# Battle of Monte Cassino-18.05.1944



## v2 (May 18, 2006)

The pact signed in Moscow at the end of August between Hitler and Stalin gave a green light for war against Poland. 
September 1,1939 Wehrmacht launched its Blitzkrieg, and a couple weeks later, the Red Army stabbed the overwhelmed Polish Army in the back, splitting Poland in half along a prearranged line. 
Less then two years later, Hitler’s surprise attack on Russia forced Stalin to turn to the West for help. This gave the Polish government-in-exile in London a chance to negotiate the release of Polish prisoners held in the Gulag. Out of almost two million held there, only less then 75,000 prisoners were released from prisons and labor camps. They joined the recruiting centers and waited - sick and hungry — for the arms that Stalin has promised their prime minister in London, but few only were delivered. General Wladyslaw Anders, just released from the notorious Lubyanka prison, knowing the Russians well, was very apprehensive and suspicious about Stalin's designs on Poland. Being aware of his plans to control newly organized army militarily as well as politically, Anders worked out a plan of evacuation to Iran Under pressure of Wehrmacht advance to the gates of Moscow in late 1941, Stalin panicked and dropped his guard, allowing several divisions of Polish volunteers to join the British 10th Army in the Middle East. 
Welcome there, they were fed, dressed, armed and trained. By mid 1943 the 2nd Polish Corps was ready for action .just in time to help with a stalled advance at the Gustav Line barring advance to Rome during five month of heavy Allied fighting. The Gustav Line crossing Apennine peninsula was anchored on towering Monte Cassino, with its thousand year old Benedictine monastery on top. 
As in ancient times, the mountain was vital to the German's defenses. It was providing a perfect observation point to which the Germans added an elaborate system of bunkers and tunnels. From this fortified vantage point, the Germans commanded the valley of the river Liri, and the road to Rome. Built by Romans, now Highway 6, ancient Via Casillina was originally constructed to facilitate the movement of Roman troops in their march North to expand the Roman Empire. Now, twenty-five centuries later, troops of the allied forces, including the Polish Free Army, used the same road on their way to victory. 
Before the 2nd Corps took positions, the Allies in preparation for storming the Monte Cassino attempted to eliminate town of Cassino, located at its foot. Now being in ruins, and almost totally destroyed on surface, it was still representing a formidable obstruction with its underground bunkers. 
Town of Cassino, originally known as Cassimum, was regarded as a sacred place and was revered by the Romans. Two centuries before the birth of Christ, emperor Markus Aurelius Antonius — had his villa there. 
Town of Cassino, in the three month prior to May 1944, has been devastated in the offensives led by the American 5th and British 8th armies. 
After the New Zealanders under gen. Friberg suffered huge losses, frustrated general called for destruction of monastery from the air. In one of the most tragic miscalculations of the war, 500 American bombers pulverized the ancient abbey with its priceless medieval treasures — some saved, were evacuated to Rome by Abbot Diamare. 
"The Lord willed it, and it was good thing for the salvation ion of Rome , - the old abbot told his Benedictine monks after bombardment. 
The New Zealanders, supported by Indian troops, attacked once more, and again were driven off by Germans, who had taker advantage of the rubble to create new defense positions. 
Meanwhile, the Allied invasion at Anzio launched in February to circumvent the Gustav Line , was still cornered or the beach by Germans. 
The debacle at Anzio and the ruins of monastery, still defended, were symbolic of Allied failure to achieve victory in Italy. 
Beginning of April , the Polish 2nd Corps was deployed to the front at Monte Cassino. The offensive started one hour before midnight on May 11, 1944. In his Order of the Day, gen. Anders addressed his apprehensive troops: "Soldiers, the time to defeat our ancient enemy has come. With faith in God's justice, tonight at 11 o'clock, we are going into battle beginning our last march to victory and on to our country, Poland." 
The campaign in Italy , was difficult one. The mountainous terrain with some peaks reaching 6,000 feet, many fast flowing rivers and deep valleys were limiting use o armor in its classic concept of a quick action, so the major burden was on infantry, sustaining the heaviest losses. 
Against all odds, during the battle which lasted a week, with infantry battalions decimated, the Poles beat the Germans into submission, and in the morning of May 18th. Polish flag was finally hoisted over the ruins of the monastery.
One of the greatest confrontation with the enemy during WW II was ended, the road to Rome opened and Americans and Anzio bridgehead relieved- With this dainge breakthrough victory in Italy was assured 

The Poles paid their share of victory at Monte Cassino: over on thousand killed, and three thousand wounded.


