Ronnie Hill was in A Squadron with Stanley, but was a good friend of John Semken, who was in C Squadron at the time. Ronnie had always been convinced that nothing would happen to him – that, somehow, he would make it through. But that day he came over to John Semken’s tank in his Crusader, climbed out and onto John’s turret and was chatting to him. ‘Then he was blown to bits all over me,’ says John. ‘I was drenched in his blood to my navel. So much for being convinced it won’t happen to you.’
The Regiment then pulled out and took up position at Point 33, which was NW of their present position.
Monday, 26 October
The Regiment took up a position facing west and almost opposite Tel el Aqqaqir.
Keith Douglas came back from Division, where he had been acting as camouflage officer, and joined the squadron again. At that time A Squadron was very short of officers, so the CO accepted his return with alacrity. He had left them at Division without saying a word to a soul, after having had a row.
Most of the day, enemy snipers in derelict tanks and vehicles sniped at the crew commanders of our tanks whenever they showed their heads above the turret. Keith Douglas captured an infantry position and brought back 30 prisoners. He was followed all the way back by enemy mortar fire.
At 17.00 hours 13 enemy tanks attacked and were driven off by the Regiment. All our tanks opened fire. The visibility was extremely bad. The CO saw a strange and suspicious object in front, and said over the air that unless that funny object in front of the Regiment moved he would open fire. Jack Tyrrell, the OP, as usual well out in front, suddenly became aware that the CO must be referring to him, and beat a hasty retreat.
The Regiment was ordered to retire behind Springbok Road to refit. Our gunners, B Battery, 1 RHA, remained to support the infantry.
Tuesday, 27 October
After the Regiment had withdrawn, Jack Tyrrell had orders to withdraw at 02.00 hours on the morning of the 27th. He found that his tank wouldn’t start. He dismounted and conducted a shoot from behind the tank. The enemy tanks had remained in exactly the same position and on to them Jack brought down fire from behind his tank. They must have thought he had been knocked out because they never opened fire. He managed to get the tank started and withdrew under a smokescreen, which he asked his guns to lay down. Before leaving he discovered the Regiment had knocked out five M13 tanks.
Our gunners then came back and rejoined the Brigade just behind Springbok Road for a few days’ rest.
The M13 was Italy’s main battle tank of the war, and while it was comparable with early German and British tanks, by the Battle of Alamein it was both underarmed and under-armoured and no match for the latest German Panzer IIIs and IVs or Allied Grants and Shermans.
Stanley mentions that after his wound he was back in time for ‘the next battle’. This was Operation SUPERCHARGE. The early part of the battle had not provided the decisive breakthrough Montgomery needed, and had ground to something of a halt, although enemy counter-attacks had been crushed, and constant air and artillery continued to grind down Rommel’s forces. SUPERCHARGE was much the same as the original plan, with a night-time infantry attack and armour following close behind, but a bit to the north of the initial main strike and on a narrower front, and by now with fewer mines to deal with. It was launched on the night of 2 November.
Monday, 2 November
The second phase of the battle started on this day. At 06.00 hours in the morning we left Bir Mataka, where the Regiment had rested for a few days. We lined up line-ahead, A Squadron leading, and proceeded along the Boomerang Track. The end of this track brought us out on the edge of the enemy minefield, which the sappers were to clear, followed by the New Zealand infantry. 9th Brigade were to go through before us, as were 23rd Motor Brigade. As a result of the terrific barrage put down by the gunners, and all the dust, etc., visibility was extremely bad, and when we eventually arrived at the end of the marked track it was most difficult to find our location and the direction to Tel el Aqqaqir, which was our objective, most especially as we suspected enemy minefields ahead of us. Jack Tyrrell, gunner OP attached to the squadron, was up with me. We met some gunners whom he knew. They couldn’t help us with direction but gave us each a most acceptable cup of tea. I could not drink all of mine as the CO arrived on the scene.
We then made off in a NW direction and contacted the Staffordshire Yeomanry. We learned that the 9th Armoured Brigade had had a very sticky time and that the infantry had not secured a bridgehead on the enemy side of the minefield.
