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The East African Campaign was a series of battles fought in East Africa during World War II by the British Empire, the British Commonwealth of Nations and several allies against the forces of Italy from June 1940 to November 1941.
Under the leadership of the British Middle East Command, British allied forces involved consisted not only of regular British troops, but also many recruits from British Commonwealth nations (Sudan, British Somaliland, British East Africa, the Indian Empire, South Africa, Northern Rhodesia, Southern Rhodesia, Nyasaland, British West Africa, as well as the British Mandate of Palestine). In addition to the British and Commonwealth forces, there were Ethiopian irregular forces, Free French forces, and Free Belgian forces. The Italian forces included Italian nationals, East African colonials (Eritreans, Abyssinians, and Somali Dubats), and a small number of German volunteers (the German Motorized Company). The majority of the Italian forces were East African colonials led by Italian officers.
Fighting began with the Italian bombing of the Rhodesian air base at Wajir in Kenya, and continued, pushing the Italian forces through Somaliland, Eritrea, and Ethiopia until the Italian surrender after the Battle of Gondar in November 1941.
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On 9 May 1936, Italian dictator Benito Mussolini proclaimed his "Italian East African Empire" (Africa Orientale Italiana, AOI). The empire was formed from the newly occupied Ethiopia and the Italian colonies of Eritrea and Italian Somaliland. During the First Italo-Abyssinian War from 1895 to 1896, Italy was thwarted in its colonial ambitions when the forces of Emperor Menelik II of Ethiopia soundly defeated the Italian Royal Army (Regio Esercito) at the Battle of Adowa. During the Second Italo-Abyssinian War from 1935 to 1936, the Italians again invaded Ethiopia and, by using weapons like poison gas, were finally able to defeat the Ethiopians.
While the Kingdom of Egypt remained neutral during World War II, the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty of 1936 allowed the military forces of the United Kingdom to occupy Egypt in defence of the Suez Canal. At this time, the Kingdom of Egypt included the Sudan. However, the Sudan was a condominium between Egypt and the United Kingdom known as the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan.
On 10 June 1940, when Mussolini led Italy into World War II against the British and the French, the Italian forces in Africa became a potential threat to British supply routes along the Red Sea and through the Suez Canal. While Egypt and the Suez Canal were Mussolini's obvious primary targets, an Italian invasion of either French Somaliland or British Somaliland were reasonable choices too. But Mussolini initially looked past both of these small, isolated colonies and, instead, looked forward to propaganda triumphs in the Sudan and British East Africa (Kenya, Tanganyika, and Uganda).
However, the Italian Central Command (Comando Centrale) was planning for a war starting after 1942. In the summer of 1940, they were not prepared for a prolonged war or to occupy extensive areas of the African continent.[3]
In the early part of the war, British General Archibald Wavell, Commander-in-Chief of the Middle East Command, had a total of 86,000 British and Commonwealth troops at his disposal to handle potential conflicts in Libya, Iraq, Syria, Iran, and East Africa. His forces were spread out in Egypt, Palestine, the Sudan, British Somaliland, Kenya, and several other locations. Faced with forces spaced out along the enemy frontiers at intervals of about eight men to the mile, Wavell resolved to fight the Italians with delaying actions at the main posts and hope for the best. The delaying actions, bolstered by aggressive raids into Italian territory, were fought with skill and spirit. British and Commonwealth reinforcements only started to appear in significant numbers from July 1940 onwards.
Short of men, Wavell needed all of the local support he could find. One answer was Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia. The deposed emperor had been living in England ever since the Italians invaded his country in 1936 during the Second Italo-Abyssinian War. On 13 June, only three days after Mussolini declared war against Britain and France, a "Mr Strong" took off in a Short Sunderland flying boat from Poole Harbour on the south coast of England. Emperor Selassie, alias "Mr Strong", was headed home. On 25 June, Mr Strong arrived in Alexandria, Egypt. Seven days later, as "Mr Smith," he flew to Khartoum in the Sudan. In Khartoum, Mr Smith met Lieutenant-General William Platt. Emperor Selassie and Platt discussed plans to free Ethiopia from Italian rule.[4] In July, the British government recognised Emperor Selassie and promised to help him to reclaim his throne.
Because of the increasing Axis threat in the Middle East, at the end of October 1940 the British Foreign Secretary, Anthony Eden, convened a conference in Khartoum. In attendance were Emperor Selassie, South African General Jan Smuts (who held an advisory brief for the region with Winston Churchill), the Commander-in-Chief of the Middle East Command, Archibald Wavell, and the senior military commanders in East Africa including Lieutenant-General Platt and Lieutenant-General Cunningham. The general plan of attack, including the use of Ethiopian irregular forces, was agreed upon at this conference.[5]
In November 1940, the British and Commonwealth forces gained an intelligence advantage when the government code and cypher school at Bletchley Park broke the high grade cypher of the Italian Royal Army (Regio Esercito) in East Africa. Later, that same month, the replacement cypher for the Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica) was broken by the Combined Bureau, Middle East (CBME). From this point on, the commanders-in-chief in Cairo knew Italian plans as soon as they were issued.[6]
Amedeo, Duke of Aosta was the Viceroy and Governor-General of Italian East Africa (Africa Orientale Italiana, or AOI). He had between 250,000 and 280,000 Italian troops available to him. On 10 June 1940, the Italians were organized in four command sectors: the Northern Sector (the area near Asmara, Eritrea), the Southern Sector (Jimma, Ethiopia), the Eastern Sector (near the border with French Somaliland and British Somaliland), and the Giuba Sector (southern Somalia near Kismayo, Italian Somaliland). Lieutenant-General Luigi Frusci commanded the Northern Sector, General Pietro Gazzera commanded the Southern Sector, General Guglielmo Nasi commanded the Eastern Sector, and Lieutenant-General Carlo De Simone commanded the Giuba Sector. The Duke of Aosta commanded from Addis Ababa in Ethiopia.
The Duke of Aosta's command included two Italian infantry divisions: The 40 Infantry Division "Hunters of Africa" (Cacciatori d'Africa) and the 65 Infantry Division "Grenadiers of Savoy" (Granatieri di Savoia). The Italians also had one battalion of elite mountain troops (Alpini), one battalion of highly mobile infantry (Bersaglieri), numerous Fascist paramilitary Blackshirts (Camicie Nere) battalions, Security Volunteer Militia (Milizia Volontaria per la Sicurezza Nazionale or MVSN), Colonial Militia, and other smaller units.
Most of the Italian troops in East Africa (about 70%) were local East African askaris. While the askaris of the regular Eritrean battalions of the "Royal Corps of Colonial Troops" (Regio Corpo Truppe Coloniali) were amongst the best Italian units in East Africa, the majority of the colonial troops in Italian East Africa were recruited, trained, and equipped to do no more than maintain order in the colony. The Somali Dubats recruited from border tribesmen provided useful light infantry and skirmishers but the irregular bande were much less effective. Ethiopian askaris and irregulars, recruited during the brief Italian occupation, deserted in large numbers after the outbreak of war. The Royal Corps of Colonial Troops included horse-mounted Eritrean cavalry known as "Falcon Feathers" (Penne di Falco). On one occasion a squadron of these horsemen charged British and Commonwealth troops throwing small hand grenades from the saddle.
Equipment for the Italian ground forces in East Africa was a mixed bag. The forces were equipped with about 3,300 machine guns, 24 M11/39 medium tanks, a large number of L3/35 light tanks, 126 armored cars and 813 pieces of assorted artillery. The most common Italian rifle in East Africa was the Carcano Mod. 91. The Italians faced problems due to the isolation of East Africa from Mediterranean supply lines, with very little opportunity for reinforcements or resupply, leading to problems especially with ammunition.
Another problem that afflicted the Italian forces was the lack of medicine for diseases endemic to the Horn of Africa area, especially malaria. It is estimated that nearly one-quarter of the Italians troops defending Amba Alagi in April 1941 had malaria during the siege. The Italians at Amba Alagi had no medicine for malaria, the Italian medicine at the time being all but gone during the last months of fighting in 1941. Even the commander of Amba Alagi, the Duke of Aosta, was himself afflicted with malaria during the siege. He died of tuberculosis and malaria on 3 March 1942, a few months after his surrender.
Initially, the British and Commonwealth forces in East Africa amounted to about 30,000 men under Major-General William Platt in the Sudan, Major-General Douglas Dickinson in British East Africa, and Lieutenant-Colonel Arthur Reginald Chater in British Somaliland. The British and Commonwealth forces were slightly better equipped than the Italians, and had access to resupply and reinforcements. However, they were vastly outnumbered by the Italian forces available in Italian East Africa. Also, the Italians had at least another 208,000 men (fourteen divisions) available in Libya.
