The war against Germany and Italy: Mediterranean and adjacent areas

Foreword

During World War II the photographers of the United States Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard created on film a pictorial record of immeasurable value. Thousands of their pictures are preserved in the photographic libraries of the armed services, little seen by the public.

In the volumes of UNITED STATES ARMY IN WORLD WAR II now being prepared by the Office of the Chief of Military History, Department of the Army, it is possible to include only a limited number of pictures. A subseries of pictorial volumes, of which this is one, has been planned to supplement the other volumes of the series. The photographs have been selected to show important terrain features, types of equipment and weapons, living and weather conditions, military operations, and various matters of human interest. These volumes will preserve and make accessible for future reference some of the best pictures of World War II. An appreciation not only of the terrain on which actions were fought, but of its influence on the capabilities and limitations of weapons, in the hands of both our troops and the enemy’s, can be gained through a careful study of the pictures herein presented. Appreciation of these factors is essential to a clear understanding of military history.

This volume, compiled by Lt. Col. John C. Hatlem, USAF, and Capt. Kenneth E. Hunter, with the assistance of Miss Margaret E. Tackley, and edited by W. Brooks Phillips and Miss Mary Ann Bacon, deals with the Mediterranean Theater of Operations and the Middle East. It is divided into five sections: (1) North Africa and the Middle East; (2) Sicily, Corsica, and Sardinia; (3) Italy: 9 September 1943–4 June 1944; (4) Southern France; and (5) Italy: 5 June 1944-2 May 1945. Each section is arranged in chronological order. The written text has been kept to a minimum. Each section is preceded by a brief introduction recounting the major events set down in detail in the individual narrative volumes of UNITED STATES ARMY IN WORLD WAR II. The appendices give information as to the abbreviations used and the sources of the photographs.

Washington, D. C. ORLANDO WARD 1 November 1951 Maj. Gen., USA Chief of Military History

NORTH AFRICA AND THE MIDDLE EAST

SECTION I

North Africa and the Middle East[1]

North Africa

The occupation of French North Africa by Allied troops was determined in July 1942 when the American and British Governments agreed to launch a Mediterranean operation in the fall of 1942. The invasion, designated as TORCH, was to coincide with a British advance westward from Egypt. Before American soldiers did any actual fighting in North Africa, however, and before the United States was at war, civilian and military observers had been informally attached in May 1941 to the U. S. military attaché in Cairo. This group was the beginning of a force whose primary function was to service and maintain lend-lease equipment from the United States, instruct the British in its use, and report on how it stood up under battle conditions. The U. S. Air Force also was performing missions in Egypt several months before the Allied landings in North Africa. All these activities contributed to the British victory at El Alamein in October 1942.

Allied troops sailed for North Africa from ports in both the United States and the United Kingdom. The U. S. Navy and the Royal Navy shared in supplying transports and naval escort and were able to prevent any serious losses through enemy submarine action. Vital air support was at first provided from aircraft carriers of both Navies and later by land-based planes of the Allied air forces utilizing recently captured airfields.

The Allies hoped to avoid French resistance to the landings by arranging for the assistance of patriotic Frenchmen ashore and by the participation in the operation of Gen. Henri Giraud, a French military leader and former Army commander of great prestige who had escaped from France. These plans were only partly successful. The landings on the early morning of 8 November at beaches near Algiers, Oran, Casablanca, Port-Lyautey, Fedala, and Safi met resistance at all objectives. The opposition at Algiers and Safi collapsed quickly. Oran could be occupied only after considerable fighting. French forces, especially naval elements, in the neighborhood of Casablanca resisted strongly, but yielded on 11 November, a few minutes before the final assault on the city itself was to start. After a brief period of neutrality, most of the French forces in northwest Africa joined in the war against the Axis.

The Axis reacted to the Allied invasion by rushing troops to Tunisia by air and sea, and captured the local airfields and ports without opposition. British, American, and French troops drove eastward and at the end of November and in early December launched their attack against the Axis bridgehead. The Allied advance, however, was stopped short of Tunis. Air superiority for the moment lay with the Axis. Lack of means to overcome the increased resistance, in addition to weather conditions which interfered with transport and flying, forced the postponement until 1943 of a renewed advance over the difficult terrain of northern Tunisia.