Enemy shelling was very unpleasant in our new position. I ordered 1 Troop under John Bethell-Fox to push forward in front of the heavy squadrons. I followed behind with our close support tank. Enemy tanks appeared so Sam Garrett came up on the right and Keith Douglas on the left. John Fox had an excellent shoot with his 6-pounder at the tanks, which were approaching diagonally, and his troop claimed two tanks. Sam got rather separated on the right flank and had an unpleasant time with enemy snipers.
In the afternoon we had to withdraw to operate on another flank. Shelling during refuelling was most unpleasant. Troopers Bell and Jefferies, who were in a Squadron HQ tank, were killed early during the day. They appear to have been looking out of the turret when a shell exploded above their heads and killed them both. It was very sad, as they had only arrived the day before, and Jefferies told me that he was quite capable of commanding a tank in spite of not being an NCO. We formed an open leaguer facing south.
Tuesday, 3 November
At 2 o’clock in the morning we moved out of leaguer and joined the rest of the Brigade, 3rd RTR leading, ourselves on the left and Staffs Yeomanry on the right. We moved off at daylight, in a south-easterly direction. Owing to mechanical troubles I was very short of Crusader tanks. I only had three, John Bethell-Fox, Sergeant Hardinge and Sam Garrett. Mine had broken down so I travelled with Sam and he acted as my gunner. Jack Tyrrell was as usual with the squadron in his Honey tank. The four of us all worked well ahead and it wasn’t long before we had spotted an enemy battery, on which he brought down fire and put it out of action. We then spotted another enemy battery straight ahead. By acting as an OP to Bill McGowan in B Squadron he was able to bring indirect fire down with his 75mm gun in his Grant tank. I could do no good with my 2-pounder AP shells.
We were then able to proceed over the next ridge and came upon a battery of five 75mm anti-tank enemy guns, manned by Italians who immediately showed a white flag. We captured all the crews, about 30 in all. John Bethell-Fox then rather rushed the next ridge and immediately had his tank knocked out by another battery behind. Trooper Martin, his driver, was killed, and his gunner, Trooper Davis, and himself were wounded. In the meantime I had been recalled by the CO and did not know that he had been knocked out until Jack Tyrrell came rushing back in his tank, not having been able to get me on the air. I asked him if he could possibly get him out and I would rejoin him after I had seen the CO. Sam and I then dashed back and found that Jack had rescued John Bethell-Fox, his gunner, plus four German prisoners.
Keith Douglas returned with a new tank. I asked him to take charge while Sam and I went out to refuel and took with us John Bethell-Fox, who was wounded in the knee. It was rather a foolish request to Keith to take charge as at that time there was only one other tank besides his own. However, he did get an order from the CO to control the squadron properly and stop them wandering about! While we replenished Sam and I had a quick brew. We handed over our prisoners to the infantry.
One of the features of Eighth Army by this time was its ability to pull broken-down and damaged tanks off the battlefield and get them repaired and back in action again. Mobile RASC repair workshops did much of the work, but depending on how bad the damage was, tanks might be sent further back to workshops in and around Cairo, Alexandria and the Canal Zone. But towing trucks and tractors would have been a feature of the battlefield, scurrying about, especially at night, and dragging broken tanks out of the fray. In addition, each armoured regiment h
ad its own administrative platoon of trucks – B Echelon – which would bring forward ammunition and supplies, while each squadron of four troops would also have an administrative troop of a dozen or more trucks and vehicles. These would bring ammunition and supplies, but also rations. They might take a tank crew back to the rear echelons, several miles back out of the immediate battle zone, where replacement tanks could be picked up.
On our return we found that Jack had spotted two 88mm anti-tank guns on our left flank, which had remained very doggo. He knocked out one, but the other managed to get away behind a lorry.
B Squadron lost four Grant tanks from anti-tank guns during the evening. The Staffs on our left also lost a couple, and by the end of the day we had not been able to reach the line of the Tel el Aqqaqir telegraph wires and withdrew back into leaguer for the night.
