* Minute-by-minute account of the offensive* Covers both the British attackers and the German defenders* Explains how and why the assault failed so badly In the late summer of 1942, Rommel's Afrika Korps stood perilously close to breaking through to Cairo and the Nile, having already taken the fortress of Tobruk. In a desperate effort to halt the Germans and buy time for the Allies, British forces--including the Royal Marines, Royal Navy, the SAS, and the Long Range Desert Group--attempted to storm Tobruk and destroy the Axis port there. The operation failed with terrible losses. Peter C. Smith unearths many previously unrevealed facts and highlights the bravery and endurance of those who participated.