, Théoden set out to the Fords of Isen, where his marshal Erkenbrand was fighting Saruman's forces. Théoden found out that they had been scattered. Gandalf advised him to take refuge in the Hornburg fortress of Helm's Deep, an area named after one of their kings. Then Gandalf left on some unexplained errand. Théoden's army went to the area, where local people were commanded by a captain called Gamling the Old. Many of the forces there were too old or too young. The women and children of Théoden's capital Edoras were safe in Dunharrow, led by the King's niece Éowyn.

The forces of Saruman, common Orcs and Uruk-hai, along with some orc-human hybrids (called 'half-orcs and goblin-men'—which may have referred to or included the Uruk-hai themselves) and human Dunlendings, arrived at the valley of Helm's Deep in the middle of the night during a storm. Meanwhile, Legolas the Elf and Gimli the Dwarf agreed to compete, to see which one could kill the most orcs.

The attackers quickly scaled over the first defence, Helm's Dike, forcing the defenders there to fall back to the fortress. When the Orcs were close, the defenders drove them back with arrows and stones, but they managed to get close to the wall after multiple charges. They attempted to break down the gate with a battering ram, but a sortie led by Aragorn and Éomer scattered the forces.

The Orcs and Dunlendings then raised hundreds of ladders to scale the wall. Aragorn and Éomer repeatedly motivated the tired defenders to repel the Orcs coming up the ladders. Some Orcs crept in through a culvert which let a stream out of Helm's Deep, and while the defenders were busy with the assault on the wall, they were suddenly attacked from behind. This was repulsed and the culvert was blocked up under Gimli's supervision.

The enemies re-entered the culvert and blasted a wide hole in the wall using a 'blasting-fire' explosive device invented by Saruman. The defenders then retreated to the Glittering Caves, Éomer and Gimli among them.

Soon Saruman's forces broke through the gate and gained entrance to the fortress. At this moment, Helm's horn was sounded, and a cavalry charge led by Théoden and Aragorn rode forth, followed by all the Rohirrim left inside. They cut their way through the Orcs and broke free.

Both armies then noticed that many Huorns had moved to block a possible escape route for the Orcs. Then Gandalf arrived on Shadowfax, with Erkenbrand and a thousand cavalry—the remaining strength of the Rohirrim that had been routed at the Fords of Isen. They charged into the fray. The Dunlendings were so terrified of Gandalf that they could no longer fight. The Orcs lost control and ran into the 'forest' of Huorns, where they were completely annihilated.

After the battle, those Dunlendings who surrendered were given amnesty by King Théoden and allowed to return home (much to their surprise, since Saruman had told them that the men of Rohan would burn all survivors alive). The Rohirrim required that all hostilities cease, and that the Dunlendings retreat behind the River Isen again and never recross while bearing arms.

Among the Rohirrim dead was Háma, captain of Théoden's personal guard and doorward of his hall (he plays a significant role in the previous chapter, 'The King of the Golden Hall'). Gimli was wounded, but had killed 42 to Legolas' 41.

The event is sometimes called the Battle of Helm's Deep, a title which was never used by Tolkien but which is often used by readers and other fans, this has led to the misconception that the term 'Helm's Deep' refers to the fortress. Properly speaking, the fortress is the Hornburg (Anglo-Saxon = horn fortress) and Helm's Deep is the ravine behind it. In one of his letters regarding a proposed film adaptation, Tolkien protested the use of Helm's Deep, stating that, 'the 'defence of the Hornburg' would be a better title, since Helm's Deep, the ravine behind, is not shown' (Letters, 210).

Siege of Lórien[edit]

The Siege of Lórien (never given a proper name in the text) is a fictional event during the War of the Ring in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. It is an encounter between the Orcs of Dol Guldur and Mordor against the Galadhrim of Lothlórien under Celeborn and Galadriel. The battle was one of the largest of the war and the victory of the Elves allowed Celeborn to lead an assault on Dol Guldur, where Galadriel ended the evil influence of Sauron in Mirkwood.

It is unknown how the Orc army crossed the River Anduin, though the North Undeep seems the most likely crossing-point. Forces from Dol Guldur, reinforced with Orcs from Mordor assaulted Lothlórien three times, assisted at least once in a joint attack from the west by the orcs of Moria. Though the battles are not described in detail by Tolkien, the fair woods of the borders of Lothlórien suffered grievous harm by fire, but the valour of the Elves prevented the enemy from penetrating too deeply into their forest realm. Thrice the enemy attacked and thrice the assaults were driven back.

The valour of the Elven people that defended Lórien was great, though the main reason why Lórien was not conquered was a secret power that dwelt in the land, protecting it from harm and creating a powerful ward against all evil: such power was Galadriel, aided by Nenya, the Ring of Adamant. In fact, Tolkien states that the only way Lórien could have been conquered was if Sauron had come there himself to lead the attack.

The forces of Dol Guldur were defeated and fled south towards into Fangorn Forest. Treebeard and a host of Ents, having already laid ruin to Isengard some days before, set out to prevent them entering Rohan. Remnants of despairing Orcs fled eastward but were either killed by the tree-shepherds or drowned in the River Anduin.

Following the battle, Celeborn and Galadriel led the Galadhrim across the Anduin in a fleet of many small elf boats. They entered Mirkwood and attacked Dol Guldur. Then, Galadriel came forth and threw down the walls and cleansed its pits, mirroring the actions of Lúthien in Tol-Sirion, ending the grasp of evil in the forest. As news of the victory of King Elessar in the south reached the Wood Elves, Thranduil (who had recently defeated an army in the Battle of Mirkwood) met with Celeborn on April 6.

Mirkwood was divided between Thranduil (who claimed the North), the Beornings (who settled in the middle, the 'Narrows') and Celeborn who added the southern half to his realm, renaming it 'Eastern Lórien'. Despite these victories, the Elven presence in Middle-earth continued to dwindle and Galadriel departed over the Sea at the end of the Third Age.

Battle of Osgiliath[edit]

Prior to this, Sauron had regained all his military strength and was prepared to attack Middle-earth. He first planned to attack his most powerful enemy, the land of Gondor. But in order to destroy Gondor's capital, Minas Tirith, he first needed to capture Osgiliath, Gondor's former capital city, strategically positioned on the Anduin, the Great River. Fords across the river were located in Osgiliath (half of the city was located on each side of the river) that were the only path a large army could cross the Anduin for hundreds of miles up or downstream (the crossing was also possible at Cair Andros or Pelargir, but Osgiliath was the most direct). If captured, Sauron could freely move his main army across the river and to the primary target of his strategy in the war, Minas Tirith.

The battle to control the ruins of Osgiliath had actually been fought, on and off, for over a century since the fall of Ithilien to Mordor. Minas Tirith was surrounded by the Rammas Echor, a fortified wall encircling the Pelennor Fields and meeting up with Osgiliath, where the Causeway Forts were built and garrisoned, though Osgiliath itself remained in ruins. This outwall fell into disrepair as the kingdom declined.

A renewed offensive by Mordor to take the city had begun in June 3018. The Eastern half of the city soon fell to the Orcs, but they were pushed back from the western bank by Boromir who was able to destroy the last standing bridge in the city which connected the two banks of the river. This temporarily halted Mordor's offensive for the time, with Gondor possessing the West of the city and Mordor the East. This lull in Mordor's offensive was probably due to the fact that the attack was mostly a probe of Gondor's defences rather than an all out attack. During this break in heavy fighting Boromir left Gondor to seek counsel at Rivendell about a dream he and his brother shared about Isildur's Bane; he would never return.

During this time, Faramir, Boromir's brother, led several Ranger attacks deep into Mordor-occupied Ithilien, ambushing enemy armies moving to the Black Gate; Frodo and Sam stumbled into one such attack on a group of Haradrim.

When the Great Signal from Mordor went up and another answered from Minas Morgul, the War of the Ring properly began (although Isengard had been fighting before this and Sauron had been pursuing his other fronts to the north). Thus the Battle of Osgiliath was the first battle of the war in the south.

Before Mordor's assault, the Steward Denethor ordered Faramir to lead a force out of Minas Tirith to reinforce the garrison. Gandalf also went back and forth from Minas Tirith to Osgiliath, aiding Faramir and escorting the wounded. Mordor was prepared, having secretly constructed massive numbers of boats and rafts. The Orcs in East Osgiliath, swelled by reinforcements, swarmed across the River Anduin to the Gondorian positions on the other bank.

After long and heavy fighting the troops under Faramir's command were forced to retreat, first to the Causeway Forts on the Rammas Echor where they delayed the enemy at a great loss. The orcs blasted through the wall and the men pulled back to Minas Tirith itself. Faramir himself was badly wounded in the retreat, when a poisoned arrow pierced him while he fought off a mounted Harad champion; more severe damage was done by the Black breath of the Nazgûl, but Prince Imrahil of Dol Amroth led a cavalry charge ordered by Denethor to rescue the rearguard and routed the enemy temporarily. In the meantime, the Orcs made makeshift repairs to several destroyed bridges. The main combined army of Mordor then arrived, formed from those that Frodo saw leaving Minas Morgul, but this was 'but one and not the greatest of the hosts that Mordor now sent forth': a far greater army that had massed at the Black Gate joined them at Osgiliath, and the combined forces now entered the western bank of Osgiliath. More also came from the fords at Cair Andros, which was recently captured, but they would not reach Minas Tirith until later.

With Osgiliath now completely in the hands of Mordor, the vast army of Sauron marched from the city and surrounded Minas Tirith, beginning the siege of Gondor and leading directly into the Battle of the Pelennor Fields.

Battle of the Pelennor Fields[edit]

In J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy fiction, the Battle of the Pelennor Fields is the battle for the city of Minas Tirith between the forces of Gondor and its allies, and the forces of the Dark Lord Sauron. Tolkien recounts this battle in The Return of the King, the third volume of his 1954-55 novel The Lord of the Rings as originally printed.

The battle is one of the central battles of the War of the Ring, the war in which the Third Age of Middle-earth comes to a close. It takes place on 15th 'March', T.A. 3019 upon the Pelennor Fields, the townlands and fields between Minas Tirith and the River Anduin.

The concept and history of composition of the battle is detailed in the fourth volume of The History of the Lord of the Rings.

The city of Minas Tirith was besieged following the fall of Osgiliath and the Rammas Echor, Gondor's final barriers against the forces of Mordor. In the retreat to the city, Faramir, son of Denethor, Steward of Gondor, was severely wounded. Since the despairing Steward refused to leave his son's side, the WizardGandalf took command of the city's defences.^[37] Meanwhile, the enemy forces assembled before the city on the Pelennor Fields. The Great Darkness blotted out the sun.^[37] The Nazgûl, Sauron's most feared servants, flew over the battlefield on fell beasts, causing the defenders' morale to waver.

Catapults and siege towers made repeated and ultimately futile attacks on the walls, but this was not their real objective: the true purpose of the siege towers was to thin out the city's defences and draw men away from the great gate itself. Sauron's forces were finally able to breach the city gate using the giant battering ram Grond. The Witch-king entered alone at dawn and was confronted by Gandalf. At that moment the Rohirrim arrived and charged into battle.^[37]

Sauron's army from Minas Morgul, led by the Witch-king of Angmar (chief of the Nazgûl or Ringwraiths) greatly outnumbered the combined armies of Gondor and its allies. Sauron's forces included Southrons of Harad, who brought elephantine beasts called mûmakil (or Oliphaunts), Easterlings from Rhûn and Variags from Khand, as well as great numbers of Orcs and Trolls. Tolkien describes the army as the greatest to issue from that vale since the days of Isildur's might, no host so fell and strong in arms had yet assailed the fords of Anduin; and yet it was but one and not the greatest of the hosts that Mordor now sent forth.^[38]

The defenders' numbers were considerably less. Following his defeat at Osgiliath, Tolkien writes that Faramir is outnumbered by ten times and he loses one third of his men.^[37] Tolkien gives a catalogue of companies from outlying provinces of Gondor that come to the aid of Minas Tirith; the contingent is numbered at less than 3,000.^[39] Prominent among them were a company of knights^[37][40][41] and footmen^[39] of Dol Amroth, led by their lord Prince Imrahil. As Gondor's coastal towns were being attacked by the Corsairs of Umbar, the troops sent to Minas Tirith were all these areas could spare.^[39][40]

6,000 Riders of Rohan (Rohirrim)^[42] arrived at dawn, and over 2,000^[40] Men from the coastal towns of Gondor sailed up the river. These had been relieved by a company^[43] of Rangers of the North (representing Gondor's long-fallen sister realm Arnor) led by Aragorn. The Rohirrim were 'thrice outnumbered by the Haradrim alone'.^[44]

The battle begins immediately following Gandalf's denying the Witch-king's entry into the city.

After breaking the gate with the ram Grond, the Witch-king rode under the archway that no enemy ever yet had passed.^[37] Gandalf, mounted upon his horse Shadowfax, stood in his way. But before the two could fight, a cock crowed, whereupon the horns of the Rohirrim were heard echoing through the arriving dawn, and the battle proper began. The Rohirrim bypassed Sauron's lookouts thanks to the mysterious Wild Men of Drúadan Forest.

After charging the ranks of Mordor, the Rohirrim secured the outer wall,^[44] destroyed siege engines and camps, and drove off Haradrim cavalry. The Witch-king (on his winged fell beast) went straight for Théoden. The king's horse was killed by a dart, and it fell and crushed the king.^[44]

The King's niece Éowyn (disguised as Dernhelm, a man) challenged the Witch-king. Long ago, it had been prophesied that the Witch-king would not die 'by the hand of man'.^[45] In the ensuing combat she was gravely injured. The HobbitMeriadoc Brandybuck, who had accompanied 'Dernhelm', intervened and stabbed the Witch-king with his enchanted sword. The Witch-king was bitterly wounded due to that particular sword's special magic. Éowyn then 'drove her sword between crown and mantle', slaying him.^[44] Both weapons that struck his undead flesh were destroyed as well.

Théoden died without realizing his niece was present. Her brother Éomer, now the king, discovered their bodies. Furious, he charged his cavalry without order into the enemy forces. Meanwhile, nearly every fighting man had left Minas Tirith to join the battle, led by Imrahil and other local captains. Imrahil rode up to Éowyn and found she still lived. She and Merry were sent to be healed in the city. The Ringwraith's Black Breath had made them both gravely ill, as with Faramir earlier.^[44] Their arms were left numb and cold after striking the Witch-king, and Éowyn's other arm was broken in the mélee.

Before the Rohirrim arrived, Denethor prepared to burn himself and his son upon a funeral pyre, believing Faramir to be beyond cure. Only the intervention of the Hobbit Pippin Took, a guard named Beregond, and Gandalf saved Faramir, but Denethor immolated himself before they could stop him.^[46] Tolkien indirectly states that Théoden's death could have been prevented if Gandalf had helped the Rohirrim instead, as he had intended.^[46]

The battle soon turned against Gondor and their allies, despite the growing daylight. Gothmog, lieutenant of Minas Morgul, brought forward reinforcements. The forces of Mordor rallied behind the mûmakil of the Haradrim. Éomer was cut off from the Gondorians and surrounded by the enemy. As he prepared to make a last stand, he saw a fleet of enemy ships with black sails sailing up the River Anduin. They were the ships of the Corsairs of Umbar, seemingly more of Sauron's reinforcements,^[44] but manned by Aragorn and his Rangers of the North, Gimli the Dwarf, Legolas the Elf, the Half-elven brothers Elladan and Elrohir and troops from south Gondor.^[40] Much of Sauron's forces were pinned between Aragorn and Éomer's forces. The tide of battle turned in favour of Gondor, yet fighting lasted until the end of the day. A brief respite was won until the Battle of the Black Gate.^[44]

Various artists have illustrated the battle or elements of it, including Alan Lee, John Howe, the Brothers Hildebrandt, and Ted Nasmith.

Sauron Defeated, the fourth volume of The History of the Lord of the Rings, part of the History of Middle-earth series, contains superseded versions of the battle. Some changes of detail are apparent. For example, Théoden dies by a projectile to the heart instead of being crushed by his horse; when Éowyn reveals her sex she has cut her hair short, a detail absent from the final version. Tolkien also considered killing off both Théoden and Éowyn.^[47]

The battle has been analysed in various publications:

War and the Works of J.R.R. Tolkien by Tolkien scholar Janet Brennan Croft examines the influence of World War I and II on Tolkien's fantasy writings, and the development of his attitude towards war.^[48]

Michael D. C. Drout's 'Tolkien's Prose Style and its Literary and Rhetorical Effects', featured in the academic journal Tolkien Studies, published by West Virginia University Press, analyses Tolkien's writing style and deduces influence from and parallels with King Lear. Drout also writes about the evolution of events in the narrative using material from the History of Middle-earth series.^[49]

The events of the battle are also analysed in Fantasy: The Liberation of Imagination by Richard Matthews, which explores 'how fantasy uses the elements of enchantment and the supernatural to explode everyday reality and create profound insights into essential human realities.'^[50][51]

Battle of Mirkwood[edit]

The Battle of Mirkwood, also known as Battle Under the Trees, is an incident in J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional world of Middle-earth. In his legendarium it takes place during the War of the Ring at the end of the Third Age.

The Battle of Mirkwood was a major and prolonged series of battles in the War of the Ring. The Orcs of Dol Guldur tried to take Mirkwood and defeat the elves there but were repulsed. Sauron's main objective in the northern theatre of the war was the assault on Lothlórien, and the majority of the forces from Dol Guldur were used to attack it. Dol Guldur used its remaining forces against Thranduil's realm, to try to secure their flank. Sauron's plan was that his Easterling allies would join the attack on Thranduil, overwhelming them, thus allowing Dol Guldur to focus all of its forces on Lothlórien. The Easterlings were occupied with besieging the Dwarves at Lonely Mountain, and were never able to join the attack on Thranduil. Fierce fighting raged throughout the forest, and there was 'great ruin of fire'^[52] as woods were set alight during the battle. King Thranduil led his elves to victory and defeated the orcs,^[53] then with the help of Galadriel advanced on Dol Guldur after Sauron's fall, and destroyed the stronghold.

Battle of Dale[edit]

The Battle of Dale is a fictional battle in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings during the War of the Ring. An earlier battle in the same location which re-established the Dwarf-kingdom was called the Battle of Five Armies.

The Dwarves of the Lonely Mountain (also known as Erebor) and the Men of Dale refused to acknowledge the overlordship and alliance of Sauron. While his larger southern armies invaded Gondor, a host of Easterlings advanced in the north to extend his dominion and to prevent the armies of his enemies joining together under one banner.

On 'March' 17 of the year 3019 in the Third Age, Sauron sent a host of Easterlings to attack Dale.^[54] The combined forces of the Men of Dale under King Brand and the Dwarves of the Lonely Mountain under King Dáin Ironfoot marched out to meet the Easterlings in battle. Sauron's forces were probably more numerous, though the armies of Dale and Erebor would have possessed an advantage due to their superior Dwarf-made weaponry. After three days of heavy close-quarters fighting, Brand and Dáin were forced to retreat to the Lonely Mountain. A few sturdy warriors led by Brand and Dáin fought bravely before the Gate of Erebor, which was not taken. Dáin was killed as he stood defending the body of his ally Brand. The defenders of the Mountain were now under siege.

The forces of Gondor and Rohan defeated the main power of Sauron in the southern theatre on 'March' 25 and this caused the northern Easterling army to lose heart. Seeing the morale of their foes sapped, the Army of Dale under the new Kings—Bard II and Thorin III Stonehelm—managed to lift the siege on 'March' 27 and drove the Easterlings out of Dale.

The battle was very important for the future of Middle-earth. Though it could not change the outcome of the War of the Ring, which was tied to fate of the One Ring, it diverted another portion of Sauron's strength from Lórien and Rivendell,^[55] and a quick complete victory by Sauron's Easterling armies would have allowed them to join up with Sauron's forces from Dol Guldur in their attacks on the woodland realm of Mirkwood. This would have enabled Mordor's armies to wreak havoc, possibly as far west as Eriador before the armies of the west defeated them.

Dale was rebuilt following the siege of the Lonely Mountain, and Thorin and Bard sent their ambassadors to King Elessar's coronation. Later, many dwarves were led south by Gimli, one of the companions of Aragorn in the War of the Ring. They colonised Aglarond, the glittering caves in Helm's Deep.

The battle was recounted in one of the appendices of The Return of the King.

Battle of the Morannon[edit]

In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, the Battle of the Morannon or Battle of the Black Gate is a fictional event that took place at the end of the War of the Ring. It is depicted in The Return of the King, the third volume of his fantasy book The Lord of the Rings.

This was the final major battle against Sauron in the War of the Ring, fought at the Black Gate of Mordor. The Army of the West, led by Aragorn, marched on the gate as a diversionary feint to distract Sauron's attention from Frodo and Sam, who were carrying the One Ring through Mordor. It was hoped that Sauron would think Aragorn had the Ring and was now trying to use it to overthrow Mordor. As the journey progressed, Aragorn was credited openly as 'the King Elessar' by their heralds to challenge Sauron, though he was not yet formally crowned.

Aragorn and the other captains had around 7,000 soldiers of Gondor and Rohan available to fight; they left some in Minas Tirith to defend against assault, and sent 3,000 Rohirrim under Elfhelm to rout another army holding the west road to Anórien. Thus they marched with about 6,000 foot and 1,000 cavalry.^[40]

At the Crossroads, Aragorn and other captains left the main force for a while with a small company of troops and surveyed Minas Morgul from afar, finally setting the Morgul Vale on fire. They also left some archers to guard the Crossroads.

