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He served in World War I and World War II…he’s still one of Germany’s most respected military leaders…and yet he never even wanted to be in the military.
Who is this man that led German troops to victories, but defied Hitler at his own peril? What made him who he is, and what keeps his name in the history books?
Let’s look at the life of Erwin Rommel…the “Desert Fox.”
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Transcript Provided by YouTube:
00:00
he served in World War one and World War
00:02
two he’s still one of Germany’s most
00:04
respected military leaders and yet he
00:06
never even wanted to be in the military
00:08
who is this man that led German troops
00:10
to victories that define Hitler at his
00:12
own peril what made him who he is and
00:14
what keeps his name in the history books
00:16
well that’s what we’re looking at in
00:17
today’s via graphics the life of our win
00:19
Rommel the desert fox
00:30
born in Germany in 1891 Oh in Rommel
00:33
didn’t have the military in his DNA his
00:35
father was a teacher and he was the only
00:37
member of family to enter the military
00:39
as a career of his three siblings that
00:41
live to adulthood one brother became a
00:43
dentist another became an opera singer
00:45
and his sister became an art teacher as
00:47
a child Rommel wasn’t particularly
00:49
athletic in fact he’s even been
00:51
described as frail but he hit his stride
00:53
in his early teens discovering sports
00:55
and becoming a leader among his peers
00:57
around this same time he also discovered
00:59
his love of mathematics and engineering
01:01
he built his own glider and was known to
01:04
spend his free time taking apart
01:05
machinery and putting it back together
01:07
again a teenage Rommel even dismantled
01:09
an entire motorcycle and rebuilt it now
01:12
robot he was clearly intelligent that
01:13
his grades they didn’t reflect it
01:15
without good grades Rommel couldn’t
01:17
continue his education at university
01:19
with his talent for machinery he
01:21
considered working at a factory nares
01:22
childhood home but his father didn’t
01:25
want him working that instead his father
01:27
pushed Rommel into military service at
01:29
the age of 18 Rommel began studying at
01:31
the officer cadet school in Tokyo as
01:33
part of the 124 for Wurttemberg Infantry
01:36
Regiment he graduated in 1911 by January
01:39
of 1912 was commissioned as a lieutenant
01:40
as a battery commander he became part of
01:43
the one hundred and twenty fourth
01:44
weingarten regiments so he showed his
01:47
military talent early on he was still a
01:49
young men and it’s no surprise that
01:51
Rommel had more going on in his life
01:53
than just his military service Rommel
01:55
had met a young woman by the name of
01:56
wahlburger stemmer while he was posted
01:59
in Weingarten the team began a romance
02:01
and wahlburger ended up pregnant when
02:03
Rommel learns of her pregnancy he
02:04
promised that they would marry and live
02:06
in a house and be a family before they
02:08
could marry though while they gave birth
02:10
to a daughter that she named Gertrude
02:11
months later Rommel stationed away from
02:13
Weingarten sent wahlburger a letter that
02:16
contained far different news than what
02:18
she expected the letter broke the news
02:20
that he couldn’t marry her she wasn’t
02:22
from the right class to be an officer’s
02:23
wife and Raul’s career was his priority
02:25
then there was the fact that he was also
02:27
in love with another woman
02:29
the other woman was at Lucy Mullen she
02:31
and Rommel met while he was in cadet
02:33
school though they did not marry until
02:34
1916
02:35
Rommels a clear commitment to Lucy did
02:37
not stop Wahlburgers from loving him
02:39
though
02:40
she stayed devoted to him for
02:42
years believing that as long as he never
02:43
had children with another woman there
02:45
was a chance that he would return to her
02:47
but he never did
02:48
in 1928 wahlburger learned that Lucy was
02:50
pregnant with Rommels trials unable to
02:53
deal with the news she killed herself
02:54
Rommel and Lucy were supportive of
02:56
Gertrude both financially and
02:58
emotionally they welcomed her into their
03:00
home they did introduce her as their
03:02
