Erwin Rommel was a highly decorated officer in WWI, and was awarded the greatest honours for his exploits on the Italian front. In World War II, he distinguished himself as commander of the 7th Panzer Division during the 1940 invasion of France, and his leadership of German and Italian forces in the North African campaign earned him his legendary status as the 'Desert Fox'. Gary Sheffield was educated at the University of Leeds (BA & MA) and King's College London (Ph. D). He began his academic career in the Department of War Studies, Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. In 1999 he moved to King's College London's Defence Studies Department, based at the Joint Service Command and Staff College. Awarded a Personal Chair in 2005, in 2006 he was appointed as Professor of War Studies at the University of Birmingham. In 2013 Sheffield was appointed Professor of War Studies at the University of Wolverhampton. Gary Sheffield has published widely on military history, including the best-selling Forgotten Victory - The First World War: Myths and Realities (2001; new edition 2018), and The Chief: Douglas Haig and the British Army (2011; new edition 2016), both of which were acclaimed in scholarly and popular circles alike. Sheffield is President of the Western Front Association and a past President of the Guild of Battlefield Guides.