East African Campaign (World War II) - Allied Counter-offensive

Allied Counter-offensive

Further information: Order of Battle, East African Campaign (World War II)

After the fall of British Somaliland, General Archibald Wavell's plan for the counter-offensive by British and Commonwealth forces included a "northern front" led by William Platt (who was promoted to Lieutenant-General in early January 1941) and a "southern front" led by Lieutenant-General Alan Cunningham who had taken over the East African Force at the start of November 1940. A third front would be created by the forces which re-took British Somaliland by sea.

Wavell planned for Platt to advance southward from the Sudan, through Eritrea, and into Ethiopia and for Cunningham to advance northwards from Kenya, through Italian Somaliland, and into Ethiopia. While Platt advanced from the north and Cunningham from the south, Wavell planned for a third force to be landed in British Somaliland in an amphibious assault and to then re-take that colony prior to advancing into Ethiopia. According to the plan, all three forces were to ultimately join forces at the capital of Italian East Africa, Addis Ababa.

The capture of Italian East Africa would remove land-based threats to supplies and reinforcements coming from Australia, New Zealand, India, South Africa, and British East Africa and passing through the Suez Canal for the campaign in North Africa and open the overland route from Cape Town to Cairo.