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Horse Soldiers: Indian Battles and Campaigns in
the West.Boulder: Pruett, 1972.ROMMEL, ERWIN
Rommel, Erwin
(November 5, 1891–October 14, 1944)
German General
R
ommel, the legen-
dary “Desert Fox,”
was one of the
master spirits of military
history. He blazed a trail
of glory across North
Africa and at Kasserine
Pass handed U.S. forces
their first major defeat.
Afterward, he was en-
trusted with the defenses
of Normandy but was
caught up in a conspiracy
against Hitler and forced
to commit suicide.
Erwin Johannes Eu-
gen Rommel was born in
Hedienheim, Württem-
berg, on November 5,
1891, the son of a school-
teacher. Although his
family lacked traditions
of military service, he
joined an infantry regiment as a cadet in 1910
and rose to lieutenant two years later. World
War I commenced in August 1914, and Rom-
mel accompanied his regiment into France,
being twice wounded and receiving the Iron
Cross for bravery. The following year he was
assigned to the elite Württemberg Mountain
Battalion and served in Romania before being
transferred to the Italian front. He fought with
distinction during the
spectacular Battle of Ca-
poretto in October 1917,
displaying the reckless
courage and consummate
skill that became his
trademarks. With only
200 men, Rommel stormed
an Italian artillery bat-
tery, outflanked numer-
ous enemy positions, and
captured an astonishing
9,000 prisoners and 81
cannons! For such con-
spicuous leadership he
received the prestigious
Pour le Merite—Ger-
many’s highest award—
and a promotion to cap-
tain. Rommel, much to
his disgust, ended the
war behind a desk per-
forming staff work.
After World War I, Rommel was retained by
the diminished postwar army—the Reichs-
wehr—in which he served as a company com-
mander. In 1929, he was billeted with the In-
fantry School in Dresden as an instructor and
spent the next four years honing his tactical
skills. By 1935, he was allowed to attend the
prestigious Kriegsakademie (war college),
and two years later he published a best-sellingErwin Rommel
National Archives