Spanish Civil War update and victories on the Suez/Sinai Front
Recap: After the Italian victory in Ethiopia in May 1936, the large build-up of British forces on the Ethiopian-Sudanese Border unnerved the Italian leadership. Marshal Balbo pitched a “grand plan” (dubbed the "Drin-Drin" Plan by Mussolini) for a war against the Allies to Mussolini and the Fascist Council. It was accepted and a multi-front war began between Italy and the Allies on the 11th May 1936. The aim was to steal key British and French territories in Africa (including the Suez) and then sue for peace. Mussolini had committed the ‘mad dog act’ so feared by British diplomats and politicians.
On the 2nd July 1936, Spain erupted into civil war. The Italian Fascist’s and the German Nazi’s both supported the Nationalist side. With fascist support, the Nationalists appear to have the edge.
British opinion on the Italian conquests hardened towards the beginning of August 1936 and it no longer looked like peace would be an option. It has become a battle to the death. Such a battle required a new approach to the war called Plan Carnera.
The Spanish Civil War
8th August 1936 to the 24th August 1936: In the southwest, Nationalist forces had struck back against the previous Republican attack which had split the Nationalist zone in two. The nationalist zone of control was now strongly united into one contiguous area.
In central Spain the Republicans had retreated from Madrid without much of a fight but then formed a front along the Guadiana River. Here the Republican forces were bolstered by volunteer brigades known as the International Brigades – men from many nations willing to fight for the Second Spanish Republic. The Italian ‘Dio lo Vuole’ Division had pushed and held the Nationalist right flank in this offensive but as the Republicans had generally retreated they had seen only a small amount of real fighting.
In the south, the Republicans were putting pressure on the Nationalist beachhead formed around the port of Almeria.
Nationalist(dark red) and Republican(cream) maneuvers between the 8th August 1936 to the 24th August 1936.
To the northeast, the Nationalist forces continued their drive east from Zaragoza and had made significant inroads into the Republican territory. Here the Republican cause was saved with an influx of Soviet arms and officers. Nationalist forces threated to severe Barcelona from the Republican capital of Valencia should they make it all the way to the Mediterranean. At the tip of the southern spearhead of this thrust and engaged in heavy fighting the whole way was the Italian Tank and Armoured Cars Group of the Corpo Truppe Volontarie.
Men of the ‘Dio lo Vuole’ Division in Spain
25th August 1936 to the 9th September 1936: In central Spain, the Guadiana River Front was consolidated by the Nationalist forces. Sister forces to the west pushed in against the Republicans along the river and further to the south making good inroads and threatening to roll up the Republican lines. The Italian ‘Dio lo Vuole’ Division was transferred to the east, perhaps slated for the Barcelona Front where forces armed by the Soviets were holding back the offensive. To the east the German Legion Condor was in the thick of the fighting on the left flank of the Nationalist line along the Guadiana River Front.
In the south the Republicans had crushed the Nationalist beachhead around Almeria and taken the port city itself. Killing and capturing almost 20,000 Nationalist soldiers. With Republican troops busy reducing this beachhead, the Nationalists had made a two pronged thrust, one prong towards for the Republican capital Valencia and the other to the coast. This attack was again spearheaded by the Italian Tank and Armoured Cars Group of the Corpo Truppe Volontar. The drive to the Mediterranean had split the Republican forces in two.
Nationalist(dark red) and Republican(cream) maneuvers between the 25th August 1936 to the 9th Septmber 1936.
In the northeast Nationalist forces were tightening their grip on the country and were busy securing the Franco-Spanish border in an effort to reduce foreign volunteers and arms sales to the Republicans.
CV-33’s of the Italian Tank and Armoured Cars Group heading into action.
The Hungarian government politics and foreign policy was becoming increasingly pro-fascist. In a display of support for the fascist cause, a brigade of volunteers was shipped from an unknown German port into the Nationalist main base in the northeast of Spain at Corunna.
The Hungarian government throws its gauntlet in with the fascists and sends a brigade of volunteers to assist the Nationalist cause.
The Spanish Civil War campaign from the Nationalist perspective.
