The Italians of East Africa
- Thread starter Magnum
- Start date
Paul MacQ
Monthly Donor
Just seen this for the first time. I cannot add much knowledge about the Campaign there. I am liking what has been written so far.
Not enough is written about these so called side show Campaigns.
Blocking the Red sea for a year would have major flow on effects to the North Africa campaign.
Not enough is written about these so called side show Campaigns.
Blocking the Red sea for a year would have major flow on effects to the North Africa campaign.
The battle of Kassala
In Khartoum, as in almost everywhere in Africa, British officials learned, at a quarter past eight that Monday evening, of the declaration of war that was to come into effect at midnight. Immediately, code messages were sent to Gallabat and Kassala, relaying the news and warning of a likely imminent Italian strike. Typically enough though, the cable and phone links to Kassala had broken down, leaving the local garrison, comprised of No. 5 Motor Machine-Gun Company and No. 6 Mounted Infantry Company of the Sudan Defence Force, as well as around 300 Ethiopians, mostly exiles living in Sudan. Along with the small force of local policemen, the British could count on around 1000 men defending Kassala. Furthermore, No. 3 Motor Machine-Gun Company was held in reserve to the west, and would need at least half a day to arrive.
A "home-made" armored car of the SDF stationed at Kassala
Kassala, on the long eastern loop of the Sudan Railway, was a provincial town of some importance. It was situated on the river Gash, about 20 miles from the point on the frontier to which ran the one good road—the Via Imperiale—from Asmara, the Eritrean capital. Kassala was an obvious first step in an advance towards either Khartoum or Atbara in Sudan, as well as representing a gateway by which rebels within Ethiopia could be reached.
Kassala on the Sudanese-Ethiopian frontier
The British planned to hold Kassala if possible, but, if faced with overwhelming enemy resistance, intended to have their Sudanese units execute a fighting retreat, inflicting as many casualties upon the enemy whilst minimizing their own.
The Italian plan, which had been on the drawing board for months, involved the use of a full colonial brigade and a few squadrons of cavalry, giving them an almost 3-1 advantage in numbers over their foes. Moreover, they hoped to benefit from the element of surprise and from rapid maneuver of their few mobile assets to trap the local British forces.
Italian forces were split into three columns plus the cavalry vanguard. That night, small formations of cavalry, with the lead one headed by Lieutenant Francesco Santasilia di Torpino (who has also in overall command of the mounted formations) started quietly making their way north west, starting from both sides of the Gash, more than 30 km away from Kassala on each side. As dawn came, the central column also started making its way directly towards Kassala. Their attack was preceded by a short air-raid by a group of three old Savoia-Marchetti SM.81, which dropped both high-explosive and incendiary bombs upon the unsuspecting British camp, as well as a short artillery bombardment, with both causing some confusion in the British ranks.
Italian colonial artillery bombarding British positions at Kassala
At first, as the central column advanced towards Kassala, they encountered a group of Ethiopian exiles which were still defending their camp outside the town, and engaged into a short firefight with them. Soon after though, the Ethiopian patriots broke ranks and started fleeing towards the main British positions, thus putting themselves in the line of fire of the Italian Askaris, with many of them ending up being gunned down.
High on their success, the Italian officers ordered their men to continue advancing towards the main British positions, without bothering to properly regroup. The Askaris, in many cases fixing their bayonetts, raced towards the line of buildings where they knew the British soldiers * were, and came under intense machine-gun and rifle fire from various point along the line. While the fire of the Sudanese soldiers did manage to stop most of the Italian wave, they had not managed to form a coherent line, meaning there were still gaps in the field of fire, through which many Italian-led soldiers advanced. What followed were, in some cases savage, close-quarter fighting lasting for almost half an hour. Then, as if almost on purpose, both sides began to disengage simultaneously, with the Sudanese falling back a couple of blocks in order to form a secure line and the battered Askaris retreating towards there comrades that had taken up positions in the open along the small canal running on the edge of town.
The British, concentrating their armoured cars, then attempted to launch a flanking attack upon the central Italian column. Even though one armored car was taken out by Italian artillery, the attack showed promise, yet it was decided to break it off after the other two Italian columns were spotted attempting to flank the town. The eastern column appeared to be comprised of only foot soldiers, whereas dust from vehicles gathered above the western one. Even so, the decision wastaken to head west, in the hope of linking up with No. 3 Company. What mattered above all else was speed, in order to evacuate the town before the Italian columns got to encircle it. The need for speed however turned the maneuver into a chaotic mess, as small detachments made their way west as soon as possible. Cynically, the Ethiopian patriots were ordered to form up the rearguard.
As the small groups of Sudanese soldiers and British officers and officials began making their way west, they came under fire from di Torpino's riders, which had dismounted and ambushed the leading vehicles. This gave enough time to the western Italian column, a rather small motorized force spearheaded by a couple of tankettes, to link up with the blocking force of cavalry.
