The+Battle+of+Monte+Cassino+and+Anzio

The Allies had beaten Rommel out of the desert. This defeat caused the veteran Afrika Korps to surrender and provided the Allies with a sizeable springboard into southern Europe. Their first destination was Sicily. The Main thrust were lead by very capable Allied commanders, General Montgomery of the British Empire and General George S. Patton of the United States of America. There is really not much to say about this little expedition, only that the Germans were pushed out in a matter of weeks. However, going into Italy was another matter. This large expedition was a combined effort of mostly the United States, Great Britain, and the remnants of the Polish army. Initially, the Allies made rapid progress, Thrusting north along the Italian peninsula. However, they were soon stopped at the Liri River, where they encountered strong German resistance at the famed abbey of Monte Cassino. Apparently, while the Allies were advancing through rough Italian terrain, the Germans had built a fortified defense at the Liri River known to the Allies as the Gustav Line. The British and American strategists thought long and hard on a method of breaking through the Gustav Line. The Main reason why they were having a hard time was because one of the only ways to pass through this barrier was to cut through the Liri River Valley. However, this valley was right in the German's line of fire, so everytime the Allies tried to break through, they were confounded by stiff German resistance. Eventually, the Allies thought it was necessary to destroy the abbey Monte Cassino, a historically significant abbey situated on top of a hill overlooking the river. This action greatly angered the pope's secertary of state, Cardinal Maglione. After the destruction of the Abbey was complete, the Allies began their advance with apprehension. Feeling confident that the bombers (mostly B-24s and B-25s) probably destroyed all German resistance, they pressed forward. However, they advanced carefully, knowing that the Germans could easily man the destroyed abbey and cause large amounts of casualties. Unfortunately for the Allies, the situation was worse than they thought. Not only were very few German soldiers killed or wounded, but they were being reinforced by a fresh, fully equipped paratrooper division, which confounded Allied commanders some more. However, the Germans were more vulnerable than before because their reserves were sent to deal with the invasion of Anzio, which will be explained later. Anyway, the Allies managed to move through the pass and up to the remains of the abbey where brutal fighting occurred. In the end however, it was the Polish who prevailed and pronounced the capture of Monte Cassino and the defeat of the Germans in and around the Abbey. As these miniature offensives were being held at Monte Cassino, the Allied commanders were thinking of something else to support their futile thrusts in the abbey area. What they had in mind was a seaborne invasion of Italy at Anzio. This, they thought, would effectively tie down German reserves and help in their penetration of the Gustav Line. The date for this amphibious landing was set for January 22nd, 1944. Codenamed Operation Shingle, the Allies would send 36,000 troops and approximately 2,300 vehicles to blast the German defences at Anzio, which, by the end of May, had increased to 150,000 men and 5,600 aircraft. The Allies met initial success in Operation Shingle, making a deep beachead that was firmly reinforced. However, they soon encountered stiff German resistance and were pinned down for a long period of time with extremely high losses. But as I said before, during this amphibious landing, a breakthrough was also being made at Monte Cassino. Once that happenened, troops from the Gustav Line were able to assist the landing force at Anzio, thus preventing an Allied defeat.