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Mid June – Operation Vigorous, which included 11 merchant ships, seven cruisers and 28 destroyers was the largest convoy to set sail for Malta. The convoy had to turn back around and return home to Alexandria, Egypt once it was noted that the Italian Battleships Littorio and Vittorio Veneto, along with 2 heavy cruisers, 2 light cruisers and 12 destroyers were dispatched to intercept them.
Mussolini lands in Tobruk in preparation for Egyptian surrender
Total Allied damage included 8 merchant ships sunk, 3 damaged, 5 cruisers damaged, 4 destroyers sunk, 1 destroyer damaged, 2 corvettes damaged and one torpedo boat sunk. Only 1 Italian heavy cruiser was lost, scuttled by the Italians due to severe damage.
These two operations were major Italian naval victories, but the downfall was that the oil shortages became so great for the Italian military machine, that such large Italian naval operations were rarely seen again.
LIBYA
June 20 – The Africa Corp and Italian XX Corp begin pounding Tobruk, eventually resorting to hand to hand combat with the British who are under the command of Klopper. Italian Caproni’s, German Junkers 88′s and Stukas bomb Tobruk to mercy. See Battle Map.
June 21 - Klopper surrenders Tobruk to the Afrika Korps. The spoils include 33,000 POW’s, roughly 2,000 vehicles, 30 tanks, 400 guns and much needed fuel. Italian destroyer Strale runs aground off Tunisia and is scuttled. Rommel persuades Hitler to approve and advance to Egypt. Cavallero, Kesselring and Mussolini do not agree with his actions.
June – Benito Mussolini receives word that Rommel’s Axis forces are on the verge of capturing Alexandria and Cairo in Egypt, however, the Ariete are reduced to 10 tanks, 24 guns and 1,500 infantry. The Littorio has 30 tanks, 11 guns and 1,000 Bersaglieri, the X Corps (Brescia and Pavia) only 2,000 men and 90 guns, the XXI Corps (Trento and Sabratha) only 3,000 men and 100 guns. DAK added another 90 tanks, a few infantry and a handful of guns.
June 28 – 29 - Afrika Korps captures Marsa Matruh. Axis supply lines in Africa are stretched 400 miles beyond Sollum and 800 miles from Benghazi.
June 29 - Mussolini flies to Tripoli to observe the conquest of Egypt. Rommel’s forces become deadlocked with the Allies in El Alamein, Egypt.
SOVIET UNION
July – The Italian army in the Soviet Union is upgraded to a 200,000 man army under General Giovanni Messe.
AFRIKA KORPS
July 3 – The Ariete are mauled by the I and VII Armoured Brigades and the New Zealand Division (2 days after the 90th Light panicked and withdrew.)
Reported number of Italian Regia Aeronautica in desert theater, July 1942
MALTA
July 10 – Planned date of Operation Hercules, the invasion of Malta.
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