This German field marshal commanded the African Korps during World War II. After he was implicated in a plot to kill Hitler in 1944, he took his life. He was nicknamed the "desert fox." Who was he?

The German field marshal described is Erwin Rommel, a highly respected and formidable military leader during World War II. Rommel rose to prominence as the commander of the Afrika Korps, the German expeditionary force deployed to North Africa in 1941 to support Italian efforts. His audacious tactics, swift maneuvers, and ability to make the most of limited resources in the desert earned him the famous moniker "Desert Fox" from both his own troops and his Allied adversaries.

Rommel's campaigns in North Africa, including the push towards the Suez Canal, showcased his tactical brilliance, though his forces ultimately faced defeat due to stretched supply lines and overwhelming Allied numerical superiority. Despite being a loyal soldier, Rommel grew increasingly disillusioned with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi regime as the war progressed.

In 1944, Rommel was implicated in the 20 July Plot, a conspiracy by German military officers to assassinate Hitler. While his direct involvement in the plot remains a subject of historical debate, his contacts with the conspirators were revealed. Faced with the choice of a public trial and execution as a traitor, which would have endangered his family, Rommel chose to commit suicide by taking a cyanide pill on October 14, 1944. His death was publicly attributed to injuries sustained in an Allied air attack in Normandy, allowing him a state funeral and protecting his family from Nazi retribution.