Meanwhile, the British Eighth Army was pressing German and Italian forces back from Egypt through Libya and reached the southern border of Tunisia in January 1943. Plans could then be perfected for a co-ordinated attack against the remaining Axis forces in North Africa by the British Eighth Army in the south and the Allied troops in the north consisting of the British First Army, the American II Corps, the French XIX Corps, and Allied air forces. Attack by Axis forces at points of their own selection repeatedly interfered with Allied preparations. In February the enemy broke through Faïd Pass and in a series of attacks advanced beyond Kasserine almost to the Algerian border. These attacks were stopped on 21–22 February when the enemy started his withdrawal, destroying bridges and mining the passes behind him.

But the Allied forces were closing in. After attacking and turning the Mareth position, the British Eighth Army defeated the enemy there and pursued him along the coast as far as Enfidaville, less than fifty miles from Tunis. Accelerated Allied air and naval attacks choked off the enemy’s supply and weakened his resistance. At the same time the American II Corps was shifted northwest to a new sector on the left of the British First Army. Then after severe infantry fighting the American II Corps made an armored thrust to Mateur, and after a pause it pushed tank forces east to the sea, separating Bizerte from Tunis. Farther south the British First Army drove directly toward Tunis. On 7 May both Bizerte and Tunis were occupied and by 13 May Axis capitulation was complete. The Allies had achieved their initial objective of opening the Mediterranean route to the Middle East and seizing bases in North Africa. At the same time they had inflicted a major defeat on the Axis Powers.

Allied strength in French North Africa had been brought to a total of about a million men. Much of this strength was not intended for the Tunisia Campaign but for later operations against Sicily and southern Italy. Elaborate training establishments were developed by the American Fifth and Seventh Armies and vast supply depots established with a view to future operations from the African base.

Persian Gulf Command

In June 1942 an American theater of operations called U. S. Army Forces in the Middle East was established with headquarters at Cairo. Under this command were merged various groups and military missions that had been active in this area since the spring of 1941. American responsibilities for moving supplies to the Soviet Union led ultimately to a separation of the Persian Gulf activities of USAFIME and their establishment under an organization that was known from December 1943 to October 1945 as the Persian Gulf Command, with headquarters at Tehran, Iran.

From 1941 to 1945 the main business of the U. S. Army in the Middle East was to facilitate the supply of lend-lease goods to British and Soviet forces. This task involved the construction of docks, warehouses, shops, and highways as well as the operation of ports, a railroad, and a motor transport service in Iran. At the same time the Army constructed numerous airfields and bases, stretching across Egypt, the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Eritrea, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iraq, and Iran.

SICILY, CORSICA, AND SARDINIA

SECTION II

Sicily, Corsica, and Sardinia

The decision to assault Sicily was made by the Chiefs of Staff at Casablanca in January 1943. After the conclusion of the Tunisia Campaign, plans were completed and preparations for the attack were accelerated (Operation HUSKY). The island of Pantelleria, located between North Africa and Sicily, occupied mainly by Italian troops, was bombarded by Air Forces and Navy units and fell on 11 June. Troops for the invasion were embarked from the United States, United Kingdom, Algeria, Tunisia, and the Middle East.

On the night before D Day, a high wind of near gale proportions was encountered as the convoys approached their rendezvous. Shortly after H Hour, 10 July, airborne landings, although scattered by the high wind, were to some extent successful in their effect on our beach assault. Three hours after the landing, beachheads were established from Licata to Scoglitti by the Americans and from Capo Passero to Syracuse by the British.

Despite the problem of supply during the first two days, by 12 July the Allied armies had seized the port of Syracuse and ten other Sicilian towns in addition to several airfields. By the 23d, American tanks and infantry, driving across the western end of the island, took the key port of Palermo. The enemy, in the east, lodged in rugged mountain terrain, offered stiff resistance.

On 25 July King Victor Emmanuel III had announced the resignation of Premier Benito Mussolini and his cabinet, thereby exposing the weakness of fascist Italy. Italian resistance had crumbled and in August the German army started to withdraw to the mainland across the Strait of Messina.

The British Eighth Army succeeded in taking Catania on the east coast early in August, and Messina was entered by both American and British units on the 16th. All organized resistance ceased on 17 August after thirty-nine days of fighting.

Allied Force Headquarters’ plan for the occupation of Corsica and Sardinia was confirmed at the Quebec conference held in August 1943. After the withdrawal of the German forces from Sardinia, the island fell into Allied hands without a struggle. The French army, given the mission of taking Corsica, met only slight resistance from the retreating German troops in October 1943.

