28 Oct 1922

Photo(s) dated 28 Oct 1922
Benito Mussolini with Emilio De Bono, Italo Balbo, and Cesare Maria De Vecchi during the March on Rome, Italy, 28 Oct 1922
7 Feb 1924

Photo(s) dated 7 Feb 1924
Benito Mussolini signing a treaty with Soviet representatives at the Palazzo Chigi, Rome, Italy, 7 Feb 1924
12 May 1942

Italy
  • Italian 1st Air Force Paratroop Unit was formed at Tarquinia, Italy under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Edvino Dalmas. ww2dbase [Tarquinia, Lazio | CPC]
11 Sep 1943

Photo(s) dated 11 Sep 1943
German crew of a 7.5 cm PaK 40 anti-tank gun resting in front of the Italian State Radio at the corner of Via Asiago and Via Montello, Rome, Italy, 11 Sep 1943.
14 Sep 1943

Italy
  • Ugo Cavallero, the Commander-in-Chief of the Italian Supreme Command, was found dead by a gunshot in the garden of a hotel in Frascati, Lazio, Italy. It was never discovered whether he committed suicide or was assassinated by the Germans. ww2dbase [Ugo Cavallero | Frascati, Lazio | CPC, AC]
26 Dec 1943

Photo(s) dated 26 Dec 1943
German paratroopers manning a 7.5 cm Flak 264/3(i) anti-aircraft gun, San Felice Circeo, Italy, 26 Dec 1943, photo 1 of 6German paratroopers manning a 7.5 cm Flak 264/3(i) anti-aircraft gun, San Felice Circeo, Italy, 26 Dec 1943, photo 2 of 6German paratroopers manning a 7.5 cm Flak 264/3(i) anti-aircraft gun, San Felice Circeo, Italy, 26 Dec 1943, photo 3 of 6German paratroopers manning a 7.5 cm Flak 264/3(i) anti-aircraft gun, San Felice Circeo, Italy, 26 Dec 1943, photo 4 of 6
See all photos dated 26 Dec 1943
4 Jan 1944

Photo(s) dated 4 Jan 1944
German trucks parked before the Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II in Rome, Italy, 4 Jan 1944; they were about to be used to transfer Italian artwork to GermanyGregorio Diamare and the ecclesiastical authorities of Monte Cassino abbey giving German Luftwaffe troops the permission to remove artwork for transfer to Germany, 4 Jan 1944, photo 1 of 2Gregorio Diamare and the ecclesiastical authorities of Monte Cassino abbey giving German Luftwaffe troops the permission to remove artwork for transfer to Germany, 4 Jan 1944, photo 2 of 2
12 Jan 1944

Italy
13 Jan 1944

Italy
15 Jan 1944

Italy
21 Jan 1944

Italy
  • In the mid-morning, German 15th Panzergrenadier Division wiped out the US beachheads along the Rapido River in Italy, forcing the survivors to withdraw back across the river. During the day, German 29th Panzergrenadier Division and 90th Panzergrenadier Division arrived in the region as reinforcement. After dark, US 141st Regiment and 143rd Regiment crossed the river again and established precarious footholds. ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Cassino, Lazio | CPC]
22 Jan 1944

Italy
24 Jan 1944

Italy
  • At Anzio, Italy, Private George Mitchell charged alone through intense machine-gun fire, jumped into the weapon pit and killed the crew. Shortly afterwards, he similarly assaulted a second position, killing six of the enemy and taking 12 prisoners. He was killed moments later when one of the Germans who had supposedly surrendered snatched up a discarded rifle and shot him. Mitchell was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross medal. ww2dbase [Anzio, Lazio | AC]
  • German forces in the Anzio, Italy region increased to over 40,000 men. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
25 Jan 1944

Italy
  • General Eberhard von Mackensen assumed overall control of forces in the Anzio, Italy area. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
27 Jan 1944

Italy
  • To the west, Allied Major General John Lucas by now commanded 70,000 men, 237 tanks, 508 heavy guns, and 27,000 tons of supplies at Anzio, Italy, but he decided to still maintain a defensive posture. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | TH]
  • Germans launched a counter attack against French troops near Cassino, Italy. ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Cassino, Lazio | CPC]
28 Jan 1944

Italy
  • German Field Marshal Albert Kesselring ordered a counterattack against the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
29 Jan 1944

Italy
  • Total Allied strength at the Anzio, Italy beachhead totaled 69,000 men, 508 guns, and 208 tanks by the end of this day. On the other side of the lines, German strength rose to 71,500 men. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
30 Jan 1944