Europe
Recap: At the start of the war the Italian I and IV armies had easily pushed over the unprepared French forces along Little Maginot Line (in the Alps) and expanded into the Provence and Rhone regions. The front became static with the arrival of French armour divisions and the French forces then counterattacked and retook Marseille. With reinforcements from the II and VIII armies, the Italians have now retaken the initiative along the front. Marseille was recaptured on the 1st August. In accordance with Plan Carnera these forces have thrust westwards and effectively cleared the eastern bank of the Rhone to form a front along the Rhone River to Lyon in the north and then onto the Swiss border.
Rhone Front - Army Group West (Field Marshal Badoglio)
9th September to 12th September: Again waves of British Armstrong Whitworth Whitley bombers blotted out the stars over northern Italy on another nighttime carpet bombing run. This time they by-passed Turin and flew back to their old favorite hunting ground Milan. This time the result was different.
Giuseppe Valle (Italian Chief of the Air Force) could hold his head high for the first time. The tail end of the British bombers was first intercepted before they reached the industrial region of Milan. It was immediately obvious that the upgrades to the Italian CR-32 fighters gave them an advantage. The new engines allowed them to motor in faster and from steeper angles which meant that the machine gunners on the bombers had greater difficulty in targeting them. This filled the Italian pilots with more confidence and they were able to then engage and unload with their new machine gun weaponry (upgraded from two 7.7 mm Breda-SAFAT machine-guns to two 12.7 mm Breda-SAFAT machine guns). Five bombers were put down over Milan itself while another three were shot down as they flew away from Milan.
Italian CR-32 fighters finally do some damaged to the British carpet bombing menace.
10th September: On the front, the French 1st Armoured Division had penetrated and began to overrun the Italian defensive positions at Bourg-en-Bresse northeast of Lyon. With their positions in jeopardy, the Italian 2nd Alpine Division and the 6th ‘Cuneo’ Division were routed after taking losses.
LEFT: Italian divisions are routed at Bourg-en-Bresse by French armour; RIGHT: The French armour decides not hold the position despite the threat to Lyon
11th September: In was soon apparent that the attack from the French 1st Armour Division was a mere probing offensive and not an attempt to sever Lyon from the Italian front. The 1st ‘Taurinese’ Alpini were already marching into Bourg-en-Bresse. One of their reconnaissance groups was ambushed by the French but the rest of the 1st Armour Division was already half way to back Lons-le-Saunier. At the same time rear elements of the 1st Alpini took heavy casualties from the French bombers.
To counter the threat of the French armour Italian Breda factories and researchers had been busy. Firstly an entire specialised anti-tank support brigade was in the final stages of training and equipment production. Armed with 47/32 M35 infantry guns, it was expected that these guns would have a good chance at penetrating the armor of the French tanks at medium range and would be able to penetrate the armour from ambush positions.
Italian anti-tank production.
In addition, a new type of fighting vehicle was in the process of development and production. This would be a vehicle specifically designed to engage enemy tanks. The first attempts involved depressing the barrel of anti-aircraft gun mounted on the back of a truck. Although this was the cheaper option, it was thought that it would be more versatile to give the vehicle more staying power in combat and rough terrain. A tracked self propelled gun was also designed. This resulted in an ungainly vehicle, the Semovente L3 da 47/32, which mounted the 47/32 anti-tank gun on a modified CV-35 chassis. With the only armour protection for the crew being the gun shield it was deemed inadequate for the role envisaged. The Fiat Ansaldo designers were sent back to work on their top secret project.
12th September: Again French troops attacked Lyon from the west, this time they came with equal numbers but the Italians were well dug in and prepared to defend the city. It appeared to have been a poorly coordinated attack with the French armour. Luckily for the Italians the French armour had retreated after taking Bourg-en-Bresse.
The 2nd French attack on Lyon begins.
ASI
Suez/Sinai Front
Army Group Libya (Field Marshal Marinetti)
- VI Army (General Amedeo Duke degli Abruzzi) including elements of AOI Army
- X Army (General Zingales) including elements of AOI Army
Recap: At the start of the war, the X Army and the VI Army advanced east, first taking Cairo and then besieging the British in Alexandria. After a tough battle the British 7th Infantry Division and the Middle East Command were forced to surrender. The Italians were then forced on the defensive along the line of the Suez against a determined British and Iraqi attack. The line was breached in its entirety and the British were able to initially push on before their attack faulted. The depleted state of the VI and X armies meant that this front required new reinforcements - they would arrive from the south in accordance with Plan Carnera. de Stefanis’s 30th ‘Sabauda’ Division was the first division to be landed in the Eastern Desert of Egypt south of the front lines. Further Italian divisions from AOI were then landed at Elat on the Gulf of Aqaba in the southeastern of Sinai in an attempt to cut of the Allied forces from the Levant.
