First Battle of El Alamein of C-in-C (which he refused). Gott was killed on the way to take up his command when his aircraft was shot down. Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery was appointed in his place and took command on 13 August. First Battle of El Alamein The First Battle of El Alamein (1–27 July 1942) was a battle of the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War, fought in Egypt between Axis forces (Germany and Italy) of the Panzer Army Africa (, which included the under Field Marshal () Erwin Rommel) and Allied (British Imperial and Commonwealth) forces (Britain, British India, Australia, South Africa
Second Battle of El Alamein of Stalingrad and the Guadalcanal Campaign. The Panzer Army Africa ("Panzerarmee Afrika"), composed of German and Italian infantry and mechanised units under "Generalfeldmarschall" Erwin Rommel, had struck deep into Egypt by 12 July 1942 after its success at the Battle of Gazala. This threatened the British Empire's control of the Suez Canal and Mandatory Palestine. General Claude Auchinleck withdrew the Eighth Army to within of Alexandria to a point where the Qattara Depression came to within of El Alamein on the coast. This gave the defenders a short front to defend and provided secure flanks because tanks could not traverse