Was Erwin Rommel all he was cracked up to be? My take is that he was competent, especially in logistics, but was a bit… eccentric, maybe? I mean, I remember reading he liked to fly recon missions, despite not… you know, being trained or certified as a pilot. I also get the impression that he was beaten fair and square in Africa. So, what does anyone else think?
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He was both feared and revered in equal measure. I think it was Patton or Monty(I could be wrong) who had a picture of him in his HQ to remind him to think like his enemy.
He was very much aware of how to utilise his motorised units, and not afraid to change tactics on the fly. He lost in Africa due to the expansive supply lines and the fact that the Med was pretty much blockaded by the Royal Navy.
He was mentioned as a possible collaborator when Hitler was targeted for assassination in 1944, so was given the option to either face court martial (in which he’d be found guilty, stripped of rank, and hanged), or pop a suicide pill. He chose the latter. Germany gave him a hero’s funeral.