PEEBLES PROFILES
EPISODE I: Erwin Rommel
Although he was best remembered as the Desert Fox of the Second World War, Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel achieved success and fame as a young soldier of the Great War.
When Imperial Germany entered the conflict, the young Rommel was a second lieutenant who commanded a reserve artillery company. He was quickly transferred to the 124th Infantry Regiment of the 27th Infantry Division as part of the 2nd Battalion.
On August 22, 1914, Rommel was part of the German Fifth Army, and his skills in small infantry attacks were first witnessed at the farming town of Bleid, Belgium (one of the many engagements in the Battle of the Frontiers). He led a platoon of three men under dense fog into the town where they surprised fifteen French soldiers having breakfast (killing five in the process). Then he quickly led the platoon back safely to the rest of the battalion.
His leading from the front and quickly reading the situation while making bold, effective decisions saved the Germans from a possible French ambush. As a result, Bleid was taken in less than an hour!
On September 24, 1914, the 22-year-old Rommel (using only a bayonet from an empty rifle) single-handedly charged three French soldiers. It came at a price; he was wounded in the left thigh and hospitalized for three months. His actions did not go unnoticed, and Rommel was awarded the Iron Cross, Second Class.
After his recovery, Rommel and fifty men (evading French rifle fire) pushed through the Argonne Forest in late January 1915. Soon they were vulnerable to an attack from behind!
With no relief or supplies, Rommel again charged with fixed bayonets, scattering the enemy and getting he and his men back safely to the German lines. For this heroic action, Rommel was awarded the Iron Cross, First Class.
In early 1917, Rommel was a part of the elite Royal Wurttemberg Mountain Battalion (Wurttembergische Gebirgs-Batallion) fighting on the Balkan Front in Romania. That same year in October, the battalion was moved to join the wavering Austro Hungarian armies on the Isonzo Front in northeastern Italy. It was here that Rommel (now an Oberleutnant) led some of the most successful attacks of his life in the Twelfth Battle of the Isonzo, better known as Caporetto.
Rommel’s task was the capture of Italian positions high on Mount Matajur. On October 25th, his men moved out at first light and up the Kolovat Ridge. They jumped the Italians from the rear and took hundreds of prisoners in a matter of minutes. Then as the Italians counterattacked, Rommel split his companies, using the terrain to his advantage, and crushed the enemy flank. Twelve Italian officers and 500 men surrendered, bringing his prisoner count to nearly 1,500…
Next, he found the supply road on the opposite side of the ridge which led to a small village full of Italian reserve troops, supply trucks, food, and officers. Using only 150 men, Rommel scattered the defenders and took more prisoners. A light Italian infantry column of 2,000 troops engaged Rommel’s men… and surrendered after a ten-minute fight!
On the night of October 26th, Rommel took another small village and 1,600 more prisoners on the way to Mount Matajur. Within only a few kilometers of the peak on the Matajur road, another 1,500 Italian soldiers surrendered at the mere sight of Rommel’s men with hardly a shot fired!
After refusing an order to return and refit, Rommel pressed on for the final assault; his machine guns keeping a surpressing fire on the Matajur peak. A small band of infantry crawled, climbed, and bounded up the mountainside. When Rommel arrived at the summit, the Italian commander surrendered without firing a shot… as every single defensive line collapsed before his eyes!
In fifty-two hours of continuous combat, Rommel and his men took eighteen miles of Italian territory, climbed two miles of mountains, and captured 9,000 men… losing only six dead and thirty wounded!
The 25-year-old Rommel was given Germany’s highest military honor… the Pour le Merite! It was unheard of for the Blue Max to be given to a mere lieutenant… but the future Desert Fox was soon promoted to captain in light of his actions at Caporetto. Although the war would be lost a year later, the young Rommel had his baptism of fire as a proven military leader!