Air bases established on both islands provided air coverage for future operations in northern Italy and southern France.

ITALY

(9 September 1943–4 June 1944)

SECTION III

Italy

(9 September 1943–4 June 1944)

The Allied victory in Sicily helped to bring about the surrender of Italy. The terms of the Italian surrender were signed on 3 September 1943 and announced on the night of the 8th. Allied troops received the news on shipboard while under way to invade Italy. Fighting did not cease with the surrender. Instead, the Germans took over the country with troops on the spot and sent reinforcements. The defeat of the Germans in Italy would strengthen Allied control over the Mediterranean shipping lanes and would provide air bases closer to targets in Germany and enemy-occupied territory. The Allied troops in Italy would also engage enemy troops which might otherwise have been employed against the Russians.

On 3 September, elements of the British Eighth Army crossed into Italy and advanced up the Italian toe in pursuit of the retreating Germans. On 9 September the main assault was launched when an Anglo-American force, part of the U. S. Fifth Army, landed on the beaches near Salerno, south of Naples. Since the enemy had expected landings in the vicinity of Naples and had disposed his forces accordingly, the Allies encountered prompt and sustained resistance. By 15 September, however, the Germans started to withdraw up the Italian Peninsula, pursued on the west by the Fifth Army and on the east by the Eighth Army. The port of Naples fell on 1 October and the Foggia airfields about the same time.

After crossing the Volturno River against stiff resistance, the Allies advanced to the Winter Line seventy-five miles south of Rome. In bitterly cold weather the troops slogged through mud and snow to breach the series of heavy defenses and advanced to the Gustav Line. In midJanuary the main Fifth Army launched a new offensive across the Rapido and Garigliano Rivers to pierce the Gustav Line and advance up the Liri Valley toward Rome. Bridgeheads were secured across the rivers and footholds were obtained in Cassino and surrounding hills, but no break-through of the main German positions was effected. A few days after the initial attack against the Gustav Line, an Anglo-American amphibious force landed at Anzio and struck inland with the purpose of compelling the Germans on the southern front to withdraw. But the Allied beachhead force was contained by the enemy’s unexpectedly rapid build-up and was hard pressed to stave off several fierce German counterattacks.

After the Anzio front became stabilized and the effort to take Cassino was abandoned, the AAI (Allied Armies in Italy) regrouped and launched a new offensive on 11 May 1944. Fifth Army, led by French troops and assisted by American troops, broke through the main German positions in the Arunci Mountains west of the Garigliano River while the Eighth Army advanced up the Liri Valley. A few days later the beachhead force effected a junction with the troops from the southern front, and advanced almost to Valmontone on Highway 6 before the axis of attack was shifted to the northwest. After several unsuccessful attacks toward Lanuvio and along the Albano road, the Fifth Army discovered an unguarded point near Velletri, enveloped the German positions based on the Alban Hills, and pushed on rapidly toward Rome, which fell on 4 June 1944 with the Germans in full retreat. Meanwhile preparations were being rushed for an invasion of southern France by Allied troops, most of them drawn from forces in Italy.

[Illustration: ITALY

[Illustration: ITALY

FIRING A PACK HOWITZER. From the establishment of the beachhead the Allied artillery surpassed that of the enemy. Even with limitations imposed on some types of ammunition, the artillery was firing about 25,000 rounds per day. At the same time the enemy fire falling in the port and the rest of the beachhead was estimated to be not more than 1,500 rounds. The amount of Allied artillery increased month by month. At the end of March a battalion of 8-inch howitzers was brought in with the primary mission of demolishing houses used by the enemy as observation posts and strong points. In April a battery of 240-mm. howitzers was added to the beachhead forces. (75-mm. pack howitzer.)

SOUTHERN FRANCE

SECTION IV

Southern France

The offensive operation in southern France, originally scheduled to be executed simultaneously with the Normandy landings, was conceived with the aim of pushing northward from the southern coast, creating a diversion of enemy troops from the northern assault, and generally weakening the German Army in France. This operation was given the code name ANVIL.

A serious shortage of landing craft delayed the invasion until 15 August 1944. Meanwhile preparations for such a landing served as a threat and held a large number of German forces on the southern coast. Craft, used first for the Normandy landings, were then rushed to the Mediterranean for use in mounting ANVIL.

