12 Years Without Mercy

Chapter 6: 1942–1945

The enormous tragedy that represented the Second World War did not prevent some of the characters who formed part of the enemy army from feeling a certain admiration for them. One of the most representative cases was the devotion of the Allies for Marshal Rommel. The British gave him the nickname of the Desert Fox as a sign of respect and fascination for his worth as a soldier. Winston Churchill had more than one upset in the House of Commons when he referred to the German soldier as the great general. Rommel, for his part, reciprocated the English praise by showing his esteem for the one he called my friend Montgomery, of whom he had a photograph hanging in his office.