They were also later ambushed by Orcs and Easterlings on the very spot where Faramir and the Rangers of Ithilien had ambushed a company of Haradrim some days ago, but the enemy was beaten back without much loss. This was an intentionally weak feint, meant to try to lure them into thinking that Sauron's army was incapable of mounting a strong attack. Later, some whose fear overcame them were sent to retake and hold Cair Andros, an island in the Great River, used as a fortress by Gondor. Thus the Army of the West was less than 6,000 strong at the Black Gate.^[56]

Before the battle began, Sauron sent one of his servants, the Black Númenórean called the Mouth of Sauron, to speak with the Captains of the West. He tried to trick Gandalf into believing Sauron held Frodo captive, displaying as evidence items that had belonged to Frodo and Sam (Sam's sword, an Elven cloak, and Frodo's mithril shirt.) The Mouth threatened that Frodo would be tortured if the West did not agree to Sauron's terms of surrender. (It is clear that while Sauron knew there was a Hobbit in Mordor, he did not know why.) Gandalf refused to be swayed, took the items from the Mouth of Sauron, and sent him away. Amazed and angered, the Mouth of Sauron rode back to the Black Gate and the forces of Sauron advanced. At the same time, more of Sauron's forces that had been hidden in the hills around the Black Gate came forth, thus surrounding the Men of the West. Sauron's army outnumbered that of the West by at least ten to one. It is not clear who commanded the field for Sauron. The Army of the West divided itself into two rings upon two great hills of rubble opposite the gate: Aragorn, Gandalf, and the sons of Elrond were on the left ring, with Éomer, Imrahil, and the Knights of Dol Amroth on the right.

Against Aragorn's army was arrayed Sauron's hordes of Orcs, Trolls, and Mannish allies such as the Easterlings and Southrons (Haradrim). An exact count is not given of the number of Sauron's forces, though Tolkien says they were 'ten times and more than ten times' the size of Aragorn's army. This puts the size of Sauron's army at greater than 60,000. The Olog-hai, improved Trolls much like the Uruk-hai were improved Orcs, first made an appearance.

During the course of the battle, the Hobbit Peregrin Took, marching as one of the Tower Guard of Minas Tirith, managed to kill one of the Olog-hai leaders. The remaining eight Nazgûl hovered over the Army of the West and spread fear and confusion. The Eagles of the Misty Mountains, led by Gwaihir the Windlord, arrived and attacked the Ringwraiths. At that moment, when all hope seemed lost, Frodo put on the One Ring and Sauron realized that Frodo was inside Mount Doom. The Nazgûl immediately left the battle to intercept Frodo. However, Gollum bit the Ring off Frodo's finger, and then both he and the Ring accidentally fell into the Crack of Doom, and Sauron's power was overthrown.

The Nazgûl flew over Mount Doom just as it underwent a gigantic volcanic eruption, and they were all destroyed in the firestorm. Barad-dûr, the Black Gate and the Towers of the Teeth collapsed to ruin as their foundations were built with the Ring's magic. Sauron's physical body perished yet again for what would be the last time. His gigantic shadow formed in the sky and reached out in wrath to the heroes, but it was blown away by a strong wind, and his spirit, which had been housed in a tall humanoid form ever since the start of the Age, was left forever bodiless and impotent.

The Orcs and other creatures of Sauron were left completely directionless with the Dark Lord's demise and were easily defeated by the Army of the West. Some slew themselves, while others fled to hide in dark places. The proud Easterlings and Southrons fought on bravely, though eventually many threw down their weapons and surrendered later to be sent home in peace by Aragorn ending the Easterlings and Southrons hate for Gondor.

Fighting against Sauron's remaining forces would continue in the northern theatre of the War of the Ring for several weeks, notably in Mirkwood, Lothlórien, Dol Guldur and at Erebor, but the power of Sauron, the Dark Lord of Mordor, was no more.

Months later, the Battle of Bywater in the Shire against ruffians led by Saruman, and the subsequent killing of Saruman and Wormtongue on the very doorstep of Bag End, ended the War of the Ring.

Battle of Bywater[edit]

The Battle of Bywater is a battle depicted in The Lord of the Rings in the chapter 'The Scouring of the Shire'.

The Battle of Bywater was a battle between the Hobbits of the Shire and a band of ruffians who followed 'Sharkey' (the Wizard Saruman). The battle was considered to be the last of the War of the Ring. The Shire-folk were roused by the leadership of Meriadoc Brandybuck (Merry) and Peregrin Took (Pippin), knights of Rohan and Gondor, respectively. Merry slew the leader of the ruffians, a squint-eyed Orcish-looking brute.

The Battle of Bywater occurred on 'November' 3, 1419 by Shire-reckoning in the Shire Calendar (3019 of the Third Age) and was the last military engagement of the War of the Ring. It was only the second battle ever fought within the borders of the Shire since its founding over 250 years before; the first was the Battle of Greenfields, which was fought in the year 1147 by Shire-reckoning (2747 of the Third Age).

Ruffians had been sent by Sharkey to suppress the Hobbit revolt breaking out in Bywater. The Hobbits' scouts gave them advance warning. The Hobbits devised a plan to surround and trap the ruffians when they arrived. As the ruffians approached Bywater they found the road was blocked by overturned farm-carts near the junction of the East Road and Bywater Road; at once, more carts were rolled into the road behind them. The ruffians, boxed in by the roadblocks and by high hedge-topped banks on either side behind which many armed hobbits were waiting in the fields, were then called on to surrender. Instead they tried to fight their way out through the Hobbits, some breaking through. These were then encircled and engaged until the battle was won.

The Shire Hobbits rallied under the leadership of Merry and Pippin. The courage and skill that Merry and Pippin had discovered during their journey with the Fellowship of the Ring and during the War of the Ring, had made them confident in their abilities, and this enabled them to rally the Shire-folk against the invaders. Additionally, Merry possessed the Horn of Rohan, given to him by Éowyn, which was said to be enchanted to inspire allies and dishearten enemies. Technically, Pippin was still a Knight of Gondor, as King Elessar had not released him from service but granted him indefinite leave, and when he departed Aragorn reminded Pippin that his restored kingship now extended to the old northern lands which included the Shire. Therefore, Pippin saw himself as fighting off the ruffians with the authority of the King supporting him. Samwise Gamgee also fought in the battle. Frodo Baggins was also present at the battle, though he did not fight, explaining he wished for there to be as little death in the already troubled Shire as possible; he spent the battle making sure that ruffians who threw down their weapons were not killed. Nearly 70 ruffians were shot down or killed with other hand weapons such as axes and daggers, while 12 were taken prisoner. Others were hunted down as they escaped by Hobbit bounders roaming the woods. The Hobbits sustained casualties of 19 slain and 30 wounded.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

1. ^Tolkien, J. R. R. (1984), Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Book of Lost Tales, 1, Boston: Houghton Mifflin, ISBN0-395-35439-0
2. ^This battle has no elven name and is only known as the First Battle as a proper name. In The History of Middle-earth, Vol. IV and V., the words are capitalized and the battle is what later becomes the Second Battle in the Silmarillion and the Grey Annals in HoMe XI, there lower case is used for the first but appears an editorial oversight carried over from Grey Annals to The Silmarillion.
3. ^J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien, editor, The History of Middle-earth, (1984), Vol. II, p. 103, '...setting up kingdoms of terror of their own...'.
4. ^The Lord of the Rings, Appendix B, The Tale of the Years, p.364, '1693 War of the Elves and Sauron (so called) begins.' History of Middle-earth, Vol. XII, p.179, 'The War of the Elves and Sauron begins'. (emphasis added)
5. ^A detailed account of this war, the War of the Last Alliance, is given in The History of Galadriel and Celeborn, Unfinished Tales, pp. 228–267.
6. ^Tolkien, J.R.R. (2005). 'Appendix B'. The Return of the king (50th Anniversary ed.). Harper Collins. pp. The Second Age. ISBN0-261-10325-3.
7. ^Tolkien, J.R.R. (1977). 'Akallabeth: The Downfall of Numenor'. In Christopher Tolkien (ed.). The Silmarillion (1st ed.). Harper Collins. ISBN9780048231536.
8. ^Tolkien, J. R. R. (1954), The Fellowship of the Ring, The Lord of the Rings, Boston: Houghton Mifflin (published 1987), 'The Council of Elrond', p.256, ISBN0-395-08254-4
9. ^Tolkien, J. R. R. (1955), The Return of the King, The Lord of the Rings, Boston: Houghton Mifflin (published 1987), Appendix B, p.365, ISBN0-395-08256-0
10. ^The Silmarillion, p. 294, in Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age.
11. ^Tolkien, J. R. R. (1980), Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Unfinished Tales, Boston: Houghton Mifflin, p. 281: 'crossed Anduin by a bridge... The Anduin could not be bridged at any lower point...', ISBN0-395-29917-9
12. ^Unfinished Tales, p. 258.
13. ^Unfinished Tales, p. 281.
14. ^J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien (ed.), The Silmarillion, 'Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age'
15. ^Unfinished Tales, note 11 to 'Disaster of the Gladden Fields'.
16. ^Tolkien, J. R. R. (1954), The Two Towers, The Lord of the Rings, Boston: Houghton Mifflin (published 1987), p. 235, ISBN0-395-08254-4
17. ^The Return of the King: Appendix A (iii), p. 322.
18. ^J. R. R. Tolkien (1980), Unfinished Tales, George Allen & Unwin, part 2 ch. 1 p. 272 (30 days from start of march) & p. 279 note 9 (start date = 5th 'September'); ISBN0-04-823179-7
19. ^Tolkien, J.R.R. (2005). The Lord of the Rings Return of the King. Harper Collins. p. Appendix A. ISBN0-261-10325-3.
20. ^Tolkien, J.R.R. (2005). The Lord of the Rings Return of the King. Harper Collins. p. Appendix B. ISBN0-261-10325-3.
21. ^Tolkien, J.R.R. (2005). The Lord of the Rings The Fellowship of the Ring. Harper Collins. p. Prologue. ISBN0-261-10325-3.
22. ^Tolkien, Christopher (1996). The Peoples of Middle Earth. Houghton Mifflin. pp. The Heirs of Elendil. ISBN9788445073599.
23. ^J. R. R. Tolkien (1955), The Return of the King, 2nd edition (1966), George Allen & Unwin, appendix A part I(iii) p. 322; ISBN0 04 823047 2
24. ^J. R. R. Tolkien (1980), Unfinished Tales, George Allen & Unwin part 3 ch. 2(i) pp. 294-295; ISBN0-04-823179-7
25. ^J. R. R. Tolkien (1980), Unfinished Tales, George Allen & Unwin part 3 ch. 2(ii) p. 299; ISBN0-04-823179-7
26. ^Tolkien, J.R.R. (1955). The Lord of the Rings. Harper Collins. pp. Appendix A: Durin's Folk.
27. ^ ^abGuide to Middle Earth
28. ^J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien editor, The History of Middle-earth, Vol. XII, (1996), p. 278,'...before the Gate of Moria ten thousand Orcs were slain.'and from J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Return of the King, Appendix A, (2nd edition 1966), p. 356, '...all his host (Azog's) in the valley was in rout...' 10,000 dead and the balance fleeing.
29. ^'Barely half the number of the Dwarves could stand or had hope of healing.' - Lord of the Rings, Appendix A, p.356
30. ^J. R. R. Tolkien (1996), The Peoples of Middle-earth, Houghton Mifflin, part 1 ch. VII § 'The House of Dol Amroth' p. 223; ISBN0-395-82760-4; the Prince's name is not recorded.
31. ^J. R. R. Tolkien (1937), The Hobbit, 4th edition (1978), George Allen & Unwin, ch. 17 p. 238; ISBN0-04-823147-9
32. ^Easterbrook, Martin, Open Box ReviewWhite Dwarf (magazine) #3,Oct/Nov 1977 p 15
33. ^White Dwarf Magazine #57
34. ^More information can be found at: the Middle-earth Games page for the gameArchived 2013-10-11 at the Wayback Machine (retrieved 25/02/08)
35. ^Jones, Rich, Battle of the Five Armies Rules and miniatures for recreating battles in Middle Earth^{[permanent dead link]}, Wargames Journal 1, 2005 p.91
36. ^More information can be found at: Games Workshop's Specialist Games site
37. ^ ^abcdefTolkien, J. R. R. (1955), The Return of the King, The Lord of the Rings, Boston: Houghton Mifflin (published 1987), 'The Siege of Gondor', ISBN0-395-08256-0
38. ^Tolkien, J. R. R. (1954), The Two Towers, The Lord of the Rings, Boston: Houghton Mifflin (published 1987), 'The Stairs of Cirith Ungol', ISBN0-395-08254-4
39. ^ ^abcTolkien, J. R. R. (1955), The Return of the King, The Lord of the Rings, Boston: Houghton Mifflin (published 1987), 'Minas Tirith', ISBN0-395-08256-0
40. ^ ^abcdeTolkien, J. R. R. (1955), The Return of the King, The Lord of the Rings, Boston: Houghton Mifflin (published 1987), 'The Last Debate', ISBN0-395-08256-0
41. ^...another company of five hundred horse... - 'The Last Debate'
42. ^Tolkien, J. R. R. (1955), The Return of the King, The Lord of the Rings, Boston: Houghton Mifflin (published 1987), 'The Muster of Rohan', ISBN0-395-08256-0
43. ^Tolkien, J. R. R. (1955), The Return of the King, The Lord of the Rings, Boston: Houghton Mifflin (published 1987), 'The Passing of the Grey Company', ISBN0-395-08256-0
44. ^ ^abcdefgTolkien, J. R. R. (1955), The Return of the King, The Lord of the Rings, Boston: Houghton Mifflin (published 1987), 'The Battle of the Pelennor Fields', ISBN0-395-08256-0
45. ^Tolkien, J. R. R. (1955), The Return of the King, The Lord of the Rings, Boston: Houghton Mifflin (published 1987), Appendix A, 'Gondor and the Heirs of Anárion', ISBN0-395-08256-0
46. ^ ^abTolkien, J. R. R. (1955), The Return of the King, The Lord of the Rings, Boston: Houghton Mifflin (published 1987), 'The Pyre of Denethor', ISBN0-395-08256-0
47. ^Tolkien, J. R. R. (1992), Christopher Tolkien (ed.), Sauron Defeated, Boston, New York, & London: Houghton Mifflin, ISBN0-395-60649-7
48. ^Croft, Janet Brennan (2004). War and the Works of J.R.R. Tolkien. Praeger Publishers. ISBN0-415-93890-2.Overview/review pageArchived 2008-03-06 at the Wayback Machine
49. ^Drout, Michael D. C. (2004). 'Tolkien's Prose Style and its Literary and Rhetorical Effects'. Tolkien Studies. 1 (1): 137–163. doi:10.1353/tks.2004.0006. Retrieved 2007-07-31.
50. ^Amazon.com book description for Fantasy: The Liberation of Imagination
51. ^Matthews, Richard (2002). Fantasy: The Liberation of Imagination. 2002. ISBN0-415-93890-2.
52. ^J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, (1966 2nd edition), p.375
53. ^J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, (1966 2nd edition), p.374
54. ^J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, (2nd edition, 1966) pp.375-376, 'a host of the allies of Sauron...the Easterlings...'. J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien editor, Unfinished Tales, (1980), p.258, Oropher raises a 'host' consisting of his 'great army' and the 'lesser army of Malgalad' as a part of the 'great host' of the Alliance, this indicates that a 'host' is made up of two or more armies. After the Battle of Dale, Sauron's allies are described as 'northern army' indicating one of the armies of the host was lost in the battle
55. ^J.R.R. Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien editor, Unfinished Tales, (1980), p.330, Gandalf says, in The Quest for Erebor, 'those places (Lórien and Rivendell) might have fallen...if Sauron had thrown all his power against them first...'
56. ^Tolkien, J. R. R. (1955), The Return of the King, The Lord of the Rings, Boston: Houghton Mifflin (published 1987), 'The Black Gate Opens', ISBN0-395-08256-0

Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel (15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944) was a German general and military theorist. Popularly known as the Desert Fox, he served as field marshal in the Wehrmacht (Defense Force) of Nazi Germany during World War II, as well as serving in the Reichswehr of the Weimar Republic, and the army of Imperial Germany.

Rommel was a highly decorated officer in World War I and was awarded the Pour le Mérite for his actions on the Italian Front. In 1937 he published his classic book on military tactics, Infantry Attacks, drawing on his experiences from World War I. In World War II, he distinguished himself as the commander of the 7th Panzer Division during the 1940 invasion of France. His leadership of German and Italian forces in the North African campaign established his reputation as one of the most able tank commanders of the war, and earned him the nickname der Wüstenfuchs, 'the Desert Fox'. Among his British adversaries he earned a strong reputation for chivalry, and the North African campaign has often been called a 'war without hate'.^[2] He later commanded the German forces opposing the Allied cross-channel invasion of Normandy in June 1944.

Rommel supported the Nazi seizure of power and Adolf Hitler, although his reluctant stance towards antisemitism and Nazi ideology and his level of knowledge of the Holocaust remain matters of debate among scholars.^{[3][4][5][6][7]} In 1944, Rommel was implicated in the 20 July plot to assassinate Hitler. Due to Rommel's status as a national hero, Hitler desired to eliminate him quietly instead of immediately executing him, as many other plotters were. Rommel was given a choice between committing suicide, in return for assurances that his reputation would remain intact and that his family would not be persecuted following his death, or facing a trial that would result in his disgrace and execution; he chose the former and committed suicide using a cyanide pill.^[8] Rommel was given a state funeral, and it was announced that he had succumbed to his injuries from the strafing of his staff car in Normandy.

Rommel has become a larger-than-life figure in both Allied and Nazi propaganda, and in postwar popular culture, with numerous authors considering him an apolitical, brilliant commander and a victim of the Third Reich although this assessment is contested by other authors as the Rommel myth. Rommel's reputation for conducting a clean war was used in the interest of the West German rearmament and reconciliation between the former enemies – the United Kingdom and the United States on one side and the new Federal Republic of Germany on the other. Several of Rommel's former subordinates, notably his chief of staff Hans Speidel, played key roles in German rearmament and integration into NATO in the postwar era. The German Army's largest military base, the Field Marshal Rommel Barracks, Augustdorf, is named in his honour.

• 4World War II
  • 4.2France 1940
  • 4.3North Africa 1941–1943
    • 4.3.5El Alamein
    • 4.3.6End of Africa campaign
• 5Rommel's style as military commander
  • 5.2Views on the conduct of war
• 6In Nazi and Allied propaganda
• 8Rommel myth

Early life and career[edit]

Rommel was born on 15 November 1891 in Southern Germany at Heidenheim, 45 kilometres (28 mi) from Ulm, in the Kingdom of Württemberg, then part of the German Empire. He was the third of five children of Erwin Rommel Senior (1860–1913), a teacher and school administrator, and his wife Helene von Lutz, whose father Karl von Luz headed the local government council. As a young man Rommel's father had been a lieutenant in the artillery. Rommel had one older sister, an art teacher who was his favorite sibling, one older brother named Manfred who died in infancy and two younger brothers, of whom one became a successful dentist and the other an opera singer.^{[9][10][11][12]}

At age 18 Rommel joined the local 124th Württemberg Infantry Regiment as a Fähnrich (ensign), in 1910, studying at the Officer Cadet School in Danzig.^[13] He graduated in November 1911 and was commissioned as a lieutenant in January 1912 and was assigned to the 124th Infantry in Weingarten.^[14] He was posted to Ulm in March 1914 to the 46th Field Artillery Regiment, XIII (Royal Württemberg) Corps, as a battery commander. He returned to the 124th when war was declared.^[15] While at Cadet School, Rommel met his future wife, 17-year-old Lucia (Lucie) Maria Mollin (1894–1971), of Polish and Italian descent.^[16]

World War I[edit]

During World War I, Rommel fought in France as well as in the Romanian (notably at the Second Battle of the Jiu Valley) and Italian campaigns. He successfully employed the tactics of penetrating enemy lines with heavy covering fire coupled with rapid advances, as well as moving forward rapidly to a flanking position to arrive at the rear of hostile positions, to achieve tactical surprise.^[17] His first combat experience was on 22 August 1914 as a platoon commander near Verdun, when – catching a French garrison unprepared – Rommel and three men opened fire on them without ordering the rest of his platoon forward.^[18] The armies continued to skirmish in open engagements throughout September, as the static trench warfare typical of the First World War was still in the future.^[19] For his actions in September 1914 and January 1915, Rommel was awarded the Iron Cross, Second Class.^[20] Rommel was promoted to Oberleutnant (first lieutenant) and transferred to the newly created Royal Wurttemberg Mountain Battalion of the Alpenkorps in September 1915, as a company commander.^[21] In November 1916 in Danzig, Rommel and Lucia married.^[22]

In August 1917, his unit was involved in the battle for Mount Cosna, a heavily fortified objective on the border between Hungary and Romania, which they took after two weeks of difficult uphill fighting.^[23] The Mountain Battalion was next assigned to the Isonzo front, in a mountainous area in Italy. The offensive, known as the Battle of Caporetto, began on 24 October 1917.^[24] Rommel's battalion, consisting of three rifle companies and a machine gun unit, was part of an attempt to take enemy positions on three mountains: Kolovrat, Matajur, and Stol.^[25] In two and a half days, from 25 to 27 October, Rommel and his 150 men captured 81 guns and 9,000 men (including 150 officers), at the loss of six dead and 30 wounded.^[26] Rommel achieved this remarkable success by taking advantage of the terrain to outflank the Italian forces, attacking from unexpected directions or behind enemy lines, and taking the initiative to attack when he had orders to the contrary. In one instance, the Italian forces, taken by surprise and believing that their lines had collapsed, surrendered after a brief firefight.^[27] In this battle, Rommel helped pioneer infiltration tactics, a new form of maneuver warfare just being adopted by German armies, and later by foreign armies,^[28][29] and described by some as Blitzkrieg without tanks.^[30][31] He played no role in the early adoption of Blitzkrieg in World War II though.^[31] Acting as advance guard in the capture of Longarone on 9 November, Rommel again decided to attack with a much smaller force. Convinced that they were surrounded by an entire German division, the 1st Italian Infantry Division – 10,000 men – surrendered to Rommel. For this and his actions at Matajur, he received the order of Pour le Mérite.^[28]

