Essential Question: How did the Italian Campaign impact the War?

 After the Axis surrender in Tunisia, the Allies began planning the next phase of the war  Roosevelt and Churchill met in Casablanca, Morocco in January 1943 Stalin had been invited, but declined to attend because of Stalingrad

 Since July 19, 1941, Stalin had been demanding the Allies open up a second front to relieve the German pressure Russia was facing  Invading Italy would help meet Stalin’s demand

 US advocated a cross channel invasion to directly attack Germany  Churchill preferred an indirect approach, attacking through the “soft underbelly of Europe”

 Forces from Operation Torch could continue on to Sicily once the North African Campaign was terminated Churchill knew this would preclude a cross-channel invasion in 1943  At the end of the conference, Roosevelt announced that “peace can come to the world only by the total elimination of German and Japanese military power... (which) means unconditional surrender.”  Americans and British also agreed that planning begin for a cross channel invasion in May 1944

 Three amphibious operations Sicily (Operation Husky) Salerno (Operation Avalanche) Anzio (Operation Shingle)

 Allies enjoyed great tactical success in capturing the island of Sicily but did not have a good plan for what to do next  Germans were able to escape to the Italian mainland  The King placed Mussolini under arrest but the Allies were slow to exploit this diplomatic opportunity and Hitler shored up his defenses in Italy

Invading the Italian Mainland

 With the Italian Army on the verge of disintegrating, the assault on Salerno was designed to seize the port of Naples and the airfields of Foggia, followed by a drive to Rome  The Germans were ready for the invasion and the battle was a close call for the Allies Massive naval gunfire, strategic bombers, and determined Allied ground forces saved the day

Gustav Line The Germans withdrew to a defense centered on Monte Cassino astride the Liri, Sangro, Rapido, and Garigliano Rivers –Major position from which to defend Rome Exposed the Allies to costly and slow mountain fighting that was getting them any where –Allies needed a way to alleviate the stalemate

 Campaign stalled about 80 miles short of Rome and was beginning to resemble the trench warfare of World War I  A landing at Anzio would bypass German defenses around Cassino and put the Allies just 35 miles south of Rome Gustav Line Anzio Salerno Rome

 The Allies surprised the Germans at Anzio and had immediate success  However the close call at Salerno had left them with an overly cautious attitude and they let the Germans recover  “I had hoped we were hurling a wildcat into the shore, but all we got was a stranded whale.” Winston Churchill

 It wasn’t until June 4 that the Allies finally reached Rome in “a hollow triumph” By then the decisive Allied effort had shifted to France  Most of the German Tenth Army escaped Clark at Rome and the Germans established a strong defense along the Gothic Line Kept the Allies away from the Italian industrial area and the Alpine approaches to Germany Rome Gothic Line

 Through the summer of 1943 it was an excellent training ground for Anglo-American forces  Casualties the Allies inflicted on German ground and air forces in Tunisia and Sicily were a significant return on the investment  “After that point, however, Italy cost more than it gained.” Robert Doughty, American Military History and the Evolution of Western Warfare