9th September: In the eastern Sinai, di Feroleto 19th ‘Venezia’ Division continued to push to the southwest, snapping at the heels of the fleeing Iraqi’s of the 3rd Iraqi Infantry Division. They were caught at Dahab a small coastal town on the southeast coast of the Peninsula. Here the fleeing Iraqi troops had been turned around under orders of the officers of the Royal Iraqi Army who themselves had been living it up on the beaches of the town while the war raged along the Suez.
To the north, the 26th ‘Assieta’ Division now found themselves in a very difficult battle. The rear echelon troops (the 100th Infantry Division) of the British army had managed to establish themselves in the high ground near Nizzane Sinai. They would be difficult to dislodge.
Many officers of the Iraqi army HQ’s suddenly find themselves on the front line at Dahab in the Sinai. The 26th ‘Assieta’ Division is in a tough battle against the British 100th Infantry Division.
10th September: Weak Iraqi forces based at Romani were no match for both the 30th ‘Sabauda’ Division and the 102nd ‘Trento’ Division who had caught up after initially leading the crossing of the Suez. The question now was, would both divisions be able to secure the Suez crossings and trap the Allied forces in Port Said.
TOP: Italian forces drive to Romani in an attempt to cut off the Allied forces in Port Said; BOTTOM: The British 100th Infantry Division takes the initiative in eastern Sinai.
11th September: In eastern Sinai, the difficulties facing the 26th ‘Assieta’ Division seemed to get worse when the British 100th Infantry Division were able to trick the Italians and reverse the attack on them.
At Port Said, Italian submariners reported that a British Task Force had entered Port Said. The task force included a flotilla of troop transports. Within hours Italian intelligence was able to report that the British 23rd ‘Northumbrian’ Division had disembarked and were heading to the front lines to support their countrymen.
The British 23rd ‘Northumbrian’ Division disembarks at Port Said and evens up the battle odds. The battered remains of the Iraqi 2nd and 4th Divisions are attempting to push east over the Suez against veteran Italian forces at Romani.
12th September: On the eastern bank of the Suez, the men of the 30th ‘Sabauda’ Divisions, 3rd Bersaglieri brigade had quickly taken possession of the strongpoints on the eastern side of the Suez and started repelling the attack of the desperate men of the 2nd and 4th Iraqi Division who were trying to establish a beachhead. This gave de Stefanis time to get the ‘Reggio’ and ‘Calabrian’ brigades into position where they could support and then hold the line with the bersaglieri.
On the eastern western side of the Suez, the battle for Port Said intensified at two brigades of the 7th Blackshirts Division were committed to the attack while at the same time the remainder of the division maneuvered into position to also lend a hand. Faced with ever increasing odds the weakened British 42nd ‘East Lancashire’ Division was forced to attempt to pull out west over the Nile into Dumyat towards the heart of the Delta. The recently arrived British 23rd ‘Northumbrian’ Division had actually already secured the crossing in advance.
Hard fought battle for Port Said is won by General Infante.
Algerian Front
Army Group South/Tunisia (Field Marshal de Bono)
- V Army (General Baistrocchi)
- IX Army (General Vercellino)
Recap: In the opening stages of the war, the Italian IX Army (then under the command of Marshal Balboa) captured Tunis. Leading elements continued to head west to Algiers capturing the Port of Annaba and the mineral rich Constantine.
After his appointment as commander of the now combined Army Groups South & Tunisia, old Marshal de Bono planned a combined amphibious and land operation for the capture of Algiers. When it was found that Algiers was not as lightly defended as first thought a new plan called Operation Icosium was put in place. The plan was wrecked when the elite 3rd ‘Principe Amedeo’ Division failed in its landing on the western beaches leaving the colonial troops of the IX Army stranded deep in French Algeria to fend for themselves. Two division of French mountaineers are now pushing the IX Army forces eastward driving the Italian colonials before them while the 3rd ‘Principe Amedeo’ Celere Division races towards the front from Annaba.