On 10 June 1940, in all of the Sudan, prior to the arrival of the 4th Indian Infantry Division and 5th Indian Infantry Division, Platt had only three regular British infantry battalions (which were absorbed into the under-strength 5th Indian Division when it arrived)[7] and the 21 companies (4,500 men in total) of the Sudan Defence Force of which five (later six) were organised as small mobile machine gun companies.[8] The three battalions were the 1st Battalion Worcestershire Regiment, the 1st Battalion Essex Regiment and the 2nd Battalion West Yorkshire Regiment which in mid-September became part of 29th, 10th and 9th Indian Infantry Brigades respectively. Platt had no artillery though the Sudan Horse was in the process of conversion into a 3.7 inch howitzer battery.[8]
In Kenya, the King's African Rifles (KAR) was composed of two brigade-strength units organized as a "Northern Brigade" and a "Southern Brigade". In 1938, the combined strength of both units amounted to 94 officers, 60 non-commissioned officers, and 2,821 African other ranks. After the outbreak of war, these units provided the trained nucleus for the rapid expansion of the KAR. By March 1940, the strength of the KAR had reached 883 officers, 1,374 non-commissioned officers, and 20,026 African other ranks. The size of a KAR battalion was established at 36 officers, 44 non-commissioned officers and other ranks, and 1,050 African other ranks.[9]
Initially, the KAR deployed as the 1st East African Infantry Brigade and the 2nd East African Infantry Brigade. The first brigade was responsible for coastal defence and the second was responsible for the defence of the interior. By the end of July, two additional East African brigades were formed, the 3rd East African Infantry Brigade and the 6th East African Infantry Brigade. Initially, a Coastal Division and a Northern Frontier District Division were planned. But, instead, the 11th African Division and the 12th African Division were formed.[9]
On 1 June, the first South African unit arrived in Mombasa, Kenya. By the end of July, the 1st South African Infantry Brigade Group joined the first unit. On 13 August, the 1st South African Division was formed. This division included the 1st, 2nd, and 5th Infantry Brigade Groups. By the end of the year, approximately 27,000 South Africans were serving in East Africa. The South Africans were either in the 1st South African Division, the 11th African Division, or 12th African Division. Each South African brigade group consisted of three rifle battalions, an armoured car company, and supporting signal, engineer, and medical units.[10]
By July, under the terms of a war contingency plan, two brigades were provided on rotation for service in Kenya by the "Royal West African Frontier Force". One brigade was from the Gold Coast the 2nd (West Africa) Infantry Brigade, (Ghana) and one brigade the 1st (West Africa) Infantry Brigade was from Nigeria. The Nigerian brigade, together with two East African brigades (the KAR brigades) and some South Africans, formed 11th African Division. The 12th African Division had a similar formation with the Ghanaian brigade taking the place of the Nigerian brigade.[9]
In British Somaliland, Chater commanded the Somaliland Camel Corps and the re-inforcements that were trickling in. At the outbreak of hostilities, the camel corps had a total of 1,475 men to defend the colony. This number also includes a battalion of the Northern Rhodesian Regiment.
The British and Commonwealth forces employed a relatively small number of armoured vehicles in East Africa. For the most part, an assortment of armoured cars was used. However, B Squadron 4th Royal Tank Regiment did include small number of Matilda infantry tanks.
An aspect of the Allied campaign to retake Ethiopia was Ethiopian irregular forces referred to by the British as "patriots" (or Arbegnoch). Wavell expected that these forces would be able to tie down large numbers of Italian units throughout the occupied territories, although Platt in Khartoum did not believe that Hailie Selassie had the support of the majority of the people and was lukewarm towards providing support to the patriot groups.[11] In August 1940, “Mission 101” under Colonel Daniel Sandford began operating successfully in Gojjam province. Its role was to send "Operational Centres" - small groups of officers and NCOs - to supply arms and training to the Ethiopian patriots and coordinate attacks on Italian forces. Sandford, after serving with distinction in World War I, had spent the rest of his career in Ethiopia and the Sudan and had become a close friend and adviser to Hailie Selassie.[12]
Hailie Selassie, with the encouragement of Sandford, had arrived in Khartoum on 3 July 1940 to a cold reception from Platt.[12] However, Anthony Eden's Khartoum conference in October agreed to boost supplies and support to the Ethiopian irregular forces.[13] Part of the increased support saw the posting in early November of Major Orde Wingate (who had spent five inter-war years with the Sudan Defence Force and was later to gain fame in Burma with the Chindits) to Khartoum as a staff officer with the brief of liaising between Platt, Mission 101 and the Emperor.[11] Here he impressed Hailie Selassie with his drive and enthusiasm.
However, Platt's poor opinion of Hailie Selassie, Sandford, and Wingate meant that he paid little attention to the operation and the resulting lack of clear areas of responsibility and chains of command (together with Wingate's naturally abrasive manner) meant that for the whole campaign there was friction and animosity between Wingate and the other commanders.[14]
Wingate formulated a plan for action in Ethiopia and presented it to Wavell and senior staff in Cairo in early December 1940. The plan included the formation of a small regular force under Wingate to act as a spearhead for military operations in Gojjam. He argued that:
To raise a revolt you must send in a Corps d'Elite to do exploits and not just as peddlers of war material and cash.... A thousand resolute and well-armed men can paralyse 10,000[14]
This force was named Gideon Force, after the biblical judge Gideon, and was composed of the Frontier battalion from the Sudan Defence Force and the 2nd Ethiopian Battalion. These forces were equipped with four, 3-inch mortars (in place of artillery) and 15,000 camels to provide transport and carry supplies. Although he did not formally take command until 6 February 1941, Wingate set off with Gideon Force into Gojjam in January 1941.[15]
Gideon Force was able to travel relatively freely throughout the countryside. At any time during its brief history, the Italian East African Empire was only nominally under Italian control. It is estimated that as much as one third of Ethiopia remained under the control of Ethiopian nobles.[16]
The Italians had not endeared themselves to the Ethiopians. On 22 May 1936, when General Rodolfo Graziani was made Viceroy of Ethiopia, the Italians may have possibly chosen the man least likely to pacify the country. On 6 June, Mussolini cabled Graziani and indicated: "All rebels captured are to be shot." This gave the new Viceroy, infamous for his pacification of Libya, all the power he needed.[17] Soon, Graziani's reputation for brutal repression earned him the title: "the Butcher of Ethiopia". The Duke of Aosta replaced Graziani as Viceroy in 1937. It was generally conceded that he was a vast improvement over Graziani. But he was unable to undo much of the damage Graziani's brutality had already done.
For their part, the Ethiopian patriots gave the Italian troops every reason to fear losing to them, as the Ethiopians did not often take prisoners.[16]
Very important to the success of the operations in northwest Ethiopia, Emperor Haile Selassie I crossed the border from Sudan to join the force of Ethiopian patriots. Sizeable patriot forces were already concentrated in the provinces of Gojjam, Shoa, Gimma, Galla-Sidama, and Harage.[17]
In June 1940, the Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica Italia) in East Africa had between two-hundred and three-hundred combat ready aircraft (see Italian East Africa Air Command). While some of these aircraft were outdated, in relative terms these were some of the best aircraft available to either side in East Africa in 1940. The Italians had Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 and Savoia-Marchetti SM.81 bombers and Fiat CR-42 fighters. In addition, the Italian aircraft were often based at better airfields than their British and Commonwealth counterparts. When the war began, Italian pilots were relatively well trained and confident of their abilities. But, cut off from Italy as they were, problems with lack of fuel, munitions, spare parts, and replacements eventually wore down the Italian air capability.
The roughly one-hundred aircraft available to the British Empire forces in June 1940 were dispersed as follows: In the north (Sudan) were three Royal Air Force (RAF) bomber squadrons (Nos. 14, 47 and 223) equipped with obsolete Vickers Wellesley aircraft.[8] A flight of Vickers Vincent biplanes formed from No. 47 squadron performed Army Co-operation duties and these squadrons were later reinforced from Egypt by No. 45 squadron (flying Bristol Blenheim aircraft).[8] In Port Sudan there were six Gloster Gladiator biplane fighters. The air force's role in Sudan covered shipping protection in the Red Sea (including anti-submarine patrols), air defence of Port Sudan, Atbara and Khartoum as well as close support for land forces. The No. 1 (Fighter) Squadron of the South African Air Force (SAAF) (equipped with Gladiators) arrived in Khartoum as reinforcement in August.[8]
In the south (Kenya) were No. 12 Bomber Squadron SAAF (equipped with Junkers Ju 86 bombers), No. 11 Bomber Squadron of the SAAF (equipped with Fairey Battles), No. 40 Army Co-operation Squadron SAAF (equipped with Hawker Hartebees), No. 2 Fighter Squadron, SAAF (equipped with Hawker Furies), and No. 237 (Southern Rhodesian) Army Co-operation Squadron (equipped with Hawker Hardys).
Unlike the Italians, the aircraft available to the British and Commonwealth forces improved with time. But, as can be seen above, much of the equipment initially available tended to be older and slower. Even so, the British and Commonwealth forces managed to make do with what they had. The South Africans even pressed an old Valencia biplane into service as a bomber.[18]
The Italian Royal Navy (Regia Marina Italia) maintained presence in the Red Sea region with its "Red Sea Flotilla". Most vessels were stationed in the port of Massawa in the Italian colony of Eritrea. However, lesser port facilities existed at Mogadishu in Italian Somaliland and also at Assab in Eritrea. The Red Sea Flotilla included seven destroyers organized into two squadrons, five motor torpedo boats (MTB, or in Italian; Motoscafo Armato Silurante, MAS) organized into one squadron together with eight submarines organized into two squadrons.