Italian motorized forced making their way across the African savannah in order to trap British forces
The arrival of the western column, along with increasingly accurate artillery fire, forced No.5 and No.6 company to stop their retreat and head back towards to relative safety of Kassala, hoping in the speedy arrival of No. 3 Company. They were however not the only ones waiting for them. The possibility that the Kassala garrison might be reinforced had always been factored into Italian plans, and when the Fiat Cr.42 sent out to patrol the western approach to Kassala spotted the rising dust column and radioed back, the Italian commanders began implementing the next phase of their plan.
The infantry ring around the besieged British forces was tightened, although several lorries packed with SDF soldiers did manage to escape in the meantime, and made their way north. The cavalry and the motorized forces were split and sent both south and north of the road and railway line running west, with each group being assigned one L3/35 tankette (of the other two, one had been destroyed by enemy fire and the other had broken down and was towed away for repairs).
As No.3 approached late in the day, they found the Italians already waiting for them, with infantry dug in facing both sides (the western approach and Kassala). One half-harted attempt to break through was attempted, which only managed to link up with a spearhead of a couple of dozen soldiers from No.5 Company trapped in Kassala, before turning back, owing to intense enemy rifle and machine gun fire, artillery strikes from the batteries arranged to cover the approach, and, more importantly, from the sight of the two Italian columns to the north and south attempting to flank them. Leaving the battlefield (and thus abandoning 3 armored cars a couple of trucks which had been disabled), No.3 successfully disengaged and managed to to avoid the capture of all but one platoon, which had been acting as a rearguard. An airstrike by half a dozen Italian aircraft returning to the battlefield caused some damage, with strafing and bomb damage taking out a further 2 trucks, but with visibility poor as the sun set, the Regia Aeronautica aircraft also managed to hit their own men, killing and wounding almost 20 men from di Torpino's cavalry unit, with the lieutenant himself being almost killed as a piece of shrapnel it him in the rear. While he did recover from it, his riding days were over.
With the counterattack beaten back and No.3 Company retreating, the remaining men trapped in Kassala decided to take up the Italian offer broadcast to them and surrendered. Overall, the British had lost 436 men killed and 623 captured**. They also suffered 7 armored cars destroyed, 3 damaged and 5 captured, along with a sizeable number of trucks (of whom some were later repaired by the Italians), weapons and ammunition stores.
Italy suffered 702 men killed and wounded and 9 captured, as well as 1 tankette destroyed and 1 damaged.
* - most of the men in the SDF units though were locals, with actual British men only acting as officers
** - this number includes the approximately 300 Ethiopian rebels
In Khartoum, as in almost everywhere in Africa, British officials learned, at a quarter past eight that Monday evening, of the declaration of war that was to come into effect at midnight. Immediately, code messages were sent to Gallabat and Kassala, relaying the news and warning of a likely imminent Italian strike. Typically enough though, the cable and phone links to Kassala had broken down, leaving the local garrison, comprised of No. 5 Motor Machine-Gun Company and No. 6 Mounted Infantry Company of the Sudan Defence Force, as well as around 300 Ethiopians, mostly exiles living in Sudan. Along with the small force of local policemen, the British could count on around 1000 men defending Kassala. Furthermore, No. 3 Motor Machine-Gun Company was held in reserve to the west, and would need at least half a day to arrive.
A "home-made" armored car of the SDF stationed at Kassala
Kassala, on the long eastern loop of the Sudan Railway, was a provincial town of some importance. It was situated on the river Gash, about 20 miles from the point on the frontier to which ran the one good road—the Via Imperiale—from Asmara, the Eritrean capital. Kassala was an obvious first step in an advance towards either Khartoum or Atbara in Sudan, as well as representing a gateway by which rebels within Ethiopia could be reached.
Kassala on the Sudanese-Ethiopian frontier
The British planned to hold Kassala if possible, but, if faced with overwhelming enemy resistance, intended to have their Sudanese units execute a fighting retreat, inflicting as many casualties upon the enemy whilst minimizing their own.
The Italian plan, which had been on the drawing board for months, involved the use of a full colonial brigade and a few squadrons of cavalry, giving them an almost 3-1 advantage in numbers over their foes. Moreover, they hoped to benefit from the element of surprise and from rapid maneuver of their few mobile assets to trap the local British forces.
Italian forces were split into three columns plus the cavalry vanguard. That night, small formations of cavalry, with the lead one headed by Lieutenant Francesco Santasilia di Torpino (who has also in overall command of the mounted formations) started quietly making their way north west, starting from both sides of the Gash, more than 30 km away from Kassala on each side. As dawn came, the central column also started making its way directly towards Kassala. Their attack was preceded by a short air-raid by a group of three old Savoia-Marchetti SM.81, which dropped both high-explosive and incendiary bombs upon the unsuspecting British camp, as well as a short artillery bombardment, with both causing some confusion in the British ranks.
