Battle of El Guettar
| Battle of El Guettar | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Tunisia Campaign of World War II | |||||||
An American soldier hands out cigarettes to captured Bersaglieri of the 131st Armored Division "Centauro" near El Guettar in March 1943. | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| United States |
Germany Italy | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| George S. Patton |
Jürgen von Arnim Giovanni Messe | ||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
| 1st Army | |||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 31 tanks | 57 tanks | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
|
22 tanks lost 4 halftracks lost 4,000–5,000 killed or wounded |
37 tanks lost 4,000–6,000 killed or wounded in 3 weeks | ||||||
The Battle of El Guettar took place during the Tunisia Campaign of World War II, fought between elements of the Army Group Africa under General Hans-Jürgen von Arnim, along with Italian First Army under General Giovanni Messe, and U.S. II Corps under Lieutenant General George Patton in south-central Tunisia. It was the first battle in which U.S. forces were able to defeat the experienced German tank units, but the followup to the battle was inconclusive.