The Italian naval squadrons were viewed by the British as a threat to Allied convoys heading from the Gulf of Aden to the Red Sea. But, as Italian fuel supplies in Massawa dwindled, so did the Italian fleet's opportunity for offensive action in the Red Sea.
The Red Sea Flotilla and its home port of Massawa did however represent a link between Axis occupied Europe and the naval facilities located in the Italian concession zone in Tientsin in China.
The British Eastern Fleet faced the Italian Red Sea Flotilla. Until World War II, the Indian Ocean had been considered a "British lake". The Indian Ocean was ringed by significant British and Commonwealth possessions. Much of the strategic supplies needed by the United Kingdom in both peace and war had to pass across the Indian Ocean. These included: Persian oil, Malayan rubber, Indian tea, and Australian and New Zealand foodstuffs. In war, Britain relied upon the loyalty and manpower of Australia and New Zealand and these had to be transported. Safe passage for British cargo ships was critical.
Despite this, the Royal Navy had tended to station its older ships in the east and used the China Station and the Far East Station as sources of reinforcements for other theatres. Even when gravely threatened, the Eastern Fleet largely consisted of older capital ships that had been deemed too slow or too vulnerable to be of use in the Atlantic Ocean or the Mediterranean Sea.
Starting in June 1940, the Italians tested the resolve of the British and Commonwealth forces along the borders of the Sudan and Kenya and in the shipping lanes of the Red Sea.
On 13 June, early in the morning, three Italian Caproni bombers appeared and bombed the Rhodesian air base at the fort located at Wajir in Kenya. The Rhodesian aircraft were still warming up and preparing to take-off on a dawn patrol. The Capronis bombed the fort, the landing-ground, and nearby housing. The King's African Rifles (KAR), then garrisoning the fort, lost four killed and eleven wounded. Two Rhodesian aircraft were badly damaged and a large dump of aviation fuel was set on fire. Following this, the air base at Wajir received regular visits from the Italians every second or third day and the Rhodesian pilots were made to realize the significant shortcomings in speed and fire-power of the Hawker Hardys they themselves flew.
At dawn on 17 June, the Rhodesians struck back and supported a successful raid by the KAR on the Italian desert outpost of El Wak in Italian Somaliland, some ninety miles northeast of Wajir. The Rhodesians bombed and set alight the thatched mud huts and generally harassed the enemy troops. But, since the main fighting at that time was centered on Italian advances towards Moyale in Kenya, the Rhodesians concentrated on that town. In conjunction with the South African Air Force, the Rhodesians undertook the task of reconnaissance and bombing in that disputed area.
On July 4, 1940, Italian forces in Eritrea crossed the Sudanese border and forced the small British garrison holding the railway junction at Kassala to withdraw.[19] The defenders lost 10 men, the attackers 117.[19] The Italians also seized the small British fort at Gallabat, just over the border from Metemma, some 200 miles (320 km) to the south of Kassala.[19] Even the villages of Qaysān, Kurmuk and Dumbode on the Blue Nile were conquered. Having taken Kassala and Gallabat, however, the Italians decided to venture no further in the Sudan—because of lack of fuel—and they proceeded to fortify Kassala with anti-tank defences, machine-gun posts, and strong-points. The Italians were also disappointed to find the native population of not harboring any anti-British sentiments.[19] Ultimately, the Italians established a brigade-strong garrison at Kassala.
In Kenya, after heavy fighting, the Italians occupied Fort Harrington in Moyale.[19] At the end of July, Italian forces reached Dabel and Buna.[19] These small villages, nearly one-hundred kilometers from the Ethiopian-Kenyan border, were to be the deepest points inside Kenya reached by the Italian army. Any further expansion was impossible because of the poor supply situation.[19]
In the first days of August, an Italian force of irregular Eritreans raided Port Sudan[20] as a prelude to the Italian campaign to conquer British Somaliland.
Mussolini had laid claims to Kenya, but Hitler planned the dissection of the colony, with the southern part and the capital Nairobi forming a territory of the German Mittelafrika.[21][22] Italy was also to replace the British administration in Sudan: Italian-Egyptian Sudan was to link Italian North Africa with Italian East Africa.[23]
Initially, an Italian force was assembled to capture the port city of Djibouti, the major French base in French Somaliland (modern Djibouti). The French commander, Brigadier-General Paul Legentilhomme, had some 7,000 men in seven battalions of Senegalese and Somali infantry. Legentilhomme also had three batteries of field guns, four batteries of anti-aircraft guns, a company of light tanks, four companies of militia and irregulars, two platoons of camel corps, and an assortment of aircraft. But, after the fall of France in June 1940, the Vichy French government's neutrality allowed the Italians to shift their focus to the more lightly defended British Somaliland.[24]
On 18 June 1940, Legentilhomme left French Somaliland and joined the Free French. But French Somaliland, the colony Legentilhomme once commanded, remained loyal to the Vichy government until the British seized in after a conducting a siege after a 101 day blockade in October of 1941.[25]
On 3 August 1940, approximately 25,000 Italian troops invaded British Somaliland. The Italians were commanded by General Guglielmo Nasi.[26]
The Italian force attacking British Somaliland in August included five colonial brigades, three Blackshirt battalions, and three bands (banda) of native troops.[27] The Italians had armoured vehicles (a small number of both light and medium tanks), artillery, and, for the moment, superior air support.
The Italians were opposed by a British contingent, commanded by Brigadier Arthur Reginald Chater, of about four-thousand men consisting of the lightly armed Somaliland Camel Corps, the 2nd (Nyasaland) Battalion King's African Rifles (KAR), the 1st Battalion Northern Rhodesian Regiment, the 3rd Battalion 15th Punjab Regiment and 1st East African Light Battery (four 3.7 inch howitzers). They were joined from Aden on 7 August by the 1st Battalion 2nd Punjab Regiment and 8 August by 2nd Battalion Black Watch.[28][29][30] Chaters' force was not only critically short of artillery but it had no tanks or armoured cars nor did it have any anti-tank weapons to oppose the Italian medium and light tanks.
The Italians advanced in three columns, with the western column advancing towards Zeila, the central column towards Hargeisa, and the eastern column towards Odweina in the south. Lieutenant-General Carlo De Simone commanded the main central column. Chater used his Camel Corps to skirmish with and screen against the advancing Italians as the other British and Commonwealth forces pulled back towards Tug Argan, to form defensive positions in the rugged Assa Hills overlooking the main road to the capital, Berbera.
On 5 August, within two days of the invasion, the towns of Zeila and Hargeisa were taken. The occupation of Zeila effectively sealed British Somaliland off from French Somaliland. Odweina fell the following day and the Italian central and eastern columns combined to launch attacks against the main British and Commonwealth positions at Tug Argan.
At the end of the first week in August the British and Commonwealth forces in British Somaliland received reinforcements with the arrival of the 1st Battalion 2nd Punjab Regiment.[30] and 2nd Battalion The Black Watch. On 11 August, a new, more senior, commander, Major-General Reade Godwin-Austen, reached Berbera.
The Italians commenced their attacks at Tug Argan on 11 August but, early on 15 August, Godwin-Austen concluded that further resistance to the Italians would be futile as his troops were close to being cut off. He contacted the British Middle East Command headquarters in Cairo, Egypt. Godwin-Austen requested and received permission to withdraw his forces from British Somaliland. The determined effort of the Black Watch battalion, which covered the retreat, allowed the entire British and Commonwealth contingent to withdraw to Berbera with almost no losses. By 17 August, most of the contingent was successfully evacuated from Berbera to Aden. Rather than evacuate, the Somaliland Camel Corps was disbanded.
On 19 August 1940, the Italians took control of Berbera and then moved down the coast to complete their conquest of British Somaliland. The British colony was annexed to Italian East Africa.[31]
British and Commonwealth losses in the short campaign were relatively low:[27]
By contrast, the Italians losses were over ten times that of the British:
The British Prime Minister, Sir Winston Churchill, criticized General Archibald Wavell concerning the loss of British Somaliland. It was Wavell's Middle East Command which was responsible for the loss of the colony. Because of the low casualty rate, Churchill fretted that the British had abandoned the colony without enough of a fight.
In response to this criticism, Wavell claimed that Somaliland was a textbook withdrawal in the face of superior numbers. He pointed out to Churchill that "A bloody butcher’s bill is not the sign of a good tactician." According to Churchill's staff, Wavell's retort moved Churchill to greater fury than they had ever seen before.[34]
The conquest of the British Somaliland was the only campaign in which Italy achieved victory without the support of other Axis troops during World War II.
The main insights from this campaign are the following:
The Italian Red Sea Flotilla saw early action as they attempted to make their presence known. But they introduced themselves at a high cost. In mid to late June, four of the eight submarines based in Massawa were lost.
On 15 June, the Italian submarine Macalle ran aground and was a total loss.
On 16 June 1940, the Italian submarine Galileo Galilei sank the Norwegian tanker James Stove approximately 12 miles (19 km) south of Aden. On 18 June, the Galileo Galilei captured the Yugoslav steamship Dravo but, in the end, released it. On 19 June, the Galileo Galilei was on patrol off of Aden and encountered the armed trawler Moonstone. During a gun duel, the commander of the Galileo Galilei was killed, and the submarine was then captured by the armed trawler. The submarine was subsequently used by the British as HMS X2.