9th September: The retreating 2nd Libyan Division was still hard pressed by the French 31st Mountain Division in the desert lands of M’Sila. After a running battle lasting six days the 2nd Libyan Division retreated eastwards again after suffering heavy casualties.
To the north at Tizi Ouzou, the fast moving 3rd ‘Principe Amedeo’ Celere Division arrived after its long journey along the coast from Annaba west of Tunis. With its arrival Marshal de Bono expected to halt the retreat of the IX Army and perhaps retake the initiative with his own offensive.
Tringali and the 2nd Libyan Division continue the running battle against the French 31st Mountain Division. The 3rd ‘Principe Amedeo’ Celere Division arrives at the front lines.
12th September: Now the he French 31st Mountain Division had advanced into the desert lands of M’Sila after driving away the 2nd Libyan Division. It was here in the flat desert lands that the elite Celere Division should was expected to seize the initiative from the French forces. The 3rd ‘Principe Amedeo’ Celere Division swung into action with support from the 3rd Eritrean Division.
The 3rd ‘Principe Amedeo’ Celere Division attacks the advance positions of the French forces to the east of Algiers.
AOI
Recap: In East Africa, the strong French 1st Army in Djibouti initially made advances on the Eritrean capital of Asmara but was eventually surrounded and annihilated by the Italians. The Italians were also able to capture key British strategic locations in the Somaliland, northern Sudan and British East Africa, effectively trapping the British 3rd Army in the Sudan east of Ethiopia. Entrapment of the British 3rd Army and the colonial troops in the Sudan was the key objective of Marshal Balbo's "Drin-Drin" Plan. It meant that the Italians could also strike north and attack Egyptian Nile Delta from two directions. In the south, a relief effort attempted by the British 4th Infantry Division just north of Lake Victoria failed and the Italians were able to close the pincer and trap the British against the impenetrable water waste called The Sudd. The remaining British forces are slowly being compressed against the unforgiving marsh as the Italian forces position themselves for the final blow.
Italian forces have also pushed into Tanganyika to the south around the western shores of Lake Victoria. Recently, Marshal Graziani also launched a daring seaborne invasion of the last mainland British port in East Africa - Dar es Salaam. The port was secured but when the British 4th Infantry Division arrived the Blackshirt troops defending the port were crushed and captured.
Uganda/South Sudan
- Eritrean Army (General Umberto Principe de Piemonte), formerly AOI Army
- Abyssinian Army (General Grossi), formerly AOI Army
- elements of Somaliland Army (General Frusci), formerly AOI Army
9th September: The British 10th Indian division continued to hold out against overwhelming odds. Huxley-Walker had been ordered to fight until the last bullet is gone. Only an act of God could save them from capture.
The reduction of Juba continues.
Kenya/Tanganyika
- elements of Somaliland Army (General Frusci)
9th September: After the surrender of the 6th ‘Tevere’ Blackshirts Division, Generla Orsi (its commanding officer) had disappeared. All manner of rumors abounded as to his fate but none could be substantiated.
His troops were led off in disgrace deep into the dark heart of Rhodesian Africa.
The men of the 6th ‘Tevere’ Blackshirts, crossing one of their own demolitions, are led away into captivity.
Not all the Italian troops in Dar es Salamm were captured by the British. A Zaptie (colonial police) brigade had also landed with the Blackshirts and had immediately marched out of the port and appeared to have slipped through the cordon of British infantry.
12th September: General Frattini and the 29th ‘Piemonte’ Division had been pursuing the British 4th Infantry Division since the 21st July, all the way from the northern side of Lake Victoria after they had driven them back at the Battle of Kisumu .
His troops were tired but hardened. Slowed by their extensive artillery train, they were left behind by the fleeing British. Now they had made it onto the broad expanse of savannah in northwestern Tanganyika. Native sympathizers soon alerted to them to the British command base at Sumpawanga to the south. It was now time to put the heavy guns of the 24th artillery regiment into use.
The 29th ‘Piemonte’ Division arrives in northern Tanganyika while the Somaliland Zaptie brigade flees Dar es Salamm.
Grizzled veterans of the 29th ‘Piemonte’ Division slog through the terrain west of Lake Victoria in pursuit of the British 4th Infantry Division.