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## Erich (May 18, 2006)

the Poles did not beat the Fallscirmjägern into submission, the German paras were ordered to retreat up and over the summit and down to the north to create a new defensive line thus enabling the German forces to regroup and concentrate forming several defensive perimetres and thus causing more headaches for the Allies even retreating back up in the tirol by wars end.


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## plan_D (May 18, 2006)

True, Erich. But the Fallschirm were hammered by artillery prior to the Poles assault, the months of Allied assaults had taken their toll on the German defending forces and many Fallschirm in the final push were buried under the rubble of collapsing buildings in and around Cassino. 

I have the book _Monte Cassino_ by Matthew Parker, I recommend for anyone interested in the battles. It's got accounts from all sides, be it British, American, German, Polish or New Zealander (and the others).

The Polish were not against all odds, but this does not remove their bravery. The Germans were out-numbered and far out-gunned. Their great situation in the terrain was the biggest advantage of the battle, however. I would gladly take part in a great debate on this subject, as I have great interest. No one side earned anymore respect, or was any braver than the other.


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## Erich (May 18, 2006)

without a doubt according to Luftw ground vets, they fought, they died and then they retreated ..... nothing against the valiant efforts of so many Allied ground personell who gave their lioves trying to capture that hunk of good for nothing rock ! there was independent companies holding Cassino town and the Hotel and of course they got nailed with only scant remains getting up the rock. Yes I have 5 books on the battle which is little covered. Böhlmers account unfortunately escapes my shelves but who knows what the future holds from some antique book shop. Also the Fallshirmtruppen held the ridges even though constantly under pressure the sewn minefields and barbed wire which was thick repulsed many who rushed up till the day of the capture of what was left of the Monte, with only dead and the wounded left. Parkers book is another which I need to add to the books

E


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## syscom3 (May 18, 2006)

Wasnt there a key contribution by some Free French units from Morocco that were unusually adept at moving up and down the ravines and mountains?


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## Soundbreaker Welch? (May 19, 2006)

Poor old Abbot.

But those Poles helped win the day for Italy and that means Rome stuck in the middle. I'm glad I got to go there once.


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## v2 (May 19, 2006)

plan_D said:


> I have the book _Monte Cassino_ by Matthew Parker, I recommend for anyone interested in the battles. It's got accounts from all sides, be it British, American, German, Polish or New Zealander (and the others).



Very good, interesting, book.

J found cool link for you guys:
http://www.iranian.com/History/2005/August/Bear/index.html


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## plan_D (May 19, 2006)

The French units came close to out-flanking Monte Cassino in the first battle, but were deprived of reserves and became bogged down in the rocks with German artillery slamming down on them. The Morrocans were terrible individuals, they were animals and many Italians were raped and killed by these scumbags.


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## DerAdlerIstGelandet (May 19, 2006)

I will check that book out. Thanks.


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## Erich (May 19, 2006)

yes the Moraccans killed everyone either German or Allied, slit their throats was a pet peeve of theirs. the all high ground was important and even more so that the Cassino town or the Castle and maybe even the Monastery. The Germans were locked in heavily on the defensive and this multi-month battle is probably the most awesome siege in WW 2 history. if you get a chance pick up a copy of After the Battle # 13 on Cassino Battlefied Tour. Read about several Fallshirm notables like Lt. Heinz Austermann and Georg Schmitz of the 1st Pioneer Company defending the Fishmarkt below Castle Hill and the cellar in the town prison . . . . what a freakin mess of carnage.

The Sherman assaualt on Cavendish Road. what were the Allies thinking . . ? Passing Albaneta Farm with the II./4 Fallshirms taking out the Allied tanks one by one with AT mines.


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## Soren (May 19, 2006)

Well, I agree with Plan_D that the bravery of the men on each side can hardly be compared, it took guts to defend the place and it took guts to try and take the place.

However, in terms of achievement, it is pretty clear that the Germans achieved the most considering their situation. 