niece when Rommel was fighting in Africa
03:04
the scarf that he wore was knitted for
03:06
him by Gertrude Rommel and Lucy’s own
03:08
son Manfred was born in 1928 and even
03:11
went on to become mayor of stewed art 20
03:13
years as Raul’s family life was taking
03:19
shape so was his military career months
03:21
after his illegitimate daughter was born
03:23
World War one broke out Rommel began his
03:25
war service as a platoon commander in
03:27
Verdun where he soon established the
03:29
fearlessness that he became known for
03:30
only a month into the war he charged a
03:32
group of French soldiers with a bayonet
03:34
on his own he had no ammunition but the
03:36
French troops did rawat was shot in the
03:38
leg but this was only to be the first of
03:40
many injuries that he sustained during
03:42
his military service Rommel was so well
03:44
known for charging ahead and ending up
03:46
in the thick of it that his troops used
03:47
to say where Rommel is there as the
03:50
front row both served in France Romania
03:52
and Italy during World War one he was
03:54
not only respected for his courage but
03:56
for his leadership in implementing new
03:58
strategies and maneuvers for warfare one
04:01
of Rommels most exceptional victories
04:02
came as he led troops in the mountainous
04:04
region of Caporetto in Italy Rommels
04:07
troops were poorly fed conditions were
04:09
horrific but with the use of new
04:10
infiltration tactics the German and
04:13
austro-hungarian troops had a decisive
04:15
victory over the Italian army 9,000
04:18
Italian men were captured 150 of them
04:20
officers Rommel didn’t achieve this by
04:22
following orders quite the contrary in
04:24
fact when he was told to stand down he
04:26
moved forward and attacked he also used
04:28
the strategy of coming out the attacks
04:30
from surprising directions and creating
04:32
confusion and disorder among the Italian
04:35
troops for his role in the battle Rommel
04:37
received the pole in their reach a
04:39
prestigious German Order of Merit even
04:41
before his achievements at the Battle of
04:43
Caporetto Rommel had earned the Iron
04:45
Cross and had been promoted to first
04:47
lieutenant in 1918 he received another
04:49
promotion to captain when World War one
04:52
ended Rommel stayed in the military
04:53
leaving the
04:54
Infantry Regiment insta got most of the
04:57
work involved dealing with civil unrest
04:59
but Rommel didn’t use the same
05:01
aggressive tactics he was known for in
05:02
the battlefield in fact he avoided using
05:04
force as much as he could
05:06
negotiations took the place of action in
05:09
the town of lindau rather than attack
05:11
the Communists who were staging an
05:12
uprising in the town Rommel used
05:14
diplomacy to get the city’s governments
05:16
back under control recognized for his
05:18
leadership capabilities Rommel was soon
05:20
appointed to teach at The Dresden
05:22
Infantry School among the advice Rommel
05:24
offered future military leaders is this
05:26
advice that he followed in his own
05:28
military career be an example to your
05:30
men in your duty and in your private
05:32
life never spare yourself and let the
05:34
troops see that you don’t in your
05:36
endurance of fatigue and privation
05:37
always be tactful and well mannered and
05:40
teach your subordinates to do the same
05:42
avoid excessive sharpness or harshness
05:44
of voice which usually indicates the man
05:46
who has shortcomings of his own hide
05:48
during this time Rommel also said to
05:51
work putting his military strategies on
05:53
paper in 1934 Rommels book on infantry
05:56
training was published he was no longer
05:57
teaching having left that role in 1933
06:00
but he was leading troops in gauslaa it
06:02
was in gossip that he encountered Adolf
06:04
Hitler for the first time
06:05
Hitler was chancellor and he was in
06:07
Gosselaar to inspect troops by 1937
06:09
Hitler was well aware of Rommel and his
06:11
reputation he named Rommel the war
06:13
ministry liaison for the Hitler Youth
06:15
but Rommel was not a member of the Nazi
06:17
Party
06:17
ian’s another Hitler Youth Leader
06:19
disagreed about tactics and organization
06:22
for the group and in the end Rommel lost
06:24
his role in 1938
06:25
even though Rommel wasn’t a member of
06:27
the Nazi Party he was still a supporter
06:29