Italian colonial artillery bombarding British positions at Kassala
At first, as the central column advanced towards Kassala, they encountered a group of Ethiopian exiles which were still defending their camp outside the town, and engaged into a short firefight with them. Soon after though, the Ethiopian patriots broke ranks and started fleeing towards the main British positions, thus putting themselves in the line of fire of the Italian Askaris, with many of them ending up being gunned down.
High on their success, the Italian officers ordered their men to continue advancing towards the main British positions, without bothering to properly regroup. The Askaris, in many cases fixing their bayonetts, raced towards the line of buildings where they knew the British soldiers * were, and came under intense machine-gun and rifle fire from various point along the line. While the fire of the Sudanese soldiers did manage to stop most of the Italian wave, they had not managed to form a coherent line, meaning there were still gaps in the field of fire, through which many Italian-led soldiers advanced. What followed were, in some cases savage, close-quarter fighting lasting for almost half an hour. Then, as if almost on purpose, both sides began to disengage simultaneously, with the Sudanese falling back a couple of blocks in order to form a secure line and the battered Askaris retreating towards there comrades that had taken up positions in the open along the small canal running on the edge of town.
The British, concentrating their armoured cars, then attempted to launch a flanking attack upon the central Italian column. Even though one armored car was taken out by Italian artillery, the attack showed promise, yet it was decided to break it off after the other two Italian columns were spotted attempting to flank the town. The eastern column appeared to be comprised of only foot soldiers, whereas dust from vehicles gathered above the western one. Even so, the decision wastaken to head west, in the hope of linking up with No. 3 Company. What mattered above all else was speed, in order to evacuate the town before the Italian columns got to encircle it. The need for speed however turned the maneuver into a chaotic mess, as small detachments made their way west as soon as possible. Cynically, the Ethiopian patriots were ordered to form up the rearguard.
As the small groups of Sudanese soldiers and British officers and officials began making their way west, they came under fire from di Torpino's riders, which had dismounted and ambushed the leading vehicles. This gave enough time to the western Italian column, a rather small motorized force spearheaded by a couple of tankettes, to link up with the blocking force of cavalry.
Italian motorized forced making their way across the African savannah in order to trap British forces
The arrival of the western column, along with increasingly accurate artillery fire, forced No.5 and No.6 company to stop their retreat and head back towards to relative safety of Kassala, hoping in the speedy arrival of No. 3 Company. They were however not the only ones waiting for them. The possibility that the Kassala garrison might be reinforced had always been factored into Italian plans, and when the Fiat Cr.42 sent out to patrol the western approach to Kassala spotted the rising dust column and radioed back, the Italian commanders began implementing the next phase of their plan.
The infantry ring around the besieged British forces was tightened, although several lorries packed with SDF soldiers did manage to escape in the meantime, and made their way north. The cavalry and the motorized forces were split and sent both south and north of the road and railway line running west, with each group being assigned one L3/35 tankette (of the other two, one had been destroyed by enemy fire and the other had broken down and was towed away for repairs).
As No.3 approached late in the day, they found the Italians already waiting for them, with infantry dug in facing both sides (the western approach and Kassala). One half-harted attempt to break through was attempted, which only managed to link up with a spearhead of a couple of dozen soldiers from No.5 Company trapped in Kassala, before turning back, owing to intense enemy rifle and machine gun fire, artillery strikes from the batteries arranged to cover the approach, and, more importantly, from the sight of the two Italian columns to the north and south attempting to flank them. Leaving the battlefield (and thus abandoning 3 armored cars a couple of trucks which had been disabled), No.3 successfully disengaged and managed to to avoid the capture of all but one platoon, which had been acting as a rearguard. An airstrike by half a dozen Italian aircraft returning to the battlefield caused some damage, with strafing and bomb damage taking out a further 2 trucks, but with visibility poor as the sun set, the Regia Aeronautica aircraft also managed to hit their own men, killing and wounding almost 20 men from di Torpino's cavalry unit, with the lieutenant himself being almost killed as a piece of shrapnel it him in the rear. While he did recover from it, his riding days were over.
With the counterattack beaten back and No.3 Company retreating, the remaining men trapped in Kassala decided to take up the Italian offer broadcast to them and surrendered. Overall, the British had lost 436 men killed and 623 captured**. They also suffered 7 armored cars destroyed, 3 damaged and 5 captured, along with a sizeable number of trucks (of whom some were later repaired by the Italians), weapons and ammunition stores.
Italy suffered 702 men killed and wounded and 9 captured, as well as 1 tankette destroyed and 1 damaged.
* - most of the men in the SDF units though were locals, with actual British men only acting as officers
** - this number includes the approximately 300 Ethiopian rebels
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Paul MacQ
Monthly Donor
Very nicely done.
Trying to remember what little I have read on this Campaign OTL. The British basically had next to no Artillery and the air war was vary much.
