On 1 July 1942, General Erwin Rommel broke through the British defences at El Alamein during a revived Axis effort in North Africa. At that moment, and for the next 12 hours, there was no further organised defence between the Afrika Korps and Alexandria. Throughout the next day, just a handful of men and guns stood between Rommel and his prize.

Had the outnumbered British defenders at Ruweisat Ridge not stopped Rommel’s men, the campaign in North Africa could have gone very differently. It is all the more remarkable that the small force that bore the brunt of Rommel’s attack had been 1,500 miles away in Iraq just a few weeks earlier and were only in the Western Desert as a result of General Claude Auchinleck’s foresight.

In this illuminating talk, Chris Jephson will demonstrate the significance of the Battle of Ruweisat Ridge, exploring how this decisive encounter impacted the outcome of both the North Africa campaign and the wider war.

Chris Jephson is the author of ‘The Day Rommel Was Stopped’. The book is based on research by his father, Major FR Jephson MC TD, who served at Ruweisat Ridge in 1942.