An important factor to remember concerning the effectiveness and steadfastness of the German defense at Cassino, is the fact that the German FallschirmJäger's were a superior fighting force man pr. man than the Allied units trying to take the place, and this definitely played an important role in the failures of multiple allied attempts to take the place. Infact to give credit where credit is due, with a training period three times longer than that of the US Rangers, the German FallschirmJäger's were the best trained and most efficient fighting force of WWII, they were the “creme de la creme” of the German army, and it wouldn't be wrong to call them the "Finest of the First" in terms of Special Forces.


Btw here’s some interesting comments on the Allied methods of attack at Cassino among other places by a German POW:

_"Allied infantry attack very cautiously and bunch up too much when they move against their objectives," the Panzer Grenadier said. "They are very negligent about seeking concealment, and therefore can be seen most of the time. When they move against their objectives, their lines are not staggered enough and are deep instead of wide. 

Allied soldiers on the double, upon coming to a sudden halt frequently remain in a kneeling position, simply waiting to be shot at, instead of throwing themselves to the ground. Then, if nothing happens, they get up on the same spot where they were kneeling before, and continue their advance. I think this is extremely dangerous, especially when the terrain is dotted with snipers, as it is in Italy. I myself have seen at least a dozen Allied soldiers die because of this stupidity. 

In the German Army we think it is only common sense for an attacking soldier to select an objective for each phase of his advance. Upon reaching an objective, he immediately throws himself to the ground and crawls 10 to 15 yards to the left or right, carefully avoiding observation. He waits there a few seconds before continuing his advance. 

Sometimes, however, the Allied infantryman will drop after a shot has been fired and will roll to the right. We Germans know this. We have also noticed that Allied infantry run toward their objectives in a straight line, forgetting to zigzag and thus making an excellent target. 

In Italy, especially, attacking forces can use rocks to better advantage than they do. While I was at Cori, there was a large space between two rock formations, which afforded a clear field of fire. We covered it with a light machine gun. The first Allied troops who tried to pass between the rocks moved very slowly and in line, and some of them were hit. Not until then did the others dash through the open space. 
"Many Allied commanders lack aggressiveness. They do not realize when an objective can be taken; consequently, attacking troops often turn back just before they reach their objective. 

At Cassino I was in a valley with 97 other German soldiers in foxholes and slit trenches. First, a group of Sherman tanks attacked within range of our Faustpatronen. Three of the tanks were knocked out. The infantry, who should have followed right behind the tanks, were about 500 yards behind, and therefore were too far away to seek the cover of the armored vehicles. The tanks immediately retreated. When the infantrymen saw that the tanks had turned around, they, too, turned around and retreated. The whole valley should have been cleaned up in a matter of minutes. 

This great distance between Allied armored units and infantry was apparent almost every time. There was one instance when Allied tanks smashed across our foxholes, to be followed an hour later by infantrymen, who were driven back by hail of machine-gun fire. "We Germans rely on you to make these mistakes." 

The net cover on the helmets of Allied soldiers permits us to see the outline of the helmet distinctly, and at a considerable distance, in the daytime. On the other hand, the camouflage that we [Germans] use on our helmets disrupts the outline of the helmet, and the canvas cover can be painted to suit the terrain." _ 


And a little illustration of the events at Cassino  :


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## Soundbreaker Welch? (May 19, 2006)

I suppose the germans made no mistakes at Monte Cassino?

But everyone is saying the Allies didn't win the battle by their own merit. I guess it was because of their own stupidity. The Germans retreated not because of their assault. They retreated by their own free will to form new defensive positions.


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## syscom3 (May 19, 2006)

The US troops in Italy, while brave, were often poorly led.

Ive read from some sources that Gen Clark was as marginal in capabilty as an army commander could be.


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## pbfoot (May 19, 2006)

Maybe this is the Canadian version of it but the Canadians broke through on the Liri Valley causing Kesserling to withdraw the defenders of Monte Casino the German parachute guys were forced to cover there own withdrawl


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## Soundbreaker Welch? (May 19, 2006)

Yes, but if the Germans had brought the Allies attacking them to a standstill, what need would they have to retreat? 

The bombers which were blasting them? It sounds like there was only one wave of them. 

Was it the lack of supplies being brought to the mountain because they had been under siege so long?

My point is, when the germans retreated there was little tactical gain. That mountain was a great defensive position in itself. If the Allies weren't winning by ground assault, the germans had no need to lose it. 

The bombing hadn't worked. The Tanks couldn't work. The Germans still weren't starved out of supplies. The Allied infantry did the dirty work of winning the battle, as usual.