I like the Aircraft used. Because this was a side show when the Bi-plane was vary important. Also the likes of the Vickers Wellesley.
This would have been a very interesting theater if the Italians had at least 1 - 2 squadrons of aircraft design and used in the Anti shipping field a major failing on there part they did not sort out till late 1941.
As mentioned before some support from the German raiders sending more to the Italians can have some interesting flow on effects.
I do know there was a push to equip some Re 2000GA fighters with Auxiliary fuel tanks to reach East Africa. Most common British fighter in area was the Gladiator. The Re 2000 model was not ready in time OTL . Pretty much sums up much of the Italian war effort. " Was not ready in time". Some preparation you get major changes Re2000 was early adopter of Bomb racks for Fighter bomber role. Italian 160kg Bombs might have been useful on anything up to and including a Cruiser and any size of Merchant ship.
Sadly cannot get a copy of "The war of a hundred days" by Ambrose Brown mentioned. This timeline has me interested in the subject again.
Trying to remember what little I have read on this Campaign OTL. The British basically had next to no Artillery and the air war was vary much.
I like the Aircraft used. Because this was a side show when the Bi-plane was vary important. Also the likes of the Vickers Wellesley.
This would have been a very interesting theater if the Italians had at least 1 - 2 squadrons of aircraft design and used in the Anti shipping field a major failing on there part they did not sort out till late 1941.
As mentioned before some support from the German raiders sending more to the Italians can have some interesting flow on effects.
I do know there was a push to equip some Re 2000GA fighters with Auxiliary fuel tanks to reach East Africa. Most common British fighter in area was the Gladiator. The Re 2000 model was not ready in time OTL . Pretty much sums up much of the Italian war effort. " Was not ready in time". Some preparation you get major changes Re2000 was early adopter of Bomb racks for Fighter bomber role. Italian 160kg Bombs might have been useful on anything up to and including a Cruiser and any size of Merchant ship.
Sadly cannot get a copy of "The war of a hundred days" by Ambrose Brown mentioned. This timeline has me interested in the subject again.
If one was to describe Wilfred Thesiger, one wouldn’t know where to begin. Famous for his books on the Bedouins of the Arabian Peninsula and their vanishing way of life, as well as about the “Marsh Arabs” of southern Iraq, both written after the war, Thesiger had more adventures during his lifetime than almost any regular person on the planet. An Oxford graduate and captain of its boxing team, Thesiger hailed from a distinguished family. His grandfather was the famous Lord Chelmsford, who commanded British troops at the Battle of Isandlwana and throughout the Zulu Wars and had also taken part Lord Napiers punitive expedition into Ethiopia, which saw British forces burn down Emperor Tewodros II fortress of Magdala, with the Ethiopian monarch committing suicide. Wilfred’s father meanwhile became top British diplomat in Ethiopia. Owing to his connections, Wilfred himself had received a personal invitation by Emperor Haile Selassie to attend his coronation, while in 1933, he returned in an expedition to Ethiopia and became the first European to enter the Aussa Sultanate and visit Lake Abbe.
When he arrived at No.3 Company of the Eastern Arab Corps, the diarist wrote of him:
Meanwhile, Harris, one of his fellow officers, wrote of him as
“one of those hardy men who seem to take a delight in being as uncomfortable as possible… I found him naked in the middle of the stream having a vigorous bath in the freezing water. Thesiger had breakfast with me and, after informing me that he had lived in the country for the last two months and could not imagine why people troubled to take rations with them, proceeded to finish my last tin of grapefruit, half my remaining supply of sugar, and most of my one and only remaining pot of marmalade.”
Thesiger in the Sudan
Stationed at the strategic fort of Gallabat on the border, he was put in command along with another British officer by the name of Hanks. During this time, the British had been preparing for operations to support rebellions in Ethiopia. To this end, around 250 Ethiopians living in exile in the Sudan had been gathered at the fort, along with a further 200, led by the one-eyed Fitaurari Worku, who had arrived from Kwara on the Italian side, impatient for rifles. This was followed by the closing of the frontier, leading to the Italian Colonel Castagnola demanding a meeting with his British ‘friends’.
They met, formally, at the Sudan Customs shed down by the river; the round little Colonel Castagnola, with the Prince de Bourbon-Siciles as his interpreter, and for the British, not Castagnola’s old acquaintance Wreforb-Brown, but this extremely tall, rather formidable newcomer, Thesiger. Behind them on the fort of Gallabat the Union Jack and the green flag of Egypt floated side by side and it was not once that Castagnola looked on towards them, contemplating.
Getting down to business, he complained about rebel activities and British support for them. Thesiger however rejected the complaint and ended the interview on a more cordial but at the same time more sinister note, regretting he was unable to invite the Colonel and the Prince back for lunch owing to ‘the maneuvers’ planned for that afternoon. What Thesiger didn’t know was that Castagnola had his own maneuvers planned out, or rather, they had been planned out for him by command in Addis Abba and discussed for months.