In January 1918, Rommel was promoted to Hauptmann (captain) and assigned to a staff position with XLIV Army Corps, where he served for the remainder of the war.^[32]

Between the wars[edit]

Rommel remained with the 124th Regiment until October 1920.^[33][26] The regiment was involved in quelling riots and civil disturbances that were occurring throughout Germany at this time.^[34] Wherever possible Rommel avoided the use of force in these confrontations.^[35] In 1919 he was briefly sent to Friedrichshafen on Lake Constance, where he restored order by 'sheer force of personality' in the 32nd Internal Security Company, which was composed of rebellious and pro-communist sailors.^[36] He decided against storming the nearby city of Lindau, which had been taken by revolutionary communists.^[37] Instead, Rommel negotiated with the city council and managed to return it to the legitimate government through diplomatic means.^[4][38] This was followed by his defence of Schwäbisch Gmünd, again bloodless.^[39] He was then posted to the Ruhr where a red army was responsible for fomenting unrest. Historian Raffael Scheck ^[de] praises Rommel as a coolheaded and moderate mind, exceptional amid the many takeovers of revolutionary cities by regular and irregular units and the associated massive violence.^[4]

According to Reuth, this period left an indelible impression on Rommel's mind that 'Everyone in this Republic was fighting each other,' along with direct experience of people attempting to convert Germany into a socialist republic on Soviet lines. There are similarities with Hitler’s experiences: like Rommel, Hitler had known the solidarity of trench warfare and had then participated in the Reichswehr‘s suppression of the First and Second Bavarian Soviet Republics. The need for national unity thus became a decisive legacy of the first World War.^[38] Brighton notes that while both believed in the Stab-in-the-back myth, Rommel was able to succeed using peaceful methods because he saw the problem in empty stomachs rather than in Judeo-Bolshevism – which right-wing soldiers such as Hitler blamed for the chaos in Germany.^[40]

On 1 October 1920 Rommel was appointed to a company command with the 13th Infantry Regiment in Stuttgart, a post he held for the next nine years.^[33][26] He was then assigned as an instructor at the Dresden Infantry School from 1929 to 1933, and during this time was promoted to major, in April 1932.^[26][41] While at Dresden, he wrote a manual on infantry training, published in 1934. In October 1933 he was promoted to Oberstleutnant (lieutenant colonel) and given his next command, the 3rd Jäger Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment, stationed at Goslar.^[42] Here he first met Hitler, who inspected his troops on 30 September 1934.^[43] In September 1935 Rommel was moved to the War Academy at Potsdam as an instructor, for the next three years.^[44] His book Infanterie greift an (Infantry Attacks), a description of his wartime experiences along with his analysis, was published in 1937. It became a bestseller, which, according to Scheck, later 'enormously influenced' many armies of the world;^[4][45]Adolf Hitler was one of many people who owned a copy.^[46]

Supreme Commander Forged Alliance

Hearing of Rommel's reputation as an outstanding military instructor, in February 1937 Hitler assigned him as the War Ministry liaison officer to the Hitler Youth in charge of military training. Here he clashed with Baldur von Schirach, the Hitler Youth leader, over the training that the boys should receive.^{[47][48][49][50][51]} Trying to fulfill a mission assigned to him by the Ministry of War,^[52] Rommel had proposed a plan (twice) that would have effectively subordinated Hitler Youth to the army, removing it from NSDAP control. That went against Schirach's express wishes. Schirach appealed directly to Hitler; consequently Rommel was quietly removed from the project in 1938.^[53] He had been promoted to Oberst (colonel), on 1 August 1937, and in 1938 he was appointed commandant of the Theresian Military Academy at Wiener Neustadt.^[54] In October 1938 Hitler specially requested that Rommel be seconded to command the Führerbegleitbatallion (his escort battalion).^[55] This unit accompanied Hitler whenever he traveled outside of Germany.^[43] During this period Rommel indulged his interest in engineering and mechanics by learning about the inner workings and maintenance of internal combustion engines and heavy machine guns.^[56] He memorized logarithm tables in his spare time and enjoyed skiing and other outdoor sports.^[57]

World War II[edit]

Poland 1939[edit]

Rommel was promoted to Generalmajor on 23 August 1939 and assigned as commander of the Führerbegleitbatallion, tasked with guarding Hitler and his field headquarters during the invasion of Poland, which began on 1 September.^[58] According to Remy, Rommel's private letters at this time show that he did not understand Hitler's true nature and intentions, as he quickly went from predicting a swift peaceful settlement of tensions to approving Hitler's reaction ('bombs will be retaliated with bombs') to the Gleiwitz incident (a false flag operation staged by Hitler and used as a pretext for the invasion).^[59] Hitler took a personal interest in the campaign, often moving close to the front in the Führersonderzug (headquarters train).^[60] Rommel attended Hitler's daily war briefings and accompanied him everywhere, making use of the opportunity to observe first-hand the use of tanks and other motorized units.^[61] On 26 September Rommel returned to Berlin to set up a new headquarters for his unit in the Reich Chancellery.^[62] Rommel returned briefly to Warsaw on 5 October to prepare for the German victory parade.^[63] He described the devastated Warsaw in a letter to his wife, concluding with: 'There has been no water, no power, no gas, no food for two days. They have erected numerous barricades which blocked civilian movement and exposed people to bombardments from which they could not escape. The mayor estimated the number of the dead and injured to be 40,000 ... The inhabitants probably drew a breath of relief that we have arrived and rescued them'.^[64][65]

France 1940[edit]

Panzer Division commander[edit]

Following the campaign in Poland, Rommel began lobbying for command of one of Germany's panzer divisions, of which there were then only ten.^[66] Rommel's successes in World War I were based on surprise and maneuver, two elements for which the new panzer units were ideally suited.^[67] Rommel received a promotion to a general's rank from Hitler ahead of more senior officers. Rommel obtained the command he aspired to, despite having been earlier turned down by the army's personnel office, which had offered him command of a mountain division instead.^[68] According to Caddick-Adams, he was backed by Hitler, the influential Fourteenth Army commander Wilhelm List (a fellow Württemberger middle-class 'military outsider') and likely Guderian as well.^[69]

Going against military protocol, this promotion added to Rommel's growing reputation as one of Hitler's favoured commanders,^[70] although his later outstanding leadership in France quelled complaints about his self-promotion and political scheming.^[71] The 7th Panzer Division had recently been converted to an armoured division consisting of 218 tanks in three battalions (thus, one tank regiment, instead of the two assigned to a standard panzer division),^[72] with two rifle regiments, a motorcycle battalion, an engineer battalion, and an anti-tank battalion.^[73] Upon taking command on 10 February 1940, Rommel quickly set his unit to practicing the maneuvers they would need in the upcoming campaign.^[74]

Invasion of the Netherlands, Belgium and France[edit]

The invasion began on 10 May 1940. By the third day Rommel and the advance elements of his division, together with a detachment of the 5th Panzer Division under Colonel Hermann Werner, had reached the River Meuse, where they found the bridges had already been destroyed (Guderian and Reinhardt reached the river on the same day).^[75][76] Rommel was active in the forward areas, directing the efforts to make a crossing, which were initially unsuccessful due to suppressive fire by the French on the other side of the river. Rommel brought up tanks and flak units to provide counter-fire and had nearby houses set on fire to create a smokescreen. He sent infantry across in rubber boats, appropriated the bridging tackle of the 5th Panzer Division, personally grabbed a light machine gun to fight off a French counterattack supported by tanks, and went into the water himself, encouraging the sappers and helping lash together the pontoons.^[77][78] By 16 May Rommel reached Avesnes, and contravening all orders and doctrine, he pressed on to Cateau.^[79] That night, the French II Army Corps was shattered and on 17 May, Rommel's forces took 10,000 prisoners, losing 36 men in the process. He was surprised to find out only his vanguard had followed his tempestuous surge. The High Command and Hitler had been extremely nervous about his disappearance, although they awarded him the Knight's Cross. Rommel's (and Guderian's) successes and the new possibilities offered by the new tank arm were welcomed by a small number of generals, but worried and paralysed the rest.^[80]

Battle of Arras[edit]

On 20 May Rommel reached Arras.^[81] General Hermann Hoth received orders that the town should be bypassed and its British garrison thus isolated. He ordered the 5th Panzer Division to move to the west and 7th Panzer Division to the east, flanked by the SS Division Totenkopf.^[82] The following day the British launched a counterattack, meeting the SS Totenkopf with two infantry battalions supported by heavily armoured Matilda Mk I and Matilda II tanks in the Battle of Arras. The German 37 mm anti-tank gun proved ineffective against the heavily armoured Matildas. The 25th Panzer Regiment and a battery of 88 mm (3.5 in) anti-aircraft guns were called in to support, and the British withdrew.^[83]

On 24 May, Field Marshal von Rundstedt and Field Marshal von Kluge issued a halt order, which Hitler approved.^[84] The reason for this decision is still a matter of debate.^[85][86][87] The halt order was lifted on 26 May.^[86] 7th Panzer continued its advance, reaching Lille on 27 May. For the assault, Hoth placed the 5th Panzer Division's Panzer Brigade under Rommel's command.^[88] The Siege of Lille continued until 31 May, when the French garrison of 40,000 men surrendered. 7th Panzer was given six days leave, during which Rommel was summoned to Berlin to meet with Hitler. He was the only divisional commander present at the planning session for Fall Rot (Case Red), the second phase of the invasion of France. By this time the evacuation of the BEF was complete; over 338,000 Allied troops had been evacuated across the Channel, though they had to leave behind all their heavy equipment and vehicles.^[89]

Drive for the Channel[edit]

Rommel, resuming his advance on 5 June, drove for the River Seine to secure the bridges near Rouen. Advancing 100 kilometres (62 mi) in two days, the division reached Rouen to find the bridges destroyed. On 10 June, Rommel reached the coast near Dieppe, sending Hoth the laconic message 'Bin an der Küste' or 'Am on the coast'.^[90] On 17 June, 7th Panzer was ordered to advance on Cherbourg, where additional British evacuations were underway. The division advanced 240 kilometres (150 mi) in 24 hours, and after two days of shelling, the French garrison surrendered on 19 June.^[91] The speed and surprise it was consistently able to achieve, to the point where both the enemy and the Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH; German High Command) at times lost track of its whereabouts, earned the 7th Panzers the nickname Gespensterdivision (Ghost Division).^[92]

After the armistice with the French was signed on 22 June, the division was placed in reserve, being sent first to the Somme and then to Bordeaux to re-equip and prepare for Unternehmen Seelöwe (Operation Sea Lion), the planned invasion of Britain.^[93] This invasion was later cancelled as Germany was not able to acquire the air superiority needed for a successful outcome, while the Kriegsmarine was massively outnumbered by the Royal Navy.^[94]

Execution of prisoners in France[edit]

In France, Rommel ordered the execution of one French officer who refused three times to cooperate when being taken prisoner; there are disputes as to whether this execution was justified.^[95][96] Bewley remarks that the shooting of a prisoner who does not behave as a prisoner is a legal option; however, this act was brutal because the officer did not have a gun, while Richard Weston, veteran at Tobruk, argues that it was not only legal but also made sense considering Rommel's situation.^[97][98] Caddick-Adams comments that this would make Rommel a war criminal condemned by his own hand, and that other authors overlook this episode.^[99] French historian Petitfrère remarks that Rommel was in a hurry and had no time for useless palavers, although this act was still debatable.^[100] Telp remarks that, 'For all his craftiness, Rommel was chivalrous by nature and not prone to order or condone acts of needless violence ... He treated prisoners of war with consideration. On one occasion, he was forced to order the shooting of a French lieutenant-colonel for refusing to obey his captors.'^[101] Scheck says, 'Although there is no evidence incriminating Rommel himself, his unit did fight in areas where German massacres of black French prisoners of war were extremely common in June 1940.'^{[102][103][104][105]}

According to some authors, during the fighting in France, Rommel's 7th Panzer Division, alongside troops from 5th Panzer Division, committed numerous atrocities against French troops including the murder of 50 surrendering officers and men at Quesnoy and the nearby Airaines^{[N 1][N 2][108][109]} After the war a memorial was erected to the commanding French officer Charles N'Tchoréré allegedly executed by soldiers under Rommel's command. The division is considered by Scheck to have been 'likely' responsible for the execution of POWs in Hangest-sur-Somme,^{[N 3]} while Scheck believes they were too far away to have been involved in the massacres at Airaines and nearby villages. French historian Dominique Lormier states the number of victims of 7th Panzer Division in Airaines at 109 mostly French-African soldiers from Senegal.^[111] Historian Daniel Butler agrees that it was possible the massacre at Le Quesnoy happened given the existence of Nazis like Hanke in Rommel's division, while stating that in comparison with other German units, few sources regarding such actions of the men of the 7th Panzer exist (Butler believes that 'it's almost impossible to imagine' Rommel authorizing or countenancing such actions, in either case^[112]). Showalter claims there was no massacre at Le Quesnoy.^[113] Claus Telp comments that Airaines was not in the sector of the 7th, but at Hangest and Martainville elements of the 7th might have shot some prisoners and used British Colonel Broomhall as a human shield (although Telp is of the opinion that it was unlikely Rommel approved or even knew about these two incidents).^[114]

North Africa 1941–1943[edit]

On 6 February 1941, Rommel was appointed commander of the new Deutsches Afrika Korps (DAK), consisting of the 5th Light Division (later renamed 21st Panzer Division) and of the 15th Panzer Division.^[115] He was promoted to Generalleutnant three days later and flew to Tripoli on 12 February.^[116] The DAK had been sent to Libya in Operation Sonnenblume, to support Italian troops that had been severely defeated by British Commonwealth forces in Operation Compass.^[116] His efforts in the Western Desert Campaign earned Rommel the nickname the 'Desert Fox' from British journalists.^[117] Allied troops in Africa were commanded by General Archibald Wavell, Commander-in-Chief Middle East Command.^[118]

First Axis offensive[edit]

Rommel and his troops were technically subordinate to Italian commander-in-chief General Italo Gariboldi.^[115] Disagreeing with the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW, German armed forces high command) orders to assume a defensive posture along the front line at Sirte, Rommel resorted to subterfuge and insubordination to take the war to the British.^[119] According to Remy, the General Staff tried to slow him down but Hitler encouraged him to advance—an expression of the conflict which had existed between Hitler and the army leadership since the invasion of Poland.^[120] He decided to launch a limited offensive on 24 March with the 5th Light Division, supported by two Italian divisions.^[121] This thrust was not anticipated by the British, who had Ultra intelligence showing that Rommel had orders to remain on the defensive until at least May, when the 15th Panzer Division were due to arrive.^[122]

The British Western Desert Force had meanwhile been weakened by the transfer in mid-February of three divisions for the Battle of Greece.^[123] They fell back to Mersa El Brega and started constructing defensive works.^[124] Rommel continued his attack against these positions to prevent the British from building up their fortifications. After a day of fierce fighting on 31 March, the Germans captured Mersa El Brega.^[125] Splitting his force into three groups, Rommel resumed the advance on 3 April. Benghazi fell that night as the British pulled out of the city.^[126][127] Gariboldi, who had ordered Rommel to stay in Mersa El Brega, was furious. Rommel was equally forceful in his response, telling Gariboldi, 'One cannot permit unique opportunities to slip by for the sake of trifles'.^[128] A signal arrived from General Franz Halder reminding Rommel that he was to halt in Mersa El Brega. Knowing Gariboldi could not speak German, Rommel told him the message gave him complete freedom of action. Gariboldi backed down.^[129]

On 4 April, Rommel was advised by his supply officers that fuel was running short, which could result in a delay of up to four days. The problem was Rommel's fault, as he had not advised his supply officers of his intentions, and no fuel dumps had been set up. Rommel ordered the 5th Light Division to unload all their lorries and return to El Agheila to collect fuel and ammunition. Driving through the night, they were able to reduce the halt to a single day. Fuel supply was problematic throughout the campaign, as no petrol was available locally; it had to be brought from Europe by tanker and then carried by road to where it was needed.^[130][131] Food and fresh water were also in short supply and it was difficult to move tanks and other equipment off-road through the sand.^[132] Cyrenaica was captured by 8 April, except for the port city of Tobruk, which was besieged on 11 April.^[133][134]

Siege of Tobruk[edit]

The siege of Tobruk was not technically a siege, as the defenders were still able to move supplies and reinforcements into the city via the port.^[135] Rommel knew that by capturing the port he could greatly reduce the length of his supply lines and increase his overall port capacity, which was insufficient even for day-to-day operations and only half that needed for offensive operations.^[136] The city, which had been heavily fortified by the Italians during their 30-year occupation, was garrisoned by the 18th Infantry Brigade of the Australian 7th Division, the Australian 9th Division, HQ 3rd Armoured Brigade, several thousand British infantrymen, and one regiment of Indian infantry, for a total of 36,000 men.^[137] The commanding officer was Australian Lieutenant GeneralLeslie Morshead.^[138] Hoping to catch the defenders off-guard, Rommel launched a failed attack on 14 April.^[139]

Rommel requested reinforcements, but the OKW, then completing preparations for Operation Barbarossa, refused.^[140] General Friedrich Paulus, head of the Operations Branch of OKH, arrived on 25 April to review the situation.^[141] He was present for a second failed attack on the city on 30 April. On 4 May Paulus ordered that no further attempts should be made to take Tobruk via a direct assault. This order was not open to interpretation, and Rommel had no choice but to comply.^[142] Aware of this order from intelligence reports, Churchill urged Wavell to seize the initiative. While awaiting further reinforcements and a shipment of 300 tanks that were already on their way, Wavell launched a limited offensive code named Operation Brevity on 15 May. The British briefly seized Sollum, Fort Capuzzo, and the important Halfaya Pass, a bottleneck along the coast near the border between Libya and Egypt. Rommel soon forced them to withdraw.^[143][144] On 15 June Wavell launched Operation Battleaxe. The attack was defeated in a four-day battle at Sollum and Halfaya Pass, resulting in the loss of 98 British tanks. The Germans lost 12 tanks, while capturing and seriously damaging over 20 British tanks.^[145] The defeat resulted in Churchill replacing Wavell with General Claude Auchinleck as theatre commander.^[146] Rommel appointed Heinrich Kirchheim as commander of 5th Light Division on 16 May, became displeased and replaced him with Johann von Ravenstein on 30 May 1941.^[147][148]

In August, Rommel was appointed commander of the newly created Panzer Group Africa, with Fritz Bayerlein as his chief of staff.^[149] The Afrika Korps, comprising the 15th Panzer Division and the 5th Light Division, now reinforced and redesignated 21st Panzer Division, was put under command of Generalleutnant Ludwig Crüwell. In addition to the Afrika Korps, Rommel's Panzer Group had the 90th Light Division and four Italian divisions, three infantry divisions investing Tobruk, and one holding Bardia. The two Italian armoured divisions, Ariete and Trieste, were still under Italian control. They formed the Italian XX Motorized Corps under the command of General Gastone Gambara.^[150] Two months later Hitler decided he must have German officers in better control of the Mediterranean theatre, and appointed Field Marshal Albert Kesselring as Commander in Chief, South. Kesselring was ordered to get control of the air and sea between Africa and Italy.^[150]

Operation Crusader[edit]

Following his success in Battleaxe, Rommel returned his attention to the capture of Tobruk. He made preparations for a new offensive, to be launched between 15 and 20 November.^[151] Meanwhile, Auchinleck reorganised Allied forces and strengthened them to two corps, XXX and XIII, which formed the British Eighth Army, which was placed under the command of Alan Cunningham. Auchinleck had 770 tanks and double the number of Axis aircraft.^[152] Rommel opposed him with the 15th and 21st Panzer Divisions with a total of 260 tanks, the 90th Light Infantry division, five Italian infantry divisions, and one Italian armoured division of 278 tanks.^[153][154]

Auchinleck launched Operation Crusader, a major offensive to relieve Tobruk, on 18 November 1941. The XIII Corps on the right were assigned to attack Sidi Omar, Capuzzo, Sollum, and Bardia; the XXX Corps (which included most of the armour) were to move on the left southern flank to a position about 30 miles (48 km) south of Tobruk, with the expectation that Rommel would find this move so threatening that he would move his armour there in response. Once Rommel's tanks were written down, the British 70th Infantry Division would break out of Tobruk to link up with XXX Corps.^[155][156] Rommel reluctantly decided on 20 November to call off his planned attack on Tobruk.^[157]

Some elements of the 7th Armoured Division were stopped on January 19 by the Italian Ariete Armoured Division at Bir el Gobi, but they also managed to capture the airfields at Sidi Rezegh, 10 miles (16 km) from Tobruk.^[158] Engaging the Allied tanks located there became Rommel's primary objective. Noting that the British armour was separated into three groups incapable of mutual support, he concentrated his Panzers so as to gain local superiority.^[159] The expected breakout from Tobruk, which took place on 20 November, was stopped by the Italians. The airfield at Sidi Rezegh was retaken by 21st Panzer on 22 November. In four days of fighting, the Eighth Army lost 530 tanks and Rommel only 100.^[160] The German forces near Halfaya Pass were cut off on 23 November.^[160]

Wanting to exploit the British halt and their apparent disorganisation, on 24 November Rommel counterattacked near the Egyptian border in an operation that became known as the 'dash to the wire'. Unknown to Rommel, his troops passed within 6 kilometres (4 mi) of a major British supply dump. Cunningham asked Auchinleck for permission to withdraw into Egypt, but Auchinleck refused, and soon replaced Cunningham as commander of Eighth Army with Major General Neil Ritchie.^[161][162] The German counterattack stalled as it outran its supplies and met stiffening resistance, and was criticised by the German High Command and some of Rommel's staff officers.^[163]