Unless it was some German commander's incompetance, that told his men to give up the fort with no need.


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## Erich (May 19, 2006)

problem was the Monte, and it is still thought today as to why it was bombed, but it was . . . . 

Germans made a huge mistake by not reinforcing the mount and the ridges and leaving it up to one Fallschirm division. Also not enough artillery. . . . I do not care how strong it was it could not take on such heavy Allied offences and live, as the Fallschirm vets thought it was suicidal to remain on the big hump they were to do their duty till ordered off the rock and northward. Allied commanders were as inept as can be believed. Clark was a fool and in the opening stages wasted away two US infantry divisions, cross the Rapido and die but keep attacking at any cost, as the ground was too important not to give up in a struggle


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## Soren (May 20, 2006)

Soundbreaker Welch? said:


> I suppose the germans made no mistakes at Monte Cassino?



The Germans made some of the biggest...


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## plan_D (May 21, 2006)

The gravest error of Clark was after Cassino, instead of rushing to cut off the German 10th Army, he marched on Rome. Allowing the German forces to escape and set up a new defence line further north, which held until the end of the war. 

The German forces at Cassino were overwhelmed with the increasing numbers of men and material being thrown at them. The Fallschirm were the best of the best in that theatre, but no matter how good they were the Allies had the material to overwhelm the spirit and skill of them.


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## v2 (May 19, 2008)

_View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1CMBihYr8E_


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## Haztoys (May 19, 2008)

What has become of the Monte Cassino these days...Anyone know..?


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## Negative Creep (May 19, 2008)

Didn't some Polish soliders fight with rocks and bayonets when they ran out of ammunition?


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## comiso90 (May 19, 2008)

My father was at Monte Casino. I remember him talking about the Moroccans. He mentioned that no one wanted to be around them alone and how he saw them playing soccer with a human head.

.


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## RabidAlien (May 20, 2008)

My understanding was that the Germans were forced to pull out of Cassino due to the imminent breakout from Anzio. The Anzio landing was intended to put pressure on the German Army units dug in on that particular line (the name escapes me...as happens so often these days), including Cassino. Clark and his subordinates played it cautious on the beachhead at Anzio....we caught the Germans with their pants around their ankles, and should've taken the hills around Anzio, which would've cut one of two highway supply lines to the dug-in Germans. Instead, we "consolidated our beachhead" and got the crap kicked out of us by German armor and artillery and infantry that was rushed into the area a few days AFTER the landing. When the Allies started to break out, they threatened to cut off several regiments in the Cassino line, and against Furher's orders the Germans pulled back to another defensive line north of Rome. Of course, then vanity kicked in and it became a race to see who would be first to Rome, instead of completing the encirclement of the Germans, which would've helped the war effort tremendously. 

Then again, its easy to critique and anal-ize a campaign whilst sitting in my 'pooter chair 65ish years later. But from all the books I've read, the campaign through Italy was brutal no matter where the battles took place. Those hills and mountains were like nothing the Allied troops had ever seen, and were almost custom-built for defensive positions. Mistakes were made, wrists were slapped, and we learned on the fly.


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## trackend (May 20, 2008)

Haztoys said:


> What has become of the Monte Cassino these days...Anyone know..?



Went past it about 5 years ago all rebuilt you would never know that anything had ever happened there. I read that over 250,000 mines where layed at foot of Monte Cassino and having driven past it thats one big concentration for such a small place.


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## Erich (May 20, 2008)

NC the Poles as well as what was left of the 1st Fallshirm division fought each other with whatever they had, even throwing rocks at each other, one German para vet told me 20 years ago that they left upon orders of high command that they were going to be encircled with no relief at hand everyone but them had pulled back at least 10-15 miles. the reports were that to the North-east the French had secured the higher hills and were going to descend upon them..

I do believe of my own opinion had the German Paras not retreated in force the Poles would of been fought off with monstrous casualties knowing full well that the Para arms/men were dwindling down daily. Indeed this may well be one of the cruelist fought over pieces of real-estate during the whole war and still somewhat misunderstood today .......


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## marshall (May 20, 2008)

Long time ago (so I may don't remember everything corectly) I heard a story told by a man who was there, he and his buddies were waiting in a tent for an assault, but he earlier volunteered to air service, because he thought it will be safer to be a pilot and always an adventure, and in the evening he got order to leave to some air training, next morning all soldiers from his tent died in the assault...



