FACTS ABOUT ERWIN ROMMEL

1. Erwin Rommel was born on Nov. 15, 1891. His father was the headmaster of a school.  As a boy, Erwin was described as gentle and unaggressive.  He was interested in math and engineering and dreamed of becoming an aeronautical engineer.  He co-built a glider at age 14.  He bought a motorcycle so he could take it apart and put it back together again.  Unfortunately, his grades were not good enough to get into a university.  His father convinced him to join the military.  After being turned down by the artillery and engineers, he settled for infantry officer training in 1910.  He was an outstanding student and became a lieutenant in time for WWI.
2. He was wounded three time in WWI. He fought in Romania, Italy, and on the Western Front.  In September, 1914, he charged three French with a bayonet and suffered a gaping wound in his thigh.  He was later wounded in the shoulder and arm.  He suffered from stomach problems, fevers, and exhaustion during the war.
3. Rommel was ambitious for fame and glory. He first fought near Verdun.  He earned the Iron Cross, first and second class.  In 1917, at the Battle of Caporetto in Italy, he lad 100 men in a surprise attack that captured Mount Matajur.  He and five of his men captured 1,500 of the enemy.  He was awarded the Blue Max (Pour Le Merite), Germany’s highest honor.
4. In 1937, his seminal work “Infantry Attacks” caught the attention of Hitler. He was appointed Army liaison to the Hitler Youth and then to head of der Fuhrer’s personal body guard.  Although never officially a Nazi, he admired and praised Hitler, who presented him with an autographed copy of “Mein Kampf”.  For the invasion of France, he was promoted to commander of the 7^th Panzer Division.  His unit moved so quickly and with surprise that it became known as the “Ghost Division”.  Rommel cemented his reputation for leading from the front, often exposing himself to enemy fire.  His division captured 100,000 men in its campaign, including an entire British division and the French garrison at Cherbourg.
5. He earned his nickname “The Desert Fox” in North Africa. He became the most respected German general and was praised by Churchill.  He treated prisoners fairly, but there have some accusations of condoning war crimes.  He also earned the reputation of being one of the few German generals to stand up to Hitler.  He disobeyed orders to stand firm after losing at El Alamein and thus saved his army.  He rejected orders to execute commandos.
6. After Tunisia fell, he was put in charge of the defense of the coastline of France. He insisted on stopping the invasion at the beaches, but was not able to convince his superior Von Rundstedt (and Hitler) to station panzer units near the beaches.  He famously was visiting his wife for her birthday when D-Day occurred.  He did little during the Normandy campaign because his car was strafed by a British fighter.  He was hit in the arm and when the car ran off the road he suffered multiple skull fractures and wounds to his face by glass fragments.
7. When he was recuperating, he was approached by the conspirators who eventually planted the bomb that almost assassinated Hitler. Rommel did not join the plot because he feared a civil war and still could not completely break with der Fuhrer.  He did not turn the men in.  He walked a fine line which did not save him as he was caught up in the net thrown after the bombing.  Unlike the others, who were hanged with piano wire, Rommel was allowed to take his own life with cyanide.  He was given a state funeral and the German public was told he succumbed to battle wounds.
8. He had an illegitimate daughter from a fling named Gertrud. Although he called her niece in public, he was a loving father and wrote her numerous letters.  His son Manfred was mayor of Stuttgart for 22 years and friends with Montgomery’s son.

https://www.history.com/news/8-things-you-may-not-know-about-erwin-rommel

https://www.historyhit.com/facts-about-erwin-rommel-the-desert-fox/

https://militaryhistorynow.com/2014/09/01/crazy-like-a-fox-12-remarkable-facts-about-erwin-rommel/