of Hitler during his rise to power he
06:31
did agree with Hitler’s efforts to
06:32
remilitarization
06:35
Hitler still wanted Rommel in the upper
06:37
echelons of the military in fact he made
06:39
a direct request that Rommel be part of
06:41
the unit that traveled with Hitler the
06:43
assignment not only gave Rommel access
06:45
to the Fuehrer but it also gave him more
06:47
free time for his hobbies and interests
06:49
than he had ever had before he once
06:50
again started focusing on math and
06:52
engineering and even took time away to
06:54
go skiing but this wasn’t a last because
06:57
war it was just around the corner
07:03
1939 was a watershed year for Europe and
07:06
the world under Hitler’s orders Germany
07:08
invaded Poland on September the 1st 1939
07:11
as part of the preparation for the
07:13
invasion Rommel had been promoted to
07:15
Major General and was entrusted with
07:16
protecting Hitler as war erupted then in
07:19
1940 ronald was put in charge of the 7th
07:22
Panzer Division the Panzer divisions
07:24
made up of armored tanks were an ideal
07:26
opportunity for Rommel to put his
07:28
particular strategic skillset on display
07:30
initially plans were for Rommel to head
07:32
up a mountain division but with Hitler’s
07:34
support Rommel was able to land at the
07:36
head of the division he wanted in
07:37
addition to armored tanks Rommel was
07:39
also leading rifle regiments a
07:41
motorcycle battalion and an engineer
07:43
battalion and he was doing this out of
07:45
the usual order of military protocol
07:47
when Hitler made ramallah General he
07:49
bypassed other more experienced military
07:51
men to do so this started some
07:53
grumblings within the German military
07:55
but Rommel soon proved himself to be
07:57
worthy of the rank
07:58
he put his division through their
08:00
training paces for months and in May
08:02
they set off for battle in France the
08:04
battle it didn’t start out well for
08:06
Rommel and his troops bridges were out
08:08
where they needed to cross a river and
08:09
the French were firing stopping the
08:11
German troops from making attempts to
08:13
cross but what more outsmarted them he
08:15
said buildings on fire creating a wall
08:17
of smoke that gave his troops the cover
08:19
they needed as they fired back across
08:21
the river at the French they then got in
08:23
rubber boats and made their way across
08:24
the water using materials from another
08:26
Panzer Division they built a bridge and
08:28
the full division moved across Rommel he
08:31
wasn’t standing back and giving orders
08:32
no the general was actually in the thick
08:35
of the action firing a machine gun and
08:37
even wading into the water to put the
08:39
bridge together once again
08:41
Rommels division made quick progress
08:42
within days they had captured 10,000
08:45
French soldiers and only lost three
08:47
dozen of their own men for this victory
08:49
Rommel was awarded the Knight’s Cross in
08:51
the coming weeks Rommel continued his
08:53
advance across France he announced his
08:55
successes to Hitler in a telegram
08:56
containing only four words em on the
08:59
coast throughout the 7th Panzer
09:02
divisions move across France Rommel
09:04
moved his troops so quickly and
09:05
surreptitiously that even the German
09:07
High Command couldn’t keep track of them
09:09
this led them to dub is the ghost
09:11
division after the Germans marched
09:13
through France
09:13
stories arose about Rommel shooting an
09:15
unarmed French prisoner for not
09:16
following orders
09:17
he’s also been accused of involvement in
09:19
the massacre of French African soldiers
09:21
from Senegal and men under his command
09:23
were involved in the killing of dozens
09:25
of men who were surrendering and
09:26
therefore posed no threat to the German
09:28
soldiers while some of his troops were
09:30
very likely involved in such atrocities
09:32
historians believe Rommel would not have
09:34
given commands for such brutal attacks
09:36
according to historian Rafael Shak
09:38
although there is no evidence
09:40
incriminating Rommel and self his unit
09:42
did fight in areas where German
09:44
massacres of black French prisoners of
09:46
war were extremely common in June 1940
09:49
after the German takeover of France the
09:51
plan was at first for Rommel to head to