On the rebels themselves Thesiger had had to exercise a very different style of diplomacy, managing to convince Fitaurari Worku not to leave yet when orders were received not to issue the rifles, 600 single shot Maritni rifles in total, yet. Then, on the evening of June 10th, a message had arrived form HQ at Gedaref, informing him about the declaration of war and about “naval engagements that were already taking place in the Red Sea”, while warning that an attack was likely going to be put in an hour before dawn by the Italians, with an estimated 3 battalions and 31 tanks gathered at Metemma across the border. Consequently, the two officers set off with their platoons to take up positions on the Fort and the surrounding ridges, with the Ethiopians being interspersed between their SDF units.
Panorama of Galabat and surroundings
That night, Italian forces, outnumbering Thesiger and his men by about 4-1, began their advance. To their dismay however, they found British forces already in position covering the flanks of the fort, as sporadic gunfire erupted across the British line as nervous men shot at anything that might be approaching, especially the Ethiopians, whose fire discipline was very poor. Disappointed, Castagnola ordered a halt. Surveying the ground the following day, he ordered probes launched to determine British positions. The following night, Thesiger, determined to hurt his foes, launched a probing attack on the Italian left flank with most of his best men while at the same time Castagnola ordered an advance across the entire front, with the aim of getting close to the enemy position and overwhelming them by sheer number. Thinned out, the British line failed to halt the Italian advance and many positions were abandoned in the confused night action. At the same time, Thesiger had cut through the extreme right flank and made his way to the Italian HQ. There, Castagnola’s only 3 tankettes, which he had kept in reserve, began furiously firing towards the silhouettes in the distance. While ineffective, in did temporarily halt Thesigers men as they sought cover. Castagnola however panicked and ordered the advance halted, whilst Thesiger, rightfully fearing his line was about to buckle under the Italian pressure, began making his way back at utmost speed.
The following morning, Castagnola ordered a fresh advance on the British flanks, on the same positions they had attacked, taken and abandoned the night before. Thesiger responded by moving his reserves and pinning down he attackers. At that point, the Italians committed their reserves, spearheaded by their 3 tankettes, along the road in the center and the tall elephant grass that grew alongside it, charging straight for the fort. Thesiger tried to redeploy with part of his reserve to meet the new threat which had broken through the thinned-out center and was heading straight for Gallabat, when a rumor started to spread, mostly but not only among the Ethiopians, that he had been killed. A trickle became a flood larger and larger groups of men began fleeing down the ridges, away from the once again advancing Italians. With most of his unit disintegrating, he retired north-west and attempted to rally what men he could, leaving the fort (which had fallen after a short but brutal close-quarter fight), along with all of the weapons, supplies and vehicles located inside it, to the enemy.
For the following days, Italian Askaris conducted a large manhunt for the remainder of their fleeing foes, capturing mainly small groups of Ethiopians which had gotten lost in an unfamiliar area. In all, Thesiger lost 89 men killed, 115 wounded and 277 captured, out of a total of almost 700, whereas Castagnola later reported to have had 291 men killed and wounded.
Italian Askaris and their commanding officer posing for a photo after the battle, inside Gallabat Fort
When he arrived at No.3 Company of the Eastern Arab Corps, the diarist wrote of him:
“W.P. Thesiger, a former Assistand DC, came to No.3, accompanied by his personal servand who was a reprieved murderer and quite a charming chap if a shade willful. Thesiger had accounted for over 70 lion during his Sudan career, was a boxing Blue, and altogether a useful man to have about the place.”
Meanwhile, Harris, one of his fellow officers, wrote of him as
“one of those hardy men who seem to take a delight in being as uncomfortable as possible… I found him naked in the middle of the stream having a vigorous bath in the freezing water. Thesiger had breakfast with me and, after informing me that he had lived in the country for the last two months and could not imagine why people troubled to take rations with them, proceeded to finish my last tin of grapefruit, half my remaining supply of sugar, and most of my one and only remaining pot of marmalade.”
Thesiger in the Sudan
Stationed at the strategic fort of Gallabat on the border, he was put in command along with another British officer by the name of Hanks. During this time, the British had been preparing for operations to support rebellions in Ethiopia. To this end, around 250 Ethiopians living in exile in the Sudan had been gathered at the fort, along with a further 200, led by the one-eyed Fitaurari Worku, who had arrived from Kwara on the Italian side, impatient for rifles. This was followed by the closing of the frontier, leading to the Italian Colonel Castagnola demanding a meeting with his British ‘friends’.
They met, formally, at the Sudan Customs shed down by the river; the round little Colonel Castagnola, with the Prince de Bourbon-Siciles as his interpreter, and for the British, not Castagnola’s old acquaintance Wreforb-Brown, but this extremely tall, rather formidable newcomer, Thesiger. Behind them on the fort of Gallabat the Union Jack and the green flag of Egypt floated side by side and it was not once that Castagnola looked on towards them, contemplating.
