Action at Bir el Gubi (December 1941)

On 18 November 1941, the British Eighth Army began Operation Crusader, which was intended to relieve Tobruk, defeat the Axis armoured divisions and push the German and Italian forces out of Cyrenaica. The British tanks and motorised infantry made a sweeping flanking movement, did not go as expected for the British. The 22nd Armoured Brigade was repulsed by the 132nd Armored Division "Ariete" at Bir el Gubi on 19 November.^[4][5]

Despite inflicting heavy blows on the British during Operation Crusader, by 1 December the Axis forces were becoming exhausted and depleted by the battle of attrition in which the British were bringing up fresh troops. According to Ken Ford, [the] "Eighth Army was maintaining its strength whilst Rommel's command was being whittled away. The German commander now saw his chances of victory fading fast".^[6]

The "Ariete" Division was part of XX Corps (CAM Corpo d'Armata di Manovra) which was the most mechanised and best equipped of the two Italian Corps fighting around Tobruk. CAM had a reconnaissance force attached to it, called RECAM. This included on its strength, the Battalion Group "Giovani Fascisti"; two infantry battalions of volunteer Fascist students, who according to Ian Walker, were fanatical, well-trained and properly equipped. The Battalion Group was deployed at two positions north-west of Bir el Gubi, Point 174 and Point 182. CAM headquarters informed them on 3 December there was intelligence they would be attacked the following day.^[7][8]

In early December 1941, the Allies planned a fresh attempt to breakthrough to Tobruk and the commander of XXX Corps positioned the 11th Indian Brigade, 22nd Guards Brigade and 4th Armoured Brigade near Bir el Gubi.^[9] The 11th Indian Infantry Brigade, supported by 16 Valentine tanks and artillery, was to attack Points 174 and 182, where they were expecting light resistance. After a night march, their attack began on the morning of 4 December, with the 2nd Battalion of the 5th Mahratta Light Infantry, supported by 13 tanks, taking Point 182 "with ease" (according to Murphy) and 250 Giovani Fascist surrendered.^[10] At Point 174, the defenders inflicted a costly defeat; initially from the 2nd Battalion of the Cameron Highlanders supported by 3 tanks and later by the Mahrattas.^[11]

The 4th Armoured Brigade was ordered by Army headquarters to move 20 mi (32 km) to the east, after reports of Axis troop movements elsewhere. This would leave the 11th Indian Infantry Brigade vulnerable should Axis tanks arrive in force. On 5 December, 49 tanks from the 15th Panzer Division and the 21st Panzer Division broke through the Mahrattas and linked up with the Italian defenders. In the afternoon of 6 December, the commander of the 15th Panzer Division, Major-General Neumann-Silkow, was mortally wounded, then the evening saw what Murphy described as an "inconclusive mêlée".^[12]

On 7 December, British tanks arrived and the remnants of the 11th Indian Brigade were withdrawn, with 22nd Guards Brigade taking over their positions. The Indian brigade went into reserve and was then withdrawn for rebuilding.^[13] Ian Walker wrote that Battalion Group "Giovani Fascisti" that "The stubbornness of their two-day defence against superior forces came as a complete surprise to the British, and would become one of the epics of the campaign".^[14] While the action near Bir el Gubi was an Axis victory, it did not change the course of Operation Crusader, as on 6 December Rommel ordered a fighting retreat. The Tobruk garrison was relieved and by the end of the month Cyrenaica was captured for a second time by the British. ^[15]

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