My squadron SQMS brought up some rum with the rations, which was greatly appreciated. At 10 o’clock that evening our artillery started a terrific barrage on the telegraph lines, but a good many of the shells landed in our leaguer, one of which seriously wounded Derrick Warwick in the head as he was lying behind his tank, and another got Bill McGowan in the arm. The sight of five burning Grant tanks, glowing in the night, was rather depressing. C Squadron had a couple of their Shermans hit, but no damage was done to the crews and the tanks were recovered. Since Stephen Mitchell has gone back wounded, Michael Gold now commands C Squadron.
As soon as the shelling started, Sam came and woke up me and Jack Tyrrell, who immediately realized from what direction the shells were coming. He and Sam lay down in front of my tank and I spent the rest of the night inside my tank.
Donny Player arrived up from Alexandria where he had been in the LOB camp.
Wednesday, 4 November
Moved out of leaguer at first light and soon discovered that the enemy had evacuated from the line of the track and telegraph poles. I was left with only three Crusaders, those of Sam Garrett, Keith Douglas and Corporal Truman. Mine broke down so I travelled on Jack Tyrrell’s tank. This proved a most satisfactory way of working because he was connected both to RHQ on one set and to his Battery HQ on another set, and I could control the squadron on the RHQ link.
We soon surprised a concentration of MET defended by a rearguard of anti-tank guns. Jack Tyrrell immediately brought down fire on these guns, knocking out one 88mm and making the others shift. Twelve enemy tanks then appeared, which he engaged with HE but left off when Keith Douglas and Corporal Truman engaged with their 6-pounders from the Crusaders. The enemy tanks then withdrew.
The idea of a regimental group, that is a regiment of tanks working with a battery of 25-pounders and a company of infantry, has proved a tremendous success and we have been most fortunate in having the 1st RHA working with us, and most especially Jack Tyrrell, who has been the forward OP working with A Squadron. The speed with which he can pick up enemy gun positions and bring down accurate fire is quite remarkable. His use of ground and sense of direction are absolutely first class. He has fought in France, Greece and the Western Desert and was actually in Tobruk when this regiment was there.
Sam Garrett told me that quite a few ‘rockets’ from the CO came over the air for me for not answering his calls. But I never heard them.
Geoffrey Brooks, our MO, discovered some Scotch infantry breaking the neck of some bottles, which they had discovered in a case. After discovering the contents to be neither whisky nor beer, they threw the remainder away. On further investigation, the bottles turned out to be Veuve Clicquot Champagne. Needless to say he took charge of the remaining bottles!
At 6 o’clock in the evening we moved south for about eight miles, then halted and bedded down until 01.00 hours. Just before moving off at 6 o’clock that evening, when the whole brigade was formed up ready to move, we were attacked by Stukas. Fortunately, our guns and B Echelon escaped damage.
Earlier during the day, when first Jack and I spotted that concentration of enemy MET, he asked his CO for an ‘air blitz’ on that area and, after an hour, he got it.
General Ritter von Thoma, captured at the end of the battle.
After going for about six miles due south along the telegraph lines, we halted until 24.00 hours.
Axis cohesion collapsed that day. General von Thoma, commanding the Deutsches Afrika Korps, was captured near the Sherwood Rangers to the north-west of Tel el Aqqaqir, at around 5.30 p.m. Around the same time, Rommel issued the order for his entire Panzer Armee Afrika to withdraw. The Battle of Alamein was over.
Stanley’s comments about the close co-operation of armour, artillery and infantry demonstrates just how quickly they were learning – and not just they as an armoured regiment, but Eighth Army as a whole. All-arms combat – that is, the co-ordination of armour, infantry and artillery – was still a relatively new concept within the British Army. By this time, however, not only was the army building strength, it was developing both tactically and operationally too.
Allied close air support was also increasing, and there is no doubt that air power played a crucial role in the battle – even Montgomery, never quick to offer praise of others, acknowledged the vital role the Desert Air Force and RAF Middle East as a whole played in the battle.