On 23 June, in the Gulf of Aden off French Somaliland, the Italian Brin class submarine Evangelista Torricelli was sunk by the British destroyers HMS Kandahar and Kingston with assistance from the sloop Shoreham. Several hours afterwards, the British destroyer Khartoum suffered an internal explosion following a fire and sank in shallow water off Perim Island.[35] The British destroyer was a total loss.
Later on 23 June, the Italian submarine Luigi Galvani sank the Indian patrol sloop Pathan in the Indian Ocean. However, on 24 June, the Luigi Galvani was sunk by the sloop Falmouth in the Gulf of Oman.
During the time between the Italian conquest of British Somaliland and the Allied counter-offensive, much attention shifted to the naval sphere and to the activities of the Italian Red Sea Flotilla. Fuel and parts shortages continued to hamper the ability of the Italian flotilla to interfere with either convoys or even individual vessels of the British Eastern Fleet.
On 13 August, the Italian submarine Gauleo Ferraras tried to intercept the British battleship Royal Sovereign in the Red Sea. Royal Sovereign, coming from Suez, escaped the Italian ambush and made it safely to Aden.
On 6 September, the Italian submarine Guglielmo waited for prey south of the Farasan Islands. The Guglielmo succeeded in torpedoing and sinking only one ship, the oil tanker Atlas.
Between 20 October and 21 October, the Italian submarines Guglielmo and Gauleo Ferraras tried to intercept a large British Red Sea convoy coming from the Indian Ocean and sailing to Port Sudan and Suez. The BN7 convoy included 31 cargo vessels escorted by the New Zealand cruiser Leander, the British destroyer Kimberley and five sloops. The convoy also had an air escort provided by 50 fighters and bombers based in Aden. The Guglielmo and Gauleo Ferraras did not succeed in intercepting the convoy. On 21 November, the same convoy was attacked by the Italian destroyers Pantera, Leone and Francesco Nullo. The convoy escorts drove the Italian destroyers off. Two of the convoy escorts, the New Zealand cruiser Leander and the British destroyer Kimberley drove the Italian destroyer Francesco Nullo ashore with their combined gunfire. The Francesco Nullo was destroyed the next day by Royal Air Force (RAF) Blenheim light bombers.
The 5th Indian Infantry Division started to arrive in the Sudan in early September 1940. The 29th Indian Infantry Brigade were placed on the Red Sea coast to protect Port Sudan, the 9th Indian Infantry Brigade were positioned southwest of Kassala and the 10th Indian Infantry Brigade were sent to Gedaref, accompanying the divisional headquarters.[36] On 6 November a surprise attack was staged to take back Gallabat. The attacking force comprised William "Bill" Slim's 10th Indian Infantry Brigade. Slim was accompanied by a squadron of 12 medium and light tanks, a field regiment of artillery, and supported by the RAF.[37] The attack began at 5:30 am and Gallabat was captured by 8:00 am. The planned follow-on assault on Metemma, on the other side of the ravine forming the border, had to be delayed because by this time nine of the tanks were out of action.[38]
Lieutenant-General Luigi Frusci, acting Governor of Eritrea and commander of the Italian forces there, was not prepared to relinquish the Italian-held positions in the Sudan. The Italian defenders occupied strong prepared positions with barbed-wire defences which could only be broken by tanks. As Slim paused while his tanks were repaired, General Martini, the Italian commander at Gondar, sent a fierce onslaught from the counter-attacking Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica).[38] Italian aircraft appeared in great strength. The Italian airmen shot down seven RAF Gloster Gladiator biplane fighters whilst losing five Fiat CR-42s and, for forty-eight hours, proceeded to methodically bomb the 1st Battalion Essex Regiment and the 3rd Battalion 18th Royal Garwhal Rifles. The Italians did this until the British and Commonwealth troops were compelled to withdraw from the positions they had just won. The 10th Indian Brigade re-occupied the ridge west of Gallabat three days later but the operation against Metemma was not continued.[39]
For the next two months, the 10th Indian Brigade and, after them, the 9th Indian Brigade (who relieved the 10th Brigade in December) simulated the activities of a full division. The brigades blazed lines of communication east from Gedaref and created dummy airfields and stores depots. The British forces did this to convince Italian Intelligence that Platt's main thrust would be towards Gondar rather than Kassala.[40]
On 16 October, Gazelle Force was created in the Sudan as a mobile reconnaissance and fighting force. It comprised three motor machine-gun companies from the Sudan Defence Force, the 1st Duke of York's Own Skinner's Horse (the reconnaissance regiment from the 5th Indian Infantry Division), and some mobile artillery. Gazelle Force was commanded by Colonel Frank Messervy.[41]
Throughout November, December, and early January, Lieutenant-General William Platt continued to apply constant pressure on the Italians all along the border with the Sudan by continually patrolling and raiding with both his ground troops and his air force. During this time, better British aircraft started to replace some of the older models. The British and Commonwealth air forces were now starting to get Hawker Hurricanes and more Gloster Gladiators. The Hurricanes were superior to the Italian Fiat CR-42 fighters and the Gladiators were at least their equal. Both the Hurricanes and the Gladiators were capable of playing havoc with Italian Savoia-Marchetti bombers.
On 6 December, a large concentration of Italian motor transport was bombed and strafed by Commonwealth aircraft a few miles north of Kassala. The same aircraft then proceeded to machine-gun from low level the nearby positions of the Italian Blackshirts and colonial infantry. A few days later, the same aircraft bombed the Italian base at Keru, fifty miles east of Kassala. The Commonwealth pilots had the satisfaction of seeing supply dumps, stores, and transport enveloped in flame and smoke as they flew away.
One morning in mid-December, a force of Italian fighters paid a visit to a Rhodesian landing-strip near Kassala. The Italians strafed some Hawker Hardys caught on the ground. As a result of the Italian attack, several aircraft were destroyed. However, while successful, the attack resulted in no casualties.
After the conquest of British Somaliland, the Italians adopted a more defensive posture. Throughout late 1940, the setbacks suffered by Italian forces elsewhere in the Mediterranean Sea, in the Western Desert, in the skies over Britain, and on the Albanian border with Greece prompted the new Italian Chief of the General Staff in Rome, General Ugo Cavallero, to adopt a new course of action in East Africa. In December 1940, Cavallero argued to the Italian High Command (Commando Supremo) that the Italian forces in East Africa should abandon offensive actions against the Sudan and against the Suez Canal. Instead, Cavallero argued that Italy should focus on defending the Italian East African Empire.[42]
Amedeo, Duke of Aosta, also requested permission to withdraw from the Sudanese frontier. In response to Cavallero and the Duke of Aosta, the Italian Supreme Command (Commando Supremo) in Rome issued orders for the Italian forces in East Africa to withdraw to better defensive positions.
Orders were sent to Lieutenant-General Luigi Frusci for him to withdraw his forces from Kassala and Metemma in the lowlands along the Sudanese border with Eritrea. Instead, Frusci was ordered to hold the more easily defended mountain passes on the roads running eastward from Kassala to Agordat and from Metemma to Gondar. However, Frusci chose not to withdraw from the lowland. He argued that withdrawal would involve too great a loss of prestige. Furthermore, Kassala was an important railway junction. By holding it, the Italians prevented the British from using the railway to carry supplies from Port Sudan on the Red Sea coast to the base at Gedaref.[42]
Information of the Italian withdrawal was quickly decrypted by the British and, knowing the Italian plans, Lieutenant-General William Platt was able to start his offensive into Eritrea on 18 January 1941, three weeks ahead of schedule.[6]
After the fall of British Somaliland, General Archibald Wavell's plan for the counter-offensive by British and Commonwealth forces included a "northern front" led by William Platt (who was promoted to Lieutenant-General in early January 1941) and a "southern front" led by Lieutenant-General Alan Cunningham who had taken over the East African Force at the start of November 1940. A third front would be created by the forces which re-took British Somaliland by sea.
Wavell planned for Platt to advance southward from the Sudan, through Eritrea, and into Ethiopia and for Cunningham to advance northwards from Kenya, through Italian Somaliland, and into Ethiopia. While Platt advanced from the north and Cunningham from the south, Wavell planned for a third force to be landed in British Somaliland in an amphibious assault and to then re-take that colony prior to advancing into Ethiopia. According to the plan, all three forces were to ultimately join forces at the capital of Italian East Africa, Addis Ababa.
The capture of Italian East Africa would remove land-based threats to supplies and reinforcements coming from Australia, New Zealand, India, South Africa, and British East Africa and passing through the Suez Canal for the campaign in North Africa and open the overland route from Cape Town to Cairo.
On 18 January 1941, Emperor Selassie crossed the border near the village of Um Iddla. Two days later he joined Gideon Force which was already in Ethiopia. The standard of the Lion of Judah was raised again.[43]
The crossing was made some 450 miles (720 km) northwest of Addis Ababa, the capital Emperor Selassie had been forced to flee when the Italian General Pietro Badoglio captured the city from the Ethiopians on 5 May 1936 during the Second Italo-Abyssinian War.