09:53
Britain that would be the next nation
09:55
that Germany would take over but it was
09:56
decided that the German air force wasn’t
09:58
strong enough to do what needed to be
10:00
done in order to take over England and
10:01
instead Rommel was sent to Africa the
10:04
Afrika Korps was a newly created
10:06
division of the German military and
10:07
general Rommel was the man who led it to
10:10
victories the Italians had been
10:11
suffering crushing losses in northern
10:13
Africa and Hitler wanted the Germans
10:15
there to beat back for British Rommel
10:17
arrived in Libya in 1941 and he was
10:19
supposed to answer to the Italian
10:21
commanding military officer but he
10:23
disagreed with the Italians tactics they
10:25
wanted the Italian and German troops to
10:27
use a defensive strategy Rommel wanted
10:29
to advance and take on the British
10:31
directly Hitler agreed with Rommel meant
10:34
Rommel began planning an offensive the
10:35
British however had no idea that was the
10:37
plan their only intelligence was the
10:39
Rommels orders were to stay put when
10:42
Rommel moved his troops forward they
10:43
were caught well off-guard
10:44
Rommels sly maneuvering had proved
10:46
fruitful for him once again but even
10:49
with success the Italian leader
10:51
Garibaldi was not happy Rommel had
10:53
disobeyed orders and no matter the
10:55
outcome that was not the way the
10:57
military was supposed to work however
10:59
Rommel he had a response for Garibaldi
11:01
though one cannot forget unique
11:02
opportunities to sit by for the sake of
11:04
trifles outside of Germany Rommel was
11:06
capturing the attention of world leaders
11:08
Winston Churchill was known to utter
11:10
what else matters but beating him but
11:13
the nickname he earns miss clandestine
11:15
maneuverings in Africa is what has stuck
11:17
through the decades of history and I
11:19
would be the desert fox but his
11:21
successes they came to an end the
11:23
British recaptured the city of Tobruk
11:25
and Rommels gains had been
11:26
lost then Rommel was part of a crucial
11:28
meeting with Hitler and another german
11:30
military leader albert kesselring the
11:32
two field marshals they disagreed in how
11:34
the Germans should move forward in Italy
11:36
they presented their arguments and
11:38
Hitler agreed with Kesselring Kasserine
11:40
took over and Rommel was moved to lead
11:42
the troops on the coast of France by the
11:44
time Rommel was reassigned to France he
11:46
was starting to be more and more
11:48
skeptical of Hitler his strategies and
11:50
his goals Rommel didn’t support the
11:52
brutal actions of the SS and eventually
11:54
he came to believe that a Germany would
11:56
be better off negotiating an end to the
11:57
war instead of continuing the carnage
11:59
and all the death and he wasn’t alone in
12:02
his beliefs a group of men who agreed
12:04
with Rommel even suggested that he
12:06
should become Germany’s new leader
12:07
though Rommel didn’t act on that
12:09
suggestion
12:10
the mere fact he had the suggestion
12:12
ultimately helped seal
12:14
Rommels fate from the time he was in
12:16
charge of coastal forces in 1943 Rommel
12:18
spent his time and strategy building up
12:20
coastal defenses he set mines built
12:23
barbed wire obstructions and even had
12:25
troops flood areas of the coast to make
12:27
it harder for treats to pass through he
12:29
also wanted to bring more tanks closer
12:31
to the coast but no one else agreed with
12:33
him that that was necessary in the
12:34
summer of 1944 it would turn out that
12:36
Rommel well he was right to want to move
12:38
more tanks to the coast On June the 5th
12:40
1944 Rommel left France he headed home
12:43
to Germany so that he could be with his
12:44
wife on her birthday June the 6th when
12:47
he left France he and the rest of the
12:49
German military thought the weather
12:50
would be bad and they didn’t have to
12:52
worry about any allied movement on the
12:53
coast and they also thought that if any
12:56
trouble was to come it would be a Calais
13:00
but the Allies had used the German
13:03
military’s weak intelligence system to
13:05
get them to think that the attack would
13:07
come at Calais while he was at home
13:08
celebrating his wife’s birthday Rommel
13:10
received a phone call that shocked him