Getting down to business, he complained about rebel activities and British support for them. Thesiger however rejected the complaint and ended the interview on a more cordial but at the same time more sinister note, regretting he was unable to invite the Colonel and the Prince back for lunch owing to ‘the maneuvers’ planned for that afternoon. What Thesiger didn’t know was that Castagnola had his own maneuvers planned out, or rather, they had been planned out for him by command in Addis Abba and discussed for months.
On the rebels themselves Thesiger had had to exercise a very different style of diplomacy, managing to convince Fitaurari Worku not to leave yet when orders were received not to issue the rifles, 600 single shot Maritni rifles in total, yet. Then, on the evening of June 10th, a message had arrived form HQ at Gedaref, informing him about the declaration of war and about “naval engagements that were already taking place in the Red Sea”, while warning that an attack was likely going to be put in an hour before dawn by the Italians, with an estimated 3 battalions and 31 tanks gathered at Metemma across the border. Consequently, the two officers set off with their platoons to take up positions on the Fort and the surrounding ridges, with the Ethiopians being interspersed between their SDF units.
Panorama of Galabat and surroundings
That night, Italian forces, outnumbering Thesiger and his men by about 4-1, began their advance. To their dismay however, they found British forces already in position covering the flanks of the fort, as sporadic gunfire erupted across the British line as nervous men shot at anything that might be approaching, especially the Ethiopians, whose fire discipline was very poor. Disappointed, Castagnola ordered a halt. Surveying the ground the following day, he ordered probes launched to determine British positions. The following night, Thesiger, determined to hurt his foes, launched a probing attack on the Italian left flank with most of his best men while at the same time Castagnola ordered an advance across the entire front, with the aim of getting close to the enemy position and overwhelming them by sheer number. Thinned out, the British line failed to halt the Italian advance and many positions were abandoned in the confused night action. At the same time, Thesiger had cut through the extreme right flank and made his way to the Italian HQ. There, Castagnola’s only 3 tankettes, which he had kept in reserve, began furiously firing towards the silhouettes in the distance. While ineffective, in did temporarily halt Thesigers men as they sought cover. Castagnola however panicked and ordered the advance halted, whilst Thesiger, rightfully fearing his line was about to buckle under the Italian pressure, began making his way back at utmost speed.
The following morning, Castagnola ordered a fresh advance on the British flanks, on the same positions they had attacked, taken and abandoned the night before. Thesiger responded by moving his reserves and pinning down he attackers. At that point, the Italians committed their reserves, spearheaded by their 3 tankettes, along the road in the center and the tall elephant grass that grew alongside it, charging straight for the fort. Thesiger tried to redeploy with part of his reserve to meet the new threat which had broken through the thinned-out center and was heading straight for Gallabat, when a rumor started to spread, mostly but not only among the Ethiopians, that he had been killed. A trickle became a flood larger and larger groups of men began fleeing down the ridges, away from the once again advancing Italians. With most of his unit disintegrating, he retired north-west and attempted to rally what men he could, leaving the fort (which had fallen after a short but brutal close-quarter fight), along with all of the weapons, supplies and vehicles located inside it, to the enemy.
For the following days, Italian Askaris conducted a large manhunt for the remainder of their fleeing foes, capturing mainly small groups of Ethiopians which had gotten lost in an unfamiliar area. In all, Thesiger lost 89 men killed, 115 wounded and 277 captured, out of a total of almost 700, whereas Castagnola later reported to have had 291 men killed and wounded.
Italian Askaris and their commanding officer posing for a photo after the battle, inside Gallabat Fort
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Well, the Italians did have more and better aircraft than the British at the very early phase, with their main long-term problem being a lack of spares, whereas in the short term OTL they failed to use them aggressively and take advantage of their temporary superiority. For instance the CR.42 was better then the Gladiator, and, at some point after they received a shipment of incendiary bullets, much better, managing to gain air superiority that would turn the tide of the second battle of Gallabat, defeating non other than the famous William Slim.
Anyway,you're right that they could have received more and better stuff faster. For now, they'll have to make due with what they have, which is not necessarily what they had OTL, as the (first draft of the) POD goes a little bit further back than the plight of the Umbria.
Politics along the Nile
The days following the opening of hostilities with Italy had not been the best for Britain. Apart from the defeats at Kassala and Gallabat, the frontier villages of Kurmuk on the Blue Nile and Karora near the Red Sea coast had been lost after small Italian colonial units engaged in minor skirmishes with the local Sudanese police, forcing the latter to retreat. Things weren't looking good in Kenya either, where the small fort at Moyale on the border with Italian Somaliland, held by just one Company of the Kings African Rifles, was being besieged by Italian colonial forces amounting to almost a full battalion.
Meanwhile British authorities where put on edge when two Italian aircraft dropped leaflets over Khartoum and Port Sudan respectively, promising liberation from under the British yoke merely a day after fighting in Kassala had ceased, and rumors began to spread like wildfire .