While Rommel drove into Egypt, the remaining Commonwealth forces east of Tobruk threatened the weak Axis lines there. Unable to reach Rommel for several days,^{[N 4]} Rommel's Chief of Staff, Siegfried Westphal, ordered the 21st Panzer Division withdrawn to support the siege of Tobruk. On 27 November the British attack on Tobruk linked up with the defenders, and Rommel, having suffered losses that could not easily be replaced, had to concentrate on regrouping the divisions that had attacked into Egypt. By 7 December Rommel fell back to a defensive line at Gazala, just west of Tobruk, all the while under heavy attack from the Desert Air Force. The Bardia garrison surrendered on 2 January and Halfaya on 17 January 1942.^[165] The Allies kept up the pressure, and Rommel was forced to retreat all the way back to the starting positions he had held in March, reaching El Agheila in December 1941.^[166] The British had retaken almost all of Cyrenaica, but Rommel's retreat dramatically shortened his supply lines.^[167]

Battle of Gazala and capture of Tobruk[edit]

On 5 January 1942 the Afrika Korps received 55 tanks and new supplies and Rommel started planning a counterattack. On 21 January, Rommel launched the attack.^[168][169] Caught by surprise by the Afrika Korps, the Allies lost over 110 tanks and other heavy equipment. The Axis forces retook Benghazi on 29 January and Timimi on 3 February, with the Allies pulling back to a defensive line just before the Tobruk area south of the coastal town of Gazala. Rommel placed a thin screen of mobile forces before them, and held the main force of the Panzerarmee well back near Antela and Mersa Brega.^[170] Between December 1941 and June 1942, Rommel had excellent information about the disposition and intentions of the Commonwealth forces. Bonner Fellers, the US diplomat in Egypt, was sending detailed reports to the US State Department using a compromised code.^[171]

Following Kesselring's successes in creating local air superiority around the British naval and air bases at Malta in April 1942, an increased flow of supplies reached the Axis forces in Africa.^[172] With his forces strengthened, Rommel contemplated a major offensive operation for the end of May. He knew the British were planning offensive operations as well, and he hoped to pre-empt them. While out on reconnaissance on 6 April, he was severely bruised in the abdomen when his vehicle was the target of artillery fire.^[173] The British had 900 tanks in the area, 200 of which were new Grant tanks. Unlike the British, the Axis forces had no armoured reserve; all operable equipment was put into immediate service. Rommel's Panzer Army Africa had a force of 320 German tanks; 50 of these were the light Panzer II model. In addition, 240 Italian tanks were in service, but these were under-gunned and poorly armoured.^[174]

Early in the afternoon of 26 May 1942, Rommel attacked first and the Battle of Gazala commenced. Italian infantry supplemented with small numbers of armoured forces assaulted the centre of the Gazala fortifications. To give the impression that this was the main assault, spare aircraft engines mounted on trucks were used to create huge clouds of dust. Ritchie was not convinced by this display, and left the 4th and 22nd Armoured Brigades in position at the south end of the Commonwealth position.^[175] Under the cover of darkness, the bulk of Rommel's motorized and armoured forces (15th and 21st Panzers, 90th Light Division, and the Italian Ariete and Trieste Divisions) drove south to skirt the left flank of the British, coming up behind them and attacking to the north the following morning.^[176] Throughout the day a running armour battle occurred, where both sides took heavy losses. The Grant tanks proved to be impossible to knock out except at close range.^[177]

Renewing the attack on the morning of 28 May, Rommel concentrated on encircling and destroying separate units of the British armour. Repeated British counterattacks threatened to cut off and destroy the Afrika Korps. Running low on fuel, Rommel assumed a defensive posture, forming 'the Cauldron'. He made use of the extensive British minefields to shield his western flank. Meanwhile, Italian infantry cleared a path through the mines to provide supplies. On 30 May Rommel resumed the offensive, attacking westwards to link with elements of Italian X Corps, which had cleared a path through the Allied minefields to establish a supply line.^[178] On 1 June, Rommel accepted the surrender of some 3,000 soldiers of the 150th Brigade.^[179] On 6 June, 90th Light Division and the Trieste Division assaulted the Free French strongpoint in the Battle of Bir Hakeim, but the defenders continued to thwart the attack until finally evacuating on 10 June.^[180] With his communications and the southern strongpoint of the British line thus secured, Rommel shifted his attack north again, relying on the British minefields of the Gazala lines to protect his left flank.^[181] Threatened with being completely cut off, the British began a retreat eastward toward Egypt on 14 June, the so-called 'Gazala Gallop.'^[182]

On 15 June Axis forces reached the coast, cutting off the escape for the Commonwealth forces still occupying the Gazala positions. With this task completed, Rommel struck for Tobruk while the enemy was still confused and disorganised.^[183] Tobruk's defenders were at this point the 2nd South African Infantry Division, 4th Antiaircraft Brigade, 11th Indian Infantry, 32nd Army Tank, and 201st Guards Brigades, all under command of Major General Hendrik Klopper. The assault on Tobruk began at dawn on 20 June, and Klopper surrendered at dawn the following day.^[184] With Tobruk, Rommel achieved the capture of 32,000 defenders, the port, and huge quantities of supplies.^[185] Only at the fall of Singapore, earlier that year, had more British Commonwealth troops been captured at one time. On 22 June, Hitler promoted Rommel to Generalfeldmarschall for this victory.^{[186][N 5]}

Following his success at Gazala and Tobruk, Rommel wanted to seize the moment and not allow 8th Army a chance to regroup.^[188] He strongly argued that the Panzerarmee should advance into Egypt and drive on to Alexandria and the Suez Canal, as this would place almost all the Mediterranean coastline in Axis hands, ease conditions on the Eastern Front, and potentially lead to the capture from the south of the oil fields in the Caucasus and Middle East.^[189] Indeed, Allied strategists feared that if Rommel captured Egypt, he would next overrun the Middle East before possibly linking up with the forces besieging the Caucasus. However, Hitler viewed the North African campaign primarily as a way to assist his Italian allies, not as an objective in and of itself. He would not consider sending Rommel the reinforcements and supplies he needed to take and hold Egypt, as this would have required diverting men and supplies from his primary focus: the Eastern Front.^[190]

Rommel's success at Tobruk worked against him, as Hitler no longer felt it was necessary to proceed with Operation Herkules, the proposed attack on Malta.^[191] Auchinleck relieved Ritchie of command of the Eighth Army on 25 June, and temporarily took command himself.^[192] Rommel knew that delay would only benefit the British, who continued to receive supplies at a faster rate than Rommel could hope to achieve. He pressed an attack on the heavily fortified town of Mersa Matruh, which Auchinleck had designated as the fall-back position, surrounding it on 28 June.^[193] The 2nd New Zealand Division and 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division were almost caught, with 50th Division fleeing on the 27th and 2nd Division escaping after a short engagement during the pre-dawn hours of 28 June. The four divisions of X Corps were caught in the encirclement, and were ordered by Auchinleck to attempt a breakout. The 29th Indian Infantry Brigade was nearly destroyed, losing 6,000 troops and 40 tanks.^[194] The fortress fell on 29 June. In addition to stockpiles of fuel and other supplies, the British abandoned hundreds of tanks and trucks. Those that were functional were put into service by the Panzerarmee.^[195]

El Alamein[edit]

First Battle of El Alamein[edit]

Rommel continued his pursuit of the Eighth Army, which had fallen back to heavily prepared defensive positions at El Alamein. This region is a natural choke point, where the Qattara Depression creates a relatively short line to defend that could not be outflanked to the south because of the steep escarpment. On 1 July the First Battle of El Alamein began. Rommel had around 100 available tanks. The Allies were able to achieve local air superiority, with heavy bombers attacking the 15th and 21st Panzers, who had also been delayed by a sandstorm. The 90th Light Division veered off course and were pinned down by South African artillery fire. Rommel continued to attempt to advance for two more days, but repeated sorties by the Desert Air Force meant he could make no progress.^[196] On 3 July, he wrote in his diary that his strength had 'faded away'.^[197] Attacks by 21st Panzer on 13 and 14 July were repulsed, and an Australian attack on 16–17 July was held off with difficulty.^[198] Throughout the first half of July, Auchinleck concentrated attacks on the Italian 60th Infantry Division Sabratha at Tel el Eisa. The ridge was captured by the 26th Australian Brigade on 16 July.^[199] Both sides suffered similar losses throughout the month, but the Axis supply situation remained less favourable. Rommel realised that the tide was turning.^[200] A break in the action took place at the end of July as both sides rested and regrouped.^[201]

Preparing for a renewed drive, the British replaced Auchinleck with General Harold Alexander on 8 August. Bernard Montgomery was made the new commander of Eighth Army that same day. The Eighth Army had initially been assigned to General William Gott, but he was killed when his plane was shot down on 7 August.^[202] Rommel knew that a British convoy carrying over 100,000 tons of supplies was due to arrive in September.^[203] He decided to launch an attack at the end of August with the 15th and 21st Panzer Division, 90th Light Division, and the Italian XX Motorized Corps in a drive through the southern flank of the El Alamein lines.^[204] Expecting an attack sooner rather than later, Montgomery fortified the Alam el Halfa ridge with the 44th Division, and positioned the 7th Armoured Division about 15 miles (24 km) to the south.^[205]

Battle of Alam El Halfa[edit]

The Battle of Alam el Halfa was launched on 30 August. The terrain left Rommel with no choice but to follow a similar tactic as he had at previous battles: the bulk of the forces attempted to sweep around from the south while secondary attacks were launched on the remainder of the front. It took much longer than anticipated to get through the minefields in the southern sector, and the tanks got bogged down in unexpected patches of quicksand (Montgomery had arranged for Rommel to acquire a falsified map of the terrain).^[206][207] Under heavy fire from British artillery and aircraft, and in the face of well prepared positions that Rommel could not hope to outflank due to lack of fuel, the attack stalled. By 2 September, Rommel realized the battle was unwinnable, and decided to withdraw.^[208]

Montgomery had made preparations to cut the Germans off in their retreat, but in the afternoon of 2 September he visited Corps commander Brian Horrocks and gave orders to allow the Germans to retire. This was to preserve his own strength intact for the main battle which was to come.^[209] On the night of 3 September the 2nd New Zealand Division and 7th Armoured Division positioned to the north engaged in an assault, but they were repelled in a fierce rearguard action by the 90th Light Division. Montgomery called off further action to preserve his strength and allow for further desert training for his forces.^[210] In the attack Rommel had suffered 2,940 casualties and lost 50 tanks, a similar number of guns, and 400 lorries, vital for supplies and movement. The British losses, except tank losses of 68, were much less, further adding to the numerical inferiority of Panzer Army Afrika. The Desert Air Force inflicted the highest proportions of damage on Rommel's forces. He now realized the war in Africa could not be won.^[211] Physically exhausted and suffering from a liver infection and low blood pressure, Rommel flew home to Germany to recover his health.^[212][213] General Georg Stumme was left in command in Rommel's absence.^[203]

Second Battle of El Alamein[edit]

Improved decoding by British intelligence (see Ultra) meant that the Allies had advance knowledge of virtually every Mediterranean convoy, and only 30 percent of shipments were getting through.^[214] In addition, Mussolini diverted supplies intended for the front to his garrison at Tripoli and refused to release any additional troops to Rommel.^[215] The increasing Allied air superiority and lack of fuel meant Rommel was forced to take a more defensive posture than he would have liked for the second Battle of El Alamein.^[216] The German defences to the west of the town included a minefield 5 miles (8 km) deep with the main defensive line – itself several thousand yards deep – to its west.^[217] This, Rommel hoped, would allow his infantry to hold the line at any point until motorized and armoured units in reserve could move up and counterattack any Allied breaches.^[218] The British offensive began on 23 October. Stumme, in command in Rommel's absence, died of an apparent heart attack while examining the front on 24 October, and Rommel was ordered to return from his medical leave, arriving on the 25th.^[219] Montgomery's intention was to clear a narrow path through the minefield at the northern part of the defenses, at the area called Kidney Ridge, with a feint to the south. By the end of 25 October, the 15th Panzer, the defenders in this sector, had only 31 serviceable tanks remaining of their initial force of 119.^[220] Rommel brought the 21st Panzer and Ariete Divisions north on 26 October, to bolster the sector. On 28 October, Montgomery shifted his focus to the coast, ordering his 1st and 10th Armoured Divisions to attempt to swing around and cut off Rommel's line of retreat. Meanwhile, Rommel concentrated his attack on the Allied salient at Kidney Ridge, inflicting heavy losses. However, Rommel had only 150 operational tanks remaining, and Montgomery had 800, many of them Shermans.^[221]

Montgomery, seeing his armoured brigades losing tanks at an alarming rate, stopped major attacks until the early hours of 2 November, when he opened Operation Supercharge, with a massive artillery barrage.^[222] This was followed by penetration at the salient by two armoured and two infantry divisions.^[223] Rommel's counterattack at 11:00 inflicted severe casualties on the Commonwealth troops, but by 20:00, with only 35 tanks remaining, he ordered his forces to disengage and begin to withdraw.^[224] At midnight, he informed the OKW of his decision, and received a reply directly from Hitler the following afternoon: he ordered Rommel and his troops to hold their position to the last man. Rommel, who believed that the lives of his soldiers should never be squandered needlessly, was stunned.^[225] While he (like all members of the Wehrmacht) had pledged an oath of absolute obedience to Hitler, he thought this order was pointless, even madness, and had to be disobeyed.^[226] Rommel initially complied with the order, but after discussions with Kesselring and others, he issued orders for a retreat on 4 November.^[227] The delay proved costly in terms of his ability to get his forces out of Egypt. He later said the decision to delay was what he most regretted from his time in Africa.^[228] Meanwhile, the British 1st and 7th Armoured Division had broken through the German defences and were preparing to swing north and surround the Axis forces.^[229] On the evening of the 4th, Rommel finally received word from Hitler authorizing the withdrawal.^[230] By this time it was impossible for Rommel to save his non-motorized units.^[231][232]

End of Africa campaign[edit]

Retreat across Africa[edit]

As Rommel attempted to withdraw his forces before the British could cut off his retreat, he fought a series of delaying actions. Heavy rains slowed movements and grounded the Desert Air Force, which aided the withdrawal. According to Kourt von Esebeck, those German parts of Panzerarmee Africa that were motorized slipped away from El Alamein, all vehicles had been taken away from Italian forces, leaving them behind^[233], but were under pressure from the pursuing Eighth Army. According to officers of the Italian X Corps, they were not deliberately abandoned and an effort to save all divisions would only have led to destruction of more units.^[234] A series of short delaying actions was fought over the coastal highway, but no line could be held for any length of time, as Rommel lacked the armour and fuel to defend his open southern flank.^[235] Rommel continued to retreat west, abandoning Halfaya Pass, Sollum, Mersa Brega and El Agheila.^[236] The line Rommel was aiming for was 'Gabes gap' in Tunisia.^[237] Luftwaffe Field Marshal Kesselring strongly criticized Rommel's decision to retreat all the way to Tunisia, as each airfield the Germans abandoned extended the range of the Allied bombers and fighters. Rommel defended his decision, pointing out that if he tried to assume a defensive position the Allies would destroy his forces and take the airfields anyway; the retreat saved the lives of his remaining men and shortened his supply lines. By now, Rommel's remaining forces fought in reduced strength combat groups, whereas the Allied forces had great numerical superiority and control of the air. Upon his arrival in Tunisia, Rommel noted with some bitterness the reinforcements, including the 10th Panzer Division, arriving in Tunisia following the Allied invasion of Morocco.^[238]

Tunisia[edit]

Having reached Tunisia, Rommel launched an attack against the U.S. II Corps which was threatening to cut his lines of supply north to Tunis. Rommel inflicted a sharp defeat on the American forces at the Kasserine Pass in February, his last battlefield victory of the war, and his first engagement against the United States Army.^[239]

Rommel immediately turned back against the British forces, occupying the Mareth Line (old French defences on the Libyan border). While Rommel was at Kasserine at the end of January 1943, the Italian General Giovanni Messe was appointed commander of Panzer Army Africa, renamed the Italo-German Panzer Army in recognition of the fact that it consisted of one German and three Italian corps. Though Messe replaced Rommel, he diplomatically deferred to him, and the two coexisted in what was theoretically the same command. On 23 February Armeegruppe Afrika was created with Rommel in command. It included the Italo-German Panzer Army under Messe (renamed 1st Italian Army) and the German 5th Panzer Army in the north of Tunisia under General Hans-Jürgen von Arnim.

The last Rommel offensive in North Africa was on 6 March 1943, when he attacked Eighth Army at the Battle of Medenine.^[240] The attack was made with 10th, 15th, and 21st Panzer Divisions. Alerted by Ultra intercepts, Montgomery deployed large numbers of anti-tank guns in the path of the offensive. After losing 52 tanks, Rommel called off the assault.^[241] On 9 March he returned to Germany.^[242] Command was handed over to General Hans-Jürgen von Arnim. Rommel never returned to Africa.^[243] The fighting there continued on for another two months, until 13 May 1943, when General Messe surrendered the Armeegruppe Afrika to the Allies.

Italy 1943[edit]

On 23 July 1943 Rommel was moved to Greece as commander of Army Group E to counter a possible British invasion. He arrived in Greece on 25 July, but was recalled to Berlin the same day due to the overthrow of Mussolini. Rommel was to be posted to Italy as commander of the newly formed Army Group B. On 16 August 1943 Rommel's headquarters moved to Lake Garda in northern Italy and formally assumed command of the army group, which consisted of the 44th Infantry Division, the 26th Panzer Division and the 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler. When Italy announced its armistice with the Allies on 8 September, his forces took part in Operation Achse, disarming the Italian forces.^[244]

Hitler met with Rommel and Kesselring to discuss future operations in Italy on 30 September 1943. Rommel insisted on a defensive line north of Rome, while Kesselring was more optimistic and advocated holding a line south of Rome. Hitler preferred Kesselring's recommendation, and therefore revoked his previous decision for the subordination of Kesselring's forces to Rommel's army group. On 19 October Hitler decided that Kesselring would be the overall commander of the forces in Italy, sidelining Rommel.^[245]

Rommel had wrongly predicted that the collapse of the German line in Italy would be fast. On 21 November Hitler gave Kesselring overall command of the Italian theater, moving Rommel and Army Group B to Normandy in France with responsibility for defending the French coast against the long anticipated Allied invasion.^[246]

Atlantic Wall 1944[edit]

On 4 November 1943, Rommel became General Inspector of the Western Defences. He was given a staff that befitted an army group commander, and the powers to travel, examine and make suggestions on how to improve the defences, but not a single soldier. Hitler, who was having a disagreement with him over military matters, intended to use Rommel as a psychological trump card.^[247]

There was broad disagreement in the German High Command as to how best to meet the expected allied invasion of Northern France. The Commander-in-Chief West, Gerd von Rundstedt, believed there was no way to stop the invasion near the beaches due to the firepower possessed by the Allied navies, as had been experienced at Salerno.^[248] He argued that the German armour should be held in reserve well inland near Paris where they could be used to counter-attack in force in a more traditional military doctrine. The allies could be allowed to extend themselves deep into France where a battle for control would be fought, allowing the Germans to envelop the allied forces in a pincer movement, cutting off their avenue of retreat. He feared the piecemeal commitment of their armoured forces would cause them to become caught in a battle of attrition which they could not hope to win.^[248]

The notion of holding the armour inland to use as a mobile reserve force from which they could mount a powerful counterattack applied the classic use of armoured formations as seen in France 1940. These tactics were still effective on the Eastern Front, where control of the air was important but did not dominate the action. Rommel's own experiences at the end of the North African campaign revealed to him that the Germans would not be allowed to preserve their armour from air attack for this type of massed assault.^[248] Rommel believed their only opportunity would be to oppose the landings directly at the beaches, and to counterattack there before the invaders could become well established. Though there had been some defensive positions established and gun emplacements made, the Atlantic Wall was a token defensive line. Rundstedt had confided to Rommel that it was for propaganda purposes only.^[249]

Upon arriving in Northern France Rommel was dismayed by the lack of completed works. According to Ruge, Rommel was in a staff position and could not issue orders, but he took every effort to explain his plan to commanders down to the platoon level, who took up his words eagerly, but 'more or less open' opposition from the above slowed down the process.^[250] Finally, Rundstedt, who only respected Rommel grudgingly (he called him Field Marshal Cub),^[251][252] intervened and supported Rommel's request for being made a commander.^[253] It was granted in 15 January 1944, when 'much valuable time had been lost.'^[250]

He set out to improve the fortifications along the Atlantic Wall with great energy and engineering skill.^{[N 6][N 7][N 8][N 9]}. This was a compromise: Rommel now commanded the 7th and 15th armies; he also had authority over a 20-kilometer-wide strip of coastal land between Zuiderzee and the mouth of the Loire. The chain of command was convoluted: the airforce and navy had their own chiefs, as did the South and Southwest France and the Panzer group; Rommel also needed Hitler's permissions to use the tank divisions.^[257] Undeterred, Rommel had millions of mines laid and thousands of tank traps and obstacles set up on the beaches and throughout the countryside, including in fields suitable for glider aircraft landings, the so-called Rommel's asparagus.^[258](The Allies would later counter these with Hobart's Funnies)^[259] In April 1944 Rommel promised Hitler that the preparations would be complete by 1 May, but by the time of the Allied invasion the preparations were far from finished. The quality of some of the troops manning them was poor and many bunkers lacked sufficient stocks of ammunition.^[258]