Italy
  • Allied forces attacked out of the Anzio, Italy beachhead, advancing toward Cisterna and Campoleone, but none of the two forces would be able to capture the objectives; during the process, an entire US Army Ranger battalion was destroyed. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | TH, CPC]
2 Feb 1944

Italy
3 Feb 1944

Italy
  • The American attempt to break out of the Anzio beachhead in Italy was halted, followed by the first German counterattack against the beachhead. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | TH]
4 Feb 1944

Italy
5 Feb 1944

Italy
6 Feb 1944

Italy
7 Feb 1944

Italy
  • German and Allied artillery pieces bombarded each other at Anzio, Italy; at 2100 hours, Germans launched a full attack on the beachhead. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | TH, CPC]
  • US troops reached Point 445, a hill 370 meters away from the monastery at Monte Cassino, Italy. ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Cassino, Lazio | CPC]
8 Feb 1944

Italy
9 Feb 1944

Italy
10 Feb 1944

Italy
  • German 4.Fallschirmjäger Division, with a Italian parachute regiment within its ranks, arrived at Anzio, Italy. ww2dbase [Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
11 Feb 1944

Italy
  • Major General John Lucas ordered a counterattack from the Anzio beachhead in Italy, which was repulsed by the Germans which had intercepted Allied radio communications and had prepared for this attack. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
  • The US II Corps attack toward Monte Cassino, Italy was halted by German troops. Major General Harry Dimoline of Indian 4th Division requested the aerial bombing of the abbey atop Monte Cassino. ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Harry Dimoline | Cassino, Lazio | CPC]
12 Feb 1944

Italy
13 Feb 1944

Italy
14 Feb 1944

Italy
  • Harold Alexander visited the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy and was dissatisfied with the commanding officer Major General John Lucas. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Harold Alexander | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
  • 13 Italian motor torpedo boats arrived at Fiumicino, Italy. ww2dbase [Fiumicino, Lazio | CPC]
15 Feb 1944

Italy
  • 142 B-17 Flying Fortress bombers, 47 B-25 Mitchell bombers, and 40 B-26 Marauder bombers dropped 1,150 tons of high explosive and incendiary bombs on the historic Benedictine monastery atop Monte Cassino, Italy. The aerial bombing was augmented by artillery shelling as well. In the evening, a company of 1st Battalion of British Royal Sussex Regiment of Indian 4th Division attacked neraby Point 593, but failed to capture the position. ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Cassino, Lazio | TH, CPC]
Photo(s) dated 15 Feb 1944
B-17F Fortress flying over Monte Cassino as smoke rises from the abbey, Feb 15, 1944.
16 Feb 1944

Italy
  • The Germans launched Operation Fischfang, throwing 7 divisions against the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy. On the same day, Harold Alexander inserted Lucian Truscott and Vyvyan Evelegh under Major General John Lucas in an attempt to alleviate Lucas' poor performance at Anzio. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | TH, CPC]
  • Fighter-bombers attacked the already-destroyed historic Benedictine monastery atop Monte Cassino, Italy. ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Cassino, Lazio | CPC]
17 Feb 1944

Italy
  • Indian 4th Division attacked Monte Cassino, Italy, failing to make advances and suffering heavy casualties. In parallel, Maori troops of the New Zealand Division established a small bridgehead across the nearby Rapido River. ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Cassino, Lazio | CPC]
Photo(s) dated 17 Feb 1944
Brigadier General Boleslaw Duch, Lieutenant General Oliver Leese, and General Wladyslaw Anders, near Cassino, Italy, 17 Feb 1944
18 Feb 1944

Italy
  • The Germans made progress at Anzio, Italy, but were finally beaten back by artillery and naval gunfire. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | TH]
20 Feb 1944

Italy
  • The Germans called off Operation Fischfang aimed at the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
21 Feb 1944

Italy
  • Three Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy, damaging USS PC-545 and USS Pioneer before dawn. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
22 Feb 1944

Italy
23 Feb 1944

Italy
  • Three Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and losing two boats. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
24 Feb 1944

Italy
  • Two Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and losing one boat. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
25 Feb 1944

Italy
  • Five Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and suffering no losses. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
29 Feb 1944

Italy
  • The third major German offensive was launched at Anzio, Italy, which would again fail to dislodge the Allies. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | TH, CPC]
1 Mar 1944

