Battle of Kufra

Battle of Kufra
Part of Western Desert Campaign
Date 31 January - 1 March 1941 Location Kufra, Libya Result Allied victory
Belligerents
Free French  United Kingdom	Italy
Commanders
Colonel Leclerc	Colonel Leo
Strength
350 men 2 x light armoured cars 1 x 75 mm mountain gun 26 x LRDG trucks with 76 crew	580 men 2 x Auto-Saharan Company patrols

The Battle of Kufra (also spelled Koufra, or Cufra) during the Second World War was the capture of the important but isolated oasis of Kufra from Italian forces by Free French Forces. Kufra is in southeastern Libya, at that time an Italian colony (Africa Settentrionale Italiana - Italian North Africa).

Between the World Wars

Kufra was an important trade and travel center for the nomadic desert peoples of the region, including the Senussi. The Senussi made the oasis their capital at one point in response to British, Italian, and French designs on the region. In 1931, the Italians captured Kufra.

The Italian post at Kufra included the Buma airfield and a radio station, which were used for air resupply and communications with Italian East Africa, and a fort at El Tag.

Battle for Kufra

After the defeat of France in 1940, the colony of French Equatorial Africa (FEA) declared its allegiance to the Free French Forces (Forces Français Libres), the exile army headed by Charles de Gaulle. Chad, the northern part of FEA, borders Libya. De Gaulle ordered the Free French in Chad to attack Italian positions in Libya. Kufra was the obvious target.

The Free French commander in Chad was Lieutenant-Colonel Jean Colonna d’Ornano. The troops available were 5,000 tirailleurs (riflemen) of the Senegalese Light Infantry Regiment of Chad (Régiment de Tirailleurs Sénégalais du Tchad; RTST) in twenty companies in different garrisons; also three detachments of méharistes (camel cavalry), in Borkou, Tibesti, and Ennedi.

Attacking Kufra would be very difficult for this motley force. The Free French had very little motor transport and needed to cross over 400 km of desert, much of which was sand dunes or the fine, powdery soil called Fech fech. The area was considered by some to be impassable to vehicles.

However, the French received assistance from the British Long Range Desert Group (LRDG). Major Pat Clayton of LRDG was keen to join with the Free French to test the Italians. Clayton commanded G (Guards) and T (New Zealand) patrols of LRDG, a total of seventy-six men in twenty-six vehicles.

To prepare for the attack on Kufra, the LRDG and Free French first raided the Italian airfield at Murzuk, in the the Fezzan region in southwestern Libya. D’Ornano and ten Free French (three officers, two sergeants, and five native soldiers) met Clayton’s LRDG patrols on 6 January 1941 at Kayouge. The combined force reached Murzuk on 11 January. In a daring daylight raid, they surprised the sentries and devastated the base. Most of the force attacked the main fort; a troop from T patrol under Lieutenant Ballantyne attacked the airfield, destroying three Caproni aircraft and capturing some prisoners.

D’Ornano was killed in this raid, and also one trooper of T Patrol. A French officer cauterized his leg wound with a cigarette, much to the admiration of the LRDG. A diversionary raid by French camel cavalry failed after it was betrayed by local guides. These troops were therefore relegated to reconnaissance duties only.

Colonel Philippe Leclerc assumed overall command in place of d’Ornano. After the success of the Murzuk raid, Leclerc marshalled his forces to take on Kufra itself. The attacking column included about 400 men in 60 trucks, two Laffly S15TOE armored cars, four Laffly S15 all-terrain carriers, and two 75mm mountain guns.

Kufra was protected by two defensive lines around the El Tag fort: barbed wire, trenches, machine guns and light AA guns. The garrison was a battalion (580 men) of "askaris" (colonial infantry) under Colonel Leo, plus supporting troops. Kufra was also protected by a section of the Auto-Saharan Company: the Compania Sahariana di Cufra. The "Saharianas" were a mixed force of motorized infantry and armored cars, which could also call on the Italian Air Force for support.