Rundstedt expected the Allies to invade in the Pas-de-Calais because it was the shortest crossing point from Britain, its port facilities were essential to supplying a large invasion force, and the distance from Calais to Germany was relatively short.^[260] Rommel and Hitler's views on the matter is a matter of debate between authors, with both seeming to change their positions.^{[261][262][263][264]}

Hitler vacillated between the two strategies. In late April, he ordered the I SS Panzer Corps placed near Paris, far enough inland to be useless to Rommel, but not far enough for Rundstedt. Rommel moved those armoured formations under his command as far forward as possible, ordering General Erich Marcks, commanding the 84th Corps defending the Normandy section, to move his reserves into the frontline. Although Rommel was the dominating personality in Normandy with Rundstedt willing to delegate most of the responsibilities to him (the central reserve was Rundstedt's idea but he did not oppose to some form of coastal defense, and gradually came under the influence of Rommel's thinking), Rommel's strategy of an armor-supported coastal defense line was opposed by some officers, most notably Leo Geyr von Schweppenburg, who was supported by Guderian.^{[265][248][266][267][253][268]} Hitler compromised and gave Rommel three divisions (the 2nd, the 21st and the 116th Panzer), let Rundstedt retain four and turned the other three to Army Group G, pleasing no one.^[269][270]

The Allies staged elaborate deceptions for D-Day (see Operation Fortitude), giving the impression that the landings would be at Calais. Although Hitler himself expected a Normandy invasion for a while, Rommel and most Army commanders in France believed there would be two invasions, with the main invasion coming at the Pas-de-Calais. Rommel drove defensive preparations all along the coast of Northern France, particularly concentrating fortification building in the River Somme estuary. By D-Day on 6 June 1944 nearly all the German staff officers, including Hitler's staff, believed that Pas-de-Calais was going to be the main invasion site, and continued to believe so even after the landings in Normandy had occurred.^[271]

The 5 June storm in the channel seemed to make a landing very unlikely, and a number of the senior officers were away from their units for training exercises and various other efforts. On 4 June the chief meteorologist of the 3 Air Fleet reported that weather in the channel was so poor there could be no landing attempted for two weeks. On 5 June Rommel left France and on 6 June he was at home celebrating his wife's birthday.^[258] He was recalled and returned to his headquarters at 10pm. Meanwhile, earlier in the day, Rundstedt had requested the reserves be transferred to his command. At 10am Keitel advised that Hitler declined to release the reserves but that Rundstedt could move the 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend closer to the coast, with the Panzer-Lehr-Division placed on standby. Later in the day, Rundstedt received authorisation to move additional units in preparation for a counterattack, which Rundstedt decided to launch on 7 June. Upon arrival, Rommel concurred with the plan. By nightfall, Rundstedt, Rommel and Speidel continued to believe that the Normandy landing might have been a diversionary attack, as the Allied deception measures still pointed towards Calais. The 7 June counterattack did not take place as the 12th SS did not arrive on time due to the Allied air bombardments.^[272] All this made the German command structure in France in disarray during the opening hours of the D-Day invasion.^[273]

Facing relatively small-scale German counterattacks, the Allies secured five beachheads by nightfall of 6 June, landing 155,000 troops.^[274] The Allies pushed ashore and expanded their beachhead despite strong German resistance. Rommel believed that if his armies pulled out of range of Allied naval fire, it would give them a chance to regroup and re-engage them later with a better chance of success. While he managed to convince Rundstedt, they still needed to win over Hitler. At a meeting with Hitler in Margival on 17 June, Rommel warned Hitler about the inevitable collapse in the German defences, but was rebuffed and told to focus on military operations.^[275][276]

By mid-July the German position was crumbling. On 17 July 1944, as Rommel was returning from visiting the headquarters of the I SS Panzer Corps, a fighter piloted by Charley Fox of 412 Squadron,^[277] or Jacques Remlinger of No. 602 Squadron RAF^[278][279] or Johannes Jacobus le Roux of No. 602 Squadron RAF^[280] strafed his staff car near Sainte-Foy-de-Montgommery. The driver sped up and attempted to get off the main roadway, but a 20 mm round shattered his left arm, causing the vehicle to veer off of the road and crash into trees. Rommel was thrown from the car, suffering injuries to the left side of his face from glass shards and three fractures to his skull.^[277][281] He was hospitalised with major head injuries (assumed to be almost certainly fatal).^[282]

Plot against Hitler[edit]

The role that Rommel played in the military's resistance against Hitler or the 20 July plot is difficult to ascertain, as most of the leaders who were directly involved did not survive and limited documentation on the conspirators' plans and preparations exists.^[283][284] One piece of evidence that points to the possibility that Rommel came to support the assassination plan was General Eberbach's confession to his son (eavesdropped on by British agencies) while in British captivity, which stated that Rommel explicitly said to him that Hitler and his close associates had to be killed because this would be the only way out for Germany.^{[285][286][287][288]} This conversation occurred about a month before Rommel was coerced into committing suicide. Other notable evidence includes the papers of Rudolf Hartmann (who survived the later purge) and Carl-Heinrich von Stülpnagel, who were among the leaders of the military resistance (alongside General Hans Speidel, Colonel Karl-Richard Koßmann, Colonel Eberhard Finckh and Lieutenant Colonel Caesar von Hofacker). These papers, accidentally discovered by historian Christian Schweizer in 2018 while doing research on Rudolf Hartmann, include Hartmann's eyewitness account of a conversation between Rommel and Carl-Heinrich von Stülpnagel in May 1944, as well as photos of the mid-May 1944 meeting between the inner circle of the resistance and Rommel at Kossmann's house. According to Hartmann, by the end of May, in another meeting at Hartmann's quarters in Mareil-Marly, Rommel showed 'decisive determination' and clear approval of the inner circle's plan.^[289]

According to a post-war account by Karl Strölin, three of Rommel's friends—the Oberbürgermeister of Stuttgart, Strölin (who had served with Rommel in the First World War), Alexander von Falkenhausen and Carl Heinrich von Stülpnagel—began efforts to bring Rommel into the anti-Hitler conspiracy in early 1944. According to Strölin, sometime in February, Rommel agreed to lend his support to the resistance.^[290] On 15 April 1944 Rommel's new chief of staff, Hans Speidel, arrived in Normandy and reintroduced Rommel to Stülpnagel.^[291] Speidel had previously been connected to Carl Goerdeler, the civilian leader of the resistance, but not to the plotters led by Claus von Stauffenberg, and came to Stauffenberg's attention only due to his appointment to Rommel's headquarters. The conspirators felt they needed the support of a field marshal on active duty. Erwin von Witzleben, who would have become commander-in-chief of the Wehrmacht had the plot succeeded, was a field marshal, but had been inactive since 1942. The conspirators gave instructions to Speidel to bring Rommel into their circle.^[292]

Speidel met with former foreign minister Konstantin von Neurath and Strölin on 27 May in Germany, ostensibly at Rommel's request, although the latter was not present. Neurath and Strölin suggested opening immediate surrender negotiations in the West, and, according to Speidel, Rommel agreed to further discussions and preparations.^[276] Around the same timeframe, the plotters in Berlin were not aware that Rommel had allegedly decided to take part in the conspiracy. On 16 May, they informed Allen Dulles, through whom they hoped to negotiate with the Western Allies, that Rommel could not be counted on for support.^[293]

At least initially, Rommel opposed assassinating Hitler.^[294] According to some authors,^{[295][296][297][298][299]} he gradually changed his attitude. After the war, his widow—among others—maintained that Rommel believed an assassination attempt would spark civil war in Germany and Austria, and Hitler would have become a martyr for a lasting cause.^[300] Instead, Rommel reportedly suggested that Hitler be arrested and brought to trial for his crimes; he did not attempt to implement this plan when Hitler visited Margival, France, on 17 June. The arrest plan would have been highly improbable, as Hitler's security was extremely tight. Rommel would have known this, having commanded Hitler's army protection detail in 1939.^[301] He was in favour of peace negotiations, and repeatedly urged Hitler to negotiate with the Allies, which is dubbed by some as 'hopelessly naive', considering no one would trust Hitler,^{[302][4][303]} and 'as naive as it was idealistic, the attitude he showed to the man he had sworn loyalty'.^[304] According to Reuth, the reason Lucie Rommel did not want her husband to be associated with any conspiracy was that even after the war, the German population neither grasped nor wanted to comprehend the reality of the genocide, thus conspirators were still treated as traitors and outcasts.^[305] On the other hand, the resistance depended on the reputation of Rommel to win over the population.^[306][307] Some officers who had worked with Rommel also recognized the relationship between Rommel and the resistance: Westphal said that Rommel did not want any more senseless sacrifices.^[306] Butler, using Ruge's recollections, reports that when told by Hitler himself that 'no one will make peace with me', Rommel told Hitler that if he was the obstacle for peace, he should resign or kill himself, but Hitler insisted on fanatical defense.^[308] Reuth, based on Jodl's testimony, reports that Rommel forcefully presented the situation and asked for political solutions from Hitler, who rebuffed that Rommel should leave politics to him.^[309] Brighton comments that Rommel seemed devoted, even though he did not have much faith in Hitler anymore, considering he kept informing Hitler in person and by letter about his changing beliefs, despite facing a military dilemma as well as a personal struggle.^[310] Lieb remarks that Rommel's attitude in describing the situation honestly and requiring political solutions was almost without precedent and contrary to the attitude of many other generals.^[311][297] Remy comments that Rommel put himself and his family (which he had briefly considered evacuating to France, but refrained from doing so) at risk for the resistance out of a combination of his concern for the fate of Germany, his indignation at atrocities and the influence of people around him.^[312]

On 15 July, Rommel wrote a letter to Hitler giving him a 'last chance' to end the hostilities with the Western Allies, urging Hitler to 'draw the proper conclusions without delay.' What Rommel did not know was that the letter took two weeks to reach Hitler because of Kluge's precautions.^[313][314] Various authors report that many German generals in Normandy, including some SS officers like Hausser, Bittrich, Dietrich (a hard-core Nazi and Hitler's long-time supporter) and Rommel's former opponent Geyr von Schweppenburg pledged support to him, even against Hitler's orders, while Kluge supported him with much hesitation.^{[315][316][283][317]} Von Rundstedt encouraged Rommel to carry out his plans but refused to do anything himself, remarking that it had to be a man who was still young and loved by the people,^[318][319] while von Manstein was also approached by Rommel but categorically refused, although he did not report them to Hitler either.^[320][321]Peter Hoffmann reports that he also attracted into his orbit officials who had previously refused to support the conspiracy, like Julius Dorpmüller and Karl Kaufmann (According to Russell A. Hart, reliable details of the conversations are now lost, although they certainly met.)^[307][322]

On 17 July, Rommel was incapacitated by an Allied air attack, which many authors describe as a fateful event that drastically altered the outcome of the bomb plot.^{[323][324][325][326][327][328][329]} Writer Ernst Jünger commented: 'The blow that felled Rommel ... robbed the plan of the shoulders that were to be entrusted the double weight of war and civil war - the only man who had enough naivety to counter the simple terror that those he was about to go against possessed.'^[330]

After the failed bomb attack of 20 July, many conspirators were arrested and the dragnet expanded to thousands.^[331] Rommel was first implicated when Stülpnagel, after his suicide attempt, repeatedly muttered 'Rommel' in delirium.^[332][333] Under torture, Hofacker named Rommel as one of the participants.^[334] Additionally, Goerdeler had written down Rommel's name on a list as potential Reich President (according to Stroelin, they had not managed to announce this intention to Rommel yet and he probably never heard of it until the end of his life).^{[335][336][337][338][339][340]} On 27 September, Martin Bormann submitted to Hitler a memorandum which claimed that 'the late General Stülpnagel, Colonel von Hofacker, Kluge's nephew who has been executed, Lieutenant Colonel Rathgens, and several ... living defendants have testified that Field Marshal Rommel was perfectly in the picture about the assassination plan and has promised to be at the disposal of the New Government.'^[341][342] Gestapo agents were sent to Rommel's house in Ulm and placed him under surveillance.^[343]

Historian Peter Lieb considers the memorandum, as well as Eberbach's conversation and the testimonies of surviving resistant members (including Hartmann) to be the three key sources that indicate Rommel's support of the assassination plan. He further notes that while Speidel had an interest in promoting his own post-war career, his testimonies should not be dismissed, considering his bravery as an early resistance figure.^[344] Remy writes that even more important than Rommel's attitude to the assassination is the fact Rommel had his own plan to end the war. He began to contemplate this plan some months after El Alamein and carried it out with a lonely decision and conviction, and in the end, had managed to bring military leaders in the West to his side.^[345]

Death[edit]

Rommel's case was turned over to the 'Court of Military Honour'—a drumhead court-martial convened to decide the fate of officers involved in the conspiracy. The court included Generalfeldmarshall Wilhelm Keitel, Generalfeldmarshall Gerd von Rundstedt, Generaloberst Heinz Guderian, General der Infanterie Walther Schroth and Generalleutnant Karl-Wilhelm Specht, with General der Infanterie Karl Kriebel and Generalleutnant Heinrich Kirchheim (whom Rommel had fired after Tobruk in 1941)^[147] as deputy members and Generalmajor Ernst Maisel as protocol officer. The Court acquired information from Speidel, Hofacker and others that implicated Rommel, with Keitel and Ernst Kaltenbrunner assuming that he had taken part in the subversion. Keitel and Guderian then made the decision that favoured Speidel's case and at the same time shifted the blame to Rommel.^{[346][347][348]} By normal procedure, this would lead to Rommel's being brought to Roland Freisler's People's Court, a kangaroo court that always decided in favour of the prosecution. However, Hitler knew that having Rommel branded and executed as a traitor would severely damage morale on the home front.^[349][350] He thus decided to offer Rommel the chance to take his own life.^[351]

Two generals from Hitler's headquarters, Wilhelm Burgdorf and Ernst Maisel, visited Rommel at his home on 14 October 1944. Burgdorf informed him of the charges and offered him three options: he could choose to defend himself personally to Hitler in Berlin,^{[N 10]} or if he refused to do so (which would be taken as an admission of guilt), he would either face the People's Court—which would have been tantamount to a death sentence—or choose a quiet suicide. In the former case, his family would have suffered even before the all-but-certain conviction and execution, and his staff would have been arrested and executed as well. In the latter case, the government would claim that he died a hero and bury him with full military honours, and his family would receive full pension payments. Burgdorf had brought a cyanide capsule.^[353]

Rommel denied involvement in the plot, declaring his love for Hitler, and saying that he would gladly serve his 'Fatherland' again.^[354]Der Spiegel notes that he was talking to the 'messengers of death' – Burgdorf and Maisel – and some would claim that he was acting out of helpless defense – although Der Spiegel thought his love for Hitler was sincere.^[355] Remy, however, suggests that Rommel was trying in some way to apologise to Hitler about whom he had conflicting emotions, which Maisel^[356][357] realised and found 'disgusting' and 'a hypocrisy', because Maisel – a loyal, unapologetic Hitler supporter, even after the war – could not understand how someone could try to kill someone he loved; Rommel's previous replies about his role in the attempt had made Maisel believe that he was part of the plot.^{[358][359][360][361][N 11][362]}

Before the two officers came, Rommel had told his family and friends that he would not reach Berlin alive, considering the fact that he appeared before a court 'would be the end of Hitler', too.^[362] He now realized that an SS detachment had surrounded his village and he could not contact even his headquarters.^[363] With that in mind, Rommel opted to commit suicide, and explained his decision to his wife and son.^[363] Wearing his Afrika Korps jacket and carrying his field marshal's baton, Rommel went to Burgdorf's Opel, driven by SS Master Sergeant Heinrich Doose, and was driven out of the village. After stopping, Doose and Maisel walked away from the car, leaving Rommel with Burgdorf. Five minutes later Burgdorf gestured to the two men to return to the car, and Doose noticed that Rommel was slumped over, having taken the cyanide. He died before being taken to the Wagner-Schule field hospital. Ten minutes later, the group telephoned Rommel's wife to inform her of his death.^{[364][365][366][367]} Witnesses were struck by the smile of deep contempt on the dead man's face, never seen in life, and his widow thought it was for Hitler.^[368][369]

The official story of Rommel's death, as reported to the public, stated that Rommel had died of either a heart attack or a cerebral embolism—a complication of the skull fractures he had suffered in the earlier strafing of his staff car.^{[370][371][372][373]} To strengthen the story still further, Hitler ordered an official day of mourning in commemoration. As previously promised, Rommel was given a state funeral. The fact that his state funeral was held in Ulm instead of Berlin had, according to his son, been stipulated by Rommel.^[374]. Hitler sent Field Marshal von Rundstedt, who was unaware that Rommel had died as a result of Hitler's orders, as his representative at Rommel's funeral.^[375] The body was cremated so no incriminating evidence would be left.^[368] The truth behind Rommel's death became known to the Allies when intelligence officer Charles Marshall interviewed Rommel's widow, Lucia Rommel,^[376] as well as from a letter by Rommel's son Manfred in April 1945.^[377]

Rommel's grave is located in Herrlingen, a short distance west of Ulm. For decades after the war on the anniversary of his death, veterans of the Africa campaign, including former opponents, would gather at his tomb in Herrlingen.^[378]

Rommel's style as military commander[edit]

On the Italian front in the First World War Rommel was a successful tactician in fast-developing mobile battle, and this shaped his subsequent style as a military commander. He found that taking initiative and not allowing the enemy forces to regroup led to victory. Some authors, like Porch, comment that his enemies were often less organised, second-rate, or depleted, and his tactics were less effective against adequately led, trained and supplied opponents and proved insufficient in the later years of the war.^[379] Others point out that through his career, he frequently fought while out-numbered and out-gunned, sometimes overwhelmingly so, while having to deal with internal opponents in Germany who hoped that he would fail.^{[380][381][382][383][384][385][386][387][388][389][N 12]}

Rommel is praised by numerous authors as a great leader of men.^{[N 13][391][392][393][394][395][396][397][398][399][400][401][402][403][404]} The historian and journalist Basil Liddell Hart concludes that he was a strong leader worshipped by his troops, respected by his adversaries and deserving to be named as one of the 'Great Captains of History.'^[405]Owen Connelly concurs, writing that 'No better exemplar of military leadership can be found' and quoting Friedrich von Mellenthin on the inexplicable mutual understanding that existed between Rommel and his troops.^[406] Hitler, though, remarked that, 'Unfortunately Field-Marshal Rommel is a very great leader full of drive in times of success, but an absolute pessimist when he meets the slightest problems.'^[407] Telp criticises Rommel for not extending the benevolence he showed in promoting his own officers' careers to his peers, who he ignored or slighted in his reports.^[408]

Taking his opponents by surprise and creating uncertainty in their minds were key elements in Rommel's approach to offensive warfare: he took advantage of sand storms and the dark of night to conceal the movement of his forces.^[410] He was aggressive and often directed battle from the front or piloted a reconnaissance aircraft over the lines to get a view of the situation. When the British mounted a commando raid deep behind German lines in an effort to kill Rommel and his staff on the eve of their Crusader offensive, Rommel was indignant that the British expected to find his headquarters 250 miles behind his front.^[411] Mellenthin and Harald Kuhn write that at times in North Africa his absence from a position of communication made command of the battles of the Afrika Korps difficult. Mellenthin lists Rommel's counterattack during Operation Crusader as one such instance.^[412][413] Butler concurred, saying that leading from the front is a good concept but Rommel took it so far - he frequently directed the actions of a single company or battalion - that he made communication and coordination between units problematic, as well as risking his life to the extent that he could easily have been killed even by his own artillery.^[93]Kesselring also complained about Rommel cruising about the battlefield like a division or corps commander; but Gause and Westphal, supporting Rommel, replied that in the African desert only this method would work and that it was useless to try to restrain Rommel anyway.^[414][415] His staff officers, although admiring towards their leader, complained about the self-destructive Spartan lifestyle that made life harder, diminished his effectiveness and forced them to 'bab[y] him as unobtrusively as possible.'^{[416][417][418]}

For his leadership during the French campaign Rommel received both praise and criticism. Many, such as General Georg Stumme, who had previously commanded 7th Panzer Division, were impressed with the speed and success of Rommel's drive.^[419] Others were reserved or critical: Kluge, his commanding officer, argued that Rommel's decisions were impulsive and that he claimed too much credit, by falsifying diagrams or by not acknowledging contributions of other units, especially the Luftwaffe. Some pointed out that Rommel's division took the highest casualties in the campaign.^[420] Others point out that in exchange for 2,160 casualties and 42 tanks, it captured more than 100,000 prisoners and destroyed nearly two divisions' worth of enemy tanks (about 450 tanks), vehicles and guns.^[421][422]

Rommel spoke German with a pronounced southern German or Swabian accent. He was not a part of the Prussian aristocracy that dominated the German high command, and as such was looked upon somewhat suspiciously by the Wehrmacht's traditional power structure.^[423][424] Rommel felt a commander should be physically more robust than the troops he led, and should always show them an example.^{[425][N 14]} He expected his subordinate commanders to do the same.^[426]

Rommel was direct, unbending, tough in his manners, to superiors and subordinates alike, disobedient even to Hitler whenever he saw fit, although gentle and diplomatic to the lower ranks (German and Italian alike) and POWs.^{[427][428][429][430][431]} Despite being publicity-friendly, he was also shy, introverted, clumsy and overly formal even to his closest aides, judging people only on their merits, although loyal and considerate to those who had proved reliability, and he displayed a surprisingly passionate and devoted side to a very small few (including Hitler) with whom he had dropped the seemingly impenetrable barriers. Many of these traits seemed to manifest even at a very young age.^{[432][433][434][435]}

Relations with Italian forces[edit]

Rommel's relationship with the Italian High Command in North Africa was generally poor. Although he was nominally subordinate to the Italians, he enjoyed a certain degree of autonomy from them; since he was directing their troops in battle as well as his own, this was bound to cause hostility among Italian commanders. Conversely, as the Italian command had control over the supplies of the forces in Africa, they resupplied Italian units preferentially, which was a source of resentment for Rommel and his staff.^[436] Rommel's direct and abrasive manner did nothing to smooth these issues.^{[437][438][439]}

