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Gazala, 26 May 1942 : On 15 December 1941 the Axis forces began a long withdrawal from Gazala defensive line. This marked the end of the Operation Crusader battles. On 11 January 1942 Panzergruppe Africa concentrated around Mersa Brega position. Rommel seemed beaten but he was unpredict-able, and the exigencies of war helped him turn the tables once again. On 21 January the Axis forces which were renamed Panzerarmee Africa returned to the offensive. In the highly mobile action which followed, many British units simply disintegrated and on 6 February the Panzerarmee was again before the Gazala Line. During the next four months the British Eighth Army and the Axis Pamerarmee Afrika glared at each other across the Gazala line, while each made frantic preparations for a renewal of the battle at some indeterminate future date. Meanwhile, the supply situation for both sides improved considerably. By late May of 1942 it was becoming in-creasingly obvious to Rommel that Allied preparations for an offensive were beginning to outstrip his own. He therefore determined to launch an offensive before the Allies were too strong. The British defensive line ran from Gazala at the coastline on the north almost straight south to Bir Hacheim for a distance of over 60 Km. It was manned by two Commonwealth divisions, the 1st South African and the British 50th whose six brigades were disposed in what came to he known as "boxes" or defensive positions which could be defended from any direction. One additional brigade, the First Free French, was located at the line anchor point at Bir Hacheim in a defensive box of such complexity that the position was almost impregnable. Each box was a self-contained fortress with enough supplies for one week of action, surrounded by dense minefields and connected to the others by a "mine marsh". Behind the line of boxes, Ritchie, 8th Army's commander, kept additional infantry formations, two heavy tank brigades and his two armored divisions. Rommel's plan, code name Operation Venezia was bold and relatively simple. Group Cruewell (15th Schutzen Brigade, × and XXI Italian Corps) opened the offensive with a heavy bombardment and a feint assault at 2 P.M. on the 26th May against the positions of 1st SA division and 50th British division. The main striking force consisted of DAK (15th and 21st panzer divisions), 90th Light division and the 20th Italian Corps (Ariete armored and Trieste motorized divisions). The striking force was to make a rapid night march to the area south of Bir Hacheim, advance the next day (27th May) east of the Gazala Line toward Acroma area and then attack the British forces from the rear.

Large Scenario 301 turns, Designer Panagiotis Kouroumidis

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