"H eia Safari!" —Swahili for "Let's go get 'em!"—was the battle cry of the Afrika Korps, the German troops sent to bolster the Italians, their partners in the Axis alliance, who controlled much of North Africa. In early 1941, the Italians were in retreat from a British offensive, and Hitler feared that the Allies would soon win a strategic advantage. Hitler sent one of his most trusted commanders, Major General (later Field Marshal) Erwin Rommel and the 5th Light and 15th Panzer Divisions to rescue the Italians from certain defeat. Rommel and the Afrika Korps soon became a legendary force, waging war in the deserts of Libya, Egypt, and Tunisia against Allied forces for the next two years.

Newcomers to the Desert

In February 1941, when the first two divisions of the Afrika Korps arrived...