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'''Operation Venezia''' was a [[World War II|Second World War]] operation in which [[Erwin Rommel]] moved a large portion of his forces around [[Bir Hakeim]], the southernmost part of the British Gazala Line, soon after the start of the [[Battle of Gazala]].

Rommel activated the operation at 20:30<ref name="The Rommel Papers, pg.206">The Rommel Papers, pg.206</ref> on 26 May 1942, after his reconnaissance confirmed the presence of strong British armoured formations north-east of Bir Hakeim.<ref>Germany and the second World War, pg. 674</ref> His encircling force consisted of 10,000 vehicles<ref name="The Rommel Papers, pg.206"/> from the [[15th Panzer Division|15.]] and [[21st Panzer Division|21. ''Panzerdivision'']]s, the [[Italian 132nd Armored Division Ariete|Italian ''Ariete'' Armoured Division]] and the motorized elements of the [[90th Light Infantry Division (Wehrmacht)|German 90th Light Infantry Division]].<ref>[[Franz Kurowski]]: [[Franz Kurowski#Aces series|Panzer Aces]] II: Battle Stories of German Tank Commanders of WWII, pg. 259</ref>

The British forces were expecting Rommel to make an attack and, on intercepting a signal which contained the codeword "Venezia", assumed, incorrectly, that it was the name of the full operation. This mistake is often repeated in historical literature.<ref>Germany and the second World War, pg. 667</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Venezia}}
[[Category:Western Desert campaign]]

Operation Venezia - Revision history

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