Emperor Selassie and Gideon Force under Major Orde Wingate conducted a campaign for the next three months in the Ethiopian province of Gojjam where they initially faced opposing forces of about 25,000 men.[44] Emperor Selassie and Gideon Force rallied Ethiopian patriots wherever they went using powerful loudspeakers which had been supplied to the patriot forces to announce the presence of the emperor and inducing local tribal leaders and Italian askaris to desert the Italian cause.[44] Using surprise and bluff, this relatively small force disrupted Italian supply lines and provided important intelligence to the more conventional British and Commonwealth forces.
In March, there was a furious clash between Colonel Sandford and Wingate. Sandford maintained in a signal to headquarters in Khartoum that the resources being absorbed by Wingate for the "comparatively slow advance of [his] conventional forces" was "paralysing Patriot activities by diverting rifles, ammunition and pack saddles exclusively to Wingate's force, instead of giving equal priority to the Patriots" which would have a greater impact through swift and dispersed action not just in Gojjam but with the assistance of Sandford's Mission 101, in other provinces as well. This was followed by a signal of rebuttal from Wingate to Platt who had to rebuke them both.[45] The dispute overflowed into Wingate's formations leading to the mutiny of the 2nd Ethiopian Battalion at the start of April. Wingate had to leave his sick-bed (he was suffering from an attack of malaria) to dismiss the battalion's commander, after which it rallied to its new leader and performed well for the rest of the campaign.[46]
On 6 March 1941, Ethiopia's "Patriots" won their first victory when they took Bure. From 27 February to 3 March Gideon Force harried the well-sited defensive forts at Bure while propagandists yelling through their megaphones fostered the Italian belief that they were being attacked by a substantial force and provoked many desertions. Finally on 4 March, fearing his line of communication to Debre Marqos was threatened, Colonel Natale, not knowing that the attacking force counted only 450 men, pulled out of Bure and headed for Dembacha on the road to Debre Marqos.[47] Harried from behind by the Frontier Battalion, Natale's column met the 2nd Ethiopian Battalion head-on just west of Dembacha. The Ethiopian battalion put up a stiff resistance but were overwhelmed. However, Natale had been shaken by recent events and abandoned Dembacha on 8 March and pulled all the garrisons back to Debre Marqos.[48]
The American United Press Agency reported: "The East African war has turned into a race to Addis Ababa between the army of Abyssinian volunteers and the mechanised South African troops who stand in such remarkable contrast to each other. The South African troops are advancing from Mogadishu toward Harar, which lies about 30 miles (48 km) from the Djibouti-Addis Ababa railway line."
In less than three months, Gideon Force (less the 2nd Ethiopian Battalion which was no longer a combatant force after the engagement at Dembacha) and an ever-growing army of Ethiopian patriots were advancing on the Italian fortifications at Debre Marqos, the capital of Gojjam. Lieutenant-Colonel Bousted, commanding the Frontier Battalion, embarked on a guerrilla campaign which involved small parties of 50 or so men silently infiltrating to within 10 yards (9 m) of an enemy position in the middle of the night and then attacking with grenades and bayonets to clear the defenders. By early April the defenders had been forced back to the inner defensive ring at Debre Marqos.[49] Because of the critical situation to the south, the Duke of Aosta ordered the withdrawal from Debre Marqos and on 4 April 12,000 people (including 4,000 women) under their commander, Colonel Maraventano, began the 200-mile (320 km) trek to Safartak and then beyond to Dessie. On 6 April Hailie Selassie entered Debre Marqos and was formally greeted by Wingate, Gideon Force and Ras Hailu, the powerful local patriot leader.[50]
While Debre Markos and Addis Derra were being captured, other Ethiopian patriots under Ras Abebe Aregai consolidated themselves around Addis Ababa in preparation for Emperor Selassie's return. In response to the rapidly advancing British and Commonwealth forces and to the general uprising of Ethiopian patriots, the Italians in Ethiopia retreated to the mountain fortresses of Gondar, Amba Alagi, Dessie, and Gimma.[43]
From Debra Marqos, Wingate followed the retreating Italians and undertook a series of harrying actions. In early May most of Gideon Force had to break off in order to provide a suitable escort for Hailie Selassie's formal entry into Addis Ababa. Following the ceremonials Wingate returned to Safforce, the main Mission 101 force which was harassing Maraventano's column. By 18 May the column was dug in at Agibor.
Facing Maraventano was a force of about 2,000 including only 160 trained soldiers (100 from the Frontier Battalion and 60 from the re-formed 2nd Ethiopian Battalion).[51] Both sides by this time were short of food, ammunition, water and medical supplies. Wingate sent a message to Maraventano falsely telling of very substantial forces about to join him and playing on the likely imminent withdrawal of British troops leaving the Italian column at the mercy of the Patriots. By 21 May, having referred the matter to higher authority in Gondar which had left the decision to him, Maraventano indicated an intention to surrender with the formal honours taking place on 23 May. Wingate accepted the surrender of 1,100 Italian and 5,000 colonial troops, 2,000 women and children and 1,000 mule men and camp followers. By this time his force contained only 36 regular soldiers to make the formal guard of honour at the surrender, the rest of his force being patriots.[52]
On 18 May, a small part of Gideon Force led by the explorer Wilfred Thesiger blocked a force of 2,500 retreating Italians. On 24 May, thinking he faced superior numbers, the Italian commander agreed to surrender to Thesiger.
On 12 January, Amedeo, Duke of Aosta, sent his elite Savoy Grenadiers Division to defend Keren. The Italian force at Keren soon included three colonial brigades and the Savoy Grenadiers. The Savoy Grenadiers included one battalion of highly mobile infantry (Bersaglieri) and the Uork Amba Battalion, the one battalion of elite mountain troops (Alpini) in East Africa.
Lieutenant-General Platt's attack from the Sudan to take Eritrea could only begin once re-inforcements arrived from Egypt, in the meantime he continued to conduct harrying raids on Italian positions. The arrival of an Australian division in Egypt allowed General Wavell to release the 4th Indian Infantry Division from Operation Compass in the Western Desert. Further reinforcements in the form of a battery of 6-inch howitzers and a company of I tanks were also forthcoming.[38]
The arrival of the 4th Indian Infantry Division (which commenced on 7 January[53]), together with intelligence concerning the Italian plans, greatly aided Platt's plans. The main British attack on Eritrea, originally scheduled to start on February 8 with an attack against the railway junction at Kassala, was brought forward to January 18.[40] However, the aggressive skirmishing in the previous month had prompted the Italians in late December to withdraw from their northern flank back to Keru and Wachai.[54] Finally, on 17 January Frusci acceded to the orders from Rome and withdrew from Kassala and Tessenei to concentrate in the Keru - Biscia - Aicota triangle where the mountains began.[55]
On January 19, 1941, Lieutenant-General Platt's two divisions, the 4th Indian Infantry Division, commanded by Major-General Noel Beresford-Peirse and the 5th Indian Infantry Division, commanded by Major-General Lewis Heath, entered Kassala making for the heavily fortified town of Agordat to the east. On that first day, as the British and Commonwealth troops passed through Kassala and entered Sabdaret and Tessenei, the Italians were already dug in among the jagged foothills of the Eritrean Plateau on the approaches to Agordat.[55]
As the Indian divisions crossed the Eritrean border in the west, Briggs Force, operating independently from the main force and under Platt's direct command, advanced eastwards from the Sudan and entered Eritrea from the north through the border town of Karora. Briggs Force was four battalions under Brigadier Harold Rawdon Briggs — two battalions from Briggs's own 7th Indian Infantry Brigade (from the 4th Indian Infantry Division), together with two battalions from the French "Brigade of the East" (Brigade d'Orient) — one Senegalese colonial battalion and one Free French battalion.
After capturing Italian positions near Karora, Briggs Force fought its way to the northern defences of Keren and linked up with the main force in March.
