100 Historical Stories That Unlock Teenage Wisdom

Chapter 82 9 "Desert Fox" Ingeniously Wins

Chapter 89 "Desert Fox" Ingeniously Wins
——Soldiers who do not follow the rules do not tire of cheating, and should learn to be flexible when appropriate, and cannot stick to the rules. Take some new measures, and there is hope for victory.

Rommel was a famous general of Nazi Germany. In World War II, he participated in and commanded important battles such as attacking Poland, Western Europe, North Africa and fighting the Normandy landing. From 1941 to 1943, he served as the commander of the German Expeditionary Force in North Africa and defeated the superior British army many times.Because of his vigilance and cunning in combat, and his ability to win by surprise, he is known as the "Desert Fox".

One day in March 1941, a grand military parade was being held on the square in front of the government building in Tripoli, the capital of Libya, the capital of Italian North Africa.Surrounded by the crowd, Rommel waved to the powerful armored troops from time to time. In December 3, the British army retreating to Egypt launched a counterattack against the Italian army. The unprepared Italian army was caught off guard and collapsed thousands of miles away. North Africa was in a hurry.At the invitation of Mussolini, Hitler sent Rommel to lead this tank-based army on an expedition to Africa.

The review lasted for several hours. Tanks drove past the reviewing stand in batches, roaring deafeningly, passing through the main street and crowds of onlookers, and heading east to the front line.A few days later, a British reconnaissance plane spotted Rommel's tank group east of Tripoli. Five or six hundred tanks were arranged in a row, with command vehicles and refueling vehicles passing through it.Apparently, the powerful German tank corps was on the way to resupply, and it seemed that a large-scale attack on the British army was imminent.The intelligence was quickly transmitted to the British Middle East Command in Cairo by British spy personnel and reconnaissance planes in Tripoli.The British army standing on the front line of Agra was flustered, and they were defeated after a little contact.Rommel's army pursued for two weeks, advanced 800 kilometers, surrounded Tobruk, the strategic stronghold of the British army in North Africa, and pushed towards Egypt.

In fact, the British army was fooled by Rommel. In the spring of 1941, Hitler was planning a large-scale invasion of the former Soviet Union, and the number of tanks that could be transferred to North Africa was extremely limited.The large-scale review in Tripoli was exactly Rommel's trick.He let a tank regiment of the only 2nd Armored Division at that time pass repeatedly in front of the reviewing stand, bluffing and deceiving British spies.Most of the tanks found by the reconnaissance plane were fake, some were carefully camouflaged trucks, and some were models made of wood and cardboard.This is how the cunning "Desert Fox" deceived the British with fakes.

Not long after, the British army retreating to Egypt received a large number of reinforcements and began to launch a counterattack code-named "Tomahawk Plan" against the German army.The British army is full of confidence this time, not only because they have figured out the true strength of Rommel's African Army, but also because most of the more than 200 tanks emergency aid to North Africa are Matilda heavy tanks known as "indestructible".The 37mm anti-tank guns used by the German army at the time were powerless against this tank.

On June 6, hordes of Matilda tanks went straight to the Halfaya Pass, which borders the Mediterranean Sea.This is the only passage to Libya, guarded by German troops.By capturing this mountain pass, the British army could break the siege of Tobruk, go straight to Libya, and defeat the German army.There was a flat river in front of the Halfaya Pass, and the Matilda tanks spewed flames and flocked to the pass. The German tanks had weak firepower, and victory was within easy reach.Suddenly, there was a continuous loud noise in front of the German position, and the five British tanks rushing to the front were immediately paralyzed in the sea of ​​fire.Before they could retreat in time, a row of artillery shells hit, and six more vehicles were immediately reported for destruction.In the three days of fierce fighting in front of the Halfaya Pass, the British army lost a total of 15 Matilda tanks, and the "Tomahawk Operation Plan" went bankrupt.

What kind of artillery did the Germans use?The British were puzzled.A captured British major demands to see the secret tank-destroying weapon.The result surprised him. Rommel used the German 88mm anti-aircraft guns to shoot flat, destroying these "indestructible" behemoths of the British army.Facing the 88mm anti-aircraft gun, the major yelled angrily: "It's so unfair, you actually use the anti-aircraft gun that hits the plane to hit our tank!"

Wisdom Interpretation:

Under the rules, people tend to form a mindset.At this time, if you break this thinking pattern and play cards not according to the rules, you will gain the upper hand. "Desert Fox" Rommel let the tank go around during the military parade and hit the tank with anti-aircraft guns. He did not follow the "rules" of using weapons. As a result, the British army was dizzy.

Learn to be flexible and break the rules to achieve goals more easily.

(End of this chapter)