During June and July three divisions which formed the bulk of the U. S. VI Corps were withdrawn from the battle in Italy and sent to port areas for training and for participation in Operation ANVIL. At the same time all the French troops with U. S. Fifth Army were withdrawn to prepare for the invasion. The Allied strategic air forces began the process of neutralizing vital enemy communications and installations in southern France. As D Day approached, a large naval force was amassed in the Mediterranean, and the ground forces, American and French troops, were embarked from Italy, North Africa, and Corsica.

An airborne task force of American and British units, with the mission of preventing the enemy from reinforcing the coastal defense, successfully jumped astride the Argens River behind the German lines before H Hour. Landings took place on 15 August 1944 in the Cannes-Toulon sector against scattered and disorganized resistance from the enemy. The assault forces, assisted by members of the French Resistance forces, pressed their attack rapidly, defeated the enemy along the coast line, and pushed inland. The troops were met with enthusiasm by the French population.

Toulon and Marseille were captured by units of the French forces. By the end of August the combined American and French forces had broken German resistance in southern France, destroyed and put to flight the enemy, and advanced to Lyons. On 11 September 1944 they made junction with the Normandy forces west of Dijon, thereby sealing all of southwestern France.

ITALY

(5 June 1944–2 May 1945)

SECTION V

Italy

(5 June 1944–2 May 1945)

The Allies did not halt after taking Rome, but their northward progress was soon slowed by skillful delaying tactics of the retreating enemy and by the fact that all the French and some of the American divisions were being withdrawn from the U. S. Fifth Army for the operation in southern France. The Germans speeded construction of the Gothic Line in the north Apennines, and early in August 1944 the Allies paused for reorganization on a line running approximately from ten miles north of Ancona on the east through Pisa to the west coast. The Fifth Army held the territory south of the Arno River from the sea to a few miles east of Florence; the British Eighth Army was north of Ancona on the Adriatic.

During August preparations were made by the Allied armies in northern Italy to penetrate the heavily fortified Gothic Line. This defensive system of the enemy extended in general from southeast of La Spezia through the mountains to Rimini. After regrouping and building up supplies, the Allied armies started their offensive on 26 August. They succeeded in breaching the Gothic Line in the center and along the coast, but fierce enemy resistance, bad weather, and a shortage of ammunition and replacements halted the offensive south of the Po River plain by the late fall of 1944. The winter of 1944–45 was spent in the mountains overlooking the Po Valley.

The spring drive by the Allied armies started on 9 April 1945. Bologna fell on 20 April, and armor and infantry overran the plain and divided the German forces. On 2 May 1945 the enemy in Italy surrendered unconditionally.

Appendix A

List of Abbreviations

AA Antiaircraft AC Air Corps AT Antitank cm. Centimeter DD Duplex drive DDT Dichloro-Dithenyl-Trichloroethane Flak Fliegerabwehrkanone (antiaircraft artillery gun) JU. Junkers (designation of airplane built by company of that name) K. Kanone (gun) Kw. Kraftwagen (motor vehicle) Kw.K. Kampfwagenkanone (tank gun) LCI Landing craft, infantry LCI (L) Landing craft, infantry (large) LCM Landing craft, mechanized LCP Landing craft, personnel LCP (R) Landing craft, personnel (ramp) LCT Landing craft, tank LCV Landing craft, vehicle LCVP Landing craft, vehicle-personnel le.P.Kw.K.2s Leichter Personen Kraftwagen, K.2, Schwimmend (light personnel vehicle, K.2, amphibian) LST Landing ship, tank LVT Landing vehicle, tracked mm. Millimeter Pak. Panzerabwehrkanone (antitank gun) Pz. Kpfw. Panzerkampfwagen (tank) SCR Signal Corps Radio S.F.H. Schwere Feld Haubitze (medium field howitzer) Sig C Signal Corps SOC Scout Observation Curtis SP Self-propelled Stu. G. Sturmgeschuetz (self-propelled assault gun) Stu. H. Sturmhaubitze (self-propelled assault howitzer) Stu. K. Sturmkanone (self-propelled assault gun) TD Tank destroyer TNT Trinitrotoluene; trinitrotoluol (high explosive) WAC Women’s Army Corps USAFIME U. S. Army Forces in the Middle East USSR Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

Appendix B

Acknowledgments

The photographs in this volume came from the Department of Defense. All are from the U. S. Army files except the following:

U. S. Navy: pp. 13, 14, 15, 19, 20b, 21, 22, 23, 24, 28, 30, 77, 107, 116, 122b, 125b, 139, 190, 258, 316, 339, 354.

U. S. Air Forces: pp. 10, 12, 18, 42, 43, 45, 46, 47, 64, 71, 73, 80, 90, 91, 92, 94, 97a, 101, 109, 111, 157, 162, 164, 165, 166, 167, 168, 173, 182, 185, 191, 192, 193, 194, 195, 224, 225, 239, 240, 257, 285, 305, 306, 307, 308, 317, 318, 323, 324–25, 326, 327, 328–29, 351, 390, 391, 392, 393, 394, 395.

