Acroma (also Akramah and Ikrimah) is a town in northeastern
Libya
Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...
in
Butnan District
Butnan ( ar, البطنان ') sometimes called ''Tubruq District'' or ''Tobruk District'' from the former name, occasionally ''Marmarica'', is an administrative district (shabiyah) in eastern Libya. Its capital city is Tobruk.
In the north, B ...
, about 28 km west of
Tobruk
Tobruk or Tobruck (; grc, Ἀντίπυργος, ''Antipyrgos''; la, Antipyrgus; it, Tobruch; ar, طبرق, Tubruq ''Ṭubruq''; also transliterated as ''Tobruch'' and ''Tubruk'') is a port city on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near th ...
.
On April 17, 1917, the
Treaty of Acroma
The ''modus vivendi'' of Acroma was a pair of agreements signed by the Sanūsī Order with Britain and Italy on 16 April 1917 at Acroma (ʿAkrama). E. E. Evans-Pritchard (1945), "The Sanusi of Cyrenaica", ''Africa'' 15(2): 61–79, esp. at 69.
...
, was signed by the Italian government (as occupying, colonial power) and
Mohammed Idris
Mohammed Idris Alkali (1960–2018), also known as Nuri, was a Nigerian retired Major general who was declared missing on 3 September 2018 and found dead on 31 October 2018. During his military career, he served as the Chief of Administration, A ...
(head of
Senussi
The Senusiyya, Senussi or Sanusi ( ar, السنوسية ''as-Sanūssiyya'') are a Muslim political-religious tariqa (Sufi order) and clan in colonial Libya and the Sudan region founded in Mecca in 1837 by the Grand Senussi ( ar, السنوسي ...
). The pact was an ambiguous ceasefire recognizing a de facto authority for Idris in
Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica ( ) or Kyrenaika ( ar, برقة, Barqah, grc-koi, Κυρηναϊκή παρχίαKurēnaïkḗ parkhíā}, after the city of Cyrene), is the eastern region of Libya. Cyrenaica includes all of the eastern part of Libya between ...
, while not excluding the overall Italian territorial sovereignty.
World War II
During the
North African Campaign of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, the area was the scene of heavy fighting on several separate occasions. Acroma was captured from
Axis forces
The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...
on December 10, 1941, by the
Polish Independent Carpathian Rifle Brigade
Polish Independent Carpathian Brigade ( Polish ''Samodzielna Brygada Strzelców Karpackich'', SBSK) was a Polish military unit formed in 1940 in French Syria composed of Polish soldiers exiled after the invasion of Poland in 1939 as part of the ...
.
Later, an intersection of two
Bedouin
The Bedouin, Beduin, or Bedu (; , singular ) are nomadic Arab tribes who have historically inhabited the desert regions in the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, and Mesopotamia. The Bedouin originated in the Syrian Desert and A ...
paths south of Acroma, assumed strategic importance, and became known by the
Allied
An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
codename
A code name, call sign or cryptonym is a Code word (figure of speech), code word or name used, sometimes clandestinely, to refer to another name, word, project, or person. Code names are often used for military purposes, or in espionage. They may ...
''Knightsbridge''. The area was the focus of the
Battle of Knightsbridge
The Battle of Gazala (near the village of ) was fought during the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War, west of the port of Tobruk in Libya, from 26 May to 21 June 1942. Axis troops of the ( Erwin Rommel) consisting of German and ...
, during June 1942.
Following the war's end,
Knightsbridge War Cemetery Knightsbridge War Cemetery is a war cemetery located in Acroma, Libya, located 750 metres south of the main road from Benghazi to Tobruk, west of Tobruk. The cemetery is situated in open country, the Cross of Sacrifice is set high above the level o ...
, containing Allied war dead, was built north of Acroma, near the main road linking Tobruk and Gazala.
Notes
External links
"Acroma, Libya. 1941-25. British Tanks of the 4th Brigade, 7th Armoured Division, Advancing Towards Enemy Positions in the Desert" photograph ''Australian War Memorial Collection'' #022438
Satellite map at Maplandia.com
{{Al Butnan
Populated places in Butnan District