This is the order of battle for the Battle of Alam el Halfa, a World War II battle between the British Commonwealth and the Axis Powers of Germany and Italy in North Africa between 30 August and 5 September 1942. The forces were the Eighth Army (British and New Zealand units) and the Panzer Armee Afrika (German and Italian units)
Allied forces
Eighth Army
Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery
XIII Corps
Lieutenant-General Brian Horrocks
2nd New Zealand Division – Lieutenant-General Bernard Freyberg
4th New Zealand Infantry Brigade – Brigadier Lindsay Inglis
18th New Zealand Infantry Battalion
19th New Zealand Infantry Battalion
20th New Zealand Infantry Battalion
No.4 Anti-Tank Battery, 7th Anti-Tank Regiment, New Zealand Artillery
5th New Zealand Infantry Brigade – Brigadier Howard Kippenberger
21st New Zealand Infantry Battalion
22nd New Zealand Infantry Battalion
23rd New Zealand Infantry Battalion
No.5 Anti-Tank Battery, 7th Anti-Tank Regiment, New Zealand Artillery
6th New Zealand Infantry Brigade – Brigadier George Clifton (captured 4 September) 24th New Zealand Infantry Battalion 25th New Zealand Infantry Battalion 26th New Zealand Infantry Battalion No.6 Anti-Tank Battery, 7th Anti-Tank Regiment, New Zealand Artillery British 132nd Infantry Brigade (detached from 44th Division) – Brigadier C.B. Robertson (wounded) 2nd Battalion, The Buffs Royal East Kent Regiment 4th Battalion, The Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment 5th Battalion, The Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment 44th (Home Counties) Division – Major-General Ivor Hughes British 131st Infantry Brigade – Brigadier E.H.C. Frith 1/5th Battalion, The Queen's Royal Regiment 1/6th Battalion, The Queen's Royal Regiment 1/7th Battalion, The Queen's Royal Regiment British 133rd Infantry Brigade – Brigadier Lashmer Whistler 2nd Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment 4th Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment 5th Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment 7th Armoured Division – Major-General James Renton 4th Light Armoured Brigade – Brigadier Carr 4th/8th Hussars 11th Hussars 12th Lancers 1st Battalion, King's Royal Rifle Corps 3rd Anti-Tank Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery 7th Motor Brigade – Brigadier Bosville 2nd Battalion, King's Royal Rifle Corps 2nd Battalion, The Rifle Brigade 7th Battalion, The Rifle Brigade 10th Armoured Division – Major-General Alexander Gatehouse 22nd Armoured Brigade – Brigadier George Roberts 2nd Royal Gloucestershire Hussars 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards 3rd County of London Yeomanry (Sharpshooters) 4th County of London Yeomanry 1st Battalion, The Rifle Brigade 8th Armoured Brigade – Brigadier Edward Custance 3rd Royal Tank Regiment Nottinghamshire Yeomanry (Sherwood Rangers) The Staffordshire Yeomanry 1st Battalion, The Buffs, Royal East Kent Regiment 23rd Armoured Brigade – Brigadier George Richards 40th (The King's) Royal Tank Regiment 46th (The Liverpool Welsh) Royal Tank Regiment 50th Royal Tank Regiment 5th Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery
Axis forces
Comandante Superiore Generale d'Armata General Ettore Bastico
Panzer Armee Afrika
Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel
Deutsches Afrika Korps
Generalleutnant Walther Nehring (wounded in an air attack on 31 August and replaced by Rommel's Chief-of-Staff oberst Fritz Bayerlein) 15th Panzer Division – Generalmajor Gustav von Vaerst 21st Panzer Division – Generalmajor Georg von Bismarck 90th Light Division – Generalmajor Ulrich Kleemann
Italian XX Motorised Corps
Major General Giuseppe De Stefanis
101st Motorised Division "Trieste" – Major General Francesco La Ferla
132nd Armoured Division "Ariete" – Major General Adolfo Infante
133rd Armoured Division "Littorio" – Major General Gervasio Bitossi
Italian X Corps
Lieutenant general Federico Ferrari Orsi
17th Infantry Division "Pavia" – Major General Nazzareno Scattaglia
27th Infantry Division "Brescia" – Major General Brunetto Brunetti
185th Infantry Division "Folgore" – Major General Enrico Frattini
Tanks in use by both sides
The Deutsches Africa Korps had 229 German and 243 Italian tanks The Germans had 27 of the Panzer IV variant with the long-barreled gun 75mm gun. This longer barrelled gun gave the Mark IV superior range than the Allied tanks. A total of 472.
The Allies had 500 tanks that would see action during this battle. 170 of these were M3 Grant medium tanks, the best tank the Allies had access to at this time. The remaining tanks were made up of M3 Stuart light tanks, Crusader Mk II cruiser tanks and Valentine infantry tanks. A total of 500.