While certainly much less proficient than Rommel in their leadership, aggressiveness, tactical outlook and mobile warfare skills,^[440] Italian commanders were competent in logistics, strategy and artillery doctrine: their troops were ill-equipped but well-trained. As such, the Italian commanders were repeatedly at odds with Rommel over concerns with issues of supply.^[441] Field Marshal Kesselring was assigned Supreme Commander Mediterranean, at least in part to alleviate command problems between Rommel and the Italians. This effort resulted only in partial success, with Kesselring's own relationship with the Italians being unsteady and Kesselring claiming Rommel ignored him as readily as he ignored the Italians.^[442][443] Rommel often went directly to Hitler with his needs and concerns, taking advantage of the favoritism that the Führer displayed towards him and adding to the distrust that Kesselring and the German High Command already had of him.^[444]

According to Scianna, opinion among the Italian military leaders was not unanimous. In general, Rommel was a target of criticism and a scapegoat for defeat rather than a glorified figure, with certain generals also trying to replace him as the heroic leader or hijack the Rommel myth for their own benefit. Nevertheless, he never became a hated figure, although the 'abandonment myth', despite being repudiated by officers of the X Corps themselves, was long-lived. Many found Rommel's chaotic leadership and emotional character hard to work with, yet the Italians held him in higher regard than other German senior commanders, militarily and personally.^[445]

Very different, however, was the perception of Rommel by Italian common soldiers and NCOs, who, like the German field troops, had the deepest trust and respect for him.^{[446][N 15]} Paolo Colacicchi, an officer in the Italian Tenth Army recalled that Rommel 'became sort of a myth to the Italian soldiers' and that the Bersaglieri baptised him 'Rommelito'^[447] (This may also have been a reference to both men's small stature: 'Rommelito' means 'little Rommel' while Romulus means 'the little boy from Rome'. Incidentally, Palestine Jews associated Rommel with Romulus as well, based on Ohr Hachaim's 200-year-old commentary on the account of Jacob wrestling with the angel.^[448]) Rommel himself held a much more generous view about the Italian soldier^[449] than about their leadership, towards whom his disdain, deeply rooted in militarism, was not atypical, although unlike Kesselring he was incapable of concealing it.^[450] Unlike many of his superiors and subordinates who held racist views, he was usually 'kindly disposed' to the Italians in general.^[451]

Some authors like Sadkovich blame Rommel for abandoning his Italian units, refusing cooperation, rarely acknowledging their achievements and other improper behaviour towards his Italian allies.^[452] However, others point out that the Italians under Rommel, in comparison with many of their compatriots in other areas, were better led, supplied, and trained, fighting well as a result, with a ratio of wounded and killed Italians similar to that of the Germans.^{[440][453][454][455]} In one case, a false accusation of Rommel's supposed mistreatment of Italians made by Goering was refuted by Mussolini himself.^[456] In 1943, Jodl stated that the only German commander numerous officers and soldiers in Italy would willingly subordinate themselves to would be Rommel.^[457]

Views on the conduct of war[edit]

Combat[edit]

Many authors describe Rommel as having a reputation of being a chivalrous, humane, and professional officer, and that he earned the respect of both his own troops and his enemies.^{[458][459][460][461][462][463][464][465][466][467]} Rommel described the conduct of the desert war as 'War without Hate' in his papers, and according to Young's biography and Luck's memoirs, during the desert campaign German and British troops encountering each other between battles were sometimes openly friendly.^[468][469]

According to Maurice Remy, orders issued by Hitler during Rommel's stay in a hospital resulted in massacres in the course of Operation Achse, disarming the Italian forces after the armistice with the Allies in 1943, but Rommel treated his Italian opponents with his usual fairness, requiring that the prisoners should be accorded the same conditions as German civilians. Remy opines that an order in which Rommel, in fact protesting against Hitler's directives, called for no 'sentimental scruples' against 'Badoglio-dependent bandits in uniforms of the once brothers-in-arms' should not be taken out of context.^[470]Peter Lieb agrees that the order did not radicalize the war and that the disarmament in Rommel's area of responsibility happened without major bloodshed.^[471] Italian internees were sent to Germany for forced labour, but Rommel was unaware of this.^[470][471]

In the Normandy campaign both Allied and German troops murdered prisoners of war on occasion during June and July 1944.^[472] But Rommel withheld Hitler's Commando Order to execute captured commandos from his Army Group B, with his units reporting that they were treating commandos as regular POWs. It is likely that he had acted similarly in North Africa;^[473] though this is disputed by historian Szymon Datner, who writes that Rommel may have been simply trying to conceal atrocities of Nazi Germany from the Allies.^[474] Other authors argue that generosity to opponents was a natural trait of the man. Telp states that Rommel by nature was chivalrous and not prone to order needless violence.^[475] Robert Forczyk considers Rommel a true great captain with chivalry.^[434] Remy states that although Rommel had heard rumours about massacres while fighting in Africa, his personality combined with special circumstances to mean that he was not fully confronted with the reality of atrocities before 1944.^[476] When Rommel learned about the atrocities SS Division Leibstandarte committed in Italy in September 1943, he allegedly forbade his son to join the Waffen-SS.^[477]

Politics[edit]

Some authors cite, among other cases, Rommel's naive reaction to events in Poland while he was there: he paid a visit to his wife's uncle, famous Polish priest and patriotic leader Edmund Roszczynialski ^[pl], who was murdered within days, but Rommel never understood this and, at his wife's urgings, kept writing letter after letter to Himmler's adjutants asking them to keep track and take care of their relative.^{[478][479][480]} Knopp and Mosier agree that he was naive politically, citing his request for a Jewish Gauleiter in 1943.^[481][482] Despite this, Lieb finds it hard to believe that a man in Rommel's position could have known nothing about atrocities, while accepting that locally he was separated from the places where these atrocities occurred.^[297]Der Spiegel comments that Rommel was simply in denial about what happened around him.^[7] Alaric Searle points out that it was the early diplomatic successes and bloodless expansion that blinded Rommel to the true nature of his beloved Führer, whom he then naively continued to support.^[483] Scheck believes it may be forever unclear whether Rommel recognized the unprecedented depraved character of the regime.^[4]

Civilians[edit]

Historian Richard J. Evans has stated that German soldiers in Tunisia raped Jewish women, and the success of Rommel's forces in capturing or securing Allied, Italian and Vichy French territory in North Africa led to many Jews in these areas being killed by other German institutions as part of the Holocaust.^[484] More specifically, several German historians have argued that while Rommel did not have strong racial views, if he had succeeded in his goal of invading the Middle East during 1942 large numbers of Jews in Palestine would have been murdered by an SS unit which had been deployed to North Africa in July 1942 to operate behind the lines of the Afrika Korps.^[7] According to Mallmann and Cüppers, a post-war CIA report described Rommel as having met with Walther Rauff, who was responsible for the unit, and been disgusted after learning about the plan from him and as having sent him on his way; but they conclude that such a meeting is hardly possible as Rauff was sent to report to Rommel at Tobruk on 20 July and Rommel was then 500 km away conducting the First El Alamein.^[485] On 29 July, Rauff's unit was sent to Athens, expecting to enter Africa when Rommel crossed the Nile. However, in view of the Axis' deteriorating situation in Africa it returned to Germany in September.^[486] Historian Jean-Christoph Caron opines that there is no evidence that Rommel knew or would have supported Rauff's mission; he also believes Rommel bore no direct responsibility regarding the SS's looting of gold in Tunisia.^[487] Historian Haim Saadon, Director of the Center of Research on North African Jewry in WWII, goes further, stating that there was no extermination plan: Rauff's documents show that his foremost concern was helping the Wehrmacht to win, and he came up with the idea of forced labour camps in the process.^[488][489] By the time these labour camps were in operation, according to Ben Shepherd, Rommel had already been retreating and there is no proof of his contact with the Einsatzkommando.^[490] The Haaretz comments that the CIA report is most likely correct regarding both the interaction between Rommel and Rauff and Rommel's objections to the plan: Rauff's assistant Theodor Saevecke, and declassified information from Rauff's file, both report the same story. The Haaretz also remarks that Rommel's influence probably softened the Nazi authorities' attitude to the Jews and to the civilian population generally in North Africa.^[491]

Historian Martin Kitchen states that the reputation of the Afrika Korps was preserved due to circumstances: the sparsely populated desert areas did not lend themselves to ethnic cleansing; the German forces never reached the large Jewish populations in Egypt and Palestine; and in the urban areas of Tunisia and Tripolitania the Italian government constrained the German efforts to discriminate against or eliminate Jews who were Italian citizens.^[492] Despite this, the North African Jews themselves believed that it was Rommel who prevented the 'Final Solution' from being carried out against them when German might dominated North Africa from Egypt to Morocco.^[493][494] According to Curtis and Remy, 120,000 Jews lived in Algeria, 200,000 in Morocco, about 80,000 in Tunisia (and this number was unchanged following the German invasion of Tunisia in 1942),^[495] and 26,000 in Libya.^[496] According to Marshall, Rommel sharply protested the Jewish policies and other immoralities and was an opponent of the Gestapo.^[497] He also refused to comply with Hitler's order to execute Jewish POWs.^{[498][N 16]} His own Afrika Korps was known among soldiers of Jewish descent as a refuge, safe from racial laws and discrimination.^[499])

At his 17 June 1944 meeting with Hitler at Margival he protested against the massacre of the citizens of the French town of Oradour-sur-Glane, committed by the 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich, and asked to be allowed to punish the division.^{[500][501][502]}

Building the Atlantic Wall was officially the responsibility of the Organisation Todt,^[503] which was not under Rommel's command, but he enthusiastically joined the task,^[504] protesting slave labour and suggesting that they should recruit French civilians and pay them good wages.^[505][506] Despite this, French civilians and Italian prisoners of war held by the Germans were forced by officials under the Vichy government,^[507] the Todt Organization and the SS forces^[508] to work on building some of the defences Rommel requested, in appalling conditions according to historian Will Fowler. Although they got basic wages, the workers complained because it was too little and there was no heavy equipment.^{[507][509][510][511]} Robin Neillands and Roderick De Normann report that German soldiers as well as Russian and Polish renegades were used, to avoid using forced labour.^[512] German troops worked almost round-the-clock under very harsh conditions, with Rommel's rewards being accordions. (Rommel was himself an eccentric and horrible violinist.)^{[513][514][515]} Lieb reports that Rommel felt pity when he saw the suffering of the French in his inspection tour and probably helped to save the lives of thousands of locals.^[473]

Spoils[edit]

Rick Atkinson criticises Rommel for gaining a looted stamp collection (a bribe from Sepp Dietrich) and a villa taken from Jews.^[516] Lucas, Matthews and Remy though describe the contemptuous and angry reaction of Rommel towards Dietrich's act and the lootings and other brutal behaviours of the SS that he had discovered in Italy.^[517][518] Claudia Hecht also explains that although the Stuttgart and Ulm authorities did arrange for the Rommel family to use a villa whose Jewish owners had been forced out two years earlier, for a brief period after their own house had been destroyed by Allied bombing, ownership of it was never transferred to them.^[519] Butler notes that Rommel was one of the few who refused large estates and gifts of cash Hitler gave to his generals.^[520]

Personal conduct[edit]

Curiously, recent research by Norman Ohler claims that Rommel's behaviours were heavily influenced by Pervitin which he reportedly took in heavy doses, to such an extent that Ohler refers to him as 'the Crystal Fox' ('Kristallfuchs')^[521][522] – playing off the nickname 'Desert Fox' famously given to him by the British.^[523][524]

In Nazi and Allied propaganda[edit]

At the beginning, although Hitler and Goebbels took particular notice of Rommel, the Nazi elites had no intent to create one major war symbol (partly out of fear that he would offset Hitler^[525][526]), generating huge propaganda campaigns for not only Rommel but also Gerd von Rundstedt, Walther von Brauchitsch, Eduard Dietl, Sepp Dietrich (the latter two were party members and also strongly supported by Hitler), etc.^{[527][323][528]} Despite this, due to a multitude of conditions such as Rommel's unusual charisma,^{[N 17][N 18]} his talents both in military matters and public relations^{[530][N 19]} as well as no small help from Goebbels' propaganda machine and the Allies's participation in mythologizing his life (either for political benefits,^[527] sympathy for someone who evoked a romantic archetype,^[532] or genuine admiration for his actions^[533]), the situation gradually developed to the point that, as Spiegel described, 'Even back then his fame outshone that of all other commanders.'

Rommel's victories in France were featured in the German press and in the February 1941 film Victory in the West, in which Rommel personally helped direct a segment reenacting the crossing of the Somme River.^[534] Rommel's victories in 1941 were played up by the Nazi propaganda, even though his successes in North Africa were achieved in arguably one of Germany's least strategically important theaters of World War II.^{[99][N 20]} In November 1941, Reich Minister of Propaganda Joseph Goebbels wrote about 'the urgent need' to have Rommel 'elevated to a kind of popular hero.' Rommel, with his innate abilities as a military commander and love of the spotlight, was a perfect fit for the role Goebbels designed for him.^[99]

Successes in North Africa[edit]

In North Africa, Rommel received help in cultivating his image from Alfred Ingemar Berndt, a senior official at the Reich Propaganda Ministry who had volunteered for military service.^[536] Seconded by Goebbels, Berndt was assigned to Rommel's staff and became one of his closest aides. Berndt often acted as liaison between Rommel, the Propaganda Ministry, and the Führer Headquarters. He directed Rommel's photo shoots and filed radio dispatches describing the battles.^[537][538]

In the spring of 1941, Rommel's name began to appear in the British media. In the autumn of 1941 and early winter of 1941/1942, he was mentioned in the British press almost daily. Toward the end of the year, the Reich propaganda machine also used Rommel's successes in Africa as a diversion from the Wehrmacht's challenging situation in the Soviet Union with the stall of Operation Barbarossa.^{[539][540][N 21]} The American press soon began to take notice of Rommel as well, following the country's entry into the war on 11 December 1941, writing that 'The British (...) admire him because he beat them and were surprised to have beaten in turn such a capable general.' General Auchinleck distributed a directive to his commanders seeking to dispel the notion that Rommel was a 'superman'.^[541][542] Rommel, no matter how hard the situation was, made a deliberate effort at always spending some time with soldiers and patients, his own and POWs alike, which contributed greatly to his reputation of not only being a great commander but also 'a decent chap' among the troops.^[533][543]

The attention of the Western and especially the British press thrilled Goebbels, who wrote in his diary in early 1942: 'Rommel continues to be the recognized darling of even the enemies' news agencies.'^[544] The Field Marshal was pleased by the media attention, although he knew the downsides of having a reputation.^{[544][N 22][545]} Hitler took note of the British propaganda as well, commenting in the summer of 1942 that Britain's leaders must have hoped 'to be able to explain their defeat to their own nation more easily by focusing on Rommel.'^[546]

The Field Marshal was the German commander most frequently covered in the German media, and the only one to be given a press conference, which took place in October 1942.^[538][547] The press conference was moderated by Goebbels and was attended by both domestic and foreign media. Rommel declared: 'Today we (...) have the gates of Egypt in hand, and with the intent to act!' Keeping the focus on Rommel distracted the German public from Wehrmacht losses elsewhere as the tide of the war began to turn. He became a symbol that was used to reinforce the German public's faith in an ultimate Axis victory.^[548]

Military reverses[edit]

In the wake of the successful British offensive in November 1942 and other military reverses, the Propaganda Ministry directed the media to emphasize Rommel's invincibility. The charade was maintained until the spring of 1943, even as the German situation in Africa became increasingly precarious. To ensure that the inevitable defeat in Africa would not be associated with Rommel's name, Goebbels had the Supreme High Command announce in May 1943 that Rommel was on a two-month leave for health reasons.^{[549][N 23]} Instead, the campaign was presented by Berndt, who resumed his role in the Propaganda Ministry, as a ruse to tie down the British Empire while Germany was turning Europe into an impenetrable fortress with Rommel at the helm of this success. After the radio program ran in May 1943, Rommel sent Berndt a case of cigars as a sign of his gratitude.^[549]

Although Rommel then entered a period without a significant command, he remained a household name in Germany, synonymous with the aura of invincibility.^[551] Hitler then made Rommel part of his defensive strategy for Fortress Europe (Festung Europa) by sending him to the West to inspect fortifications along the Atlantic Wall. Goebbels supported the decision, noting in his diary that Rommel was 'undoubtedly the suitable man' for the task. The propaganda minister expected the move to reassure the German public and at the same time to have a negative impact on the Allied forces' morale.^[552]

In France, a Wehrmacht propaganda company frequently accompanied Rommel on his inspection trips to document his work for both domestic and foreign audiences.^[254][553] In May 1944 the German newsreels reported on Rommel's speech at a Wehrmacht conference, where he stated his conviction that 'every single German soldier will make his contribution against the Anglo-American spirit that it deserves for its criminal and bestial air war campaign against our homeland.' The speech led to an upswing in morale and sustained confidence in Rommel.^[554]

When Rommel was seriously wounded on 17 July 1944, the Propaganda Ministry undertook efforts to conceal the injury so as not to undermine domestic morale. Despite those, the news leaked to the British press. To counteract the rumors of a serious injury and even death, Rommel was required to appear at the 1 August press conference. On 3 August, the German press published an official report that Rommel had been injured in a car accident. Rommel noted in his diary his dismay at this twisting of the truth, belatedly realising how much the Reich propaganda was using him for its own ends.^[554]

Rommel's views on propaganda[edit]

Rommel was interested in propaganda beyond the promotion of his own image. In 1944, after visiting Rommel in France and reading his proposals on counteracting Allied propaganda, Alfred-Ingemar Berndt remarked: 'He is also interested in this propaganda business and wants to develop it by all means. He has even thought and brought out practical suggestions for each program and subject.'^[555]

Rommel saw the propaganda and education values in his and his nation's deeds (He also did value justice itself: According to Admiral Ruge's diary, Rommel told Ruge: 'Justice is the indispensable foundation of a nation. Unfortunately, the higher-ups are not clean. The slaughterings are grave sins.'^[556]) The key to the successful creating of an image, according to Rommel, was leading by example: 'The men tend to feel no kind of contact with a commander who, they know, is sitting somewhere in headquarters. What they want is what might be termed a physical contact with him. In moments of panic, fatigue, or disorganization, or when something out of the ordinary has to be demanded from them, the personal example of the commander works wonders, especially if he has had the wit to create some sort of legend around himself.'^[557] He urged Axis authorities to treat the Arab with the utmost respect to prevent uprisings behind the front.^[558][559]

He protested the use of propaganda at the cost of explicit military benefits though.^[560] Ruge suggests that his chief treated his own fame as a kind of weapon.^[250]

The political scientist and historian Randall Hansen suggests that Rommel chose his whole command style for the purpose of spreading meritocracy and egalitarianism, as well as Nazi ideals he shared with Hitler due to their common non-aristocratic background.^[561] His egalitarianism extended to people of other races:^[562] in replying to white South African officers' demands that the black POWs should be housed in separated compounds, he refused, commenting that the black soldiers wore the same uniforms and had fought alongside the whites and thus were their equals.^[563] On the other hand, Watson comments that, regarding the Afrika Korps, any Nazi indoctrination was minimised, allowing Rommel the freedom to reinvent his army in his own style.^[564] Rommel's proposals were not always practical: in 1943, he surprised Hitler by proposing that a Jew should be made into a Gauleiter to prove to the world that Germany was innocent of accusations that Rommel had heard from the enemy's propaganda regarding the mistreatment of Jews. Hitler replied, 'Dear Rommel, you understand nothing about my thinking at all.'^{[7][565][566][567]}

Relationship with National Socialism[edit]

Rommel was not a member of the Nazi Party.^[568] Rommel and Hitler had a close and genuine, if complicated, personal relationship. Rommel, as other Wehrmacht officers, welcomed the Nazi rise to power.^[569][68] Numerous historians state that Rommel was one of Hitler's favorite generals and that his close relationship with the dictator benefited both his inter-war and war-time career.^{[70][570][68]}Robert Citino describes Rommel as 'not apolitical' and writes that he owed his career to Hitler, to whom Rommel's attitude was 'worshipful',^[538] with Messenger agreeing that Rommel owed his tank command, his hero status and other promotions to Hitler's interference and support.^{[538][571][N 24]}

Kesselring described Rommel's own power over Hitler as 'hypnotic'.^[573] In 1944, Rommel himself told Ruge and his wife that Hitler had a kind of irresistible magnetic aura ('magnetismus') and was always seemingly in an intoxicated condition.^[574] Maurice Remy identifies that the point at which their relationship became a personal one was 1939, when Rommel proudly announced to his friend Kurt Hesse that he had 'sort of forced Hitler to go with me (to the Hradschin Castle in Prague, in an open top car, without another bodyguard), under my personal protection ... He had entrusted himself to me and would never forget me for my excellent advice.'^[575]

The close relationship between Rommel and Hitler continued following the Western campaign; after Rommel sent to him a specially prepared diary on the 7th Division, he received a letter of thanks from the dictator.^{[576][N 25]} (According to Speer, he would normally send extremely unclear reports which annoyed Hitler greatly.^[577]) According to Maurice Remy, the relationship, which Remy calls 'a dream marriage', only showed the first crack in 1942,^[578] and later gradually turned into, in the words of German writer Ernst Jünger (in contact with Rommel in Normandy), 'hassliebe' (a love-hate relationship).^[579] Ruge's diary and Rommel's letters to his wife show his mood fluctuating wildly regarding Hitler: while he showed disgust towards the atrocities and disappointment towards the situation, he was overjoyed to welcome a visit from Hitler, only to return to depression the next day when faced with reality.^[580]