11
Pursuit to Tripoli
The coast road littered with debris after the battle.
Thursday, 5 November 1942
WE TRIED A NIGHT march from 01.00 to until 03.00 hours. This was far from being successful as the brigade had not formed up properly before starting. Anyhow, the Regiment was badly out of formation and as a result we got lost for a short while. It was straightened out next morning and we proceeded towards Galal station in a sweep south in order to cut the road.
We went on the right and it wasn’t long before the squadron started swanning off in the true sense of the word, picking up prisoners and capturing loot, led, of course, by Jack Tyrrell in his Honey, and very soon I found I was the only tank of A Squadron in front of the main body. The remainder were well away to the right flank.
Sam Garrett captured three lorry-loads of Italian infantry, disarmed them and sent them off on their own. Keith Douglas found a German officer and 20 men, as well as a good load of compasses, binoculars and revolvers. Basil Ringrose and Jack Tyrrell captured a 50mm anti-tank gun on tow. The crew endeavoured to get the gun into action but Jack was too quick for them and captured the lot. After a great deal of trouble and calling them up on the wireless I managed to get them all back together again.
On his way back to us, Keith Douglas, being rather blind at the best of times and having rather lost direction, approached what he thought was our column. He brought his tank alongside a vehicle and, much to his amazement and to the utter consternation of the vehicle driver, found it was a German column. When the German driver saw a tank alongside his vehicle, utter confusion broke out and the whole column broke up. Keith tried to fire his Besa, which jammed, then turned to his 6-pounder, which was quite useless against vehicles of that type, so finally resorted to his Tommy gun, which also jammed. He ended up by having a first-class row with Davis, his gunner. His wireless also failed to work at the critical moment.
Jack spotted something interesting on our right front so I went off with him, leaving the squadron under the care of Basil.
We saw a column moving in the far distance but it was too far away to do any good. We came across an aerodrome on which there was an M13 Italian tank. We captured the crew and I put the tank out of action with four rounds from the 6-pounder. Being slightly apprehensive about enemy mines, we then rejoined the main body.
We arrived at Galal station and sighted a large enemy column making for the coast road, with some tanks, an English 25-pounder gun and some of our captured 3-tonners. At first it was difficult to determine whether the column was friendly or not, but the tanks soon decided the matter for us. Jack Tyrrell immediately engaged the MET with the artillery and Sam, Corporal Truman and I engaged the tanks, two of which we knocked out, all claiming hits.
Jack Tyrrell made a terrible mess of the enemy transport. Every vehicle was practically knocked out and all the men from the vehicles got hell. The speed with which Jack can get his guns into action is really amazing. The captured 25-pounder was quite undamaged, so Sam Garrett took it on tow back to the gunners, who were a gun short.
Jack and I then proceeded on across the road up to the sea, where we found an evacuated Italian field hospital, and from which Jack and Sam got a great deal of loot at a later time.
Some remaining enemy transport was still trying to sneak past, using a wadi and creeping along the seashore. One Mk IV Special came up from the sea. Jack yelled at me to look out. At the time, I was standing on the top of the tank looking the other way. All the firing had made me extremely deaf and all I could say was ‘What? What?’ In the end, he dashed over and warned me of the possible danger. We immediately withdrew to a hull-down position and engaged but the tank got away. It might have been rather awkward as the rest of the Regiment were about two miles behind in the neighbourhood of the station.
In the meantime, 13 or 14 M13 Italian tanks approached Galal station and ran straight into the Regiment, which knocked out every single tank. It’s quite a debatable point whether they were coming in to surrender as we found a white flag afterwards, but we made a horrible mess of them and Geoff Brooks was worked to death patching up Italian and German wounded. Sam and I found one poor fellow who was in a terrible state. However, he had had enough strength to tie a tourniquet around his leg, which had been horribly shattered.
It made us think how illogical war was. First of all we do our best to kill these Germans and Italians, shelling them and machine-gunning them, and then afterwards we do all we can to save their lives.
An Englishman at War Page 27
