Tobruk Strategic Target Of Rommel's Afrika Korps

Tobruk's proximity to the Egyptian border is one of the reasons that it became the focus of Allied/Axis military operations in the early stages of World War II. It is also the best harbor between Egypt and Tripoli in western Libya. The British 8th Army began to overwhelm the Italian occupying force near Tobruk by late 1940. This brought about the entrance of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, commander of the recently organized Afrika Korps. But not before Tobruk was taken by the British in early 1941. For several years the British Army of the Nile, under Generals Wavell and Ritchie, vied against the combined Axis forces of Italy and Nazi Germany. The British were nicely supported by Indian, South African and Australian divisions.