Italy
  • Three Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and suffering no losses. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
2 Mar 1944

Italy
  • On Mount Trocchio near Cassino, Italy, walking down a path that was supposed to have been cleared, Major-General Howard Kippenberger, the admirable commander of the 2nd New Zealand Division, stepped on one of the vicious little wooden "Schu" mines. One of his feet was blown off and the other had to be amputated. ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Cassino, Lazio | AC]
3 Mar 1944

Italy
  • Three Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and suffering no losses. During the day, the Germans called off the attacks on the beachhead. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | TH, CPC]
5 Mar 1944

Italy
  • Three Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and suffering no losses. ww2dbase [Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
9 Mar 1944

Italy
  • One Italian motor torpedo boat attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
14 Mar 1944

Italy
  • One Italian motor torpedo boat attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and suffering no losses. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
  • "Barbarigo" naval infantry battalion of Italian Navy Xa MAS arrived at Anzio, Italy and was placed under the command of German 715th Division. ww2dbase [Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
15 Mar 1944

Italy
  • At 0830 hours, the third major Allied attempt to attack Monte Cassino, Italy began with a heavy bombardment that lasted more than three hours. ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Cassino, Lazio | TH, CPC]
16 Mar 1944

Italy
17 Mar 1944

Italy
  • New Zealand troops captured the train station at Cassino, Italy. Nearby, Indian Gurkha troops captured Point 435 (nicknamed Hangman's Hill). ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Cassino, Lazio | TH, CPC]
18 Mar 1944

Italy Photo(s) dated 18 Mar 1944
Ernie Pyle eating C-ration, Anzio, Italy, 18 Mar 1944
19 Mar 1944

Italy
  • British and New Zealand troops attacked German positions in the Cassino, Italy area, making very little progress in the face of German 1st Parachute Division. ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Cassino, Lazio | CPC]
  • Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, engaging in brief combat. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
20 Mar 1944

Italy
22 Mar 1944

Italy
24 Mar 1944

Italy
  • The Anzio beachhead in Italy was subjected to heavy German artillery and guided bomb attacks. Out at sea, an Italian motor torpedo boat attack sank one cargo ship; one Italian boat was sunk in the attack. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | TH, CPC]
26 Mar 1944

Italy
  • The New Zealand Corps headquarters, currently near Cassino, Italy, was dissolved. Surviving troops were incorporated into British XIII Corps. ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Cassino, Lazio | CPC]
29 Mar 1944

Italy
  • Two Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage and losing one boat. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
6 Apr 1944

Photo(s) dated 6 Apr 1944
Major General Lucian Truscott and Lieutenant General Ira Eaker at Anzio, Italy, 6 Apr 1944
7 Apr 1944

Italy
  • No. 112 Squadron RAF, flying Kittyhawk fighters, shot down a German aircraft over Rieti Airfield in Italy; this would be the final Kittyhawk victory in the Mediterranean theater of WW2. ww2dbase [P-40 Warhawk | Rieti, Lazio | CPC]
13 Apr 1944

Italy
  • Italian motor torpedo boats claimed the sinking of an Allied corvette off Anzio, Italy; this sinking was not confirmed. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
15 Apr 1944

Photo(s) dated 15 Apr 1944
Lieutenant General Ira Eaker flying an aircraft over Italy toward Anzio, 15 Apr 1944
20 Apr 1944

Italy
27 Apr 1944

Italy
  • Italian motor torpedo boats attacked the Allied beachhead at Anzio, Italy before dawn, causing no damage. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
11 May 1944

Italy
  • Operation Diadem, the fourth Allied attempt at attacking Cassino, Italy, was launched at 2300 hours with 1,660 artillery pieces firing on German defensive positions. Troops of US Fifth and British Eighth Armies advanced toward German positions behind the artillery barrage. ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Cassino, Lazio | TH, CPC]
12 May 1944

Italy
  • Near Cassino, Italy, engineers of Indian 8th Division successfully established a bridge to allow tanks of Canadian 1st Armoured Brigade to cross the Rapido River, while Polish troops engaged in fierce fighting with troops of German 1st Parachute Division at Point 593. ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Cassino, Lazio | CPC]
16 May 1944

Italy
  • US Army personnel Captain Young-Oak Kim and Private First Class Irving Akahoshi captured two German soldiers near Cisterna, Italy for intelligence. ww2dbase [Young-Oak Kim | Cisterna, Lazio | CPC]
17 May 1944