It was under these conditions that Governor-General Sir Steward Symes summoned the leading Sudanese to his Palace in Khartoum.
Sir George Stewart Symes
Among those summoned where the three most influential men of the Sudanese community, namely the leaders of the three great Muslim sects in the Sudan: El Shereef Yusuf el Hindi, El Sayed Sir Ali el Mirghani Pasha and El Sayed Sir Abd al-Rahman el Mahdi. There, Sir Steward read out in English a 'Proclamation to the People of the Sudan'. All three men proceeded to make short and loyal speeches expressing faith in the victory of Great Britain, and recollecting, in one form or another, the similar meeting that had taken place in 1914, where either they or their fathers had fervently expressed their loyalty to the British. What neither of them mentioned though was that, at that time, the then Governor-General, Sir Reginald Wingate, had addressed the Ulema in Arabic. Neither did they mention that, at that time, Britain's armies had not been so thoroughly defeated in continental Europe.
Later the next day, the three men met at a neutral location in Khartoum. While Shereef, whose power and influence had been in a downward spiral for years, tried to keep a conciliatory tone, tensions ran high between Mirghani, leader of the Sufi Khatmiyya order and Abd al-Rahman, the posthumous son of none other then the famous Mahdi who had given the British such headaches in the previous century and the leader of the vast movement his father had created. Both had more money and influence than any other Sudanese, with Al-Rahman owning most of the extremely lucrative cotton plantations in the south near the border with Ethiopia, while Mirghani's business and religious empire extended well into Italian Eritrea, with his family's businesses, run in close co-operation with Italian authorities and influential leaders of said colony, accounting for a good deal of his wealth. Al-Rahman too was a man who always liked to keep his options open, and had begun many months before the commencement of hostilities to establish contacts with the Italians to the south.
Al-Rahman (center) meeting with Italian priests and officials prior to the outbreak of war
It was thanks to Shereef that the meeting didn't degenerate into a cursing match, as the two rivals reached an understanding: while loyalty to the British was desirable at the moment, there was no point to being stuck on an apparently sinking ship. Therefor, contacts with the Italians should be opened up, facilitated both by Mirghani's network in Eritrea and by Al-Rahman's along the Blue Nile, and both sides should be told what they wanted to hear, until things developed one way or the other...
The days following the opening of hostilities with Italy had not been the best for Britain. Apart from the defeats at Kassala and Gallabat, the frontier villages of Kurmuk on the Blue Nile and Karora near the Red Sea coast had been lost after small Italian colonial units engaged in minor skirmishes with the local Sudanese police, forcing the latter to retreat. Things weren't looking good in Kenya either, where the small fort at Moyale on the border with Italian Somaliland, held by just one Company of the Kings African Rifles, was being besieged by Italian colonial forces amounting to almost a full battalion.
Meanwhile British authorities where put on edge when two Italian aircraft dropped leaflets over Khartoum and Port Sudan respectively, promising liberation from under the British yoke merely a day after fighting in Kassala had ceased, and rumors began to spread like wildfire .
It was under these conditions that Governor-General Sir Steward Symes summoned the leading Sudanese to his Palace in Khartoum.
Sir George Stewart Symes
Among those summoned where the three most influential men of the Sudanese community, namely the leaders of the three great Muslim sects in the Sudan: El Shereef Yusuf el Hindi, El Sayed Sir Ali el Mirghani Pasha and El Sayed Sir Abd al-Rahman el Mahdi. There, Sir Steward read out in English a 'Proclamation to the People of the Sudan'. All three men proceeded to make short and loyal speeches expressing faith in the victory of Great Britain, and recollecting, in one form or another, the similar meeting that had taken place in 1914, where either they or their fathers had fervently expressed their loyalty to the British. What neither of them mentioned though was that, at that time, the then Governor-General, Sir Reginald Wingate, had addressed the Ulema in Arabic. Neither did they mention that, at that time, Britain's armies had not been so thoroughly defeated in continental Europe.
Later the next day, the three men met at a neutral location in Khartoum. While Shereef, whose power and influence had been in a downward spiral for years, tried to keep a conciliatory tone, tensions ran high between Mirghani, leader of the Sufi Khatmiyya order and Abd al-Rahman, the posthumous son of none other then the famous Mahdi who had given the British such headaches in the previous century and the leader of the vast movement his father had created. Both had more money and influence than any other Sudanese, with Al-Rahman owning most of the extremely lucrative cotton plantations in the south near the border with Ethiopia, while Mirghani's business and religious empire extended well into Italian Eritrea, with his family's businesses, run in close co-operation with Italian authorities and influential leaders of said colony, accounting for a good deal of his wealth. Al-Rahman too was a man who always liked to keep his options open, and had begun many months before the commencement of hostilities to establish contacts with the Italians to the south.