Recap: After the Italian victory in Ethiopia in May 1936, the large build-up of British forces on the Ethiopian-Sudanese Border unnerved the Italian leadership. Marshal Balbo pitched a “grand plan” (dubbed the "Drin-Drin" Plan by Mussolini) for a war against the Allies to Mussolini and the Fascist Council. It was accepted and a multi-front war began between Italy and the Allies on the 11th May 1936. The aim was to steal key British and French territories in Africa (including the Suez) and then sue for peace. Mussolini had committed the ‘mad dog act’ so feared by British diplomats and politicians.
On the 2nd July 1936, Spain erupted into civil war. The Italian Fascist’s and the German Nazi’s both supported the Nationalist side. With fascist support, the Nationalists appear to have the edge.
British opinion on the Italian conquests hardened towards the beginning of August 1936 and it no longer looked like peace would be an option. It has become a battle to the death. Such a battle required a new approach to the war called Plan Carnera.
The Spanish Civil War
8th August 1936 to the 24th August 1936: In the southwest, Nationalist forces had struck back against the previous Republican attack which had split the Nationalist zone in two. The nationalist zone of control was now strongly united into one contiguous area.
In central Spain the Republicans had retreated from Madrid without much of a fight but then formed a front along the Guadiana River. Here the Republican forces were bolstered by volunteer brigades known as the International Brigades – men from many nations willing to fight for the Second Spanish Republic. The Italian ‘Dio lo Vuole’ Division had pushed and held the Nationalist right flank in this offensive but as the Republicans had generally retreated they had seen only a small amount of real fighting.
In the south, the Republicans were putting pressure on the Nationalist beachhead formed around the port of Almeria.
Nationalist(dark red) and Republican(cream) maneuvers between the 8th August 1936 to the 24th August 1936.
To the northeast, the Nationalist forces continued their drive east from Zaragoza and had made significant inroads into the Republican territory. Here the Republican cause was saved with an influx of Soviet arms and officers. Nationalist forces threated to severe Barcelona from the Republican capital of Valencia should they make it all the way to the Mediterranean. At the tip of the southern spearhead of this thrust and engaged in heavy fighting the whole way was the Italian Tank and Armoured Cars Group of the Corpo Truppe Volontarie.
Men of the ‘Dio lo Vuole’ Division in Spain
25th August 1936 to the 9th September 1936: In central Spain, the Guadiana River Front was consolidated by the Nationalist forces. Sister forces to the west pushed in against the Republicans along the river and further to the south making good inroads and threatening to roll up the Republican lines. The Italian ‘Dio lo Vuole’ Division was transferred to the east, perhaps slated for the Barcelona Front where forces armed by the Soviets were holding back the offensive. To the east the German Legion Condor was in the thick of the fighting on the left flank of the Nationalist line along the Guadiana River Front.
In the south the Republicans had crushed the Nationalist beachhead around Almeria and taken the port city itself. Killing and capturing almost 20,000 Nationalist soldiers. With Republican troops busy reducing this beachhead, the Nationalists had made a two pronged thrust, one prong towards for the Republican capital Valencia and the other to the coast. This attack was again spearheaded by the Italian Tank and Armoured Cars Group of the Corpo Truppe Volontar. The drive to the Mediterranean had split the Republican forces in two.
Nationalist(dark red) and Republican(cream) maneuvers between the 25th August 1936 to the 9th Septmber 1936.
In the northeast Nationalist forces were tightening their grip on the country and were busy securing the Franco-Spanish border in an effort to reduce foreign volunteers and arms sales to the Republicans.
CV-33’s of the Italian Tank and Armoured Cars Group heading into action.
The Hungarian government politics and foreign policy was becoming increasingly pro-fascist. In a display of support for the fascist cause, a brigade of volunteers was shipped from an unknown German port into the Nationalist main base in the northeast of Spain at Corunna.
The Hungarian government throws its gauntlet in with the fascists and sends a brigade of volunteers to assist the Nationalist cause.
The Spanish Civil War campaign from the Nationalist perspective.