Leclerc asked the LRDG to deal with the Saharianas. Unfortunately, the LRDG was detected by a radio intercept unit at Kufra and spotted from the air.

G Patrol had been kept in reserve. On 31 January, Major Clayton was at Bishara (130 km SSW of Kufra) with T Patrol (30 men in 11 trucks). The patrol was spotted by an Italian plane in the morning. T Patrol took cover in a small wadi at Gebel Sherif, a few km north. The plane directed a Sahariana patrol to attack the LRDG force.

Due to superior Italian firepower and constant air attack, T Patrol was driven off, losing four trucks and Major Clayton, who was captured with several others. Trooper Ronald Moore led other survivors to safety after a long foot march. The remaining LRDG force withdrew to Egypt for refitting, except for one vehicle of T Patrol, equipped for desert navigation.

Leclerc pressed on with his attack, even though the enemy had a copy of his plan (captured with Major Clayton). After conducting further reconnaissance, Leclerc reorganized his forces on 16 February. He abandoned his two armored cars and took with him the remaining serviceable artillery piece, a crucial decision. Only about 350 men reached Kufra, due to breakdowns of trucks on the march.

On 17 February, Leclerc’s forces met the Saharianas near Kufra. Despite losing many trucks to the 20mm guns of the Italian armored cars, the French drove the Saharianas off, as the Kufra garrison failed to intervene.

The French surrounded El Tag, and laid siege to the fort, despite another attack by the Saharianas and harassment from the air. The lone 75mm gun was placed 3,000 m from the fort, beyond range of the defenders, and accurately delivered 20 shells per day at regular intervals.

The Italians still had superior numbers, but their resolve faltered. Surrender negotiations began on 28 February. Finally, on 1 March 1941, the Italians surrendered El Tag and Kufra oasis to the Free French; the Italian garrison was permitted to withdraw to the northwest. Four Sahariana armored cars were captured in Koufra and immediately used by the French forces.

Order of battle

The order of battle for the French force in the battle of Kufra.

• HQ : 1 Matford truck, 2 Chevrolet 1ight trucks, 2 Bedford 1.5 ton trucks, 1 ER26bis radio
• 1 reduced infantry company (Captain Rennepont):, 23 Bedford 1.5 ton trucks
• 2 platoons, GN Ennedi (Captain Barboten): 120 men, 1 Dodge truck, 16 Matford V8 3 ton trucks
• 1 platoon, 7th Company, RTST (Captain Florentin): 60 men, 1 Dodge truck, 2 Matford V8 3 ton trucks
• Artillery platoon (Lieutenant Ceccaldi): 2 75 mm Mle1928 Schneider mountain guns, 4 Laffly S15 carriers, 1 Dodge truck, 2 Matford V8 3 ton trucks
• Armored car detachment (Adjudant Detouche): 2 Laffly S15TOE, 1 Matford V8 3 ton truck, 1 ER26bis/39 radio.

Oath of Kufra

After the fall of Kufra, Leclerc and his troops swore an oath to fight until "our flag flies over the Cathedral of Strasbourg":

Jurez de ne déposer les armes que lorsque nos couleurs, nos belles couleurs, flotteront sur la cathédrale de Strasbourg.

(Literally, "Swear not to lay down arms until our colors, our beautiful colors, float on the Strasbourg Cathedral.")

The oath was fulfilled on 23 November 1944, when the 2nd French Armoured Division under Leclerc's command liberated Strasbourg.

See also

World War II portal

• North African Campaign timeline
• List of World War II Battles
• Sudan Defence Force

Footnotes

References

This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (October 2008)

• The Battle for Kufra
• Morgan, M. (2000). Sting of the Scorpion. Gloucestershire, UK: Sutton Publishing Lt. ISBN 0-7509-2481-0. 
• Histoire de Guerre Issue 30; November 2002.
• Kelly, Saul (2002). The Hunt for Zerzura, the Lost Oasis and the Desert War. London: John Murray (Publishers) Ltd. ISBN 0-7195-6162-0.