Al-Rahman (center) meeting with Italian priests and officials prior to the outbreak of war
It was thanks to Shereef that the meeting didn't degenerate into a cursing match, as the two rivals reached an understanding: while loyalty to the British was desirable at the moment, there was no point to being stuck on an apparently sinking ship. Therefor, contacts with the Italians should be opened up, facilitated both by Mirghani's network in Eritrea and by Al-Rahman's along the Blue Nile, and both sides should be told what they wanted to hear, until things developed one way or the other...
In a rather selfish attempt to squeeze some more responses (because, unless this site's wrong, people ARE reading this), I'm hereby bumping this thread.
What did you guys think of our good friend Thesiger or the Sudanese leaders ? Any direction in particular you might want to see things evolve ?
What did you guys think of our good friend Thesiger or the Sudanese leaders ? Any direction in particular you might want to see things evolve ?
The Italians stop arguing with each other long enough to start fighting WW2, the Germans must be shocked.
Indeed, although, to be fair, they haven't exactly covered themselves in glory in the land battles (yet). Both of their victories resulted a lot from their overwhelming numerical and material superiority, and, even then, they still managed to have more KIA than the outnumbered Brits.
However, these weren't the best units the British had (those would be the 3 all-British battalions in the Sudan - 2nd West Yorkshires, the 1st Worcestershires and the 1st Essex), nor were they the best the Italians had ( those being the "Savoy Grenadiers" and "Hunters of Africa" divisions)
We'll see how things work out if and when some of those units meet...
Thanks.
Fun stuff. I hadn't heard of the Umbria so I was able to learn something. Evidently its a divable wreck. They describe her cargo as 360000 aircraft bombs. I was trying to figure out the exact point of divergence of your TL from actual time (see link bottom).
Fuel shortages were an issue, OTL one neutral Japanse cargo ship arrived with some fuel. Your Atlantis capturing a tanker ot two is an interesting idea.
One idea is that the pocket battleship Graf Spee instead of fleeing to Uraguay after the River Platte engagement, escapes into the night and loses her shadowers, not sea worthy enough to go back to Germany through the North Atlantic, she is ordered to limp to Mogadishu to sit out the war in a friendly port. While there, with nothing else better to do for several months the German naval officers on board relay messages to Berlin about the value of the port for raiders. The German Navy thus arranges for Japanese and Soviet merchant vessels to pre supply the port and buy 4 Japanese float planes for recon. OTL there were many merchant ships trapped in the port that could be fitted with some of the Graf Spees secondary aramament. While Italy is neutral nothing much can be done but once war breaks out, the German officers energize the Italian leadership, a couple of raiders set out to sea backed up by float plane recon and orders to send prizes to Mogadishu.
I am seeing this:
Fuel shortages were an issue, OTL one neutral Japanse cargo ship arrived with some fuel. Your Atlantis capturing a tanker ot two is an interesting idea.
One idea is that the pocket battleship Graf Spee instead of fleeing to Uraguay after the River Platte engagement, escapes into the night and loses her shadowers, not sea worthy enough to go back to Germany through the North Atlantic, she is ordered to limp to Mogadishu to sit out the war in a friendly port. While there, with nothing else better to do for several months the German naval officers on board relay messages to Berlin about the value of the port for raiders. The German Navy thus arranges for Japanese and Soviet merchant vessels to pre supply the port and buy 4 Japanese float planes for recon. OTL there were many merchant ships trapped in the port that could be fitted with some of the Graf Spees secondary aramament. While Italy is neutral nothing much can be done but once war breaks out, the German officers energize the Italian leadership, a couple of raiders set out to sea backed up by float plane recon and orders to send prizes to Mogadishu.
I am seeing this:
On the morning of June 10th, Captain Muiesan was listening to his radio and became the only man on board to know that Italy had formally declared War. Under the very noses of the British sailors, he then succeeded in scuttling his ship.
Read more: http://www.touregypt.net/vdc/umbria.htm#ixzz2bP3bzwc1
Read more: http://www.touregypt.net/vdc/umbria.htm#ixzz2bP3bzwc1
For background on the air war in East Africa you may find this article useful:
http://content.ebscohost.com/pdf27_...entCustomer=dGJyMOGqsUyurrZOuePfgeyx44Dt6fIA0
Thank you all very very much for your kind words of encouragement. I'll try to have an update up as soon as possible.
Re Air War - ask and ye shall receive !!
Re link - it's broken
Sorry, try these links:
http://www.questia.com/library/1G1-295551098/making-do-the-air-war-in-east-africa-1940-1941
http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfv...02-472e-9d13-ac27991f64dd@sessionmgr14&hid=14
http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/resu...jaCZkYj11bGgmdHlwZT0wJnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ==
I don't think an air resupply could get the job done. You just can't move enough stuff, particularly heavy munitions. I am rather impressed that they were able to airlift in a small number of CR-42s and re-assemble them in theater but you can't sustain an effort that way.