Europe
Recap: At the start of the war the Italian I and IV armies had easily pushed over the unprepared French forces along Little Maginot Line (in the Alps) and expanded into the Provence and Rhone regions. The front became static with the arrival of French armour divisions and the French forces then counterattacked and retook Marseille. With reinforcements from the II and VIII armies, the Italians have now retaken the initiative along the front. Marseille was recaptured on the 1st August. In accordance with Plan Carnera these forces have thrust westwards and effectively cleared the eastern bank of the Rhone to form a front along the Rhone River to Lyon in the north and then onto the Swiss border.
Rhone Front - Army Group West (Field Marshal Badoglio)
9th September to 12th September: Again waves of British Armstrong Whitworth Whitley bombers blotted out the stars over northern Italy on another nighttime carpet bombing run. This time they by-passed Turin and flew back to their old favorite hunting ground Milan. This time the result was different.
Giuseppe Valle (Italian Chief of the Air Force) could hold his head high for the first time. The tail end of the British bombers was first intercepted before they reached the industrial region of Milan. It was immediately obvious that the upgrades to the Italian CR-32 fighters gave them an advantage. The new engines allowed them to motor in faster and from steeper angles which meant that the machine gunners on the bombers had greater difficulty in targeting them. This filled the Italian pilots with more confidence and they were able to then engage and unload with their new machine gun weaponry (upgraded from two 7.7 mm Breda-SAFAT machine-guns to two 12.7 mm Breda-SAFAT machine guns). Five bombers were put down over Milan itself while another three were shot down as they flew away from Milan.
Italian CR-32 fighters finally do some damaged to the British carpet bombing menace.
10th September: On the front, the French 1st Armoured Division had penetrated and began to overrun the Italian defensive positions at Bourg-en-Bresse northeast of Lyon. With their positions in jeopardy, the Italian 2nd Alpine Division and the 6th ‘Cuneo’ Division were routed after taking losses.
LEFT: Italian divisions are routed at Bourg-en-Bresse by French armour; RIGHT: The French armour decides not hold the position despite the threat to Lyon
11th September: In was soon apparent that the attack from the French 1st Armour Division was a mere probing offensive and not an attempt to sever Lyon from the Italian front. The 1st ‘Taurinese’ Alpini were already marching into Bourg-en-Bresse. One of their reconnaissance groups was ambushed by the French but the rest of the 1st Armour Division was already half way to back Lons-le-Saunier. At the same time rear elements of the 1st Alpini took heavy casualties from the French bombers.
To counter the threat of the French armour Italian Breda factories and researchers had been busy. Firstly an entire specialised anti-tank support brigade was in the final stages of training and equipment production. Armed with 47/32 M35 infantry guns, it was expected that these guns would have a good chance at penetrating the armor of the French tanks at medium range and would be able to penetrate the armour from ambush positions.
Italian anti-tank production.
In addition, a new type of fighting vehicle was in the process of development and production. This would be a vehicle specifically designed to engage enemy tanks. The first attempts involved depressing the barrel of anti-aircraft gun mounted on the back of a truck. Although this was the cheaper option, it was thought that it would be more versatile to give the vehicle more staying power in combat and rough terrain. A tracked self propelled gun was also designed. This resulted in an ungainly vehicle, the Semovente L3 da 47/32, which mounted the 47/32 anti-tank gun on a modified CV-35 chassis. With the only armour protection for the crew being the gun shield it was deemed inadequate for the role envisaged. The Fiat Ansaldo designers were sent back to work on their top secret project.
12th September: Again French troops attacked Lyon from the west, this time they came with equal numbers but the Italians were well dug in and prepared to defend the city. It appeared to have been a poorly coordinated attack with the French armour. Luckily for the Italians the French armour had retreated after taking Bourg-en-Bresse.
The 2nd French attack on Lyon begins.
ASI
Suez/Sinai Front
Army Group Libya (Field Marshal Marinetti)
- VI Army (General Amedeo Duke degli Abruzzi) including elements of AOI Army
- X Army (General Zingales) including elements of AOI Army
Recap: At the start of the war, the X Army and the VI Army advanced east, first taking Cairo and then besieging the British in Alexandria. After a tough battle the British 7th Infantry Division and the Middle East Command were forced to surrender. The Italians were then forced on the defensive along the line of the Suez against a determined British and Iraqi attack. The line was breached in its entirety and the British were able to initially push on before their attack faulted. The depleted state of the VI and X armies meant that this front required new reinforcements - they would arrive from the south in accordance with Plan Carnera. de Stefanis’s 30th ‘Sabauda’ Division was the first division to be landed in the Eastern Desert of Egypt south of the front lines. Further Italian divisions from AOI were then landed at Elat on the Gulf of Aqaba in the southeastern of Sinai in an attempt to cut of the Allied forces from the Levant.