13:12
the Allies had landed at Normandy on
13:14
June the 6th the weather had cleared and
13:16
the troops were storming the beaches
13:17
Rommel left Germany immediately to head
13:20
to the front he and other leaders
13:21
established a counter-attack plan but
13:23
allied fire was too strong and needed
13:26
troops weren’t able to arrive Rommel
13:27
himself was injured badly by Allied
13:29
airstrikes in the end 155 thousand
13:33
Allied troops landed during the d-day
13:34
invasion growing to 1 million after the
13:37
initial push the forces stormed through
13:39
German defenses during the summer of
13:41
1944 sir Rommel it was clear that
13:43
Germany couldn’t overcome the losses and
13:45
he continued forward march of the Allies
13:47
he broke the news of his assessment to
13:49
Hitler telling him that a political
13:50
solution was likely the best way forward
13:52
at this point the Fuhrer though he did
13:54
not agree this meeting would ultimately
13:56
be the last between the two men as
13:58
victory for Germany was looking less and
14:00
less likely opposition to Hitler was
14:02
growing in Germany high-ranking military
14:04
officials including those close to
14:05
rommel were starting to make plans to
14:07
get rid of Fuehrer assassination was
14:09
among the many options they contemplated
14:11
knowing Rommel disagreed with Hitler and
14:14
was growing increasingly upset with the
14:15
Fuhrer the men plotting to overthrow
14:17
Hitler tried to bring him into the fold
14:18
to this day it’s unclear if Rommel was
14:21
actually involved in a plot to
14:22
assassinate Hitler or not and if he was
14:24
it’s unclear just how much he knew his
14:27
widow later said Rommel only wanted
14:29
Hitler to be brought to court and
14:30
nothing more if you’re a very he thought
14:33
that Rommel wanted him dead and in the
14:34
end that’s what masses on July the 20th
14:37
1944 a group of conspirators smuggled a
14:39
bomb inside a briefcase into a meeting
14:41
at Hitler’s headquarters there was
14:43
supposed to be two bombs but there was
14:44
only time to prepare one and when it
14:46
exploded Hitler survived instead of a
14:49
successful coup the conspirators found
14:50
themselves facing treason charges and
14:52
the death penalty and Rommel was among
14:54
those implicated
14:58
in October 1944 two of Hitler’s generals
15:01
confronted Rommel as SS troops
15:03
surrounded the area
15:04
the generals told Rommel that he had
15:06
three options he could go to speak to
15:07
Hitler directly and explain himself he
15:09
could go to court or he could commit
15:11
suicide there and then Rommel well he
15:14
opted for suicide in his final
15:15
communication with his wife he explains
15:17
why in view of my services in Africa I
15:19
have the chance of dying by poison two
15:22
generals have brought it with them it is
15:23
fatal in three seconds if I take the
15:26
poison none of the usual steps will be
15:27
taken against my family that is against
15:30
you they will also leave my staff alone
15:32
having explained to his family what was
15:34
to happen Rommel got into an SS car he
15:36
took the cyanide capsule but Hitler’s
15:38
general had brought and he died he was
15:40
wearing his Africa Corps jacket and
15:42
carrying his field marshals baton the
15:44
world was told he died of wounds he had
15:46
sustained from Allied air attacks in the
15:48
wake of d-day and he was buried with
15:50
full military honors only after the war
15:52
did the truth emerge Rommel was not met
15:54
with the same disdain from world leaders
15:56
as other Germans were in the wake of
15:58
World War two even Winston Churchill
16:00
spoke highly of him he also deserves our
16:02
respect because although a loyal German
16:04
soldier he came to hate Hitler and all
16:06
his works and took part in the
16:08
conspiracy to rescue Germany by
16:10
displacing the maniac and tyrants for
16:12
this he paid the forfeit of his life
16:14
when Rommel was a talented leader but
16:17
his military duties served a regime that
16:19
had terrible intentions and committed
16:21
horrific atrocities
16:22
Rommels life and death were intertwined
16:24
with a watershed era in human history an
16:26
era upon which he left its mark so I
16:29
really hope you found that video
16:30
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