Rommel’s last tank commander

Rommel’s last tank commander

Looking back at age 101: From El Alamein to Monte Cassino

For two years, Hans Eckstein lived in a world of steel, stone, and sand. He experienced all the major battles of the North African campaign from the very beginning and, as a commander, loader, and radiooperator, was able to witness the development of the German Panzer Troops from the Panzer I to the Panzer IV. In 2025 – now 103 years old – he is likely thelast contemporary witness who is able to look back on such a military career. He is one of the few early North Africa campaign veterans who escaped captivityat the time of the surrender in Tunisia. The remaining years of the war saw Eckstein in Sardinia, Corsica, and Italy, finally serving as the commander of an assault gun.