Supreme Commander Forged Alliance Mods

Hitler displayed the same emotions. Amid growing doubts and differences, he would remain eager for Rommel's calls (they had almost daily, hour-long, highly animated conversations, with the preferred topic being technical innovations^[581]): he once almost grabbed the telephone out of Linge's hand. But, according to Linge, seeing Rommel’s disobedience Hitler also realized his mistake in building up Rommel, whom not only the Afrika Korps but also the German people in general now considered the German God.^[582] Hitler tried to fix the dysfunctional relationship many times without results, with Rommel calling his attempts 'Sunlamp Treatment', although later he said that 'Once I have loved the Führer, and I still do.'^[7][583] Remy and Der Spiegel remark that the statement was very much genuine, while Watson notes that Rommel believed he deserved to die for his treasonable plan.^[584]

Rommel was an ambitious man who took advantage of his proximity to Hitler and willingly accepted the propaganda campaigns designed for him by Goebbels.^{[569][N 26]} On one hand, he wanted personal promotion and the realization of his ideals. On the other hand, being elevated by the traditional system that gave preferential treatment to aristocratic officers would be betrayal of his aspiration 'to remain a man of the troops'.^{[N 27]} In 1918, Rommel refused an invitation to a prestigious officer training course, and with it, the chance to be promoted to general.^[586] Additionally, he had no inclination towards the political route, preferring to remain a soldier ('Nur-Soldat').^{[587][588][589]} He was thus attracted by the Common Man theme which promised to level German society,^[590] the glorification of the national community,^[297] and the idea of a soldier of common background who served the Fatherland with talent and got rewarded by another common man who embodied the will of the German people.^[590] While he had much indignation towards Germany's contemporary class problem, this self-association with the Common Man went along well with his desire to simulate the knights of the past, who also led from the front.^[591] (The dominant parent in Rommel's life was his mother Helene, a minor 'von' and a loving but ambitious and class-conscious mother who strongly stirred him towards a military career^{[11][592][593][594]}) While Rommel was greatly attached to his profession ('the body and soul of war', a fellow officer commented),^[595] he seemed to equally enjoy the idea of peace, as shown by his words to his wife in August 1939: 'You can trust me, we have taken part in one World War, but as long as our generation live, there will not be a second', as well as his letter sent to her the night before the Invasion of Poland, in which he expressed (in Maurice Remy's phrase) 'boundless optimism': 'I still believe the atmosphere will not become more bellicose.'^[596] Butler remarks that Rommel was center in his politics, leaning a little to the left in his attitude.^[597]

Messenger argues that Rommel's attitude towards Hitler changed only after the Allied invasion of Normandy, when Rommel came to realise that the war could not be won,^[571] while Maurice Remy suggests that Rommel never truly broke away from the relationship with Hitler but praises him for 'always [having] the courage to oppose him whenever his conscience required so.'^[578] The historian Peter Lieb states that it was not clear whether the threat of defeat was the only reason Rommel wanted to switch sides.^[297] The relationship seemed to go significantly downhill after a conversation in July 1943, in which Hitler told Rommel that if they did not win the war, the Germans could rot. Rommel even began to think that it was lucky that his Afrika Korps was now safe as POWs and could escape Hitler's Wagnerian ending.^{[598][599][600]}Die Welt comments that Hitler chose Rommel as his favourite because he was apolitical, and that the combination of his military expertise and circumstances allowed Rommel to remain clean.^[601]

Rommel's political inclinations were a controversial matter even among the contemporary Nazi elites. Rommel himself, while showing support to some facets of the Nazi ideology^[342] and enjoying the propaganda the Nazi machine built around him, was enraged by the Nazi media's effort to portray him as an early Party member and son of a mason, forcing them to correct this misinformation.^[602][603] The Nazi elites were not comfortable with the idea of a national icon who did not wholeheartedly support the regime. Hitler and Goebbels, his main supporters, tended to defend him. When Rommel was being considered for appointment as Commander-in-Chief of the Army in the summer of 1942, Goebbels wrote in his diary that Rommel 'is ideologically sound, is not just sympathetic to the National Socialists. He is a National Socialist; he is a troop leader with a gift for improvisation, personally courageous and extraordinarily inventive. These are the kinds of soldiers we need.'^[570] Despite this, they gradually saw that his grasp of political realities and his views could be very different from theirs.^{[566][604][N 28]} Hitler knew, though, that Rommel's optimistic and combative character was indispensable for his war efforts. When Rommel lost faith in the final victory and Hitler's leadership, Hitler and Goebbels tried to find an alternative in Manstein to remedy the fighting will and 'political direction' of other generals but did not succeed.^[606][607]

Meanwhile, officials who did not like Rommel, such as Bormann and Schirach, whispered to each other that he was not a Nazi at all.^[608] Rommel's relationship to the Nazi elites, other than Hitler and Goebbels, was mostly hostile, although even powerful people like Bormann^[609] and Himmler had to tread carefully around Rommel. Himmler, who played a decisive role in Rommel's death, tried to blame Keitel and Jodl for the deed. And in fact the deed was initiated by them. They deeply resented Rommel's meteoric rise and had long feared that he would become the Commander-in-Chief.^[582][610] (Hitler also played innocent by trying to erect a monument for the national hero, on 7 March 1945^[611]) Franz Halder, after concocting several schemes to rein in Rommel through people like Paulus and Gause to no avail (even willing to undermine German operations and strategy in the process for the sole purpose of embarrassing him^[388]), concluded that Rommel was a madman with whom no one dared to cross swords because of 'his brutal methods and his backing from the highest levels.' (Rommel imposed a high number of courts martial, but according to Westphal, he never signed the final order. Owen Connelly comments that he could afford easy discipline because of his charisma).^{[612][613][614][615]} Rommel for his part was highly critical of Himmler, Halder, the High Command and particularly Goering who Rommel at one point called his 'bitterest enemy'.^{[N 29]} Hitler realized that Rommel attracted the elites' negative emotions to himself, in the same way he generated optimism in the common people. Depending on the case, Hitler manipulated or exacerbated the situation in order to benefit himself,^{[389][617][N 30]} although he originally had no intent of pushing Rommel to the point of destruction.^[587] (Even when informed of Rommel's involvement in the plot, hurt and vengeful,^[7] Hitler at first wanted to retire Rommel,^[618] and eventually offered him a last-minute chance to explain himself and refute the claims, which Rommel apparently did not take advantage of.^[619][620]) Ultimately Rommel's enemies worked together to bring him down.^[389]

Maurice Remy concludes that, unwillingly and probably without ever realising it, Rommel was part of a murderous regime, although he never actually grasped the core of National Socialism.^[621] Peter Lieb sees Rommel as a person who could not be put into a single drawer, although problematic by modern moral standards, and suggests people should personally decide for themselves whether Rommel should remain a role model or not.^[297] He was a Nazi general in some aspects, considering his support for the leader cult (Führerkult) and the Volksgemeinschaft, but he was not an anti-Semite, nor a war criminal, nor a radical ideological fighter.^[622] Historian Cornelia Hecht remarks 'It is really hard to know who the man behind the myth was,' noting that in numerous letters he wrote to his wife during their almost 30-year marriage, he commented little on political issues as well as his personal life as a husband and a father.^[623]

Rommel myth[edit]

According to some revisionist authors, an assessment of Rommel's role in history has been hampered by views of Rommel that were formed, at least in part, due to political reasons, creating what these historians have called the 'Rommel myth'. The interpretation considered by some historians to be a myth is the depiction of the Field Marshal as an apolitical, brilliant commander and a victim of the Third Reich who participated in the 20 July plot against Adolf Hitler.^[624][625] There are a notable number of authors who refer to 'Rommel Myth' or 'Rommel Legend' in a neutral or positive manner though.^{[342][623][626][N 31][628][629]}

The seeds of the myth can be found first in Rommel's drive for success as a young officer in World War I and then in his popular 1937 book Infantry Attacks, which was written in a style that diverged from the German military literature of the time and became a bestseller.^[630][99]

The myth then took shape during the opening years of World War II, as a component of Nazi propaganda to praise the Wehrmacht and instill optimism in the German public, with Rommel's willing participation. When Rommel came to North Africa, it was picked up and disseminated in the West by the British press as the Allies sought to explain their continued inability to defeat the Axis forces in North Africa.^[631] The British military and political figures contributed to the heroic image of the man as Rommel resumed offensive operations in January 1942 against the British forces weakened by redeployments to the Far East. During parliamentary debate following the fall of Tobruk, Churchill described Rommel as an 'extraordinary bold and clever opponent' and a 'great field commander.'^[541][542]

According to Der Spiegel following the war's end, West Germany yearned for father figures who were needed to replace the former ones who had been unmasked as criminals. Rommel was chosen because he embodied the decent soldier, cunning yet fair-minded, and if guilty by association, not so guilty that he became unreliable, and additionally, former comrades reported that he was close to the Resistance.^[7] While everyone else was disgraced, his star became brighter than ever, and he made the historically unprecedented leap over the threshold between eras: from Hitler's favourite general to the young republic's hero. Cornelia Hecht notes that despite the change of times, Rommel has become the symbol of different regimes and concepts, which is paradoxical, whoever the man he really was.^[623][632] Ulrich vom Hagen reports that Rommel, for the admiration shown towards him by all sides after the war, was used as a unity symbol that led to the 'elegant settlement' of the conflict between fascistic, small-bourgeois elements and the aristocratic traditionalists during the early years after the formation of the Bundeswehr.^[633] Simon Ball describes how various elements in the German and British armies and governments extensively used Rommel's image in dealing with their inner struggles, promoting aspects of his that each group associated with themselves. Eric Dorman-Smith claimed that it was a 'pity we could not have combined with Rommel to clean up the whole mess on both sides.'^[634] Already in September 1944, the officer Heinz Eugen Eberbach (later a leading figure in the Bundeswehr) anticipated that the Allied victors would have to turn to Rommel and men like him, because he was accepted by both the old regime and the working class, whom the English would not be able to win over by telling them: 'The entire previous system is rotten to the core'.^[635]

At the same time, the Western Allies, and particularly the British, depicted Rommel as the 'good German'. His reputation for conducting a clean war was used in the interest of the West German rearmament and reconciliation between the former enemies—Britain and the United States on one side and the new Federal Republic of Germany on the other.^[636] When Rommel's alleged involvement in the plot to kill Hitler became known after the war, his stature was enhanced in the eyes of his former adversaries. Rommel was often cited in Western sources as a patriotic German willing to stand up to Hitler. Churchill wrote about him in 1950: '[Rommel] (...) deserves our respect because, although a loyal German soldier, he came to hate Hitler and all his works and took part in the conspiracy of 1944 to rescue Germany by displacing the maniac and tyrant.'^[637]

Foundational works[edit]

The German rearmament of the early 1950s was highly dependent on the moral rehabilitation that the Wehrmacht needed. The journalist and historian Basil Liddell Hart, an early proponent of these two interconnected initiatives, provided the first widely available source on Rommel in his 1948 book on Hitler's generals, updated in 1951, portraying Rommel in a positive light and as someone who stood apart from the regime.^[638]

The other foundational text was the influential and laudatory 1950 biography Rommel: The Desert Fox by Brigadier Desmond Young.^{[639][640][N 32]} Young extensively interviewed Rommel's widow and collaborated with several individuals who had been close to Rommel, including Hans Speidel. The manner of Rommel's death had led to the assumption that he had not been a supporter of Nazism, to which Young subscribed.^{[636][641][N 33]} The reception of The Desert Fox in Britain was enthusiastic, with the book going through eight editions in a year.^[642] Young's biography was another step in the development of the Rommel myth – with Rommel emerging as an active, if not a leading, plotter. Speidel contributed as well, starting from the early 1950s to bring up Rommel's and his own role in the plot, boosting his [Speidel's] suitability for a future role in the new military force of the Federal Republic, the Bundeswehr, and then in NATO.^[643]

Further in 1953 was the publication of Rommel's writings of the war period as The Rommel Papers, edited by Liddell Hart.^[644] The book contributed to the perception of Rommel as a brilliant commander; in an introduction, Liddell Hart drew comparisons between Rommel and Lawrence of Arabia, 'two masters of desert warfare.'^[645] Liddell Hart had a personal interest in the work: by having coaxed Rommel's widow to include material favorable to himself, he could present Rommel as his 'pupil.' The controversy was described by the political scientist John Mearsheimer, who concluded that, by 'manipulating history', Liddell Hart was in a position to show that he was at the root of the dramatic German success in 1940.^[646][647]

Elements of the myth[edit]

According to Mark Connelly, Young and Liddell Hart laid the foundation for the Anglo-American myth, which consisted of three themes: Rommel's ambivalence towards Nazism; his military genius; and the emphasis of the chivalrous nature of the fighting in North Africa.^[644] Their works lent support to the image of the 'clean Wehrmacht' and were generally not questioned, since they came from British authors, rather than German revisionists.^{[648][N 34]}

Historian Bruce Allen Watson offers his interpretation of the myth, encompassing the foundation laid down by the Nazi propaganda machine. According to Watson, the most dominant element is Rommel the Superior Soldier; the second being Rommel the Common Man; and the last one Rommel the Martyr.^[649] The German news magazine Der Spiegel described the myth in 2007 as 'Gentleman warrior, military genius.'^{[650][N 35]}

Contradictions and ambiguities[edit]

During recent years, historians' opinions on Rommel have become more diversified, with some aspects of his image being the target of revisionism more frequently than the others. According to the prominent German historian Hans-Ulrich Wehler, the modern consensus agrees with post-war sources that Rommel treated the Allied captives decently, and he personally thinks that the movie Rommel does not overstate his conscience. Also according to Wehler, scholars in England and the US still show a lot of admiration towards Rommel the military commander.^[565] Some authors, notably Wolfgang Proske, see Rommel as a criminal whose memorials should be removed, although these represent the unorthodox minority (which is admitted by Proske).^[651][652] Perry and Massari note that the majority of historians continue to describe Rommel as a brilliant, chivalrous commander.^[498][653]

Modern historians who agree with the image of the apolitical, chivalrous genius^{[654][655][656][653][657][658][659][660]} also have different opinions regarding details. Smith and Bierman opine that Rommel might be considered an honourable man in his limited way but in a deeply dishonourable cause, and that he played the game of war with no more hatred for his opponent than a rugby team captain might feel for his opposite number.^[661] Butler states that Rommel's idealistic character led to grave misjudgements because he refused to let anything compromise it, and also that although he had a sense of strategy that developed greatly during the war, he lacked a philosophy of war.^[662]

According to some modern scholars, he was much more complex than the figure that has been firmly established in post-war reputation.^[663]Caddick-Adams writes that Rommel was a 'complicated man of many contradictions,'^[664] while Beckett notes that 'Rommel's myth (...) has proved remarkably resilient' and that more work is needed to put him in proper historical context.^[284] Watson opines that historians often portray Rommel as someone they want him to be, 'coward ... hero, fool, villain or hypocrite,' and that he seemed to be all of these things, except coward, with perhaps a naive loyalty.^[665] Hansen counters that Rommel was hardly naive, always judged military and political situations with cold objectivity, and shared a lot of characteristics with Hitler,^[666] an opinion shared by psychoanalyst and historian Geoffrey Cocks who writes that Rommel 'embodies the modern synergy of technical expertise and self-promotion ... arriviste, ... professionally ambitious, adept at cultivating a mass media image ... like Hitler.'^[667]

There is also, especially in Germany, an increasing tendency to portray Rommel as someone who cannot be explained in concrete details yet. However, these modern authors, while respecting the man and his mythical aura, are not afraid to show his questionable traits or point out the horrible (including the possible) consequences of his 'politically extremely naive' actions that perhaps would not be fitting of a role model, and allow living witnesses who might portray Rommel in a negative light to speak in documentaries about him, to the extent some, like General Storbeck, consider excessive and unbalanced (Storbeck states that there are many other witnesses who will provide the opposite views, and also questions the use of an extremely ill Manfred Rommel to achieve a portrayal filmmakers want).^{[401][668][669][626][670]}

Reputation as military commander[edit]

Rommel had been extraordinarily well known in his lifetime, including by his adversaries. His tactical prowess and consistent decency in the treatment of Allied prisoners earned him the respect of many opponents, including Claude Auchinleck, Archibald Wavell, George S. Patton, and Bernard Montgomery.^[671]

Rommel's military reputation has been controversial. While nearly all military practitioners acknowledge Rommel's excellent tactical skills and personal bravery, some, such as U.S. major general and military historian David T. Zabecki of the United States Naval Institute, considers Rommel's performance as an operational level commander to be highly overrated. He argues that other officers share this belief.^{[70][N 36]} General Klaus Naumann, who served as Chief of Staff of the Bundeswehr, agrees with the military historian Charles Messenger that Rommel had challenges at the operational level, and states that Rommel's violation of the unity of command principle, bypassing the chain of command in Africa, was unacceptable and contributed to the eventual operational and strategic failure in North Africa.^{[672][N 37]} The German biographer Wolf Heckmann describes Rommel as 'the most overrated commander of an army in world history'.^[673]

Nevertheless, there is also a notable number of officers who admire his methods, like Norman Schwarzkopf who describes Rommel as a 'genius at battles of movement' and explains that 'Look at Rommel. Look at North Africa, the Arab-Israeli wars, and all the rest of them. A war in the desert is a war of mobility and lethality. It's not a war where straight lines are drawn in the sand and [you] say, 'I will defend here or die.'^[674][675]Ariel Sharon deemed the German military model used by Rommel to be superior to the British model used by Montgomery.^[676] His compatriot Moshe Dayan likewise considered Rommel a model and icon.^[677]Wesley Clark states that 'Rommel's military reputation, though, has lived on, and still sets the standard for a style of daring, charismatic leadership to which most officers aspire.'^[678] During the recent desert wars, Rommel's military theories and experiences attracted great interest from policy makers and military instructors.^[679][680] Chinese military leader Sun Li-jen had the laudatory nickname 'Rommel of the East'.^[681] The Bundeswehr and Germany's NATO partners recognize Rommel as the modern knight of the Bundeswehr, a highly successful operator of military arts and an apolitical, chivalrous soldier (with several leaders of the Bundeswehr like Helmut Willmann [de], Hartmut Bagger and Edgar Trost [de] declaring him as their personal role model). This ideal of modern knighthood is connected and combined with the anachronistic Miles Christianus model, the more recent 'Miles Protector' model,^[682] the 'Soldier-Statesman' concept, and the traditional monofunctional combatant.^[683]

Certain modern military historians, such as Larry T. Addington, Niall Barr, Douglas Porch and Robert Citino, are skeptical of Rommel as an operational, let alone strategic level commander. They point to Rommel's lack of appreciation for Germany's strategic situation, his misunderstanding of the relative importance of his theatre to the German High Command, his poor grasp of logistical realities, and, according to the historian Ian Beckett, his 'penchant for glory hunting'.^[663][538] Citino credits Rommel's limitations as an operational level commander as 'materially contributing' to the eventual demise of the Axis forces in North Africa,^{[538][N 38]} while Addington focuses on the struggle over strategy, whereby Rommel's initial brilliant success resulted in 'catastrophic effects' for Germany in North Africa.^[684] Porch highlights Rommel's 'offensive mentality', symptomatic of the Wehrmacht commanders as a whole in the belief that the tactical and operational victories would lead to strategic success. Compounding the problem was the Wehrmacht's institutional tendency to discount logistics, industrial output and their opponents' capacity to learn from past mistakes.^[685]

The historian Geoffrey P. Megargee points out Rommel's playing the German and Italian command structures against each other to his advantage. Rommel used the confused structure (the OKW (Supreme Command of the Wehrmacht), the OKH (Supreme High Command of the Army) and the Italian Supreme Command) to disregard orders that he disagreed with or to appeal to whatever authority he felt would be most sympathetic to his requests.^[686]

Some historians take issue with Rommel's absence from Normandy on the day of the Allied invasion, 6 June 1944. He had left France on 5 June and was at home on the 6th celebrating his wife's birthday. (According to Rommel, he planned to proceed to see Hitler the next day to discuss the situation in Normandy).^[687][688] Zabecki calls his decision to leave the theatre in view of an imminent invasion 'an incredible lapse of command responsibility'.^[687] Lieb remarks that Rommel displayed real mental agility, but the lack of an energetic commander, together with other problems, caused the battle largely not to be conducted in his concept (which is the opposite of the German doctrine), although the result was still better than Geyr's plan.^[689] Lieb also opines that while his harshest critics (who mostly came from the General Staff) often said that Rommel was overrated or not suitable for higher commands, envy was a big factor here.^[690]

T.L. McMahon argues that Rommel no doubt possessed operational vision, however Rommel did not have the strategic resources to effect his operational choices while his forces provided the tactical ability to accomplish his goals, and the German staff and system of staff command were designed for commanders who led from the front, and in some cases he might have chosen the same options as Montgomery (a reputedly strategy-oriented commander) had he been put in the same conditions.^[691] According to Steven Zaloga, tactical flexibility was a great advantage of the German system, but in the final years of the war, Hitler and his cronies like Himmler and Goering had usurped more and more authority at the strategic level, leaving professionals like Rommel increasing constraints on their actions.^[692]Martin Blumenson considers Rommel a general with a compelling view of strategy and logistics, which was demonstrated through his many arguments with his superiors over such matters, although Blumenson also thinks that what distinguished Rommel was his boldness, his intuitive feel for the battlefield.^[464](Upon which Schwarzkopf also comments 'Rommel had a feel for the battlefield like no other man.'^[693])

