Statue of the Viscount Montgomery, London Allied Powers Europe<br> Erected by comrades in arms & friends Statue of the Viscount Montgomery, London The statue of Bernard Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein is located outside the Ministry of Defence Main Building in Whitehall, London, United Kingdom. It was designed by Oscar Nemon and stands alongside statues of William Slim, 1st Viscount Slim and Alan Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke. The bronze plinth's front reads: "Monty, Field Marshal, Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, KG GCB DSO, 1887–1976." The back reads: 1942–44, Commander, 8th Army North Africa & Italy<br> 1944–45, C in C, 21st Army Group, North West Europe<br> 1946–48,
First Battle of El Alamein and cities of Egypt, the base facilities of the Commonwealth forces and the Suez Canal. However, the Axis forces were too far from their base at Tripoli in Libya to remain at El Alamein indefinitely, which led both sides to accumulate supplies for more offensives, against the constraints of time and distance. Following their defeat at the Battle of Gazala in Eastern Libya in June 1942, the British Eighth Army, commanded by Lieutenant-General Neil Ritchie, had retreated east from the Gazala line into north-western Egypt as far as Mersa Matruh, roughly inside the border. Ritchie had decided not to hold