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World War II: North Africa and Italy North Africa Italian Presence in North Africa • Since before World War II, Italy had been occupying Libya and had over a million soldiers based there • In neighboring Egypt, the British Army had only 36,000 men guarding the Suez Canal and the Arabian oilfields • On Sept 13, 1940, the Italians advanced into Egypt but halted in front of the main British defenses • On Dec 9, the British counterattacked and pushed the Italians back more than 500 miles • British troops then moved along the coast and on Jan 22, 1941, they captured the port of Tobruk in Libya Germany to the Rescue • In the meantime, Germany sent forces across the Mediterranean to Tripoli – The Afrika Corps commanded by Erwin Rommel • Italy’s disasters in North Africa and elsewhere (i.e., Greece) were threatening to undermine the Axis position in the Balkans and the Mediterranean • Assassination attempt (Keyes) Rommel • Characteristically Rommel attacked and drove the British Commonwealth forces out of Libya except for Tobruk • With the situation in North Africa stabilized, Hitler turned his attention to shoring up Italy, leaving Rommel to deal with North Africa • One of Rommel’s biggest challenges would be his long, tenuous supply line – Between Oct and Nov the Allies sank nearly 80% of Axis supply ships crossing the Mediterranean Rommel • Rommel pushed the British deep into Egypt but British General Bernard Montgomery stopped Rommel at El Alamein in July 1942 Germans Defeated • Rommel then turned south against the British who were arriving from Egypt • Montgomery dealt Rommel a stunning defeat and Rommel personally left Africa • The Axis position in North Africa steadily deteriorated and in early May the Allies controlled Tunisia American soldiers enter Kasserine Pass First American Battle • The Americans did not perform very well in their first combat experience and senior leadership was horrible – General Eisenhower was forced to relieve Lloyd Fredendall of command and replace him with George Patton Lloyd Fredendall, commander of the American II Corps Results of North Africa • The Germans had wasted valuable resources in an indecisive theater • Mussolini was severely weakened domestically • The Americans learned from their poor performance and made the necessary changes • The British and American coalition weathered a potentially threatening storm Casablanca Conference • 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 – “unconditional surrender” – Stalin had been invited, but declined to attend because of Stalingrad Second Front • 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 The Italian Campaign • Three amphibious operations – Sicily (Operation Husky) – Salerno (Operation Avalanche) – Anzio (Operation Shingle) Sicily, July 1943 Failure to Plan Ahead The Commanders General Mark Clark, American Fifth Army General Sir Harold Alexander, 15th Army Group General Bernard Montgomery, British Eighth Army General George Patton, Seventh Army, coming ashore in Sicily General Omar Bradley, commander II Corps Sicily • Operation Husky • 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 Messina: With Mainland Italy in the Distance So What Next ?…. • “We can’t win a war by capturing islands.” – General Mark Clark, Fifth Army commander One down, two to go: Cartoon on jeep shows Mussolini crossed out with Hitler and Hirohito next Salerno, September 1943 Invading the Italian Mainland The Commanders: Allies General Sir Richard McCreery, British X Corps General Ernest Dawley, American VI Corps The Commanders: Axis • Albert Kesserling – A Luftwaffe officer – One of Germany’s best generals Salerno • Salerno Mutiny • The Germans were ready for the invasion and the battle was a close call for the Allies – Germans destroyed roads and bridges – Massive naval gunfire, strategic bombers, and determined Allied ground forces saved the day Anzio, January 1944 Missed Opportunity Strategic Situation in late 1943 • 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 Rome Anzio Gustav Line Salerno New Commander • Major General John Lucas replaced Dawley as VI Corps commander after Salerno • Would prove to be the wrong man for the job – Tired from mountain warfare in Italy; appeared dispirited and discouraged. Anzio • 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 Anzio • “On January 22 and even the following day, an audacious and enterprising formation of enemy troops… could have penetrated into the city of Rome itself without having overcome any serious opposition” – Siegried Westphal, German Chief of Staff • Alexander had told Lucas to advance “on” the Alban Hills – Did that mean “to” or “toward”? – What was the commander’s intent? Legacy of Anzio • It wasn’t until June 4 (6 months later) 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 Gothic Line Rome Summary of the Italian Campaign • Italian campaign ends May 1944 • 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 Quiz • Define/explain its importance (Choose 10) 1. Weimar Republic 2. Nuremburg Laws 3. Spanish Civil War 4. Maginot Line 5. Salerno 6. Ethiopia 7. Manchuria 8. Blitzkrieg 9. Dunkirk 10. Anzio • • • • • 11. El Alamein 12. Suez Canal 13. Poland 14. Battle of Britain 15. Sudetenland