Advancing east from Kassala towards Agordat, the 4th Indian Division, still with only one under-strength brigade available (11th Indian Infantry Brigade) but with Gazelle Force under command, took the northern road via Wachai and Keru. Meanwhile the two brigades of 5th Indian Infantry Division (a third brigade, 9th Indian Infantry Brigade, had remained to cover the Gallabat position) took the southern road via Tessenei, Aicota and Barentu. Both roads were mined and sown with spikes placing a heavy burden on the engineers to maintain the momentum of the advance.[54]
On 21 January 5th Indian Division had occupied Aicota without opposition and Gazelle Force had reached the strongly defended position at the Keru Gorge held by five Italian battalions. The Italian position at Keru was undone by a bold move by Major-General Heath who sent the 2nd Battalion Highland Light Infantry and the 2nd Motor Machine Gun Battalion from 10th Indian Brigade northeast along a track from Aicota to the rear of the Italian position at Keru. On 22 January when 4th Indian Division put in their attack, the 5th Indian Division detachment were across the Italians' rear line of communication. The Italian position, which should have been held for weeks, became untenable and while some elements of the Italian 41st Brigade managed to escape across country in the night, General Fongoli with his staff and guns and 1200 men were taken prisoner.[6][56]
By 25 January the lateral line of communication between Agordat and Barentu had been cut leaving these two strong points isolated from each other.[56] Agordat was defended by four infantry brigades supported by 76 guns and a company each of medium and light tanks all under the command of General Lorenzini. 4th Indian Division's second brigade (5th Indian Infantry Brigade) had by now concentrated from Egypt and Beresford-Pierse therefore paused to allow it together with the first four I tanks to move into the front line.[57] On the evening of 28 January he sent 11th Indian Brigade's 3/14th Punjab Regiment on a flanking move into the Cochen hills to the south. On 29 January they were joined by a second battalion, 1/6th Rajputana Rifles. On 30 January they were counter attacked by five Italian colonial battalions with mountain artillery in support. The Indian battalions came under intense pressure and were forced to give way but counter attacked on the morning of 31 January and regained the lost ground.[57] With Lorenzini's attention fully occupied by the events in the Cochen, Beresford-Pierse launched 5th Indian Brigade in his main attack on the plain below supported by the four I tanks. The tanks proved decisive and by the evening the road to Keren had been cut and the Italian defenders isolated. Once again the Italian forces attempted to get away in the hours of darkness but 1,000 prisoners were taken and 43 guns captured.[58]
Meanwhile 5th Indian Division had attacked Barentu and despite facing 8,000 defenders and 32 guns settled in prepared defences, they had prevailed without help from I tanks and occupied the town on 2 February.[58]
Within nine days, the forces of Beresford-Peirse and Heath had advanced 100 miles (160 kilometres) and broken through the Italian positions in the foothills to capture Agordat on February 1. In total 6,000 prisoners had been taken and 80 guns, 26 tanks and 400 trucks captured.[59]
On 21 January, during the advance of the 5th Indian Division, Brigadier William "Bill" Slim was wounded by aerial strafing. Slim's command of 10th Indian Infantry Brigade was assumed temporarily by Lieutenant-Colonel Bernard Fletcher, commander of the brigade's 2nd Highland Light Infantry battalion, until March when Brigadier Thomas "Pete" Rees took over.[60]
On 31 January, the Italian garrison at Metemma in northern Ethiopia, having been under increasing pressure for three weeks and realising that Platt's main thrust would not be coming from the Gallabat direction withdrew towards Gondar. This withdrawal allowed the 9th Indian Infantry Brigade of the 5th Indian Infantry Division to occupy Metemma. Brigadier Mosley Mayne, 9th Brigade's commander, sent units along the road towards Wahni to harry the retreating Italian forces fighting lively engagements 20 miles (32 km) and 45 miles (72 km) east of Metemma. Progress on the road was difficult because of the thickly laid minefields and it was during this period that 2nd Lieutenant Premindra Singh Bhagat of the Royal Bombay Sappers and Miners won the first Victoria Cross for the British Indian Army in World War II for a "...continuous feat of sheer cold courage" clearing 15 minefields and 55 miles (89 km) of roads in 48 hours of unbroken effort.[61]
By 31 January, the Duke of Aosta reported that the Italian military forces in East Africa were down to 67 operational aircraft with limited fuel.
Following the fall of Agordat Gazelle Force set off in pursuit only to be delayed at the Baraka River where the bridge had been blown and the banks and dried bed mined. The eight hour delay gave time for the Italians to consolidate their remaining Eritrean forces together with strategic reserves (which had travelled for three days without stopping from Addis Abbaba) at Keren and then blow the cliff into the gorge which provided the only road access to the Keren plateau from the west.[59]
The key action on the northern front then took place at Keren in Eritrea, 60 miles (97 km) further east of Agordat towards the Red Sea.[62] While General Frusci was in overall command of the Italian forces in Eritrea, the Italians at Keren were commanded by General Nicolangelo Carnimeo. On 5 February, the Battle of Keren began. The battle started with assaults by elements of 4th Indian Infantry Division (Gazelle Force and 11th Indian Brigade) on the Italian positions in the mountains leading to Keren. Initially the resolute Italian defenders prevailed with heavy casualties on both sides. Further heavy attacks took place over the next ten days, but the Italians held and there was no break through.
Platt decided to regroup and concentrate his forces before attacking again. Planning for a set-piece battle he disbanded Gazelle Force (with Messervy taking over 9th Indian Brigade) and brought 5th Indian Infantry Division (which had been mopping up at Agordat) to the front. On 1 March, his command was expanded by the arrival of Briggs Force from the north. Although it lacked the artillery for a major offensive, Briggs Force drew off a significant part of the Keren garrison. This aided Platt's main offensive which was being launched from the south west. Briggs Force also posed a threat to Massawa to the east. This threat obliged the Italians to maintain a reserve on the coast.[63]
On 14 March, by the time the next assault on Keren commenced, Platt's force of about 13,000 men faced a re-inforced Italian defence of about 23,000 men. Once again, both sides fought with determination and both sides suffered heavy losses. According to Winston Churchill, both sides were evenly matched at Keren, both on the ground and in the air. However, Churchill points out that the arrival of Hurricane fighters gave the British the upper hand in the air.[64]
It took until 27 March for Keren to fall.[65] In the account of the battle written in Eastern Epic, an official history of the British Indian Army in World War II, Compton Mackenzie wrote:
Keren was as hard a soldiers' battle as was ever fought, and let it be said that nowhere in the war did the Germans fight more stubbornly than those [Italian] Savoia battalions, Alpini, Bersaglieri and Grenadiers. In the [first] five days' fight the Italians suffered nearly 5,000 casualties - 1,135 of them killed. Lorenzini, the gallant young Italian general, had his head blown off by one of the British guns. He had been a great leader of Eritrean troops[66]
The unfortunate licence of wartime propaganda allowed the British Press to represent the Italians almost as comic warriors; but except for the German parachute division in Italy and the Japanese in Burma no enemy with whom the British and Indian troops were matched put up a finer fight than those Savoia battalions at Keren. Moreover, the Colonial troops, until they cracked at the very end, fought with valour and resolution, and their staunchness was a testimony to the excellence of the Italian administration and military training in Eritrea.[67]
Casualties at Keren were relatively high for both sides. The British and Commonwealth forces had more than 4,000 men killed, wounded or missing[68] including 3,000 casualties from 4th Indian Division.[69] The Italians suffered about 3,000 men killed[68] and several thousand men wounded, injured, or sick. Much of the Italian garrison was captured.
Keren was decisive in terms of the strategic objectives of the Allied forces (to the extent that when Wavell was created an earl he chose as his second title the viscounty of Keren and of Winchester).[67] While hard fighting lay ahead before the campaign would come to an end, the fall of Keren broke the resistance of the Italian forces and led to the almost immediate capture of Massawa on the coast. This made it possible for the Allies to safely use the Red Sea for ships bringing munitions and supplies to the North African theatre.
After Keren fell, Indian 5th Infantry Division set off eastwards in pursuit of the retreating Italians and towards the Eritrean capital of Asmara, some 50 miles (80 km) away. They left the Indian 4th Infantry Division behind to mop up in Keren. After mopping up, the Indian 4th Infantry Division returned to Egypt (leaving behind for a little longer the formations it had detached to Briggs Force).
The retreating Italians fought minor skirmishes but mounted no major stand. A new defensive position was formed at Ad Teclesan, in a narrow valley on the route from Keren to Asmara. The 80th Colonial Division was brought from Gondar and the remaining two battalions of the Savoia Grenadiers from Addis Ababa. However, the Keren defeat had shattered the morale of the Italian forces and when Heath's attack came early on 31 March there was little fighting. On 1 April, Asmara was declared an open town and 5th Indian Division entered the town to take 5,000 more prisoners and capture the entire equipment reserve of the Italian East African armies including 1,500,000 shells and 3,000,000 rounds of small arms ammunition.[70] Three days later, after resupply along the lengthening road to the Kassala railway junction on the Sudanese border, 10th Infantry Brigade of Indian 5th Infantry Division set off east again towards Massawa. Massawa was some 50 miles (80 km) away, 7,000 feet (2,100 m) lower, and on the coast. On 10th Brigade's left flank was Briggs Force which had advanced cross-country from Keren and were approaching Massawa from the north along the coast.
Rear Admiral Mario Bonnetti, commander of the Italian Red Sea Flotilla and the commander of the garrison at Massawa, had been ordered by Benito Mussolini to defend the town to the last man.[71] The Italians had 10,000 troops and 100 assorted tanks and armoured cars to defend Massawa.[71] About 1,000 of the defenders at Massawa were veterans from Keren and another bloody battle seemed likely.
