Isn't it a pity that Rommel was not involved at operation Barbarossa?

Answer 1

He was a good division and corps commander. I doubt he would've made a difference on the Eastern Front. Rommen would've faced the same obstacles as the generals who were there. Hitler made all the tactical blunders that resulted in the Germans defeat. Generals like Guderian, Manstein, Paul Hausser and others were on the same quality plane as Rommel, and their efforts were for naught.

Answer 2

He wouldn't have made a difference. Barbarossa failed because Hitler forbade the preparation of defensive structures to fall back to when the winter started, in the belief that ground taken should not be given back for any reason. This left the German army exposed to the Russian winter and caused the loss of men, equipment and morale. When hostilities recommenced in the Spring, the Russians were able to hold the Germans, yet instead of digging in and consolidating Hitler ordered wave after wave of attacks, wasting soldiers and equipment that could not be replaced at the same rate as the horrific Russian casualties and material losses. All the Generals involved tried to argue with Hitler at some point or other, and all were rebuffed. No reason for Rommel to have been any more successful in talking Hitler around, even if Hitler did consider him a "lucky" general.

Answer 3

Men do not make history. History makes the man. Rommel was, for a brief point in time, the right man in the right place doing the right thing. If you take him out of that specific scenario, he might have just passed unnoticed in history.

The Fuhrer gave Rommel an undue amount of independence in Afrika, even though he did short change him on supplies. The Fuhrer micro managed more in the Eastern Theater and Rommel might have chafed, though I am sure he would have done atleast a competent job. As it was, Hitler's involvment in military activites brought ruinious results in the defence of the Atlantic Wall, which Rommel in charge of.

Answer 4

Rommel was an excellent military leader but he was not the only important and capable general of that time. Don't forget that blitzkrieg war was conceived theoretically and practiced first by Heinz Guderian and later by Rommel. Guderian was part of operation Barbarossa along with another excellent general, field marsahal von Manstein whose troops managed to recapture Kharkov, one of history's most impressive military achievments.

Answer 5

Rommel was a man of high morality, and a great leader of men. As for a pity, no, not for the Russians nor Europe. Many great men fight with honour for their corrupt, and sometimes evil, political leaders.
Insulting Rommel is tantamount to insulting every UK and US soldier currently serving in Iraq, as they are doing their best, though the war is only for personal greed by their bosses.

Answer 6

You are an admirer of Rommel I assume. I can imagine, we would have had a few million more Russians killed, more cities devastated and more brutality done if Rommel was also involved.

Try to feel the agony of all those people including the German people who suffered because of the ego of all those generals whose genius was waisted in devising ways to kill people.