World War II · Film · 1951
The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel
Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, the Afrika Korps commander admired even by his enemies, loses faith in Hitler after El Alamein and is drawn toward the officers plotting against him while he prepares Normandy's defences.
Where it happened
Follow the story across 5 places.
Stop 1: Beda Littoria, Libya
British commandos land behind the lines and storm a house they believe is Rommel's headquarters.
Stop 2: El Alamein, Egypt
Key location
Outnumbered and short of fuel, Rommel receives Hitler's order to fight to the last man and decides to disobey it.
Stop 3: La Roche-Guyon, France
Sent to inspect the Atlantic Wall, Rommel watches the Allies land while Hitler refuses to release the reserves.
Stop 4: Sainte-Foy-de-Montgommery, Normandy
An Allied fighter strafes Rommel's car on a Normandy road and leaves him gravely wounded.
Stop 5: Herrlingen, Germany
Recovering at home, Rommel receives two generals from Berlin after the failed bomb plot.
What really happened
Rommel led German forces in North Africa from February 1941 until March 1943. His drive into Egypt was stopped at El Alamein, and Montgomery's offensive of 23 October to 4 November 1942 broke his army; Hitler's order to stand fast came on 3 November and Rommel retreated anyway the next day. In 1944 he commanded Army Group B from the château of La Roche-Guyon, strengthening the Atlantic Wall before and during the Normandy landings.
On 17 July 1944 his staff car was strafed near Sainte-Foy-de-Montgommery and he was badly wounded, three days before the bomb at the Wolf's Lair. Implicated by conspirators, he was forced to take poison at his home in Herrlingen on 14 October 1944 and given a state funeral. Based on Desmond Young's 1950 biography, the film helped build the postwar image of Rommel as a chivalrous anti-Nazi; historians agree he knew of the plot but still debate how far he supported it. The opening commando raid depicts Operation Flipper of November 1941.
Where to watch
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Full details
- Original title
- The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel
- Directed by
- Henry Hathaway
- Countries
- United States
- Languages
- English
- Released
- 1951
- Period
- –
- Theaters of war
- Mediterranean & Africa, Western Europe
- Themes
- Combat
- Biography
- Politics
- True story