Joseph Forbes comments that: 'The complex, conflict-filled interaction between Rommel and his superiors over logistics, objectives and priorities should not be used to detract from Rommel's reputation as a remarkable military leader', because Rommel was not given powers over logistics, and because if only generals who attain strategic-policy goals are great generals, such highly regarded commanders as Robert E. Lee, Hannibal, Charles XII would have to be excluded from that list.^[694] General Siegfried F. Storbeck, Deputy Inspector General of the Bundeswehr (1987–1991), remarks that, Rommel's leadership style and offensive thinking, although carrying inherent risks like losing the overview of the situation and creating overlapping of authority, have been proved effective, and have been analysed and incorporated in the training of officers by 'us, our Western allies, the Warsaw Pact, and even the Israel Defense Forces.'^[401] Maurice Remy and Samuel W. Mitcham both defend his strategic decision regarding Malta as, although risky, the only logical choice.^{[N 39][N 40]} Mitcham also takes note of the fact that the British C-in-C actually feared that the German leadership would embark on Rommel's strategic plans regarding the Suez Canal instead of that of Hitler.^[697]

Rommel was among the few Axis commanders (the others being Isoroku Yamamoto and Reinhard Heydrich) who were targeted for assassination by Allied planners. Two attempts were made, the first being Operation Flipper in North Africa in 1941, and the second being Operation Gaff in Normandy in 1944.^[698]

Family life[edit]

While at Cadet School in 1911, Rommel met and became engaged to 17-year-old Lucia (Lucie) Maria Mollin (1894–1971).^[22] While stationed in Weingarten in 1913, Rommel developed a relationship with Walburga Stemmer, which produced a daughter, Gertrude, born 8 December 1913.^[699] Because of elitism in the officer corps, Stemmer's working-class background made her unsuitable as an officer's wife, and Rommel felt honour-bound to uphold his previous commitment to Mollin. With Mollin's cooperation, he accepted financial responsibility for the child.^[700] Rommel and Mollin were married in November 1916 in Danzig.^[22] Rommel's marriage was a happy one, and he wrote his wife at least one letter every day while he was in the field.^[22]

After the end of the First World War, the couple settled initially in Stuttgart, and Stemmer and her child lived with them. Gertrude was referred to as Rommel's niece, a fiction that went unquestioned due to the enormous number of women widowed during the war.^[701] Walburga died suddenly in October 1928, and Gertrude remained a member of the household until Rommel's death in 1944.^[702] A son, Manfred Rommel, was born on 24 December 1928, later served as Mayor of Stuttgart from 1974 to 1996.^[703]

Awards[edit]

• Military Merit Order (Württemberg)^[705]
• Iron Cross 2nd Class on 24 September 1914 and 1st Class on 29 January 1915^[706]
• Pour le Mérite on 18 December 1917^[707]
• Clasp to the Iron Cross 2nd Class on 13 May 1940 and 1st Class on 15 May 1940^[708]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds
  • Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 27 May 1940 as commander of the 7th Panzer-Division^[709]
  • Oak Leaves (10th recipient) on 20 March 1941 as commander of the 7th Panzer-Division^[709]
  • Swords (sixth recipient) on 20 January 1942 as commander of the Panzer Group Afrika^[709]
  • Diamonds (sixth recipient) on 11 March 1943 as commander in chief of the Army Group Afrika^[709]
• Italian Gold Medal of Military Valour in February 1942^[710]
• Knight of the Colonial Order of the Star of Italy in February 1942^[710]

Posthumous honours[edit]

The German Army's largest base, the Field Marshal Rommel Barracks, Augustdorf, is named in his honour; at the dedication in 1961 his widow Lucie and son Manfred Rommel were guests of honour.^[711] The Rommel Barracks, Dornstadt, was also named for him in 1965.^[711] A third base named for him, the Field Marshal Rommel Barracks, Osterode, closed in 2004. A German NavyLütjens-class destroyer, Rommel, was named for him in 1969 and christened by his widow; the ship was decommissioned in 1998.^[712]

Numerous streets in Germany, especially in Rommel's home state of Baden-Württemberg, are named in his honor, including the street near where his last home was located. The Rommel Memorial was erected in Heidenheim in 1961. The Rommel Museum opened in 1989 in the Villa Lindenhof in Herrlingen;^[713] there is also a Rommel Museum in Mersa Matruh in Egypt which opened in 1977, and which is located in one of Rommel's former headquarters; various other localities and establishments in Mersa Matruh, including Rommel Beach, are also named for Rommel.^[714] The reason for the naming is that he respected the Bedouins' traditions and the sanctity of their homes (he always kept his troops at least 2 kilometers from their houses) and refused to poison the wells against the Allies, fearing doing so would harm the population.^[715]

In Italy, the annual marathon tour 'Rommel Trail', which is sponsored by the Protezione Civile and the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia through its tourism agency, celebrates Rommel and the Battle of Caporetto. The naming and sponsoring (at that time by the center-left PD) was criticized by the politician Giuseppe Civati in 2017.^[716][717]

References[edit]

Informational notes

1. ^'Indeed, the soldiers of the 'Ghost Division' and its partner in crime, 5th Panzer Division, committed numerous atrocities against French colonial troops in 1940, murdering fifty surrendered non-commissioned officers and men at Airaines.'^[106]
2. ^'On 7 June, a number of soldiers of 53eme Regiment d'Infanterie Coloniale were shot, probably by troops of the 5th Panzer Division, following their surrender after a spirited defense in the area of Airaines, near Le Quesnoy. Similar acts had also been perpetrated by soldiers of Rommel's 7th Panzer Division on 5 June against the defenders of Le Quesnoy. Rommel noted in his own account that 'any enemy troops were either wiped out or forced to withdraw'; at the same time he also provided the disparaging (but possibly somewhat contradictory in light of his first note) observation that 'many of the prisoners taken were hopelessly drunk.'^[107]
3. ^In Hangest-sur-Somme, some captured Tirailleurs and a French second lieutenant were shot by Germans in black uniforms, most likely members of Rommel's 7th Panzer Division^[110]
4. ^23 to 28 November according to Mellenthin.^[164]
5. ^As recounted by Luck in his memoirs, Rommel commented to his wife that he wished Hitler had given him another division instead.^[187]
6. ^Lieb: Of course, Rommel did not conceive all these devices himself ... His engineer general Wilhelm Meise once called Rommel 'the greatest engineer of the Second World War.^[254]
7. ^Earle Rice, historian and senior design engineer in aerospace and nuclear industries: he would add all manner of ingenious obstacles and impedance devices to the anticipated landing areas. But ... shortages of concrete and other materials and insufficient time prevented him from completing the Atlantic Wall to his satisfaction.^[255]
8. ^Zaloga, historian and military technology expert: Rommel and his headquarters developed a variety of obstacles to interfere with landing craft. This was Rommel's single most important contribution to the defense of the Normandy coast ... Rommel's pet project, the coastal obstacles, had proven to be one of the most successful innovations in the German defenses.^[256]
9. ^Ruge: 'He did not adhere rigidly to details ... was very open to new ideas and very much interested in technical progress. He grasped the significance of an improvement or an invention very quickly and often added to it. When a new device had been suggested to him during the evening, it was not unusual for Rommel to phone the proposer early the following morning with a proposal of his own which was a definite improvement'. Dihm: 'Therefore a complete series of instructions were issued. These instructions were partly devised by the Generalfeldmarschall himself and were accompanied by sketches drawn by him. They dealt mainly with the erection of obstacles on the beaches. It was intended to join these barriers to form a continuous line'^[250]
10. ^'Burgdorf had with him copies of the interrogations of von Hofacker, von Stülpnagel and Speidel, along with a letter written by Keitel ostensibly dictated by Hitler himself. In the letter, the Führer gave Rommel an impossible choice: if he believed himself innocent of the allegations against him, then Rommel must report to Hitler in person in Berlin; refusal to do so would be considered an admission of guilt ... There was no mention of Rommel's case first being put to the Wehrmacht's Court of Honor, a curious omission if Rommel were indeed being brought to book as part of von Stauffenberg's conspiracy.'^[352]
11. ^Rommel's words, from Maisel's reminiscences: 'I will see the consequences. I have forgotten myself.'
12. ^Lieb: 'Rommel's internal opponents could not hide their satisfaction as the events were unfolding' (Lieb 2014, p. 122).
13. ^Pimlott: His qualities of leadership were high. He cared about his men and was determined from the start of his fighting career to master the tactical skills that would enable them to survive ... it was obvious from the start that Rommel was a cut above the majority of his contemporaries ... The 'Desert Fox' was a genuine hero, revered not just for his personal bravery in battle but also for his apparent ability to outfight a succession of enemy generals, many of whom enjoyed numerical and even technological superiority ... his record ... undoubtedly raised him to the status of a potential saviour of the Fatherland.^[390]
14. ^According to Lewin, in 1933 when Rommel became commander of a Hanoverian Jaeger battalion, which was composed of soldiers with skiing expertise, its officers gave him the mandatory test on the snow slopes. No lift was present, and the men had to climb to ski down the hillside. They trudged to the top and descended, and honour was satisfied, but the 41-year-old commander led his officers up and down the slope twice more before he let them fall out.^[425]
15. ^Spiegel quoted Goebbels: 'Rommel is amazingly popular with the troops, German and Italian. He is almost a mythical figure.' ^[7]
16. ^Mitcham's Life and Death of the Afrika Korps: 'OKW sent an order ... spoke of numerous German 'political refugees' (that is, Jews) ...
17. ^Remy:'On 8 August 1914, ... Rommel discovered that he had unusual charisma ... This effect (he had on the troops) would become the fundamental element of Mythos Rommel.',^[529]
18. ^Der Spiegel: 'The Wehrmacht had many capable generals ... but none had the charisma of the Swabian with that distinctive round head.'^[7]
19. ^Majdalany: Rommel was, among other things, clever at public relations.^[531]
20. ^Niall Barr: '... came to fame in a theatre which held almost no strategic interest for Hitler whatsoever.'(Barr 2014, p. 60). Martin Kitchen: 'German historians have largely ignored the North African campaign, not only because it was peripheral ...'(Kitchen 2009, p. 9).
21. ^Peter Caddick-Adams: 'Rommel's advances over the winter 1941–42 became a very useful distraction away from Germany's failure before Moscow.'^[540]
22. ^Quote from one of Rommel's letters, January 1942: 'The opinion of me in the world press has improved.'^[544]
23. ^Peter Lieb: 'Hitler was well aware that it would be unwise (...) to link the downfall of Army Group Africa to the name of Rommel, the child of Joseph Goebbel's propaganda machinery.'^[550]
24. ^ Robert Citino: 'His career had been based solely on Hitler's favor, and we might reasonably describe his attitude toward the Führer as worshipful.' ^[538]Peter Caddick-Adams: 'As is now clear, Rommel had been very close to Hitler and the Third Reich ...'^[572]
25. ^ Charles Messenger: 'He [Rommel] did receive one present that pleased him. He had sent Hitler a meticulously prepared diary of his division's exploits and received a letter of thanks just before Christmas. 'You can be proud of your achievements', Hitler wrote.'^[576]
26. ^Klaus Naumann: 'Rommel was used by the Nazi regime to create a myth. He tolerated this since he had a strong dose of personal ambition and vanity.'^[569]
27. ^ Maurice Remy: '... Rommel wollte bleiben, was es war: ein Mann der Truppe.'^[585]
28. ^ Kubetzky: 'Politics-wise, he has nothing but fantastic conceptions.' (Goebbels' diary, after the assassination)^[605]
29. ^ Erwin Rommel: 'During the whole of this period my bitterest enemy was Goering. I think he wanted to get me sacked in order to realise his own plans in North Africa.'^[616]
30. ^ Erwin Rommel: 'I was not very happy at the prospect of having to go on playing whipping-boy for the Fuehrer s H.Q, the Commando Supremo and the Luftwaffe.'^[174]
31. ^'The masks he wore reflected the genuine plurality of the man'^[627]
32. ^Martin Kitchen: 'Early biographies, such as that by Desmond Young, were positively adulatory.'(Kitchen 2009, p. 9).
33. ^Patrick Major: 'Young had relied extensively on interviews with the Field Marshal's surviving widow, son, and former comrades so that the positive picture that emerged is perhaps hardly surprising. Yet the overall effect bordered on hagiography.'^[641]
34. ^Kitchen: 'The North African campaign has usually been seen, as in the title of Rommel's account, as 'War without Hate,' and thus as further proof that the German army was not involved in any sordid butchering, which was left to Himmler's SS. While it was perfectly true that the German troops in North Africa fought with great distinction and gallantry, (...) it was fortunate for their subsequent reputation that the SS murderers that followed in their wake did not have an opportunity to get to work.'^[492]
35. ^Spiegel Online: 'Gentleman warrior, military genius. The legend of Erwin Rommel, the German Field Marshal who outfoxed the British in North Africa, lives on.'^[650]
36. ^According to David T. Zabecki, Rommel's insubordination also played a role, leading to a calamitous misuse of resources when Rommel went over the head of his superior, Field Marshal Albert Kesselring, to appeal directly to Hitler to approve an assault on Egypt instead of occupying Malta, as Kesselring and OKW were planning.^[70]
37. ^Klaus Naumann: 'Rommel's way out in Africa—bypassing the chain of command by seeking direct access to Hitler—must never be taken as an example to be followed.' This allowed him to achieve some tactical victories, but this contributed to eventual operational and strategic failure in North Africa.^[672]
38. ^Robert Citino: '[Rommel's] disinterest in the dreary science of logistics, his love of action, his tendency to fly off to wherever the fighting was hottest—all of these qualities (...) are problems in a commander under modern conditions, and they all contributed materially to the disaster that ultimately befell him and his army in the desert.'^[538]
39. ^Remy: Kesselring, ... in his memoirs that criticizes the five year younger and much more popular Rommel, ... he already knew at least since the war's end about American arms shipment and intention to intervene which would render the strategical value of Malta meaningless, that left Rommel only one choice ...^[695]
40. ^Mitcham: General Warlimont of the High Command later wrote that he 'could in any case hardly have acted differently' in ordering the pursuit. General Warlimont and Rommel were not exactly the best of friends ... If this man, a member of OKW in Berlin, endorsed Rommel's decision after the fact, then the logic behind the decision must have been compelling. With American industrial production beginning to make itself felt, while Germany bled herself white on the Russian Front, any chance of scoring a decisive victory had to be taken.^[696]

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589. ^Er war blind in dieser Hinsicht [He was blind in this regard] (in German). Südwestrundfunk (SWR). 2012. Retrieved 15 June 2016. Rommel tried to remain a 'mere' soldier and thus becoming blind to the moral dimension of his actions.
590. ^ ^abWatson 1999, p. 169.
591. ^ 'Patton And Rommel: Men of War in the Twentieth Century' - Dennis Showalter - 2006 'This, he declared, was war as Frederick the Great's cavalry generals had waged it. Seydlitz and Ziethen had led from the front and exploited fleeting opportunities to win tactical victories. Modern generals must do the same thing at the operational level, with tanks replacing horses.'
592. ^Brouwer, Jaap Jan (2009). Met Rommel in Noord-Afrika. Aspekt. p. 20. ISBN978-90-5911-614-6.
593. ^Brighton 2008, p. 5.
594. ^Caddick-Adams 2012, p. 427.
595. ^Mitcham 2014, p. 6.
596. ^Remy 2002, p. 42.
597. ^Butler 2015, p. 112.
598. ^Remy 2002, p. 327.
599. ^Marshall 1994, p. 199.
600. ^Butler 2015, p. 516.
601. ^Seewald, Berthold (2011). 'Der Krieg um Hitlers Lieblingsgeneral Erwin Rommel'. Die Welt. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
602. ^Butler 2015, p. 240.
603. ^Seewald, Berthold (21 December 2008). 'Erwin Rommel, Held der 'sauberen Wehrmacht''. Die Welt. Retrieved 15 June 2016.
604. ^Kubetzky, Thomas (2010). 'The mask of command': Bernard L. Montgomery, George S. Patton und Erwin Rommel. ISBN978-3-643-10349-9.
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606. ^Pyta 2015, pp. 502–521.
607. ^Goebbels, Joseph (1994). Die Tagebücher von Joseph Goebbels: Diktate 1941–1945. Juli-September 1942, Volume 2. K.G. Saur. pp. 177–180. ISBN978-3-598-21920-7.
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625. ^Remy 2002, p. 9, 12.
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645. ^Major 2008, p. 526.
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682. ^Däniker 2002, p. 117.
683. ^vom Hagen 2014, pp. 183–184.
684. ^Addington 1967.
685. ^Porch 2004, p. 206.
686. ^Megargee 2000, p. 97.
687. ^ ^abZabecki March 2016.
688. ^Lieb 2014.
689. ^Lieb, 2014 & 131-132.
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692. ^Zaloga, Steven J. (20 July 2012). D-Day 1944 (2): Utah Beach & the US Airborne Landings. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN978-1-78200-147-8.
693. ^Marshall, Charles F. (15 September 2017). Discovering the Rommel Murder. ISBN978-0-8117-4278-8.
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695. ^Remy 2002, p. 107.
696. ^Mitcham 2007, p. 139.
697. ^Mitcham 2009, p. 154.
698. ^Moorhouse 2007, pp. 157–158.
699. ^Butler 2015, p. 32.
700. ^Butler 2015, pp. 32–33.
701. ^Butler 2015, p. 101.
702. ^Butler 2015, pp. 33, 104.
703. ^Butler 2015, p. 546.
704. ^Finklestone 2013, p. 16.
705. ^Butler 2015, photos after p. 240.
706. ^Fraser 1993, p. 43.
707. ^Butler 2015, p. 561.
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710. ^ ^abButler 2015, p. 315.
711. ^ ^abUwe Walter, Die Strukturen und Verbände des deutschen Heeres, vol. 1, 2017
712. ^Wolfgang Harnack: Die Zerstörerflottille der Deutschen Marine von 1958 bis heute. Koehlers Verlagsgesellschaft, Hamburg 2001, ISBN3-7822-0816-1
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714. ^Michael Haag, Egypt, p. 394, New Holland, 2004, ISBN9781860111631
715. ^Samir, Salwa (2 September 2017). 'Egypt revamps cave museum devoted to Nazi general'. Al-Monitor. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
716. ^ERT – Erwin Rommel Trail. 'History'. www.rommeltrail.it. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
717. ^Consiglio Regionale Friuli Venezia Giulia - Gruppo Partito Democratico (3 October 2017). 'Corsa Rommel Trail: Boem (Pd), Civati solleva caso per gusto polemica'. Consiglio Regionale Friuli Venezia Giulia - Gruppo Partito Democratico. Retrieved 8 October 2017.

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Further reading

• Bierman, John; Smith, Colin (2002). The Battle of Alamein: Turning Point, World War II. ISBN978-0-670-03040-8.
• Chambers, Madeline (2012). 'The Devil's General? German film seeks to debunk Rommel myth'. Reuters. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
• Citino, Robert (2007). Death of the Wehrmacht: The German Campaigns of 1942. University Press of Kansas. Archived from the original on 6 October 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2016.Cite uses deprecated parameter |dead-url= (help)
• De Lannoy, Francois (2002). Afrikakorps, 1941–1943: the Libya Egypt Campaign. Bayeux: Heimdal. ISBN978-2-84048-152-2.
• Gibson, Charles M. (2001). 'Operational Leadership as Practiced by Field Marshall Erwin Rommel During the German Campaign in North Africa 1941–1942: Success of Failure?'(PDF). Naval War College. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
• Greene, Jack; Massignani, Alessandro (1994). Rommel's North Africa Campaign: September 1940 – November 1942. Conshohocken, PA: Combined Books. ISBN978-1-58097-018-1.
• Kelly, Orr (2002). Meeting the Fox: The Allied Invasion of Africa, from Operation Torch to Kasserine Pass to Victory in Tunisia. New York: J. Wiley. ISBN978-0-471-41429-2.
• Kriebel, Rainer; Gudmundsson, Bruce I (1999). Inside the Afrika Korps: The Crusader Battles, 1941–1942. London: Greenhill. ISBN978-1-85367-322-1.
• Latimer, Jon (2001). Tobruk 1941: Rommel's Opening Move. Oxford: Osprey Military. ISBN978-1-84176-092-6.
• Lieb, Peter (16 March 2018). Krieg in Nordafrika 1940-1943. Ditzingen: Reclam, Philipp. ISBN9783150111611.
• Marshall, Charles F. (1994). The Rommel Murder: The Life and Death of the Desert Fox. Stackpole Marshall Books. ISBN978-0-8117-2472-2.
• Pyta, Wolfram (14 April 2015). Hitler: Der Künstler als Politiker und Feldherr. Eine Herrschaftsanalyse. Siedler Verlag. ISBN978-3-641-15701-2.
• Robinson, James R. (1997). 'The Rommel Myth'. Military Review Journal. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
• Samuels, Martin (2017) 'Erwin Rommel and German Military Doctrine, 1912–1940' War in History v.24 n.3 pp. 308–35
• Thompson, Julian (2011) [2008]. Dunkirk: Retreat to Victory. New York: Arcade. ISBN978-1-61145-314-0.
• Windrow, Martin (1976). Rommel's Desert Army. Osprey. ISBN978-0-85045-095-8.

External links[edit]

Supreme Commander Forged Alliance Forever

• Works by or about Erwin Rommel at Internet Archive
• Erwin Rommel. Biography.com
• Neitzel, Sönke (2005), 'Rommel, Eugen Johannes Erwin', Neue Deutsche Biographie (NDB) (in German), 22, Berlin: Duncker & Humblot, pp. 23–24; (full text online)
• Works by or about Erwin Rommel in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• 'Defeating the Desert Fox': Video on YouTube, via the official channel of The National WWII Museum; session by Nigel Hamilton at the 2012 International Conference on World War II
• 'Erwin Rommel 1891–1944'. LeMO at Deutsches Historisches Museum (in German). Retrieved 13 May 2016.
• Newspaper clippings about Erwin Rommel in the 20th Century Press Archives of the ZBW

Supreme Commander Units