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On 3 Sept, Bernard Montgomery's British Eighth Army crossed from Sicily to Calabria during Operation Baytown, and faced little opposition as the Italian units surrendered almost immediately. The only opposition for Montgomery's troops were the single regiment of German troops who had to cover 17 miles of coast. Six days later the British First Airborne Division landed by sea at Taranto, which also faced little opposition; the trip by sea to Taranto, however, bore much tension as the Allied fleet sailed by the Italian fleet. The Allied naval commanders did not know whether to expect cooperation or treachery from the remnants of the Italian navy. While Taranto landings were taking place, an assault by 165,000 troops of the Allied Fifth Army under General Clark during Operation Avalanche at Salerno where they faced significant resistance. On 13 Sep, six divisions of German troops counterattacked the thinly-spread Allied troops at Salerno and almost drove the landers back into sea; General Clark even made plans to relocate his HQ back aboard a naval vessel should Germans continue to advance. On 14 Sep, Air Marshal Tedder executed a series of precise air raids against key German lines of communications and supplies. The strikes by air, coupled with ample naval bombardment, dwindled the ferocity of German counterattacks, and allowed the Allies to maintain their beachhead.

The German defenses in Italy were under the command of Albert Kesselring, who believed that the Italy terrain would prove to be easy to defend; similar opinions were voiced by Allied soldiers as well. The autumn weather was gloomy, and key bridges and railroads that could be used by the Allies were blown out on Kesselring's orders. Even Eisenhower commented in his memoirs that "[t]he country itself was ideal for defensive fighting." The terrain was divided by rivers of various sizes, some rivers such as the Vulturno turned so much that advancing Allied troops had to cross the same river a few times; Brigadier General Caffey observed his uninformed driver ranting about this "crazy country" where "every damn river in this fucking country is named Volturno". On 18 Sep, Kesselring ordered his troops to retreat into the mountainous regions and form defensive lines along the natural fortresses. The Fifth Army captured Naples on 1 Oct while the Eighth Army marched along teh Adriatic coast, capturing the airfields at Foggia. When the Allied forces collided with the German defense lines, the campaign became a slow and grueling continuous battle for the Allies. The German Winter Line and Gustav Line defenses, helped by rain and snow, held Allied advance to kust 70 miles from Salerno in four month's time. Fifth Army alone suffered 40,000 casualties and 50,000 sick, far exceeding the numbers on the German side.

In Dec 1943, Eisenhower and Montgomery were withdrawn from the Italian front for the Normandy invasion. When this was announced, Eisenhower was in Manhattan, Kansas, United States for a family gathering; he did not get a chance to return to Italy before being sent to Britain to plan for Operation Overlord (Normandy), for which he was rather upset. He wished to say thanks and goodbye to all his loyal lieutenants in person.

General Wilson was appointed Supreme Commander of the theater, succeeding Eisenhower. He launched another amphibious landing, Operation Shingle, at Anzio on 22 Jan 1944; Major General John Lucas successfully landed 70,000 troops to the surprise of the German defenders, but Lucas failed to take advantage of the surprise, and the beachhead ended up being a defensive position against constant German counterattacks.

On 17 Jan, 5th Corps launched an attack on the Gustav Line, which failed with 17,000 casualties. The next assault came in the form of a New Zealanders' attack on Monte Cassino following a heavy bombing run that destroyed the monastery by the same name; the German paratroopers there defended the stronghold easily. The third attempt, which also failed, was launched by New Zealand and Indian forces following another heavy air bombardment, but the German paratroopers dug in and fought back viciously and effectively. The line finally broke on 11 May when the Fifth Army and Eighth Army launched a coordinated attack. Free French and Polish troops seized Monte Cassino, and broke the Gustav Line. With the Gustav Line broken, Fifth Army troops linked up with 6th Corps on 25 May, and marched into Rome on 4 Jun. Kesselring retreated to the Pisa-Rimini Gothic Line, the next defensive line he had set up across Italy.

Starting on 4 Sep 1944, four British attacks challenged the Gothic Line near the village of Gemmano, but failed to break the German defenses. Another attack towards Bologna was defeated in Oct. Simiarly, a German counterattack that winter was also defeated by the Allies with heavy casualties. The fighting at the Gothic Line reminded the generals on both sides of the grueling fighting in WW1. The situation finally changed on 9 Apr 1945 when British and American forces performed a concerted attack that converged on Bologna. Bologna fell on 21 Apr, and very quickly captured Verona on the other side of the River Po four days later. With the German forces defeated at the Gothic Line, Mussolini fled toward the Alps for Germany. He was captured by Italian partisans who executed him on 28 Apr.

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Visitor Submitted Comments

1. Alan says:
   26 Jan 2008 06:23:56 AM
   
   This article infers that Bologna was liberated by Anglo-American troops. In fact the city was liberated by....Italians. The Friuli Division was formed in August 1944, much to the opposition of President Roosevelt who ordered that the Italians were not to receive any U.S.equipment. Churchill however decided to equip the Italian Force and the Division took the field dressed and armed with British uniforms, trucks, Bren carriers, Quads and 25 Pounders. It was patrols from the Friuli Division that would be the first Allied troops to enter Bologna
2. Alan says:
   26 Jan 2008 06:30:20 AM
   
   The British 78th Division were amazed when they first met the Friuli Division in February 1945. The Italians had brand new vehicles and guns. The 78th were still equipped with same old trucks and guns with which they had fought across the Western Desert several years before.
3. Alan says:
   26 Jan 2008 06:37:52 AM
   
   When Mussolini, at the Police HQ in Milan, was telephoned by a Fascist Journalist with the news that the Allies had entered Bologna and were being greeted with garlands of flowers he is said to have cried out-It can not be true, Bologna is the most Fascist of all Italian cities. He would have been even more shocked if the journalist had known that the Liberating Allies were in fact fellow Italians.
4. Alan says:
   26 Jan 2008 06:46:59 AM
   
   When the Friuli Division was formed many of the older officers and NCOs were weeded out to be replaced by younger Anti-Fascist Volunteers. Some arrived in Lorries carrying Communist banners and singing the Red Flag. Most were not actually Communists but knowing that Russia was on the Allied side, thought that they had better show Enthusiasm. Once they were told that they were in the Kings Army they became ardent Monarchists.

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