I don't remember his name but maybe someone knows who he was? (it's rather question to polish members but who knows maybe someone else will know)


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## Soren (May 25, 2008)

Think of sitting on top of that hill when the Allied bombers started levelling the place! Talk about a scary experience!


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## renrich (May 29, 2008)

The allies had some very good special forces in Italy under a chap named Frederick. There was a movie made about them called "The Devil's Brigade" William Holden played Frederick. They gave the Germans what for. I believe they were a joint American-Canadian group.


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## Soren (May 29, 2008)

You mean the 1st SSF I suppose. Highly trained and bloody tough, definitely gave quite a few Germans a scare with those 'cya later for some more fun' cards they put on dead corpses. They suffered the same as they gave though, loosing around 12 to 13,000 men while causing around 12,000 German casualties. But one has to keep in mind that their operations didn't leave them very well protected and they were very aggressive, just driving head long into the Germans on many occasions.

Still no'one did better during the Italian campaign than the Green Devils, these guys caused horrendus amounts of Allied casualties while suffering much less in return. Most astonishin was their feat at Monte Cassino though where they despite being bombed repeatedly managed cause 55,000 Allied casualties in return for 20,000 casualties of their own, many being caused by the bombing.


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## pbfoot (May 29, 2008)

Soren said:


> You mean the 1st SSF I suppose. Highly trained and bloody tough, definitely gave quite a few Germans a scare with those 'cya later for some more fun' cards they put on dead corpses. They suffered the same as they gave though, loosing around 12 to 13,000 men while causing around 12,000 German casualties. But one has to keep in mind that their operations didn't leave them very well protected and they were very aggressive, just driving head long into the Germans on many occasions.
> 
> Still no'one did better during the Italian campaign than the Green Devils, these guys caused horrendus amounts of Allied casualties while suffering much less in return. Most astonishin was their feat at Monte Cassino though where they despite being bombed repeatedly managed cause 55,000 Allied casualties in return for 20,000 casualties of their own, many being caused by the bombing.


And the Green Devils were given as much back in Ortona whicvh I believe was the toughest house to housr fighting in ETO but of course its much easier to defend


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## Soren (May 30, 2008)

> but of course its much easier to defend



Oh yeah, and esp. when you're being carpet bombed by hundreds of heavy bombers..


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## Haztoys (May 30, 2008)

Soren said:


> Oh yeah, and esp. when you're being carpet bombed by hundreds of heavy bombers..



The Carpet bombing was only one part of the fight..And not a constant ...Were it was and what it was made of..And it is EZer to defend a hill and structure as in Monte Cassino..Thats why the Germans took it..No brainer and teh Allieds would of done the same if they had gotten to it first..

Not taking anything away from the Axis fighters and German commandos at Cassino...Lets not take away from the Axis who defended Cassino...But lets not belittle the the Allies who had to take it also.. The Germans had all the cards in that game... But if the Allies had Cassino history would of been saying the same about the Allied Commando.. Smart move my the Germans no doubt


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## renrich (May 30, 2008)

The Italian campaign was a classic case of what happens when terrain that is made for defense is defended by good troops with good equipment. The traditional recipe is you need 3 to 1 numerical superiority to take well defended ground. The allies' problem was that the Germans, as soon as they were beginning to be overcome, would just pack up and retreat to another well prepared position and the same scenario was repeated. Alexander also had to contend with questionable decisions by Clark and some under him, green troops, many different nationalities with different command structures and all the attendent problems and reshuffling of his forces because his best troops were constantly being shuffled off by high command. He also had to feed the Italians and deal with diseases brought on by wartime problems as well as German mischief. The terrain and Italian weather was tailor made for defense and Kesselring used it masterfully. When you think about it, the US troops almost always were attacking against German defenders in the whole war.


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## Haztoys (May 30, 2008)

I have the the most respect for Churchill ...But what was he thinking when he said "Italy was the soft under belly of the Nazi's"... One look at a map would tell you other wise... 

Have done some sport bike riding in Italy ... Not a good place to have to have a war...


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## renrich (May 30, 2008)

He must have been thinking of the women or pasta or something.