On 20 February 1941, the armed merchant cruiser Ramb I broke out of Massawa with the colonial ship Eritrea and the armed merchant cruiser Ramb II The Ramb I and Ramb II were known as auxiliary cruisers or merchant raiders, armed ships which disguised themselves as noncombatant merchant vessels. Ramb I and Ramb II were relatively modern and fast. They had been transformed into auxiliary cruisers with the installation of four 120 mm guns and some 13.2 mm anti-aircraft machine guns. The Eritrea was similar in concept, but, while older and slower, was able to carry more cargo. The Eritrea was armed with four 120 mm guns, two 40 mm guns, and two 13.2 mm machine guns. On 27 February 1941, the Ramb I was located off of the Maldive Islands in the Indian Ocean by the New Zealand cruiser Leander and was sunk. Both the Eritrea and the Ramb II evaded detection and reached Kobe, Japan.[72]
From 1 March to 4 March, the remaining Italian submarines at Massawa escaped destruction by sailing south. The Guglielmo, the Gauleo Ferraras, the Perla and the Archimede planned to break out, sail south, navigate past the Cape of Good Hope, turn north, and sail north to Bordeaux, France, via the west coast of Africa.[71] On 29 March, the Perla was refueled by the German auxiliary cruiser Atlantis in the Indian Ocean. The other submarines were refueled by the German fleet tanker Nordmark in the South Atlantic between 16 April and 17 April. All four Italian submarines arrived at Bordeaux between 7 May and 20 May.[73]
Elements of 5th Indian Division coming from Asmara and Briggs Force, cutting across country from Keren, converged on Massawa. After some initial strong opposition, the Italian ground forces defending Massawa, lacking fuel, ammunition, and food, crumpled and resistance collapsed. French units from Briggs Force took Montecullo and Fort Umberto on April 7 and the Allies pressed into Massawa on 8 April.[74] Colonel Ralph Monclar of the 13th French Foreign Legion Demi-Brigade captured the Italian admiralty building and accepted the surrender of 10,000 Italian naval personnel, bringing the unit's tally to 14,000 Italian prisoners.[74]
The harbour facilities themselves were a prize the British were hoping to use in order to ease the maintenance backlog of naval ships needing repair in Alexandria. When Asmara was captured, Bonnetti had been told by the British using the undamaged telephone line to Massawa that they would not be responsible for the feeding of the 40,000 Italian civilians in Asmara if the port installations were damaged. On referring the matter to Rome, Bonnetti was told to proceed and destroy the port.[75] In the week preceding capture, Massawa harbour was thoroughly wrecked by Italian sabotage of machinery in shore facilities, the sinking of two large floating dry docks, and the calculated scuttling of sixteen large ships in the mouths of the north Naval Harbour, the central Commercial Harbour and the main South Harbour, blocking access in and out. Scuttled, too, was a large floating crane. The harbour was rendered useless until repairs and salvage efforts could clear it thirteen months later.[nb 2]
On 11 April, Major-General Lewis Heath was promoted to command the Indian III Corps in the Far East. Command of the Indian 5th Infantry Division was assumed by Mosley Mayne who had previously commanded the division's 9th Brigade. Bernard Fletcher, who had for two months until March had temporary command of 10th Brigade, was promoted and given command of the 9th Brigade.[77]
Before Massawa fell, Bonnetti had ordered the remaining seven Italian destroyers and the remaining motor torpedo boat (the other four boats were no longer operational) to put to sea from Massawa on "do or die" missions. In late March, three destroyers were to attack Port Suez but when one ran aground outside Massawa and had to be sunk by its sisters, this operation was abandoned and the two survivors joined the remaining division in their mission. Four, now six, destroyers had been ordered to attack the fuel tanks at Port Sudan, in early April. Two of these destroyers, Daniele Manin and Nazario Sauro, were sunk by shore-based Swordfish airplanes (of the Fleet Air Arm) from the carrier Eagle. Two more destroyers were damaged and scuttled on the coast near Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The seventh destroyer suffered engine problems and remained in Massawa to be scuttled during the port demolitions. Before being scuttled by its crew, the Italian motor torpedo boat (MTB) MAS-213 torpedoed and damaged the cruiser Capetown. The cruiser was escorting a convoy off Massawa.[78]
The remaining Italian port facilities at Assab, within easy striking distance of British aircraft based in Aden, held out for several weeks after the fall of Massawa.
On 16 March 1941, Operation Appearance was launched. Staged from Aden, two battalions from the Indian Army and one Somali commando detachment were landed on both sides of Berbera by British naval "Force D" (cruisers HMS Glasgow and Caledon, destroyers HMS Kandahar and Kipling, auxiliary cruisers Chakdina and Chantala, Indian trawlers Netavati and Parvati, two transports and ML 109).[79] The two Sikh battalions (which had been part of the defending force evacuated in August 1940), made the first successful Allied landing on an enemy-held beach during World War II. The 1st Battalion 2nd Punjab Regiment and the 3rd Battalion 15th Punjab Regiment re-captured British Somaliland from its Italian occupiers.
When the Sikhs landed, an Italian colonel (suffering from malaria together with half of his troops)[3] waited with the 60 men who constituted the Berbera garrison. The garrison had been low on food and water for weeks. The Italians stood in formation on the beach and waited to surrender to the arriving British force. The British promptly "secured" Berbera. A British officer present at the Italian surrender later wrote: "War can be very embarrassing".[80]
On 20 March, Hargeisa was captured. The British and Commonwealth forces in British Somaliland spent the next months clearing the colony of the last remnants of its former invaders. The Somaliland Camel Corps was re-founded in mid-April and, in addition to looking for Italians, re-acquired its job of rounding up local bandits.
From British Somaliland, British and Commonwealth forces advanced westward into eastern Ethiopia. In late March, they linked up with advancing forces from the Southern Front around Harar and Diredawa in Ethiopia. The link-up meant that Cunningham's forces could be re-supplied more efficiently through the port of Berbera as they advanced into Ethiopia.
Some Italians, under the orders of Colonel Di Marco, started a guerrilla war in the Ogaden area that is reported to have lasted until the summer of 1942.
Cunningham's forces on the southern front included the South African 1st Division, the 11th African Division, and the 12th African Division (the latter divisions were composed of East African, South African, Nigerian, and Ghanaian troops under British or South African officers). The South African division was led by Major-General George Brink. The 11th African Division was commanded by Major-General H. E. de R. Wetherall. The 12th African Division was commanded by Major-General Reade Godwin-Austen.
In January 1941, Cunningham decided to launch his first attacks across the Kenyan border directly into southern Ethiopia. Although he realised that the approaching wet season would preclude a direct advance this way to Addis Ababa, he hoped that this action would cause Ethiopians in southern Ethiopia to rise up in rebellion against the Italians. It was also anticipated that this action would pin Italian forces in the area and prevent them being sent as reinforcements when the main offensive was started in Jubaland[81] Cunningham sent the South African 1st Division (composed of 2nd and 5th South African and 21st East African brigades[82]) and an independent East African brigade into the Galla-Sidamo Province. From 16 January to 18 January 1941, they captured El Yibo and on 19 January, an advance force of the South African division captured Jumbo.[83] From 24 January to 25 January, Cunningham's troops fought on the Turbi Road. His hopes that the Ethiopians would rise up, however, were not realized.[6]
The southern Ethiopia attack ground to a halt in mid-February as heavy rains made further movement and maintenance of the force very difficult.[84] From 1 February, they captured Gorai and El Gumu. On 2 February, they took Hobok. From 8 February to 9 February, Banno was captured. On 15 February, the fighting was on the Yavello Road. The two South African Brigades then launched a double flanking movement on Mega. After a three day battle in which many of the South Africans, equipped for tropical conditions, suffered from exposure because of the heavy rains and near freezing temperatures, they captured Mega on 18 February. Moyale, 70 miles southeast of Mega on the border with Kenya, was occupied on 22 February by a patrol of Abyssinian irregular troops which had been attached to the South African Division.[84]
On 24 January, Cunningham's main force, including the 11th African Division and the 12th African Division, invaded Italian Somaliland from Kenya. Earlier in January, the Italians had already decided that the plains of Italian Somalia could not be defended. Most of the Italian forces were already being withdrawn to the better defensive terrain of the mountains of Ethiopia. Cunningham encountered few Italians east of the Juba River. Kismayu is located where the Juba River empties into the Indian Ocean.
Against an expected six brigades and "six groups of native levies" holding the Juba for the Italians, Cunningham launched Operation Canvas with four brigade groups. Little resistance was expected and little was encountered. On 14 February, the first objective, the port of Kismayu, was captured. North of Kismayu and beyond the river was the main Italian position, Jelib. On 22 February, Jelib was attacked on both flanks and from the rear. The Italians were completely routed and 30,000 were either killed, captured, or dispersed into the bush. Italian aircraft took no part in the defense having been roughly handled by South African aircraft. There was nothing that now hindered Cunningham's advance of 200 miles to take the capital and major seaport of Italian Somaliland, Mogadishu.[85]
On 25 February 1941, the motorized Nigerian Brigade of the 11th African Division advanced up the coast and occupied Mogadishu. Meanwhile, the 12th African Division pushed up the Juba River in Italian Somaliland towards the Ethiopian border town of Dolo.[86]
On 1 March, the 11th African Division began a fighting pursuit of the retreating Italian forces north from Mogadishu. The division pursued the Italians towards the Ogaden Plateau. By 17 March, the 11th African Division completed a seventeen day dash along the Italian built "Imperial Road" (Strada Imperiale) from Mogadishu to Jijiga in eastern Ethiopia,
By early March Cunningham's forces had captured most of Italian Somaliland and were advancing through Ethiopia towards the ultimate objective, Addis Ababa. On 26 March, Harar was captured.[87] On 29 March, Dire Dawa fell. During this time there was a link-up with the forces advancing from British Somaliland and Cunningham's supply route became much improved.
On 6 April 1941, Addis Ababa was liberated by Cunningham's force.[88] In 53 days, Cunningham had advanced 1,725 miles (2,776 km) from Kenya to reach the Ethiopian capital. The highly disciplined Police of Italian Africa (Polizia dell'Africa Italiana) stayed in the city to maintain order and keep the peace.[88]
Emperor Haile Selassie made a formal entry to the city on 5 May. This was five years after being forced to flee when the Italians captured his capital on 5 May 1936 during the Second Italo-Abyssinian War. Since then, 5 May has been observed in Ethiopia as Liberation Day, a national holiday.
