Italy. Introduction to the Italian Campaign. Allied victory in Sicily had resulted in the overthrow of Mussolini's government, and the capitulation of Italy was only a matter of negotiation and time. An armistice was announced on September 8. The Italian surrender resulted in German evacuation of the islands of Sardinia and Corsica, gave the Allies the Italian Navy, and, in effect, made Italy a co- belligerent with the Allies. Nevertheless, the Germans still had a firm hold on the Italian boot. The invasion of Italy had a number of lesser objectives: to capitalize on the collapse of Italian resistance; to make immediate use of ready Allied strength; to engage German forces which might otherwise be used in Russia and northern France; to secure airfields from which to intensify the bombing of Germany and the Balkans; and to gain complete control of the Mediterranean. Six days later, on September 9, the U. S. Clark landed on beaches along the Gulf of Salerno, and a British fleet placed a division of troops at Taranto in the arch of the boot. It was six days before the Americans were able to surmount the crisis and secure the beachhead. To place in a friendly association, as by treaty: Italy allied itself with Germany during. Italy, history, politics, rulers. Allied definition, joined by treaty, agreement, or common cause: allied nations. Allied Military Government, AMG, Germany, Italy, France, Stamps, Varieties, Errors, Sheets, Selling, Buying, George C. Introduction to the Italian Campaign. Allied victory in Sicily had resulted in the overthrow of Mussolini's government, and the capitulation of Italy was only a. Fifth Armies united their fronts southeast of Salerno. On October 7, the British took Naples with its fine port. Meanwhile the British had captured the airfields of Foggia near the Adriatic coast on September 2. October had moved north to a line extending from Larino west to Campobasso, where they were abreast of the Americans on their left. The Allies were in Italy to stay. Shipping limitations, in any case, forbade any large- scale reinforcement of the Mediterranean except at the expense of the buildup of American forces in the United Kingdom. Fifth and British Eighth Armies together had only 1. German divisions throughout the long campaign. Allied Pickfords is a professional movers and relocation company in Hong Kong for home, business, office and storage solutions. Call (+852) 27366032. The mountainous terrain and the restrictions on maneuver imposed by the narrowness of the peninsula favored the German defenders, but the Allied force continued to press northward until the end of the war. This drive broke a strong German position at the Volturno River and carried the Allies as far as the so- called Winter Line (or Gustav Line), anchored on Cassino, which the Germans had been preparing about 7. Rome. Here the Allies were brought to a halt for the remainder of the winter. With this added strength at his disposal, General Clark used the U. S. VI Corps, with British and American troops, in an attempt to envelop the western flank of the German line, while he simultaneously tried to break through the Gustav Line. The landing was initially successful and additional forces came in while the landing force pushed inland against growing enemy resistance. After the first week, the Germans reacted with a strong counterattack that reached a peak of intensity on February 1. But the VI Corps' magnificent defense of the perimeter, supported by artillery, tanks, planes, and naval gunfire, brought the last of the major counterattacks to a halt on 2 March. The drive carried all the way to Rome, which fell to the Allies on 4 June 1. The Allied force, although reduced in strength by the necessity to relinquish some divisions for use in France, initiated a drive in September that broke the Gothic Line after a three- month campaign. In the spring of 1. Allies pushed across the Po Valley and, when German resistance began to crumble, made spectacular advances which ended with the surrender of the German forces in Italy on 2 May 1. But the campaign played an important part in determining the eventual outcome of the war, since the Allies, with a minimum of strength, engaged German forces that could possibly have upset the balance in France. Army Center for Military History. For a more general overview of the war see the Brief History of WWII e- text.
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