El Alamein, October 23, 1942: The Night the Guns Opened Fire
Period
World War II, North African campaign, 1942
Place
El Alamein, Egypt
A massive British artillery barrage opened the Second Battle of El Alamein on October 23, 1942. Wartime photographs follow the offensive from its first night to its aftermath.
At 9:40 p.m. on October 23, 1942, the desert near El Alamein erupted under a British and Commonwealth artillery barrage. The opening bombardment signaled the start of an offensive that General Bernard Montgomery had prepared for weeks. Ahead lay Axis minefields, anti-tank guns and seasoned German and Italian defenders.
The British Eighth Army had suffered reverses across North Africa. El Alamein mattered because the Axis advance toward Egypt and the Suez Canal had to be stopped. Montgomery's attack began with infantry trying to cut corridors through the defensive belts so that Allied armor could push forward. Progress was slow and costly. Rommel's forces resisted, but shortages of fuel and supplies limited their options as the pressure continued.
In early November the Axis line finally broke, and the survivors began retreating west. The victory became a turning point in the North African campaign, although it was not the end of the desert war. These four British Army photographs show the artillery opening and the troops and equipment that followed. Two photographs were taken after October 23; their captions give the actual dates rather than suggesting that every image comes from the first night.
Topic: Second Battle of El Alamein; British Eighth Army; North Africa
01 / 04
Sherman tanks move toward the fighting
M4 Sherman tanks of the Queen's Bays (2nd Dragoon Guards), part of the British 1st Armoured Division, are photographed on October 24, 1942. The opening night's infantry attacks were intended to create routes through Axis minefields for the armor. This picture was made the day after the barrage began, and it shows the size of the armored effort rather than the first moments of the attack.
Photo details
Date
October 24, 1942
Location
El Alamein front, Egypt
Photographer
Sgt Chetwyn, No. 1 Army Film and Photographic Unit
Archive / collection
Imperial War Museums, E 18377
Rights / license
Original official British Army photograph (UK Crown copyright expired); public-domain original photo. Imperial War Museums catalog E 18377; archive reproduction attribution retained.
Sgt Chetwyn / British Army Film and Photographic Unit; IWM E 18377
02 / 04
The opening barrage lights the desert
A wartime view of the bombardment on the opening night of the Second Battle of El Alamein. British artillery began firing at 9:40 p.m. on October 23, ahead of the infantry assault. Hundreds of guns were involved; the noise and flashes marked an attack designed to break through a belt of Axis defenses that had held the Eighth Army in place.
Photo details
Date
October 23, 1942, night
Location
El Alamein, Egypt
Photographer
Sgt Gladstone, No. 1 Army Film and Photographic Unit
Archive / collection
Imperial War Museums, E 18465
Rights / license
Original UK Crown copyright expired; public-domain British Army official wartime photograph. IWM catalog E 18465.
Sgt Gladstone / British Army Film and Photographic Unit; IWM E 18465
03 / 04
British 25-pounders fire into the night
British gunners work their 25-pounder field guns during the October 23 opening barrage. The infantry had to cross the no-man's-land ahead of the guns and find passages through deep minefields. The offensive would be fought for days rather than decided in one dramatic charge. This photograph preserves the moment at which that long battle began.
Photo details
Date
October 23, 1942, night
Location
El Alamein, Egypt
Photographer
No. 1 Army Film and Photographic Unit (individual unverified)
Archive / collection
Imperial War Museums, E 18466
Rights / license
Original UK Crown copyright expired; public-domain British Army official wartime photograph. IWM catalog E 18466.
British Army Film and Photographic Unit / IWM E 18466
04 / 04
An abandoned Axis gun marks the retreat
An abandoned German 88mm gun sits beside the coastal road west of El Alamein on November 7, 1942. By then the Axis line had broken and the pursuit was moving into Libya. This is not a photograph of the opening attack on October 23. It shows the result of the fighting that began that night and forced Rommel's surviving formations back across the desert.
Photo details
Date
November 7, 1942
Location
Coast road west of El Alamein, Egypt
Photographer
Sgt Palmer, No. 1 Army Film and Photographic Unit
Archive / collection
Imperial War Museums, E 19174
Rights / license
Original UK Crown copyright expired; public-domain British Army official wartime photograph. IWM catalog E 19174.