9th September: In the eastern Sinai, di Feroleto 19th ‘Venezia’ Division continued to push to the southwest, snapping at the heels of the fleeing Iraqi’s of the 3rd Iraqi Infantry Division. They were caught at Dahab a small coastal town on the southeast coast of the Peninsula. Here the fleeing Iraqi troops had been turned around under orders of the officers of the Royal Iraqi Army who themselves had been living it up on the beaches of the town while the war raged along the Suez.
To the north, the 26th ‘Assieta’ Division now found themselves in a very difficult battle. The rear echelon troops (the 100th Infantry Division) of the British army had managed to establish themselves in the high ground near Nizzane Sinai. They would be difficult to dislodge.
Many officers of the Iraqi army HQ’s suddenly find themselves on the front line at Dahab in the Sinai. The 26th ‘Assieta’ Division is in a tough battle against the British 100th Infantry Division.
10th September: Weak Iraqi forces based at Romani were no match for both the 30th ‘Sabauda’ Division and the 102nd ‘Trento’ Division who had caught up after initially leading the crossing of the Suez. The question now was, would both divisions be able to secure the Suez crossings and trap the Allied forces in Port Said.
TOP: Italian forces drive to Romani in an attempt to cut off the Allied forces in Port Said; BOTTOM: The British 100th Infantry Division takes the initiative in eastern Sinai.
11th September: In eastern Sinai, the difficulties facing the 26th ‘Assieta’ Division seemed to get worse when the British 100th Infantry Division were able to trick the Italians and reverse the attack on them.
At Port Said, Italian submariners reported that a British Task Force had entered Port Said. The task force included a flotilla of troop transports. Within hours Italian intelligence was able to report that the British 23rd ‘Northumbrian’ Division had disembarked and were heading to the front lines to support their countrymen.
The British 23rd ‘Northumbrian’ Division disembarks at Port Said and evens up the battle odds. The battered remains of the Iraqi 2nd and 4th Divisions are attempting to push east over the Suez against veteran Italian forces at Romani.
12th September: On the eastern bank of the Suez, the men of the 30th ‘Sabauda’ Divisions, 3rd Bersaglieri brigade had quickly taken possession of the strongpoints on the eastern side of the Suez and started repelling the attack of the desperate men of the 2nd and 4th Iraqi Division who were trying to establish a beachhead. This gave de Stefanis time to get the ‘Reggio’ and ‘Calabrian’ brigades into position where they could support and then hold the line with the bersaglieri.
On the eastern western side of the Suez, the battle for Port Said intensified at two brigades of the 7th Blackshirts Division were committed to the attack while at the same time the remainder of the division maneuvered into position to also lend a hand. Faced with ever increasing odds the weakened British 42nd ‘East Lancashire’ Division was forced to attempt to pull out west over the Nile into Dumyat towards the heart of the Delta. The recently arrived British 23rd ‘Northumbrian’ Division had actually already secured the crossing in advance.
Hard fought battle for Port Said is won by General Infante.
Algerian Front
Army Group South/Tunisia (Field Marshal de Bono)
- V Army (General Baistrocchi)
- IX Army (General Vercellino)
Recap: In the opening stages of the war, the Italian IX Army (then under the command of Marshal Balboa) captured Tunis. Leading elements continued to head west to Algiers capturing the Port of Annaba and the mineral rich Constantine.
After his appointment as commander of the now combined Army Groups South & Tunisia, old Marshal de Bono planned a combined amphibious and land operation for the capture of Algiers. When it was found that Algiers was not as lightly defended as first thought a new plan called Operation Icosium was put in place. The plan was wrecked when the elite 3rd ‘Principe Amedeo’ Division failed in its landing on the western beaches leaving the colonial troops of the IX Army stranded deep in French Algeria to fend for themselves. Two division of French mountaineers are now pushing the IX Army forces eastward driving the Italian colonials before them while the 3rd ‘Principe Amedeo’ Celere Division races towards the front from Annaba.
