1942
Retreat to El Alamein
After Tobruk falls to Axis forces, Ritchie's Eighth Army retreats eastward toward El Alamein.
Historical place archive
Browse historical events and people recorded at El Alamein in Great Britain. The records below are rendered directly from the World History Database into this page's initial HTML.
After Tobruk falls to Axis forces, Ritchie's Eighth Army retreats eastward toward El Alamein.
Holds the Axis advance at El Alamein, preventing Rommel from breaking through toward Alexandria and the Suez Canal.
Auchinleck halts Rommel's advance at the First Battle of El Alamein, gaining time for the defence of Egypt.
The First Battle of El Alamein ends with the Axis advance checked and the Allied line intact.
Rejects preparations for further retreat and orders Eighth Army to hold the Alamein position.
Refuses pressure for an early offensive while Eighth Army is still training and accumulating supplies.
Masses artillery to support infantry corridors through the Axis minefields at the start of the offensive.
Supports deception measures intended to disguise the timing and main direction of the coming Alamein offensive.
Montgomery issues final plans for the Eighth Army's offensive before the Second Battle of El Alamein.
Directs Desert Air Force support for Montgomery's offensive at El Alamein, helping secure the canal route.
Launches an attack at El Alamein to stop the Axis advance toward the Suez Canal.
Launches the El Alamein offensive that turns back the Axis threat to Egypt and the Suez Canal.
Montgomery launches a diversionary attack in the southern sector on the opening night of the battle.
Montgomery launches the Second Battle of El Alamein with coordinated attacks by XXX Corps and XIII Corps.
Commands XIII Corps in the southern diversion during the opening of the Second Battle of El Alamein.
Leese's XXX Corps leads the infantry assault in the northern sector at the opening of the Second Battle of El Alamein.
Orders the principal infantry assault in the north to open routes through Axis defensive belts.
Begins Operation Lightfoot, the infantry and artillery opening phase of the Second Battle of El Alamein.
Maintains pressure in the south to hold Axis formations away from the decisive northern sector.
Montgomery confirms that the breakout effort must continue despite stubborn Axis resistance.
Continues the battle despite slow progress, using artillery and infantry to wear down Axis reserves.
Chooses a more northerly sector for the final breakout operation against the weakened Axis line.
Coordinates air support and interdiction during the decisive armoured breakout at El Alamein.
Montgomery's offensive forces Rommel's army into retreat during the Second Battle of El Alamein.
Commands X Corps armoured formations during Operation Supercharge at the Second Battle of El Alamein.
Leads 7th Armoured Division during the breakout phase of the Second Battle of El Alamein.
Leese's XXX Corps supports the breakout during the closing phase of the Second Battle of El Alamein.
Launches Operation Supercharge to break through the Axis position west of El Alamein.
Presses the offensive as Axis armoured strength falls to a fraction of its original level.
Montgomery's offensive reduces the Axis armoured reserve to a small number of serviceable tanks.
Eighth Army breaks the Axis front and begins the pursuit westward across Egypt and Libya.
The British armoured formations break through the Axis front as the Second Battle of El Alamein nears its decision.
Uses the phrase, Before Alamein we never had a victory. After Alamein we never had a defeat.
Attends the 50th anniversary of the Battle of El Alamein.
Provenance
These entries are generated from stored World History Database records whose country and place fields match Great Britain and El Alamein. Names, dates, event labels and descriptions are reviewed and normalised as the database develops. Historical place names may not match modern administrative boundaries.
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