On 13 April, Cunningham sent a force under Brigadier Dan Pienaar comprising 1st South African Brigade and Campbell's Scouts (Ethiopian irregulars led by a British officer) to continue the northward advance and link up with Platt's forces advancing south.[89]
On April 20, after a rough battle, Pienaar's force captured Dessie on the main road north from Addis Ababa to Asmara. Pienaar was some 200 miles (320 km) south of Platt's forces gathering at Amba Alagi.[90]
Wavell's strategic priority was for Platt to push southwards from the Sudan to Addis Ababa and for him to meet up with Cunningham pushing northwards from Kenya. A major obstacle for Platt was located at Amba Alagi, a 12,000-foot (3,700 m) high mountain between Asmara and Addis Ababa.
The Italians decided to defend the area around Amba Alagi in force. They drove galleries into the solid rock to protect their troops and to hold ample ammunition and stores. In this mountain fortress, the defenders, under command of the Duke of Aosta, thought themselves to be impregnable.[91]
Platt gave newly promoted Major-General Mosley Mayne and the Indian 5th Infantry Division the task of taking Amba Alagi. Mayne was only able to deploy a single expanded brigade, the Indian 29th Infantry Brigade, for this action. His attacking force was therefore inferior in numbers to the Italian defending force. Mayne's limited deployment was due to the demands on the British for internal security and for protecting their lines of communication. The supply route to Amba Alagi extended nearly 250 miles (400 km) south of Asmara and some 400 miles (640 km) from the main rail head at Kassala.[90]
On 3 May 1941, Mayne sent in a feint attack from the east while, in the early hours of 4 May, the main attack was made from the northwest over the hills. The hills were fiercely defended by the Italians. On 11 May, Pienaar's brigade group arrived from the south and was put under Mayne's command. By 14 May Amba Alagi was surrounded.[92] With the arrival of Pienaar, the 7000 Italian troops of the Duke of Aosta were directly attacked by 9000 British troops and more than 20000 Ethiopian irregulars.
A final assault was planned for 15 May, but a fortuitous artillery shell hit an Italian fuel dump and ruptured a vessel containing oil. This caused oil to flow into the remaining drinking water of the Italian defenders. The lack of drinkable water then forced the Italians to surrender.[93]
On 18 May, the Duke of Aosta surrendered his embattled forces at Amba Alagi. General Mayne agreed to a surrender with "full military honors" (allowing the troops to march off the battlefield in formation and then surrender their arms) in exchange for the Duke's agreement to hand over the battlefield 'clean'. This put the Duke on his honour to identify all mines and booby-traps to the troops taking over the area and included his agreement that the Italians' remaining equipment and stores should not be sabotaged or destroyed. Mayne later wrote
The Duke of Aosta was delighted with my concession and, as he told me, gave a rigid and unmistakable edict that the hand-over was to be complete and clean, making it quite clear that any breach of his orders would mean that he had broken his own word. So the Italians did play up. We got everything intact and no one, save Abyssinian patriots who broke all bounds in their search for loot and deserved their fate, suffered so much as a scratch from a hidden mine, although there were plenty of them about.[94]
While the Duke of Aosta faced defeat in East Africa, his brother, the Duke of Spoleto was being made the King of Croatia after the successful invasion of Yugoslavia.[95]
The Duke of Aosta had endured the last months of fighting while suffering a severe attack of malaria (and died of malaria and Tuberculosis a few months later).[3]
The campaign in Italian East Africa was all but over.
In spite of the Duke of Aosta's surrender at Amba Alagi on 18 May 1941, some Italian forces continued to hold out. The port city of Assab and the strongholds of Gondar and Jimma remained under Italian control. Both Gondar and Jimma started with garrisons of roughly 40,000 men.[96]
On 10 June, Operation Chronometer was launched and a battalion from the Indian Army was landed at Assab, the last Italian-held harbour on the Red Sea.[97] By 11 June, Assab had fallen. On 13 June, two days after the fall, the Indian trawler "Parvati" became the last naval casualty of the campaign when it struck a magnetic mine near Assab.
An Italian force under General Pietro Gazzera, the Governor of Galla-Sidama and the new acting Viceroy and Governor-General of Italian East Africa, continued to resist at Jimma in southwest Ethiopia. Gazzera had replaced the Duke of Aosta as Viceroy and Governor-General of Italian East Africa.[96]
However, even before Cunningham moved against him, Gazzera was faced with a growing irregular force of Ethiopian patriots (or Arbegnoch). Many of his units started to melt away. His colonial troops were especially prone to defection. On 21 June 1941, Gazzera abandoned Jimma where about 15,000 of what was left of his command surrendered. On July 3, Gazzera and his last 7,000 men surrendered[96] when they were cut off by Belgian Major-General Auguste-Éduard Gilliaert, the commander of the Free Belgian Forces in East Africa.
On 28 September, the 3000 man garrison of Wolchefit Pass surrendered to the King's African Rifles.[96]
The force at Gondar, under General Guglielmo Nasi, the acting Governor of Amhara, held out for almost seven months. Gondar was the capital of Begemder Province in northwest Ethiopia, about 120 miles (190 km) west of Amba Alagi. After General Gazzera surrendered, Nasi became the new acting Viceroy and Governor-General of Italian East Africa. But, like Gazzera, Nasi faced not just conventional forces (from Platt's command), but also an ever increasing force of Ethiopian patriots.
While the Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica) in East Africa had been worn down quickly by a lop-sided war of attrition, the Italian pilots held on to the bitter end. On 24 October 1941, the last Italian aircraft of the campaign was shot down.[9]
On 27 November 1941 General Nasi and his last 23,500 men surrendered Gondar[96] to a combined force of British and Commonwealth troops and a force of Ethiopians. The Italians received full military honors.
With the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden coastlines cleared of Axis forces, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was able to declare that these areas were no longer combat zones. As a result, ships of the United States were able to proceed to the Suez Canal. This helped to relieve the enormous strain on the shipping resources of the United Kingdom.[6] It was only at the end of 1941, once the US entered the war against the Axis powers, that the combat zone requirement lost its significance.
Ethiopia was administered by the United Kingdom as a United Nations Trust Territory until 1944. In January 1942, with the final official surrender of the Italians, the British, under pressure from the American administration, signed an interim Anglo-Ethiopian Agreement with Emperor Haile Selassie I acknowledging Ethiopian sovereignty. Makonnen Endelkachew was named as Prime Minister. On December 19, 1944, the final Anglo-Ethiopian Agreement was signed. Selassie reigned until 1974 when the monarchy was abolished by the Derg. Since about 1994, the country has been known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.
The Italian colony of Eritrea was placed under British military administration for the remainder of World War II. In 1950, Eritrea was made part of Ethiopia. The unification of Eritrea and Ethiopia proved to be unacceptable to the Eritreans and led to the Eritrean War of Independence. The unification ended in the early 1990s. Eritrea became independent on a de facto basis in 1991. Eritrea was recognized as being independent de jure in 1993.
Italian Somaliland was placed under British military administration for the remainder of the war. In 1948, it was decided that the Ogaden border region would be awarded to Ethiopia. In 1949, the United Nations brought the Italians back to administer Somalia for ten years. In 1960, what had been Italian Somaliland became independent. Days after becoming independent, Italian Somaliland joined with what had been British Somaliland to create the independent state known as the Somali Republic.
After the British and Commonwealth forces occupied Italian East Africa, the Vichy forces in French Somaliland were isolated. Instead of blockading the port, the Royal Navy scrupulously allowed Vichy ships to supply Djibouti's garrison, ensuring the area remain in passive obedience to Vichy, but also forestalling, to Free French consternation, a spontaneous rallying of the isolated garrison to de Gaulle's forces.[74] The Vichy French continued to hold the colony after the Italian collapse until in October of 1941, after a 101-day British blockade, French Somaliland fell.[98] Free French and Allied forces then occupied the French colony.[99]
A local battalion from French Somaliland participated in the liberation of France in 1944.
In 1977, French Somaliland became independent as the Republic of Djibouti.
Between November 1941 and September 1943, scattered Italian units (totalling an estimated 7,000 men)[20] fought a guerrilla war from the deserts of Eritrea and Somalia to the forests and mountains of Ethiopia. They supposedly did so in the hope of holding out until the Germans and Italians in Egypt (or even possibly the Japanese in India) intervened.
Amedeo Guillet was one of the Italian officers who fought with the Italian guerrillas in Ethiopia.[100] Other Italian officers were Captain Francesco De Martini in Eritrea, Colonel Calderari in western Ethiopia/Somalia, Colonel Di Marco in Ogaden/British Somaliland, "blackshirt centurion" De Varda in Somalia/Ethiopia and Major Lucchetti in Ethiopia.
The Italian guerrilla war was even waged by civilians. In August 1942, Dr. Rosa Dainelli successfully sabotaged the main British ammunition dump in Addis Ababa.
Hostilities in East Africa officially ceased on September 9, 1943 when the Italian government signed an Armistice with the Allies, but even then some Italian soldiers continued their guerrilla war until October 1943, being unaware of the Italian armistice.
The following is a list of recipients of the Victoria Cross (VC) during this campaign: