I have been a volunteer in the Italian Army in 2003/4 in the Alpini Corps (mountain troops). My barracks were just under Monte Matajur and, during training we followed backwards the roads Rommel made during WWI. Cheers folks!!!
Why brave? I don't think he was brave. He had the bad luck of being sent in a far away land to fight a war that he didn't even know for which reason was fought and the good luck of coming out of this mess alive, with a brother less but alive. I have never met him, he died before I was born but I am pretty sure he would have said the same thing I am saying you now. We italians we don't like heroes, we like people smart enough to stay alive :-)
It stands up so well that the tactics he pioneered are still common practice for most militaries in the western world (support by fire, fire and maneuver, complimentary supporting arms)
Fax, his tactics are still taught world wide, my dad is very smart (great chess player) and when he did military service almost 30 years ago in Sweden he had to take the mandatory IQ test, then they decided that he was very much qualified to study military strategy, he did, he remembers averything and one thing sticks out, he has taught me everything about Rommel. Know a lot about Rommel, military genius.
+James Donaldson Erwin Rommel was one of the "good Germans" of ww2. In ww2 he died on the order of defiance of Hitler. In the desert he had treated prisoners with kindness, even a British commando group tasked of assassinating him
Rommel and his battalion were captured by the Italians soon after his victory at Mount Matajur. Some German generals wanted Rommel court martialed and executed for losing an entire battalion, but he had good contacts that intervened saving his life. Rommel instead was confined to a desk job as punishment for losing three companies. That is why he saw no more action. His defeat has been covered-up by mainstream historians. Just google the defeat of his battalion and his capture, brutal interrogation and lucky escape across a freezing river.
Yes he was captured & brutally interrogated, but he managed to escape 24 hours later. Rommel fell into the hands of the 4th Bersaglieri Brigade & would've been shot in any other army for losing three full machinegun companies captured in the Bersaglieri counterattack. Please awake from your self-induced coma & study all sources, not just the copy & paste jobs that is your WW2 collection of books.
Love the comment about the reverence for Rommel as an enemy. My father was an American paratrooper who fought from Casablanca to Berlin.In his many stories, Rommel and the German parachute infantry were his "favorite" adversaries. He always had a smile of admiration for their skill and daring.
+Mike Romney Thanks for the correction, Mike. My father has been dead for nearly 40 years and the stories still play in my head, but like old black and white film. I am constantly digging for info and clarification of some of those memories. He probably said Berlin as a general location for a young boy who revered a quiet warrior.
Sure, I know what you wanted to say. Dont take my "correction" to seriously...Before the war was ended, the direction was naturaly the capital of the enemy...
+Mike Romney Yup, it's all good. But I just did some checking, and prior to my father's transfer to the 101st for the extra points to be mustered out, he served in the occupation force in Berlin. Just another place to "Strike and Hold!"
Manny, if you are asking if he fought Italians, the answer is yes, but he didn't talk as much about them. His issue with the Italians is that one never knew what side they were fighting for or against. He thought Sicily and southern Italy were beautiful. He didn't care much for the mountains.
Most people don't think of him as a 'bad guy' because he treated the POW's well in WW2 and also because he opposed what the SS was doing, seems like a good general that just did what he needed to do.
+Tech Showdown I wouldn't call him good or bad really. He just respected human life like an normal human being would. What was special about him was he respected human life in a regime that did not do the same and he was one of the few important enough to openly disagree with the regime he lived under without major consequences.
+Evan Nelson He denied to be a part of it. He's just a soldier simply following commands in his own way, which is why he hated/doesn't want to be in the political scene. In the end he was blamed as such. Thus, he was killed by the order of the man he simply followed orders from. He is truly a "Knight".
Rommel really was a soldier in the truest definition, courage, decisiveness and still great care for the men under his command. Not to mention his anti-Hitler sentiments in WWII, can't really fault the man.
Oh, it would have been awkward? Well that's okay then... I'm not saying that it would've been an easy decision - even for a civilian, choosing to leave your country for political reasons is hardly a simple thing to decide upon. But I don't see why this man should be lauded for assisting the Nazi war machine. At best, he's just a morally grey non-entity.
Bumbling Brit It seems perhaps the context and meaning of my comment was lost slightly. Maybe it was my wording, what I meant is that you can't really fault the man as a soldier. He was dutiful, honourable, took care of his men, he had initiative (as shown during the battle of France in 1940) and he resisted Hitler. Also most generals, if I am correct, were unaware of the holocaust and death camps etc therefore it seems unfair to chastise him for being part of something when he had no knowledge of it.
+Markus Grant before hitler ordered rommel's death, rommel was made aware of hitler's desire to capture and kill jewish prisoners and was ordered to do so in france but refused, this being one of the things such as the bomb plot that led to his execution
War has a tremendous cost on Humanity. In-spite of the animosity and fervor of war, Rommel conducted his work with as much regard for human life as possible. I see a man of peace who did not shy from war, and I think that is the most anyone could ask for.
+dogboy0912 Calling him a man of peace is a little weird, but shit was he a respectable hero. From my perspective, he is the greatest German I can think of.
Rommel was a great man. Beyond his time. My Great Grandfather fought in North Africa with the Gordon Highlanders regiment and eventually went on to Italy and the likes of Monte Cassino. I was too young to really understand what he would say about the war, but one thing he made very clear was his, and many others, respect for Erwin Rommel. Apparently Rommel would order German supplies and medicine to be used to help Allied PoWs who were injured, refused many orders directly from Hitler to execute prisoners and took no part in supposed Nazi idealogy. There was one story he used to tell about how the Afrika Corps were retreating after El Alamein and they happened to stumble upon an ANZAC medical centre. He personally entered the centre and asked if they needed any supplies of which he would take from his armies own. Apparently they said yes after the initial shock of the enemy Field Marshall standing before them, and being the great man he was he gave them all he could before continuing to retreat. It's horrible what happened to him and such a man should never have suffered such a fate.
The worst part is that even though he wasn't a Nazi, and if he were to die, wanted no sort of Nazi imagery at his funeral. However, the Nazis made sure to have Swastikas everywhere at his funeral, including draping his coffin in the National flag. Truly a big "F*** you" to a great general who loved his country and not the party.
My grandpa fought as a Italian tanker in the Afrika corps and never lost respect for Rommel. The funny thing was is that when Rommel was sent out of Africa he automatically surrendered. Typical itlalian am I right
Underground Sounds Sometime in the 1960s. This isn't a joke anymore, it's been proven: The Hitler bunker had an escape tunnel, Hannah Riech flew a Storch into Berlin hours before the Russian got to the Hitler bunker, and flew out with a 'unidentified' passenger. It's known the skull fragments the Russians claim are Hitler's are from a 22-28 year old female. And, the group that hid Hitler in Argentina have been openly admitting what they did for years. It's just been dismissed as a hoax. It isnt, he lived to old age.
Without doubt the best episode until now and probably also when this project completes. Summarizing Rommel in 9 minutes is difficult and you guys did a terrific job. Also, I greatly enjoyed the recognition you gave to Rommel and the comment that everybody respected Rommel. Here's a general who truly respected the art of war and who almost became the art of war himself.
I've personnally read Infantry Attacks and Rommel was very insightful. He would probably be suprised to see how much of his book was adopted by modern U.S. infantry.
***** Unlike Rommel, US armour troops fought in asimetric war there. It isn't that hard when you have sirious armour and logistics advantage. And of course, huge air suport. When Rommel fought British in Africa, he lacked all of those, except his Panzers were technologicaly superior. Everything else, numbers, logistics, air suport... was against him.
+Daniel Frakes You might already know this, but I thought I'd share with others. When the US Army awoke from its hangover after Vietnam, it found itself facing a massive Soviet army in Europe. Faced with the prospsect of a massive armored war, the entire US ground establishment started seriously studying German wehrmacht doctrine. (While it would not be cool for them to admit this, the Israelis already were.) So, in the US Army, as well as in the Marine Corps infantry, German terms and doctrines started showing up in journal articles and training manuals in the late 70s and early 80s. And, indeed, the battle plan of Desert Storm can be fairly directly traced to this. It could have come from Rommel himself. In fact, I wrote a paper arguing that it was nearly exactly the same battle plan as Rommel employed at Gazala in N. Africa.
+afghaaj The word is "asymmetric" warfare, and Desert Storm was not "asymmetrical". And, Rommel had one more advantage over the British and Americans. He had mobile wireless communication with his subordinate commanders.
wait a sec.... Rommel and he's platoon capture 9000 men and only took 6 dead and 37 wounded ? that guy has to be the best commander of the great war and ww2 PS: great show. greetings from Colombia
+Danox94 Yeah, as long as you weren't being deployed anywhere where you'd depend on his famously terrible logistics skills, like northern Africa. "Hey, let's massively overextend our reach. Who cares that there's only one decent road in the whole region that we can move supplies on? Tripoli's the only port we have? So what? I'm sure that'll be good enough. Tanks don't need that much fuel, right?" No doubt he was better as an infantry commander that didn't have such concerns.
Strangely enough Indy, my grandfather was in the Royal Air Force in North Africa too. However, he wasn't a pilot, only a builder, and helped to build the runway at Malta airport (the little one beside the modern runway.) I remember him always giving the "Desert Fox" and the German troops high praise. Small world ain't it, huh?
You should take the word 'only' out of your post. Your grandfather 'did his bit' and that is all that can be asked of any man be him Private or Field Marshall. 👍
I walked through the trenches that Erwin Rommel won from the the Italians after the Battle of Caporetto. I visited the museum in Kobarid dedicated to him and his exploits in northern Slovenia. It was quite an experience.
Its not to suprising due to Preussias past as military state, the unification with that legacy and the formation of a state driven by a militaristic ideal. I mean german society was that of the military at the time. They also focused much on science, education and was driving in many areas. This was thanks to their economic side of things and ability to finance. Theres also of course a bit of luck/fate that some of the best scientist of the world would be born in germany. But the militarisied society also drove military inventions, these inventions could later be brought to civilian usage. As to why specifically equipment, tactics originated from germany has much to do with the regions past, Preussia as the unifiying force and its culture that it would embedd within the unified germany at the time, despite it early on being very fractured still. Theres more to it of course much more but its not so suprising, the money, the education system, the driving force behind it and the craftmanship was there.
its all physics, that and breaking the enemy, why fight all of them when you can fight 10% of them and take 90% prisoner. He also had a huge advantage of being able to make decisions and starting WW1 as a LT, not be thrown into the fire by an idiot miles behind the lines.
Ian Babcock Yes, you're right. The Germans always used forward thinking, building towards a future conflict instead of fighting the last. This forward thinking always gave Germany an edge. That being said, there were a few German Generals that didn't get it, but most did.
Probably because the war in North Africa was the "cleanest" of all the theatres of war during WW2. There were almost no civilian casualties, battles took place on open fields, fighting rarely devolved into dirty hand to hand street fighting (Stalingrad) and the rules of conduct concerning captured POWs were largely upheld.
Most of the soldiers who fought for Rommel in the African front were Italians. Rommel said I quote"The German soldier was the wonder of the wold.The Italian soldier is the wonder of the German soldier."
Rian O'Canain That's a pithy quote, but the Fall of France took six weeks, and those Frenchmen were supported by tens of thousands of UK soldiers, as well as British tanks, trucks, artillery and aircraft, so why an Irishman would think a Frenchman would find that to be anything but mutually insulting is beyond me.
zakback99 had hitler actually been a competent military strategist he could've easily defeated the udssr. But instead he made the same mistakes napoleon did
these videos are awesome, the wording, history, and everything about these videos are so amazing. It's inspiring me to learn even more about the Great War, keep up the awesome work guys
+Michael Winarso _____ I agree. While I had been looking forward to the episode with Rommel, I did already know quite a bit about his doings in the Great War. I have absolutely no idea what von Manstein did in WW I, and would love to hear about him.
Towards the end of the Gulf War. Bradley Fighting Vehicles were sent to pick up General Officers to discuss cease fire terms. the ramp went down. The Generals got on board and the ramp went up. One General noted that there was a picture of Field Marshall Romel inside the Bradley. The General asked. Why do you have a picture of your enemy in your vehicle ?. the Commander said. If you had studied him. I'd be in the back of your Vehicle !.
+steven romero - That was McMaster's Squadron. I recall an interview where he told that story. It was his driver that responded with something along the lines of "Shut the f@#$ up. If you had studied more history, you wouldn't be sitting in the back of my track right now." I was in 1-4 Cavalry for a tour just after he left command.
***** They never really experienced wars like your country or mine has. Like Argentina and Britain. They had a large well equipped force. The Brit's had been throuhg some hell and knew how to bring on a fight. Old saying in Texas. It's not the size of the dog in the fight. It's the size of the fight in the dog !.
+Don Ascanio If they do make a series about the second World War I would assume it would make more sense starting in September of 2019. It would be a bit early sure but the crew would be all still there (compared to 20 years) and from a business point of view also the audience.
I was expecting this video SO MUCH! When reading about this hateless soldier's life, I was a little disappointed that his service during WW1 wasn't more known. Now, the Great War team have achieved just that; much obliged, you guys! :)
Hi Indy,wonderful production with regards to Rommel..My late Grandfather,whom was in the 7th Indian Division (RA) ,8th Army, said exactly the same about the Desert fox and Afrika Korp..and told many funny,and more serious, tales with regards to North Africa and captured German POW`S... again, thanks again for another great episode ..
my grandfather (ex luftwaffe scholar - we're austrian) told me he met a man just a few years ago who told him he was stationed at one of the military airports in paris during ww2 working as a cook. (having to provide rations and monitor the amount of calories per soldier) and in the in the days before rommels convoy was hit by british airforce this airport was closed to everybody but a few people who worked there including him and other logistically important figures. he told my grandfather that in these days he saw a british blenfield and some spitfires plus some obviously german soldiers dressed as british pilots. just after the attack on rommel those planes where nowhere to find and the airport opened again for regular german soldiers. i know that sounds incredible and it could all be the imagination of a fan of rommel but just in case this was true it would significantly change the point of view on the relationship between hitler and rommel the months before rommel was forced to poison himself. anyone could tell me where to search for clues about this?
British Typhoons and Tempests, which looked somewhat like the P-47, were also called Jabos by Germans. The plane that attacked Rommel's car fired 20mm cannon, a shell hitting the dashboard and fatally wounding the driver, which makes it likely it was a British or Dominion aircraft. Most Americans used .50 machine guns.
679 likes and 0 dislikes........This is why this channel is awesome :D and "Noice"... Good job guys for teaching us history better than school. ...Greeting from Tunisia...
God I love Rommel and Infantry Attacks, I've read it three times. It's so interesting I highly suggest it, and I've been able to apply a lot of what he mentioned in Milsim Airsoft. Truly an inspirational man.
Rommel as always been one of my favorite generals, good to see that the man was just as good when he was an officer in the Great War. Thank you for this video.
+Mike Blair rofl, numbers are the key to winning a war. If Germany had the manpower and soldiers, it could easily fight 2 fronts and hold them. However it was faced against the allies on the west and russians in the east. Each of them had significant manpower to fuel its war machine. Think of this situation, Germany military strength during ww2 would be 50 million strong soldiers vs allies of 20 mil, and russians of 20 mil. Do you think Germany at that stage would be able to fight the war on two fronts by dividing 25 mil to east and 25 mil to west.
Two of my grandparents absolutely hated Germany during the second world war because they thought that they were fully responsible for the first one but my grandfather told me that when he was fighting in Africa he saw in Rommel a true gentleman with honour (that's because he had learned what he also did in the first world war but also in the second).
Your lectures are always interesting. The one on Rommel is exceptional. I always watch your channel at lunch, and my boredom disappears! Rommel seems to have perfected small unit tactics that were so integral to modern warfare. Keep up the good work.
Outstanding episode!!! I'm slowly watching each prior episode in the series till I catch up and this is probably the single best episode you have made. Many thanks!
Infantry Attacks is a great read! I suggest it for anyone who is interested in WW1. Rommel's fights in Romania, and in Italy are particularly interesting.
Another excellent episode! Thanks for all the hard work you put into these. My grandfather was a horse artilleryman at the battle of St. Miheal with the 5th Div., and my great uncle was killed in France serving as an infantryman with the 28th Div. You are doing a great service by educating people about the Great War, especially since kids (in the US at least) aren't taught much about it these days.
There are no shortcuts in achieving success, you always have to do the grind (experience) to reach the top. Rommel was indeed one of the best generals in history. 👍👍
Good video, but tiss slightly inaccurate at points. For instance, when Rommel first observed the Frenchmen lounging around having chow, he notified the three men with him that he was going to fire, and then did. Buuuuut, the French didn't disperse, they suffered some losses, took up defensive positions and returned fire. This woke the rest of the garrison which poured out of the adjacent buildings, Rommel realizing the error in rushing the town with only four men promptly withdrew to where he'd ordered his platoon to wait. In short, he didn't disperse the Frenchmen, he attacked with only four men (including himself), realized his mistake, withdrew, then attacked in platoon strength. This caveat is important, because if you make a video about a military genius like Rommel, any and everyone who views it will assume that he was just naturally good at the art of war. But much like life, the development of his genius was comprised of a series of learning lessons, progressing from a tactically impulsive youth, to a cautious but highly aggressive seasoned soldier. Without imparting the necessity that the art is learned through experience or reading, how can one expect one another to learn it?
Also, a bit less important than the prior point. While the mountain troops were "elite", they were mostly just normal soldiers trained to operate in mountainous environments. They weren't exactly the creme de le crop like later sturmtroopers were, but their effectiveness was massively enhanced by the tactical (not strategic!!!, his strategic competence doesn't show until the later battles he participated in.) prowess of their leader.
+mountplusBladeequals Rommel and his men (the other three)did not attacked the French position... They just reconnoitered to determine the French disposition and strength before his men (in platoon size) can attack in an organized matter (as much as they could, having some disadvantage though at that encounter). In WW2, Rommel was known for commanding his men in front, most of the time with the reconnaissance units to see for himself the enemy's strengths and weaknesses (as I've said).
+mountplusBladeequals Rommel and his men (the other three)did not attacked the French position... They just reconnoitered to determine the French disposition and strength before his men (in platoon size) can attack in an organized matter (as much as they could, having some disadvantage though at that encounter). In WW2, Rommel was known for commanding his men in front, most of the time with the reconnaissance units to see for himself the enemy's strengths and weaknesses (as I've said).
He was also know as being a loyal German, not a Nazi. It was discovered that he was involved in an assassination attempt on Hitler and when it didn't work he was told to "fall on his sword". A great man in every sense of the word.
I learned more about WWI in three episodes of The Great War than I did in four years of high school history! Never got near it in college. Thanks a million Indie.
Seriously. If you have any inclination to read Infantry Attacks, throw Indy a bone and buy it. It's a truly fantastic read. As much a textbook as it is a memoir, It is truly illustrative of just how tough one had to be to endure soldiering in those days.
Really happy you covered this one. I especially like how add the personal life of the men in your videos. They were men fighting for their country, friends or those below them in rank. Great 1st world war channel!
Dear people of The Great War, This is a fantastic project and well worth the very considerable effort I'm sure it takes; you're making the world a better place! Seriously. I have a request. Having just watched this one on Rommel I wonder if you could do one on the guy who later became his opposite number i.e. Bernard Law Montgomery. I know he served in the trenches and got shot through the lungs at one point, but not much else. He's known as a defensive general (is that true? you can't 'defend' your way onto the beaches at Normandy through France and into Germany). How much of the later war years' battlefield tactics did he soak up? What did he learn that he took into the second world war? I be ridiculously grateful if you could do a short video on him in WW1.
I read 4 books about him. he was one of the best Generals. strategy, and tactics, fair but firm with his troops and Pow's. he was respected by his enemies. was almost always on the front line, and did a lot of his own Recon with his own plane. Rommel , & Patton two of my most favorite generals.
I was just scrolling down my home youtube page writing the letters of some song and then with the corner of my eye i've seen the thumbnail of this video and by mistake i had press enter so i was thinking (omg is that The Desert Fox on The Great War xD ) And came back here . Good luck further , Indi ! ;)
Will Kettle no just no, got to be kidding me. Montgomery was god dam terrible, only won due to very strong defensive positions and overwhelming resources. Without those Rommel would of trashed the over rated Montgomery easily.
>hey rommel, can you hold a very defensible location in tunisia? >wus dat? attack the brits on all fronts? ok! >no rommel we nee- >shiet i lost all of my battles can i pls have 1000000000 reinforcements >no we have another front opening up and w- >fucking useless nazi command
+Chao Wingching Hongfingshong PingPangPong Monty isn't Overrated he was a fine commander with a good respect for his men and he was respected by them however he does have one flaw...he wasn't Rommel indeed Rommel himself said that Monty "never made a serious strategic mistake"
Fantastic episode! His book INFANTRY ATTACKS is a masterpiece and a must read for anyone interested in tactics and the fundamentals of leading men. The book is worth reading more than once, it's amazing the small details you can miss the first time. Best regards, Indy.
Because the smart thing was to fight and die? Because there was more honor in death? These video series should teach us all that military glory is a romantic tale and nothing more. I understand that your comment was a light hearted jest but lets be frank at this point in the war with generals butchering their own men in the hundreds of thousands im sure almost all of us would surrender given the opertunity. Men are men their nationality means little.
I forget who said that catch 22 is the only book about war that ever made any sense. The smart want to leave by mimicing the crazy but the crazy want to stay.
+jottXD I think you may have misread my reply. But thankyou for relivig me of the stress of trying to figure out who said that in the book; would have fliped through it if i brought it to uni woth me
ive read romels book "infantry attacks" and its a fascinating read! the way he handled a company of infantry was more like a special operations unit than a regular infantry company.
Excellent episode! Rommel was a decent fellow. Here's some interesting facts from Wikipedia: Rommel is regarded as having been a humane and professional officer. His Afrika Korps was never accused of war crimes, and Allied soldiers captured during his Africa campaign were reported to have been treated humanely. Orders to kill Jewish soldiers, civilians and captured commandos were ignored. Later in the war, Rommel was indirectly linked to the conspiracy to assassinate Adolf Hitler. Because Rommel was a national hero, Hitler desired to eliminate him quietly. He forced Rommel to commit suicide with a cyanide pill, in return for assurances that Rommel's family would not be persecuted following his death. He was given a state funeral, and it was announced that Rommel had succumbed to his injuries from an earlier strafing of his staff car in Normandy. Both Hitler & Himmler were nobodies during WWI who progressed into power-hungry evil in later years. Rommel was a good guy who should have survived the war.
Off-duty Afrika Korps soldiers sometimes victimised the Tunisian Jewish community, including sexual assaults on women and girls. Afrika Korps didn't have a different ethos from German troops elsewhere in the war. On the whole the North Africa campaign was fought over terrain without civilians, and in war all armies victimise civilians to one degree or another, so the relatively "clean" nature of most North Africa fighting is down to relatively few civilians being present.
The 51st Division yes he was also later assigned to the general staff corps. History isnt always supposed to be dramatic to be interesting... learning about this mans early life can greatly impact our understanding of his later decisions
+The 51st Division Back when communications was done by cable, it was actually quite dangerous, as artillery fire would shred the cable and investigative parties had to be sent out to locate and fix the problem. I mean, yeah, you probably won't be making a run-of-the-mill Hollywood movie out that job, and let's face it, signalists are only challenged in stupidity and sluggishness by artillerymen. Mortar crews, on the other hand, are the pride of any military. Sincerely, A mortarman
And there we are! So glad to see this episode after I recommended it last year, I'm glad you got the rights to do this too. Fantastic Episode for a fantastic soldier
I like the stories of Rommel. It takes a pretty standup guy for Winston Churchill to stand up and say to a war-torn country that one of the enemy was the last of a breed of gentlemen soldiers.
I have a book with Rommel's hand written report of that hill battle including an illustration of the positions and advance in his own hand ... was a fascinating page to find
+Sanjuro Hanamizuki It is amazing a Japanese (I assume you are) and a Costa Rican (who I happen to be) and all these other guys from who knows how many different countries share this fascination for Rommel. Lucky you for having such document.
+Agent Camtho disarm then and that's probably enough. Most of the soldiers were probably more reliefed than anything , when their commanders surrendered, knowing they don't have to fight anymore. So those few , who would have the spirit to fight can't do anythign against rifles and even bayonets and the other one don#t want to anymore.
+Agent Camtho I heard a story that went around in the bataillion where I had my basic military training, that a few years before some commandos had an infiltration training with my bataillion: They were six guys, and the bataillion was around 120 young boys and girls in their basic military training. Well, actually, they were warned that the commandos were about to strike that night, but the commandos still managed to get them all captured without the alarm beeing sounded. You know how they tied them? With their own hands and legs into the fence of the stairs in that building... so yes, the real tough guys don´t need a rope^^
Considering most of the praise for Rommel came from british generals who were recieving a brutal pasting at his hands, and at the hands of the Italian troops he led, I wouldn't overestimate his abilities too much. Rommel was always sent to secondary fronts. If he truly was the strategic and tactical genius they said he was, he'd have been sent to the Eastern front. I find it sad that generals of the calibre of Von Manstein, Hoth, Guderian and Model are forgotten, while the only one to fight and beat british forces is remembered.
I cant speak for his actions in WW1 (im not educated enough on it to say anything) but in WW2 Hitler and his Nazi politics played a role in his placement or why his ideas for normandy defense were not used. Hitler would often go against his military commanders judgement . From what ive heard hitler really liked rommel but had to distance himself since other commanders thought he was a spoiled child so to speak and Erwin did not believe in needles killing of human beings so you could imagine. How the closer hitler got the further apart him and erwim would become. If Erwin was British or American im sure he would be well known and celebrated.
wood1155 He fought what was in the end a war against an opponent equal in numbers, while recieving constant supplies from Sicily. It was a stalemate for 2 and a half years. The generals on the eastern front fought against seemingly inexhaustible numbers with overstretched supply lines. I'm not saying that Rommel wasn't a good general, but he was comparable to many excellent german officers of his day. The reason he was and is so well known is that the british needed a boogey-man/worthy opponent to explain their defeats in Africa and would never credit the italians. This is why his figure is so well-endowed by the british, particularly by Winston Churchill and british propaganda. They even gave him a scary sounding nickname. Rommel's contemporaries in the Wermacht were slightly less gushy in their praises. Meanwhile the other defeats the British suffered during the war are forgotten, the suffering, struggles and stories of the soldiers on both sides fallen by the wayside. My issue is not with Rommel per se, but with the masterful british propaganda. Goebbels was nothing in comparison.
+Tom J How are Guderian and von Mannstein forgotten? Just look at our comment section here, they are also highly requested. And if you see Rommel's legacy in terms of infantry tactics, he might deserve some of the praise at least.
The Great War I agree that Rommel was a good leader, no question. Even a great one. But he has a romanticism and a glamour built up around his personality that seems to stem primarily from his enemies, much like the Romans constantly praised their enemies only to make themselves look good when they finally defeated them. Rommel never managed a decisive victory in the field against the british and basically bled his forces dry chasing them across the desert. While some could argue that the nature of desert warfare precluded a victory and forced a stalemate, surely a tactical genius of Rommel's supposed calibre would have been able to come up with something different to the very same strategy his british adversaries were using. Instead, the African campaign turned into a slugging match, right up until the americans took Rommel in the rear. If it wasn't for them, the Second El-Alamein would have turned out much like the First. Any failure on Rommel's part was quickly blamed on the italians, while Rommel himself was only too happy to abandon non-german soldiers to desperate rear-guard holding actions with little water and supplies. Most of which were issued to the germans in any case. It's tempting to see history through a romantic lens, and it's part of the reason why we love it. But history also needs objectiveness at times. Rommel's mistique was dreamed up by Churchill, who needed a convincing excuse to put before Parliament as to why he wasn't winning in Africa.
It wasn't just his daring and tactical brilliance that won him the respect of the British in WW2, it was his personal insistence on the fair treatment of civilians and prisoners of war; even POWs of Jewish heritage.
![Ghost Division - Rommel's 7th Panzer Division - Sabaton History 073 [Official]](/img/1.gif)
"Shed sweat, not blood" I like that quote
+Wilhelm von Laer "Sweat saves blood, blood saves lives and brain saves both." - Rommel
Wilhelm von Laer I believe that was a Sun Tzu quote as well.
Wilhelm von Laer shed pounds;not friends...Richard Simmons.
so do I
THAT is the smartest thing I've heard from any WWI officer this entire series!
I have been a volunteer in the Italian Army in 2003/4 in the Alpini Corps (mountain troops). My barracks were just under Monte Matajur and, during training we followed backwards the roads Rommel made during WWI. Cheers folks!!!
oh cool what a unique experience!
***** i am making pasta now my tovarish !!! My granpa fought in Russia in WWII
Stalingrad but not in the city, on the right flank of the Axis lines...along the Don River
Why brave? I don't think he was brave. He had the bad luck of being sent in a far away land to fight a war that he didn't even know for which reason was fought and the good luck of coming out of this mess alive, with a brother less but alive. I have never met him, he died before I was born but I am pretty sure he would have said the same thing I am saying you now. We italians we don't like heroes, we like people smart enough to stay alive :-)
+Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Johannes Eugen Rommel aka. The Desert Fox don't try to speak German, please.
"Infantry Attacks" deserves a place alongside "The Art of War", and, "On War".
It stands up so well that the tactics he pioneered are still common practice for most militaries in the western world (support by fire, fire and maneuver, complimentary supporting arms)
Fax, his tactics are still taught world wide, my dad is very smart (great chess player) and when he did military service almost 30 years ago in Sweden he had to take the mandatory IQ test, then they decided that he was very much qualified to study military strategy, he did, he remembers averything and one thing sticks out, he has taught me everything about Rommel. Know a lot about Rommel, military genius.
Thank you :3
that just might be my favorite episode so far
thanks
+The Great War ya that was an exceptionally good episode you should do more on stormtroopers/comando groups and how they effected the war.
Same here
+James Donaldson Erwin Rommel was one of the "good Germans" of ww2. In ww2 he died on the order of defiance of Hitler. In the desert he had treated prisoners with kindness, even a British commando group tasked of assassinating him
+Brandon Yuan Yeah, Ive been to his hometown but he was a great general, not evil.
No joke I am addicted to this channel
+The VSO Gun Channel Get your fix every Monday, Thursday and Saturday.
This show is my cocaine!
I LOVE learning about war
@@TheGreatWar hey do u still make videos
One company camptured 7000 - 9000 men, that a whole division... This man is crazy...
Rommel and his battalion were captured by the Italians soon after his victory at Mount Matajur. Some German generals wanted Rommel court martialed and executed for losing an entire battalion, but he had good contacts that intervened saving his life. Rommel instead was confined to a desk job as punishment for losing three companies. That is why he saw no more action. His defeat has been covered-up by mainstream historians. Just google the defeat of his battalion and his capture, brutal interrogation and lucky escape across a freezing river.
Source please? I can't find it.
Keiser Sior I didn't quite believe it that's why I tried to make sure.
Yes he was captured & brutally interrogated, but he managed to escape 24 hours later. Rommel fell into the hands of the 4th Bersaglieri Brigade & would've been shot in any other army for losing three full machinegun companies captured in the Bersaglieri counterattack. Please awake from your self-induced coma & study all sources, not just the copy & paste jobs that is your WW2 collection of books.
Gino Vanelli And once again. I said I can't find it so please provide a source.
He captured OVER 9000!
we shouldn't talk about capture but about salvation...a prisoner's life expectations were far higher than the infantryman's ones
+richard reeves 9000???
richard reeves this man is legendary, a true leader and military folklore
richard reeves Great vid
Yup rasputin
Love the comment about the reverence for Rommel as an enemy. My father was an American paratrooper who fought from Casablanca to Berlin.In his many stories, Rommel and the German parachute infantry were his "favorite" adversaries. He always had a smile of admiration for their skill and daring.
+George Stephens
Not Berlin, but Torgau...^^
+Mike Romney
Thanks for the correction, Mike. My father has been dead for nearly 40 years and the stories still play in my head, but like old black and white film. I am constantly digging for info and clarification of some of those memories. He probably said Berlin as a general location for a young boy who revered a quiet warrior.
Sure, I know what you wanted to say. Dont take my "correction" to seriously...Before the war was ended, the direction was naturaly the capital of the enemy...
+Mike Romney
Yup, it's all good. But I just did some checking, and prior to my father's transfer to the 101st for the extra points to be mustered out, he served in the occupation force in Berlin. Just another place to "Strike and Hold!"
Manny, if you are asking if he fought Italians, the answer is yes, but he didn't talk as much about them. His issue with the Italians is that one never knew what side they were fighting for or against. He thought Sicily and southern Italy were beautiful. He didn't care much for the mountains.
Most people don't think of him as a 'bad guy' because he treated the POW's well in WW2 and also because he opposed what the SS was doing, seems like a good general that just did what he needed to do.
+Tech Showdown I wouldn't call him good or bad really. He just respected human life like an normal human being would. What was special about him was he respected human life in a regime that did not do the same and he was one of the few important enough to openly disagree with the regime he lived under without major consequences.
+Isaac Sorrels For his time, i am going to throw it out there he was good, He was part of the group that tried to kill hitler!
+Isaac Sorrels you sound like an idiotic redditor - 'respected human life like an normal human being'
+Lt_Joker but he did order the ghost battalion to murder POWs in the battle of France
+Evan Nelson He denied to be a part of it.
He's just a soldier simply following commands in his own way, which is why he hated/doesn't want to be in the political scene.
In the end he was blamed as such.
Thus, he was killed by the order of the man he simply followed orders from.
He is truly a "Knight".
Rommel really was a soldier in the truest definition, courage, decisiveness and still great care for the men under his command. Not to mention his anti-Hitler sentiments in WWII, can't really fault the man.
sandran17 Aye.
But Germany had a super strong officer tradition, doing something like that would be disgraceful as fuck.
Oh, it would have been awkward? Well that's okay then...
I'm not saying that it would've been an easy decision - even for a civilian, choosing to leave your country for political reasons is hardly a simple thing to decide upon. But I don't see why this man should be lauded for assisting the Nazi war machine. At best, he's just a morally grey non-entity.
Bumbling Brit It seems perhaps the context and meaning of my comment was lost slightly. Maybe it was my wording, what I meant is that you can't really fault the man as a soldier. He was dutiful, honourable, took care of his men, he had initiative (as shown during the battle of France in 1940) and he resisted Hitler. Also most generals, if I am correct, were unaware of the holocaust and death camps etc therefore it seems unfair to chastise him for being part of something when he had no knowledge of it.
+Markus Grant before hitler ordered rommel's death, rommel was made aware of hitler's desire to capture and kill jewish prisoners and was ordered to do so in france but refused, this being one of the things such as the bomb plot that led to his execution
War has a tremendous cost on Humanity. In-spite of the animosity and fervor of war, Rommel conducted his work with as much regard for human life as possible. I see a man of peace who did not shy from war, and I think that is the most anyone could ask for.
+dogboy0912 Calling him a man of peace is a little weird, but shit was he a respectable hero. From my perspective, he is the greatest German I can think of.
@@VintageLJ Eh, he was certainly one of the great Germans, but i´d rate Oscar Schindler and John Rabe over him in matters of greatest
Rommel was a great man. Beyond his time. My Great Grandfather fought in North Africa with the Gordon Highlanders regiment and eventually went on to Italy and the likes of Monte Cassino. I was too young to really understand what he would say about the war, but one thing he made very clear was his, and many others, respect for Erwin Rommel. Apparently Rommel would order German supplies and medicine to be used to help Allied PoWs who were injured, refused many orders directly from Hitler to execute prisoners and took no part in supposed Nazi idealogy.
There was one story he used to tell about how the Afrika Corps were retreating after El Alamein and they happened to stumble upon an ANZAC medical centre. He personally entered the centre and asked if they needed any supplies of which he would take from his armies own. Apparently they said yes after the initial shock of the enemy Field Marshall standing before them, and being the great man he was he gave them all he could before continuing to retreat. It's horrible what happened to him and such a man should never have suffered such a fate.
Vielen Dank, mein Sohn für die Ehre. Gott sei mit Euch.
+Snake sad he was another german victim of hitler's tyranny
Sad end for Rommel.
+WintersunForever It was either to kill himself or let Hitler kill his family......he did what was moral to him.
Xero1337 i knoiw, a good man to the end
The worst part is that even though he wasn't a Nazi, and if he were to die, wanted no sort of Nazi imagery at his funeral. However, the Nazis made sure to have Swastikas everywhere at his funeral, including draping his coffin in the National flag. Truly a big "F*** you" to a great general who loved his country and not the party.
Yes it was, he didn't deserve it, but it was that or worst! He protected his wife and son!
George Semel Yep. He chose the lesser of the two evils.
Both Erwin Rommel and Milunka Savic are practically Call of Duty protagonists.
+scottski02 LMAO all they need is the health regeneration
Who says they don't...?
And cutscenes along with ear protectors or bionic ear drums.
tbh it would be so cool to include Erwin Rommel as one of the BF1 singleplayer protagonist
I know what you mean about Rommel's enemies. My father was in the desert, and he too respected the man's integrity and professionalism.
Still enjoy coming back to watch this video
Well thanks Indy. This was an excellent video. :)
Our pleasure.
Your videos are what got me into Wold War 1 history and how influential it was, so thanks
Mr. Bear Rommel wasnt a nazi
Marco Wirth same with Werner Von Braun.
Erwin Rommel I'm the better one
My English uncle was a tank commander in North Africa and likewise had nothing but respect for Rommel. He just wished Rommel had been on his side.
+Nastrael Rowe No baby crap!
+Sean Coyne Ironic since the ramifications of world war 2 with an allied victory means the end of the European race and western civilization lol.
+Tesla ...the face palm.
+Nick Jermichalesactionjackson no
My grandpa fought as a Italian tanker in the Afrika corps and never lost respect for Rommel. The funny thing was is that when Rommel was sent out of Africa he automatically surrendered. Typical itlalian am I right
I approve, P.S still hiding out in Argentina shhh
+Pyry Puustinen I don't want all the attention!
+Erwin Rommel Woah! That means your... Rougly 125 years old!
*roughly
Underground Sounds Sometime in the 1960s. This isn't a joke anymore, it's been proven: The Hitler bunker had an escape tunnel, Hannah Riech flew a Storch into Berlin hours before the Russian got to the Hitler bunker, and flew out with a 'unidentified' passenger. It's known the skull fragments the Russians claim are Hitler's are from a 22-28 year old female. And, the group that hid Hitler in Argentina have been openly admitting what they did for years. It's just been dismissed as a hoax. It isnt, he lived to old age.
Sure
Without doubt the best episode until now and probably also when this project completes. Summarizing Rommel in 9 minutes is difficult and you guys did a terrific job. Also, I greatly enjoyed the recognition you gave to Rommel and the comment that everybody respected Rommel. Here's a general who truly respected the art of war and who almost became the art of war himself.
I've personnally read Infantry Attacks and Rommel was very insightful. He would probably be suprised to see how much of his book was adopted by modern U.S. infantry.
***** Unlike Rommel, US armour troops fought in asimetric war there. It isn't that hard when you have sirious armour and logistics advantage. And of course, huge air suport. When Rommel fought British in Africa, he lacked all of those, except his Panzers were technologicaly superior. Everything else, numbers, logistics, air suport... was against him.
+Daniel Frakes You might already know this, but I thought I'd share with others. When the US Army awoke from its hangover after Vietnam, it found itself facing a massive Soviet army in Europe. Faced with the prospsect of a massive armored war, the entire US ground establishment started seriously studying German wehrmacht doctrine. (While it would not be cool for them to admit this, the Israelis already were.) So, in the US Army, as well as in the Marine Corps infantry, German terms and doctrines started showing up in journal articles and training manuals in the late 70s and early 80s. And, indeed, the battle plan of Desert Storm can be fairly directly traced to this. It could have come from Rommel himself. In fact, I wrote a paper arguing that it was nearly exactly the same battle plan as Rommel employed at Gazala in N. Africa.
+afghaaj The word is "asymmetric" warfare, and Desert Storm was not "asymmetrical". And, Rommel had one more advantage over the British and Americans. He had mobile wireless communication with his subordinate commanders.
ClockCutter I am not native English speaker, so I didn't know the right spelling. And how Desert Storm was not asymetric war?
@afghaaj
A asymmetrische war is a Guerrila-typ war, like Vietnam, Afghanistan. Desert Storm was for the most part a normal war between regular army's.
wait a sec.... Rommel and he's platoon capture 9000 men and only took 6 dead and 37 wounded ? that guy has to be the best commander of the great war and ww2
PS: great show.
greetings from Colombia
You should read his book Infantry Attacks. A lot more details on his tactical thinking there. Greetings from Berlin.
The Great War thx I will buy it and if u have In it Amazon store better I want to support the show thx
Walid Noureddin he sounded badass and well desired his rank
This is a man I would follow into battle, what a badass.
+Danox94 Well said-
+Danox94 Wouldn't freely follow *anyone* into those wars :T
+TheOtakuComrade And what is more, you had a damn good chance in surviving the battle unlike so many other Butchers that called themselves Generals.
Exacly...
''Human rights count nothing in war''
+Danox94 Yeah, as long as you weren't being deployed anywhere where you'd depend on his famously terrible logistics skills, like northern Africa. "Hey, let's massively overextend our reach. Who cares that there's only one decent road in the whole region that we can move supplies on? Tripoli's the only port we have? So what? I'm sure that'll be good enough. Tanks don't need that much fuel, right?"
No doubt he was better as an infantry commander that didn't have such concerns.
Strangely enough Indy, my grandfather was in the Royal Air Force in North Africa too. However, he wasn't a pilot, only a builder, and helped to build the runway at Malta airport (the little one beside the modern runway.) I remember him always giving the "Desert Fox" and the German troops high praise. Small world ain't it, huh?
MrComradeDave i've seen u couple times in PR . Didn't know u loved ww1 as much as i do.
You should take the word 'only' out of your post. Your grandfather 'did his bit' and that is all that can be asked of any man be him Private or Field Marshall. 👍
I walked through the trenches that Erwin Rommel won from the the Italians after the Battle of Caporetto. I visited the museum in Kobarid dedicated to him and his exploits in northern Slovenia. It was quite an experience.
The Kobarid museum is not dedicated to him but the battles on the Isonzo front. There is quite a lot of literature on him available in the museum!
It's interesting that a lot of modern military equipment and tactics originated from Germany during the two world wars.
True...
Its not to suprising due to Preussias past as military state, the unification with that legacy and the formation of a state driven by a militaristic ideal. I mean german society was that of the military at the time. They also focused much on science, education and was driving in many areas. This was thanks to their economic side of things and ability to finance. Theres also of course a bit of luck/fate that some of the best scientist of the world would be born in germany. But the militarisied society also drove military inventions, these inventions could later be brought to civilian usage.
As to why specifically equipment, tactics originated from germany has much to do with the regions past, Preussia as the unifiying force and its culture that it would embedd within the unified germany at the time, despite it early on being very fractured still. Theres more to it of course much more but its not so suprising, the money, the education system, the driving force behind it and the craftmanship was there.
***** I think he would approve of it as well, but I think he would be disappointed by the fact that we didn't go all the way to Baghdad.
its all physics, that and breaking the enemy, why fight all of them when you can fight 10% of them and take 90% prisoner. He also had a huge advantage of being able to make decisions and starting WW1 as a LT, not be thrown into the fire by an idiot miles behind the lines.
Ian Babcock Yes, you're right. The Germans always used forward thinking, building towards a future conflict instead of fighting the last. This forward thinking always gave Germany an edge. That being said, there were a few German Generals that didn't get it, but most did.
Probably because the war in North Africa was the "cleanest" of all the theatres of war during WW2. There were almost no civilian casualties, battles took place on open fields, fighting rarely devolved into dirty hand to hand street fighting (Stalingrad) and the rules of conduct concerning captured POWs were largely upheld.
Rommel also fought in France during WWII
Most of the soldiers who fought for Rommel in the African front were Italians.
Rommel said I quote"The German soldier was the wonder of the wold.The Italian soldier is the wonder of the German soldier."
"Not many Frenchmen like German tacticians, it only took them two weeks to take over your entire country."
-Commandant Pat Quinlan,
Rian O'Canain That scene was awesome.
Rian O'Canain That's a pithy quote, but the Fall of France took six weeks, and those Frenchmen were supported by tens of thousands of UK soldiers, as well as British tanks, trucks, artillery and aircraft, so why an Irishman would think a Frenchman would find that to be anything but mutually insulting is beyond me.
Sam Moon 'the british fight until the last frenchman, as usual'
~Astrid Lindgren, war diaries
zakback99 they couldnt because their military wasn't prepared for a war
zakback99 had hitler actually been a competent military strategist he could've easily defeated the udssr. But instead he made the same mistakes napoleon did
these videos are awesome, the wording, history, and everything about these videos are so amazing. It's inspiring me to learn even more about the Great War, keep up the awesome work guys
thanks
Shoulda said tanks it'd be more punny
+The Great War can you do Erich von Manstein pls he is famous german general in rusia side
+Michael Winarso _____ I agree. While I had been looking forward to the episode with Rommel, I did already know quite a bit about his doings in the Great War. I have absolutely no idea what von Manstein did in WW I, and would love to hear about him.
+Michael Winarso If we can find out what he did during WW1, why not.
I'm so happy I discovered this channel, I love history
Welcome to the show.
This guy is my hero! Thank you for doing a special on this guy :D
anass elimrani You Clearly know nothing about this man.
No actually, I do know a lot about this. Rommel wasn't the ''good nazi general'' that you think he was.
Thank you Great War, You did a respectful military legend, and I'm subscribed to a legendary channel.
He has always been one of my favorite Generals.
Towards the end of the Gulf War. Bradley Fighting Vehicles were sent to pick up General Officers to discuss cease fire terms. the ramp went down. The Generals got on board and the ramp went up. One General noted that there was a picture of Field Marshall Romel inside the Bradley. The General asked. Why do you have a picture of your enemy in your vehicle ?. the Commander said. If you had studied him. I'd be in the back of your Vehicle !.
+steven romero - That was McMaster's Squadron. I recall an interview where he told that story. It was his driver that responded with something along the lines of "Shut the f@#$ up. If you had studied more history, you wouldn't be sitting in the back of my track right now." I was in 1-4 Cavalry for a tour just after he left command.
RyansPlace Put dude in his place !. Hell yeah.
***** They never really experienced wars like your country or mine has. Like Argentina and Britain. They had a large well equipped force. The Brit's had been throuhg some hell and knew how to bring on a fight. Old saying in Texas. It's not the size of the dog in the fight. It's the size of the fight in the dog !.
***** exactly !.
+steven romero Lol I just made a similar comment about the same thing then I saw someone already posted it.
Hey Indy are you and your crew going to do a WW2 series starting in 2039?
😂😂😂😂😂
+Don Ascanio Nothing is decided, yet.
+The Great War I'll wait 23 years for that day.
+Don Ascanio If they do make a series about the second World War I would assume it would make more sense starting in September of 2019. It would be a bit early sure but the crew would be all still there (compared to 20 years) and from a business point of view also the audience.
It'd make more sense to start in 2019.
Legendary commander
I was expecting this video SO MUCH! When reading about this hateless soldier's life, I was a little disappointed that his service during WW1 wasn't more known. Now, the Great War team have achieved just that; much obliged, you guys! :)
Hi Indy,wonderful production with regards to Rommel..My late Grandfather,whom was in the 7th Indian Division (RA) ,8th Army, said exactly the same about the Desert fox and Afrika Korp..and told many funny,and more serious, tales with regards to North Africa and captured German POW`S... again, thanks again for another great episode ..
my grandfather (ex luftwaffe scholar - we're austrian) told me he met a man just a few years ago who told him he was stationed at one of the military airports in paris during ww2 working as a cook. (having to provide rations and monitor the amount of calories per soldier) and in the in the days before rommels convoy was hit by british airforce this airport was closed to everybody but a few people who worked there including him and other logistically important figures. he told my grandfather that in these days he saw a british blenfield and some spitfires plus some obviously german soldiers dressed as british pilots. just after the attack on rommel those planes where nowhere to find and the airport opened again for regular german soldiers. i know that sounds incredible and it could all be the imagination of a fan of rommel but just in case this was true it would significantly change the point of view on the relationship between hitler and rommel the months before rommel was forced to poison himself. anyone could tell me where to search for clues about this?
That's a pretty interesting story. No idea where to find out something like that.
thanks so much I'll gonna read that book.
British Typhoons and Tempests, which looked somewhat like the P-47, were also called Jabos by Germans. The plane that attacked Rommel's car fired 20mm cannon, a shell hitting the dashboard and fatally wounding the driver, which makes it likely it was a British or Dominion aircraft. Most Americans used .50 machine guns.
If Clostermann is any indication, a Spit flown in 602 Squadron is the one that shot up Rommel's staff car.
da fuq why shoot one of the best generals in your army? This story makes no sense
I have always enjoyed reading about Rommel, he appeared to be a good man both on and off the battlefield.
This account is an example of quality content, dedication, and just general awesomeness. So keep up the good work!
That magnificent bastard, I'll have to read his BOOK!!!
These videos are amazing, keep up the good work guys!
+Field Marshal Erwin Rommel Zu Befehl.
thanks for making this about Erwin Rommel i absolutely love field marshal Erwin Rommel and all that he stood for.even his enemies respected him
+subham lawrence Thanks, glad you liked him.
679 likes and 0 dislikes........This is why this channel is awesome :D and "Noice"... Good job guys for teaching us history better than school.
...Greeting from Tunisia...
+Afrika1943TUN Thanks and greetings from Berlin.
Thank you for this video!
God I love Rommel and Infantry Attacks, I've read it three times. It's so interesting I highly suggest it, and I've been able to apply a lot of what he mentioned in Milsim Airsoft. Truly an inspirational man.
Rommel as always been one of my favorite generals, good to see that the man was just as good when he was an officer in the Great War. Thank you for this video.
ya know, I kinda like the personal family story's you tell sometimes. it personalizes the war in a way that the numbers just don't do.thanx.
+Mike Blair rofl, numbers are the key to winning a war. If Germany had the manpower and soldiers, it could easily fight 2 fronts and hold them. However it was faced against the allies on the west and russians in the east. Each of them had significant manpower to fuel its war machine.
Think of this situation, Germany military strength during ww2 would be 50 million strong soldiers vs allies of 20 mil, and russians of 20 mil. Do you think Germany at that stage would be able to fight the war on two fronts by dividing 25 mil to east and 25 mil to west.
+BeefSoda you missed his point by a full 100%
Bucephalus 1 congratulations, you played yourself.
He's referring to "numbers" as using statistical figures for storytelling, not strategical or tactical factors like manpower, equipment, or resources
Two of my grandparents absolutely hated Germany during the second world war because they thought that they were fully responsible for the first one but my grandfather told me that when he was fighting in Africa he saw in Rommel a true gentleman with honour (that's because he had learned what he also did in the first world war but also in the second).
The only and original "Magnificent Bastard"!!
Your lectures are always interesting. The one on Rommel is exceptional. I always watch your channel at lunch, and my boredom disappears! Rommel seems to have perfected small unit tactics that were so integral to modern warfare. Keep up the good work.
Outstanding episode!!! I'm slowly watching each prior episode in the series till I catch up and this is probably the single best episode you have made. Many thanks!
It was also one of our favourites to produce.
This is definitely the best episode, Rommel is legendary
You guys started great, and just get better and better! I love this channel so much!
Awesome episode on the legendary Rommel!
+Sir Henrique Maximo Thanks.
Infantry Attacks is a great read! I suggest it for anyone who is interested in WW1. Rommel's fights in Romania, and in Italy are particularly interesting.
I've been waiting for this one, oh and now I'm a patreon supporter!
That's really great, thanks.
Another excellent episode! Thanks for all the hard work you put into these. My grandfather was a horse artilleryman at the battle of St. Miheal with the 5th Div., and my great uncle was killed in France serving as an infantryman with the 28th Div. You are doing a great service by educating people about the Great War, especially since kids (in the US at least) aren't taught much about it these days.
thats a man who commands respect, and remember he was a proud german but not a nazi, huge difference
There are no shortcuts in achieving success, you always have to do the grind (experience) to reach the top. Rommel was indeed one of the best generals in history. 👍👍
I'm new to this channel. My buddy told me to check it out. After one video. Instant sub.
Welcome to the show!
Good video, but tiss slightly inaccurate at points. For instance, when Rommel first observed the Frenchmen lounging around having chow, he notified the three men with him that he was going to fire, and then did. Buuuuut, the French didn't disperse, they suffered some losses, took up defensive positions and returned fire. This woke the rest of the garrison which poured out of the adjacent buildings, Rommel realizing the error in rushing the town with only four men promptly withdrew to where he'd ordered his platoon to wait.
In short, he didn't disperse the Frenchmen, he attacked with only four men (including himself), realized his mistake, withdrew, then attacked in platoon strength.
This caveat is important, because if you make a video about a military genius like Rommel, any and everyone who views it will assume that he was just naturally good at the art of war. But much like life, the development of his genius was comprised of a series of learning lessons, progressing from a tactically impulsive youth, to a cautious but highly aggressive seasoned soldier. Without imparting the necessity that the art is learned through experience or reading, how can one expect one another to learn it?
Also, a bit less important than the prior point. While the mountain troops were "elite", they were mostly just normal soldiers trained to operate in mountainous environments. They weren't exactly the creme de le crop like later sturmtroopers were, but their effectiveness was massively enhanced by the tactical (not strategic!!!, his strategic competence doesn't show until the later battles he participated in.) prowess of their leader.
+mountplusBladeequals Rommel and his men (the other three)did not attacked the French position... They just reconnoitered to determine the French disposition and strength before his men (in platoon size) can attack in an organized matter (as much as they could, having some disadvantage though at that encounter). In WW2, Rommel was known for commanding his men in front, most of the time with the reconnaissance units to see for himself the enemy's strengths and weaknesses (as I've said).
+mountplusBladeequals Rommel and his men (the other three)did not attacked the French position... They just reconnoitered to determine the French disposition and strength before his men (in platoon size) can attack in an organized matter (as much as they could, having some disadvantage though at that encounter). In WW2, Rommel was known for commanding his men in front, most of the time with the reconnaissance units to see for himself the enemy's strengths and weaknesses (as I've said).
Imagine having a misfire and having to charge 3 people with a bayonet by yourself. Intense.
He was also know as being a loyal German, not a Nazi. It was discovered that he was involved in an assassination attempt on Hitler and when it didn't work he was told to "fall on his sword". A great man in every sense of the word.
Yup:
I learned more about WWI in three episodes of The Great War than I did in four years of high school history! Never got near it in college. Thanks a million Indie.
+John Desseau Great we could help.
Seriously. If you have any inclination to read Infantry Attacks, throw Indy a bone and buy it. It's a truly fantastic read. As much a textbook as it is a memoir, It is truly illustrative of just how tough one had to be to endure soldiering in those days.
I can vouche for this. I really liked his book
Really happy you covered this one. I especially like how add the personal life of the men in your videos. They were men fighting for their country, friends or those below them in rank. Great 1st world war channel!
+Mamurai Thanks, we think both perspectives are important the big and the small one.
Dear people of The Great War, This is a fantastic project and well worth the very considerable effort I'm sure it takes; you're making the world a better place! Seriously.
I have a request. Having just watched this one on Rommel I wonder if you could do one on the guy who later became his opposite number i.e. Bernard Law Montgomery.
I know he served in the trenches and got shot through the lungs at one point, but not much else. He's known as a defensive general (is that true? you can't 'defend' your way onto the beaches at Normandy through France and into Germany). How much of the later war years' battlefield tactics did he soak up? What did he learn that he took into the second world war?
I be ridiculously grateful if you could do a short video on him in WW1.
I read 4 books about him. he was one of the best Generals. strategy, and tactics, fair but firm with his troops and Pow's. he was respected by his enemies. was almost always on the front line, and did a lot of his own Recon with his own plane. Rommel , & Patton two of my most favorite generals.
Erwin Rommel was the best leader of fast-moving troops but only up to army level.
thanks this really helped me with my rommel biography
I was just scrolling down my home youtube page writing the letters of some song and then with the corner of my eye i've seen the thumbnail of this video and by mistake i had press enter so i was thinking (omg is that The Desert Fox on The Great War xD ) And came back here .
Good luck further , Indi ! ;)
What a guy! And what a story! Lovin this channel even more..
Rommel is a badass, one of my favorite ww2 Generals.
Rommel was shit compared to Montgomery.
Will Kettle no just no, got to be kidding me. Montgomery was god dam terrible, only won due to very strong defensive positions and overwhelming resources. Without those Rommel would of trashed the over rated Montgomery easily.
>hey rommel, can you hold a very defensible location in tunisia?
>wus dat? attack the brits on all fronts? ok!
>no rommel we nee-
>shiet i lost all of my battles can i pls have 1000000000 reinforcements
>no we have another front opening up and w-
>fucking useless nazi command
+Will Kettle Montgomery was overrated af
+Chao Wingching Hongfingshong PingPangPong Monty isn't Overrated he was a fine commander with a good respect for his men and he was respected by them however he does have one flaw...he wasn't Rommel indeed Rommel himself said that Monty "never made a serious strategic mistake"
This a PROFESSIONAL presentation of history. CONGRATULATIONS ¡¡¡¡ Great job as an historian.
+Pablo Peter Thanks
Excellent
thanks
***** Probably not.
Fantastic episode! His book INFANTRY ATTACKS is a masterpiece and a must read for anyone interested in tactics and the fundamentals of leading men. The book is worth reading more than once, it's amazing the small details you can miss the first time. Best regards, Indy.
I own an English translation of Rommel's book on his infantry experiences in WW I. When I lived in Germany, his son was the mayor of Stuttgart.
Thank you - enjoying this greatly.
It seems that even in WW1 the Italians were very good at surrendering.
Because the smart thing was to fight and die? Because there was more honor in death? These video series should teach us all that military glory is a romantic tale and nothing more. I understand that your comment was a light hearted jest but lets be frank at this point in the war with generals butchering their own men in the hundreds of thousands im sure almost all of us would surrender given the opertunity. Men are men their nationality means little.
I forget who said that catch 22 is the only book about war that ever made any sense.
The smart want to leave by mimicing the crazy but the crazy want to stay.
+jottXD I think you may have misread my reply. But thankyou for relivig me of the stress of trying to figure out who said that in the book; would have fliped through it if i brought it to uni woth me
+jottXD No worries I know what its like being a polyglot. My favorite is when you spontaneously invent a word by mashing 2+ languages together!
sick burn anyway :D
ive read romels book "infantry attacks" and its a fascinating read! the way he handled a company of infantry was more like a special operations unit than a regular infantry company.
Excellent episode! Rommel was a decent fellow. Here's some interesting facts from Wikipedia:
Rommel is regarded as having been a humane and professional officer. His Afrika Korps was never accused of war crimes, and Allied soldiers captured during his Africa campaign were reported to have been treated humanely. Orders to kill Jewish soldiers, civilians and captured commandos were ignored. Later in the war, Rommel was indirectly linked to the conspiracy to assassinate Adolf Hitler. Because Rommel was a national hero, Hitler desired to eliminate him quietly. He forced Rommel to commit suicide with a cyanide pill, in return for assurances that Rommel's family would not be persecuted following his death. He was given a state funeral, and it was announced that Rommel had succumbed to his injuries from an earlier strafing of his staff car in Normandy.
Both Hitler & Himmler were nobodies during WWI who progressed into power-hungry evil in later years.
Rommel was a good guy who should have survived the war.
Off-duty Afrika Korps soldiers sometimes victimised the Tunisian Jewish community, including sexual assaults on women and girls. Afrika Korps didn't have a different ethos from German troops elsewhere in the war. On the whole the North Africa campaign was fought over terrain without civilians, and in war all armies victimise civilians to one degree or another, so the relatively "clean" nature of most North Africa fighting is down to relatively few civilians being present.
This was a fantastic episode! It was great to hear about Rommel's experiences during the First World War! Keep up the great work guys!!
thanks, glad you liked it
my grandma lived in the same town, and she met him once.
That was a nice personal touch at the end, thanks for the story
PLEASE do a video on Heinz Guderian he is arguably one of the most interesting men of the second world war
He was a communication officer in WWI I remember, not the most dramatic position, unlike Rommel.
The 51st Division yes he was also later assigned to the general staff corps. History isnt always supposed to be dramatic to be interesting... learning about this mans early life can greatly impact our understanding of his later decisions
+The 51st Division Back when communications was done by cable, it was actually quite dangerous, as artillery fire would shred the cable and investigative parties had to be sent out to locate and fix the problem.
I mean, yeah, you probably won't be making a run-of-the-mill Hollywood movie out that job, and let's face it, signalists are only challenged in stupidity and sluggishness by artillerymen. Mortar crews, on the other hand, are the pride of any military.
Sincerely,
A mortarman
Would be nice to have a video about Erich von Manstein too, not sure how much he fighted in ww1 tho.
+Faze_B3N5ON what is a "rieke"?
And there we are! So glad to see this episode after I recommended it last year, I'm glad you got the rights to do this too. Fantastic Episode for a fantastic soldier
Just to be clear, he was probably the 2nd or 3rd recommendation when we started this format. Still, you were of course many more who asked for him.
The Great War of course, I don't doubt that at all, I'm just happy that you all got to go through with it.
I like the stories of Rommel. It takes a pretty standup guy for Winston Churchill to stand up and say to a war-torn country that one of the enemy was the last of a breed of gentlemen soldiers.
Rommel: German warrior to the bone. Fantastic episode. 'Infantry Attacks ' is an invaluable WW1 report.
Absolutely! and glad you liked the show.
I have a book with Rommel's hand written report of that hill battle including an illustration of the positions and advance in his own hand ... was a fascinating page to find
+Sanjuro Hanamizuki It is amazing a Japanese (I assume you are) and a Costa Rican (who I happen to be) and all these other guys from who knows how many different countries share this fascination for Rommel. Lucky you for having such document.
Been waiting for this for so long, thank you!
How does a group of 100 take 9000 prisoners? Lots of rope?
+Agent Camtho
I feel like I should make a bondage and Germans joke here, but that would be too easy.
+Agent Camtho when you dont know its only 100 people, and most of your firends are shot in the head......
+Agent Camtho disarm then and that's probably enough. Most of the soldiers were probably more reliefed than anything , when their commanders surrendered, knowing they don't have to fight anymore. So those few , who would have the spirit to fight can't do anythign against rifles and even bayonets and the other one don#t want to anymore.
+Agent Camtho dude the italian had idiots in charge and they knew. they would send them to their death.
+Agent Camtho I heard a story that went around in the bataillion where I had my basic military training, that a few years before some commandos had an infiltration training with my bataillion: They were six guys, and the bataillion was around 120 young boys and girls in their basic military training. Well, actually, they were warned that the commandos were about to strike that night, but the commandos still managed to get them all captured without the alarm beeing sounded. You know how they tied them? With their own hands and legs into the fence of the stairs in that building... so yes, the real tough guys don´t need a rope^^
This guy is like a commander in a fantasy world.
👏👏👏
. This is the 'Who Did What In WW I' episode that I have been waiting for. Thank you.
Another great episode. I really am enjoying the entire series.
Basically the World War One badass.
Great episode! Thanks for sharing the story about your dad.
Considering most of the praise for Rommel came from british generals who were recieving a brutal pasting at his hands, and at the hands of the Italian troops he led, I wouldn't overestimate his abilities too much. Rommel was always sent to secondary fronts. If he truly was the strategic and tactical genius they said he was, he'd have been sent to the Eastern front. I find it sad that generals of the calibre of Von Manstein, Hoth, Guderian and Model are forgotten, while the only one to fight and beat british forces is remembered.
I cant speak for his actions in WW1 (im not educated enough on it to say anything) but in WW2 Hitler and his Nazi politics played a role in his placement or why his ideas for normandy defense were not used. Hitler would often go against his military commanders judgement . From what ive heard hitler really liked rommel but had to distance himself since other commanders thought he was a spoiled child so to speak and Erwin did not believe in needles killing of human beings so you could imagine. How the closer hitler got the further apart him and erwim would become. If Erwin was British or American im sure he would be well known and celebrated.
wood1155 He fought what was in the end a war against an opponent equal in numbers, while recieving constant supplies from Sicily. It was a stalemate for 2 and a half years. The generals on the eastern front fought against seemingly inexhaustible numbers with overstretched supply lines.
I'm not saying that Rommel wasn't a good general, but he was comparable to many excellent german officers of his day. The reason he was and is so well known is that the british needed a boogey-man/worthy opponent to explain their defeats in Africa and would never credit the italians. This is why his figure is so well-endowed by the british, particularly by Winston Churchill and british propaganda. They even gave him a scary sounding nickname. Rommel's contemporaries in the Wermacht were slightly less gushy in their praises. Meanwhile the other defeats the British suffered during the war are forgotten, the suffering, struggles and stories of the soldiers on both sides fallen by the wayside.
My issue is not with Rommel per se, but with the masterful british propaganda. Goebbels was nothing in comparison.
+Tom J How are Guderian and von Mannstein forgotten? Just look at our comment section here, they are also highly requested. And if you see Rommel's legacy in terms of infantry tactics, he might deserve some of the praise at least.
The Great War I agree that Rommel was a good leader, no question. Even a great one. But he has a romanticism and a glamour built up around his personality that seems to stem primarily from his enemies, much like the Romans constantly praised their enemies only to make themselves look good when they finally defeated them. Rommel never managed a decisive victory in the field against the british and basically bled his forces dry chasing them across the desert.
While some could argue that the nature of desert warfare precluded a victory and forced a stalemate, surely a tactical genius of Rommel's supposed calibre would have been able to come up with something different to the very same strategy his british adversaries were using. Instead, the African campaign turned into a slugging match, right up until the americans took Rommel in the rear. If it wasn't for them, the Second El-Alamein would have turned out much like the First.
Any failure on Rommel's part was quickly blamed on the italians, while Rommel himself was only too happy to abandon non-german soldiers to desperate rear-guard holding actions with little water and supplies. Most of which were issued to the germans in any case.
It's tempting to see history through a romantic lens, and it's part of the reason why we love it. But history also needs objectiveness at times. Rommel's mistique was dreamed up by Churchill, who needed a convincing excuse to put before Parliament as to why he wasn't winning in Africa.
Also I have a big admiration with Rommel but I didn't know how he was in WW I. thank you for this resume.
It wasn't just his daring and tactical brilliance that won him the respect of the British in WW2, it was his personal insistence on the fair treatment of civilians and prisoners of war; even POWs of Jewish heritage.
Thanks Indy. For showing us what an amazing man he was