9th September: The retreating 2nd Libyan Division was still hard pressed by the French 31st Mountain Division in the desert lands of M’Sila. After a running battle lasting six days the 2nd Libyan Division retreated eastwards again after suffering heavy casualties.
To the north at Tizi Ouzou, the fast moving 3rd ‘Principe Amedeo’ Celere Division arrived after its long journey along the coast from Annaba west of Tunis. With its arrival Marshal de Bono expected to halt the retreat of the IX Army and perhaps retake the initiative with his own offensive.
Tringali and the 2nd Libyan Division continue the running battle against the French 31st Mountain Division. The 3rd ‘Principe Amedeo’ Celere Division arrives at the front lines.
12th September: Now the he French 31st Mountain Division had advanced into the desert lands of M’Sila after driving away the 2nd Libyan Division. It was here in the flat desert lands that the elite Celere Division should was expected to seize the initiative from the French forces. The 3rd ‘Principe Amedeo’ Celere Division swung into action with support from the 3rd Eritrean Division.
The 3rd ‘Principe Amedeo’ Celere Division attacks the advance positions of the French forces to the east of Algiers.
AOI
Recap: In East Africa, the strong French 1st Army in Djibouti initially made advances on the Eritrean capital of Asmara but was eventually surrounded and annihilated by the Italians. The Italians were also able to capture key British strategic locations in the Somaliland, northern Sudan and British East Africa, effectively trapping the British 3rd Army in the Sudan east of Ethiopia. Entrapment of the British 3rd Army and the colonial troops in the Sudan was the key objective of Marshal Balbo's "Drin-Drin" Plan. It meant that the Italians could also strike north and attack Egyptian Nile Delta from two directions. In the south, a relief effort attempted by the British 4th Infantry Division just north of Lake Victoria failed and the Italians were able to close the pincer and trap the British against the impenetrable water waste called The Sudd. The remaining British forces are slowly being compressed against the unforgiving marsh as the Italian forces position themselves for the final blow.
Italian forces have also pushed into Tanganyika to the south around the western shores of Lake Victoria. Recently, Marshal Graziani also launched a daring seaborne invasion of the last mainland British port in East Africa - Dar es Salaam. The port was secured but when the British 4th Infantry Division arrived the Blackshirt troops defending the port were crushed and captured.
Uganda/South Sudan
- Eritrean Army (General Umberto Principe de Piemonte), formerly AOI Army
- Abyssinian Army (General Grossi), formerly AOI Army
- elements of Somaliland Army (General Frusci), formerly AOI Army
9th September: The British 10th Indian division continued to hold out against overwhelming odds. Huxley-Walker had been ordered to fight until the last bullet is gone. Only an act of God could save them from capture.
The reduction of Juba continues.
Kenya/Tanganyika
- elements of Somaliland Army (General Frusci)
9th September: After the surrender of the 6th ‘Tevere’ Blackshirts Division, Generla Orsi (its commanding officer) had disappeared. All manner of rumors abounded as to his fate but none could be substantiated.
His troops were led off in disgrace deep into the dark heart of Rhodesian Africa.
The men of the 6th ‘Tevere’ Blackshirts, crossing one of their own demolitions, are led away into captivity.
Not all the Italian troops in Dar es Salamm were captured by the British. A Zaptie (colonial police) brigade had also landed with the Blackshirts and had immediately marched out of the port and appeared to have slipped through the cordon of British infantry.
12th September: General Frattini and the 29th ‘Piemonte’ Division had been pursuing the British 4th Infantry Division since the 21st July, all the way from the northern side of Lake Victoria after they had driven them back at the Battle of Kisumu .
His troops were tired but hardened. Slowed by their extensive artillery train, they were left behind by the fleeing British. Now they had made it onto the broad expanse of savannah in northwestern Tanganyika. Native sympathizers soon alerted to them to the British command base at Sumpawanga to the south. It was now time to put the heavy guns of the 24th artillery regiment into use.
The 29th ‘Piemonte’ Division arrives in northern Tanganyika while the Somaliland Zaptie brigade flees Dar es Salamm.
Grizzled veterans of the 29th ‘Piemonte’ Division slog through the terrain west of Lake Victoria in pursuit of the British 4th Infantry Division.