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## Soren (May 30, 2008)

Haztoys,

Ofcourse the bombing was only one seperate part of the whole battle, I fully agree. However fact is that most German casualties were caused during this exact part of the struggle, and no wonder, they were sitting ducks on that hill.

Renrich,

I fully agree about the terrain being ideal for defense, and that the Allies had to attack, which leaves anyone more susceptible to fire. And this is undoubtedly one of the reasons that the SSF suffered more than they gave, despite mostly fighting against regular troops. However much of the terrain also made for good cover for the attacker, helping the Allies on many occasions. 

The real problem facing the Allies was besides the difficult terrain they had to fight against experienced extremely professional troops which were well led (Which was not the norm considering Hitler usually always had his nose the wrong places) by Kesselring.


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## renrich (May 31, 2008)

Actually, the allies were in much the same position in Italy as the Army of the Potomac was in 1864-65 except that the terrain and weather in northern Virginia was not as favorable for the defender as it was in Italy. Grant was facing an opponent who knew his ground and who led good troops who were fighting for their country's survival and would not give up easily. Lee almost always was able to position his army to anticipate Grant's next move. If you study the campaigns during that period, the Union army sustained terrible casualties. As did the allies in Italy. One of the US divisions which suffered terribly was the 36th, a Texas National Guard division. I am pretty familiar with their ordeal. Of course Audie Murphy's division, the 3rd, was there also. The US had one probably exceptional general, Lucian Truscott, who possibly should have replaced Clark. Clark is a dirty name in Texas.


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## syscom3 (Mar 7, 2010)

Anyone read this book?

The author pulls no punches on the quality of the allied generalship in Italy.


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## GrauGeist (Mar 7, 2010)

syscom3 said:


> Anyone read this book?
> 
> The author pulls no punches on the quality of the allied generalship in Italy.


I haven't yet, but it sounds like a good read...

As far as Italy goes, a close family friend (who passed away a number of years ago) would recall his experiences in the Italian campaign. He was U.S. Army and had some pretty intense encounters.

One of the things he remarked, was how the Germans had the mountain roads ranged in perfectly with thier artillery, especially the 88s. In the evening, the Allies would start moving up the passes and then all hell would break loose. Then, he remarked, would you hear the distant report of the 88s...he hated them with a passion.


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## RabidAlien (Mar 8, 2010)

I've read his first two books, Sys, both EXCELLENT accounts. First one, "An Army At Dawn", follows Patton's US Army from its kick-off in New York, to Africa, and to its eventual victory over the Afrika Korps. I'm lookin forward to reading the third book in the series, too!


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## syscom3 (Mar 8, 2010)

RabidAlien said:


> I've read his first two books, Sys, both EXCELLENT accounts. First one, "An Army At Dawn", follows Patton's US Army from its kick-off in New York, to Africa, and to its eventual victory over the Afrika Korps. I'm lookin forward to reading the third book in the series, too!



I have the audio book version for both of these (makes for good listening while commuting to and from work).

My local library just bought these books and I checked out the first one you mentioned.

Yes indeed, these are great books.


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## Lucky13 (Mar 8, 2010)

More books to buy then....


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## Ferdinand Foch (Mar 10, 2010)

I've read "An Army at Dawn," and I gotta say, I really liked it. It took me awhile to get through, but Rick Atkinson really did his homework with the research, and it has a lot of detail, which I love. I also have the "Day of Battle," but I haven't read it yet. But, I did read Douglas Porch's "The Path of Victory." I thought it was interesting to find out that, even though the Allies were suffering a lot in attacking up through Italy, in the end the Germany Army would suffer more than the Allies. On page 656, Porch puts the final tally of casualties on the German side at 536,000, as opposed to 312,000 casualties for the Allies (this is from U.S. Army estimates).


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## syscom3 (Mar 10, 2010)

Ferdinand, I'm still reading his first book. I need to have a dictionary with me while reading it. He uses words I've never heard before.

Its like I'm reading a book in high school!


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## Ferdinand Foch (Mar 11, 2010)

syscom3 said:


> Ferdinand, I'm still reading his first book. I need to have a dictionary with me while reading it. He uses words I've never heard before.
> 
> Its like I'm reading a book in high school!



What, Atkinson? Yeah, it took me a long time too. I think it was about two years that I read it, but that's just because I read one hundred pages over christmas break, then took about a thriteen month hiatus before I ended up finishing it. It's so rich in detail that you need time to digest all of it.


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