Who's War .

[ScouseBoy]

I think they were in the desert, the surface the half-tracks are standing on looks distinctly stony. I think the rails on the left are on the back of a truck.

Rafter

   Yes,  I think you are right,  there is probably a long row of them.

[magicnanny]

Thankyou thats a bit of a surprize , GERMAN.

What are the Afrikka Korps,(I' know nothing about german troops) and would you have been allowed to take pictures and keep them ?
                         Thanks Magicnanny

Any More Help .             Please..............

[ScouseBoy]

Were any members of your family in North Africa during the war?

The photograph was probably left behind when the Germans retreated.  Other possible explanation is that those Germans had just surrenered to superior allied forces, and  British troops had taken photographs of the occaision.

[IMBER]

They don't look to be in surrender mode. The picture was possibly "borrowed" from a captured German at a later date.

[Rafter]

This is from The Oxford Companion to Military History:


Afrika Korps (Deutsches Afrika Korps, or DAK) evolved from ‘Reconnaissance Detachment Rommel’, sent to Tunisia in early 1941. It was expected to have a blocking role, following British defeat of the Italians and the westward advance by O'Connor, and so was strong in machine gun and anti-armour units. Although Hitler gave it the title Afrika Korps on 19 February, it remained small, with 5th Light (later renamed 21st Panzer) and 15th Panzer Divisions. On 15 August 1941, after heavy fighting which had shown that it was the principal Axis combat force in Africa, the Afrika Korps became part of Panzer Group Africa, a title changed on 30 January 1942 to Panzer Army Africa and later to First Italian Army, which became part of Army Group Africa in February 1943.

The Allies tended to call all German troops in theatre, whether part of the DAK or not, the Afrika Korps. And whatever the terminology of the military organization of which it formed part, the Afrika Korps played a consistently distinguished role. At Gazala it hooked round the Eighth Army's desert flank, and although it suffered heavy losses at Alamein that autumn, it fought on resolutely until the surrender in North Africa in May 1943.

There was something about the DAK which commended it to its opponents. It fought hard and skilfully, developed a sartorial style which mingled the utilitarian with the flamboyant, and behaved with magnanimity in victory and dignity in defeat. The distinguished military historian Ronald Lewin, who witnessed the end in Africa, felt his own pride in victory mingled with ‘a sense of compassion, too: this had been a good enemy.

[magicnanny]

O' very interesting ,  no i haven't any of my family  or any knowledge of anyone who went to Africa, in   WW2. ( i was hoping it was red sea etc )
So  maybe i will find a home for the picture if its of importance to anyone .
   thankyou for your reply's    Magicnanny.

[clubcat]

Looking at the photo, The chap in the half track with the goggles and scarf looks a lot like Rommel. The halftrack he is in is a command one you can tell by the aerials.
If this is the case then this will have been taken by a German photographer and probably captured afterwards.

Melanie

[alanmack]

Not only is it the DAK, but a picture of its commander, Erwin Rommel in his HQ vehicle known as 'Greif', I think. After many years of study and AFV modelling I have never before seen this picture. The vehicle is a SdKfz 250 halftrack, fitted out for its command role with extra radios ('bedstead' aerial) and, of course, an Enigma coding machine.

Alan

[clubcat]

Thanks for corroborating Alan.

That photo may be worth something to a collector if it's rare. Thankyou for sharing it with us, Magicnanny. He is one of the most popular characters of WW2.

Melanie