Italy
  • German troops evacuated Cassino, Italy. Meanwhile, the French penetration of the Gustav Line reached 25 miles. Nearby, Polish troops launched what was to become the final attack on Monte Cassino. ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Cassino, Lazio | TH, CPC]
18 May 1944

Italy
  • British 78th Division linked up with the Polish Corps in the Liri River valley 3.2 kilometers west of Cassino, Italy. Later on the same day, Polish troops captured the ruins of the Monte Cassino monastery. ww2dbase [Battle of Monte Cassino | Cassino, Lazio | TH, CPC]
Photo(s) dated 18 May 1944
Polish bugler Master Corporal Emil Czech playing the Hejnał mariacki, announcing the victory at Monte Cassino, Italy, 18 May 1944Polish soldiers inside the ruins of the Monte Cassino monastery, Italy, 18 May 1944Polish troops fighting near Cassino, Italy, 18 May 1944
19 May 1944

Italy
20 May 1944

Italy
23 May 1944

Italy
  • Three US and two British divisions launched a new assault out of the Anzio, Italy beachhead at dawn, inflicting heavy casualties on German formations but also suffering similarly. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Anzio, Lazio | CPC]
24 May 1944

Italy
25 May 1944

Italy
  • US 3rd Division captured Cisterna, Italy after house-to-house fighting, nearly wiping out 362nd Infantry Division in the process; nearby, US 1st Armored Division engaged German Herman Göring Division at Valmontone while US Fifth Army troops linked up with the Anzio contingent. At the end of the day, Mark Clark ordered Lucian Truscott to turn north toward Rome without informing Harold Alexander. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Lazio | TH, CPC]
26 May 1944

Italy
  • After US 1st Armored Division had already been ordered north toward Rome, Italy, Mark Clark belatedly reported to Harold Alexander such a change in orders; he left only 1 division to attack the remaining German forces at Valmontone. In the area, US troops captured Cori. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Lazio | TH, CPC]
30 May 1944

Italy
  • British troops captured Arce, Italy; US 36th Infantry Division penetrated between German 1st Parachute Corps and LXXVI Panzer Corps on the Caesar C Line. Also on this day, after seven German divisions successfully withdraw along Route 6 in Italy, Albert Kesselring allowed his troops in the Velletri gap to slowly fall back. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Lazio | TH, CPC]
1 Jun 1944

Italy
4 Jun 1944

Italy
  • Mark Clark and the US 5th Army entered Rome, Italy unopposed; Clark immediately held a press conference on the steps of the Town Hall on the Capitoline Hill. Some fellow Allied generals thought Clark had failed to trap the German 10th Army. Nearby, the Italian motor torpedo boat base at Terracina was evacuated. ww2dbase [Battle of Anzio | Rome, Lazio | AC, CPC]
Photo(s) dated 4 Jun 1944
US infantry running past a burning tank, Rome, Italy, 4 Jun 1944
5 Jun 1944

Photo(s) dated 5 Jun 1944
American troops in Rome, circa Jun 1944; note the US Army soldiers march past the Colosseum in Rome, Italy, shortly after the German forces departed, Jun 5 1944.American tank destroyers at the Colosseum, Rome, Italy, Jun 1944American troops in Piazza del Popolo, Rome, Italy, Jun 1944
6 Jun 1944

Italy
7 Jun 1944

Italy
8 Jun 1944

Italy
23 Aug 1978

Italy
10 May 2018

Photo(s) dated 10 May 2018
MAS 15 torpedo boat, Vittorio Emanuele II National Monument museum, Rome, Italy, 10 May 2018, photo 6 of 6MAS 15 torpedo boat, Vittorio Emanuele II National Monument museum, Rome, Italy, 10 May 2018, photo 2 of 6MAS 15 torpedo boat, Vittorio Emanuele II National Monument museum, Rome, Italy, 10 May 2018, photo 5 of 6MAS 15 torpedo boat, Vittorio Emanuele II National Monument museum, Rome, Italy, 10 May 2018, photo 4 of 6
See all photos dated 10 May 2018

Timeline Section Founder: Thomas Houlihan
Contributors: Alan Chanter, C. Peter Chen, Thomas Houlihan, Hugh Martyr, David Stubblebine
Special Thanks: Rory Curtis




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B-17G Fortress 'Silver Dollar' of the 384th Bomb Group over Berlin with its tail section knocked off from bombs falling from a higher bomber group, 9 Mar 1944. 8 were killed and 2 were taken prisoner.


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