U. S. Coast Guard: pp. 117, 118, 126, 181, 183a, 315, 333, 334, 336.

Index

Acquafondata, Italy, 216

Acquedolci, Sicily, 140–41

Air attacks. See also Bombardment, aerial. Allied, 12, 71, 94, 157, 164, 173, 239, 240, 282, 305, 306, 307, 393 German, 37, 118, 181, 185

Airbases. See Airfields.

Aircraft, Allied bombers, heavy, 12, 47, 91, 92, 93, 100, 109, 157, 193, 195, 210, 393 bombers, light, 46, 168, 240 bombers, medium, 10, 44, 71, 225, 239 cub planes, 22, 238 damaged, 110, 182 fighter-bomber, 209 fighters, P-38, 45, 85, 390 fighters, P-40, 224, 285 fighters, P-47, 351, 391 fighters, P-51, 392 gliders, 82, 83, 162, 318 naval, 14, 21, 22 transport planes, 5, 73, 82, 100, 111, 162, 317

Aircraft carriers, 14, 15, 22 converted LST, 238

Aircraft, German dive bomber, 42 fighter planes, 43 transports, 71

Aircraft, Italian seaplanes, 165

Airfields Bari, Italy, 192 Cagliari, Sardinia, 165 Capodichino, Italy, 191 Comiso, Sicily, 162 Foggia, Italy, 210 Foggia area, Italy, 194 Italy, 193 Pomigliano, Italy, 191 Port-Lyautey, North Africa, 19 Qualeh Morgeh, Tehran, 100 Youks-Les-Bains, Algeria, 39

Airports. See Airfields.

Algiers, Algeria, 36, 37, 88

Ammunition Allied, 86, 351 loading of, 379 salvage of, 267

Ammunition dumps on fire, 232 Italy, 416 Sicily, 161

Ammunition ship on fire, 118

Amphibian craft “Alligators,” 447

Amphibian tanks, duplex-drive, 330, 335

Amphibian trucks, DUKW, 123, 178, 180, 237, 242

Amphibious landings. See Landing operations.

Antiaircraft guns 37-mm., 58 90-mm., 253 British, 400 German, 371 German, 88-mm., 62, 131 Italian, 75-mm., 8 Self-propelled, 244

Antiaircraft tracer fire, 37

Antiaircraft unit, mobile, 220

Antitank ditch, 370

Antitank grenade, 269

Antitank guns 37-mm., 57 57-mm., 287, 445 German, 357 German, 50-mm., 63 German, 75-mm., 63 German, 88-mm., 62, 131 German, self-propelled, 54

Antisubmarine net, 164

“Anzio Annie,” 257. See also Railway guns.

Anzio, Italy, 235, 241

Armored vehicles. See Vehicles.

Army nurse, 190

Army post office, Algeria, 78

Arno River, Italy, 363, 364, 372

Artillery fire, directing, 135 German, 50, 62, 222, 299 guns, 155-mm., 58, 134, 250, 406 howitzers, 75-mm., 128, 132, 434 howitzers, 105-mm., 11, 52, 133, 207, 361, 362 howitzer, 155-mm., 60 howitzers, 240-mm., 221, 284 Italian, gun, 90-mm., 131 mortars. See Mortars. observation planes, 22, 238 pack howitzers, 75-mm., 83, 266 positions, camouflaged, 248

Assault guns, German, 54, 278, 357

Bailey bridges, 286, 375 construction of, 400

“Bald Hill,” Tunisia, 68

Barbershop, Anzio, Italy, 273

Bari airbase, Italy, 192

Barracks bag, 107

Barrage balloons, 160, 243, 320, 322

Bathing facilities, Italy, 264, 265

Battleship, French, damaged, 23, 340

Bay of Cavalaire, southern France, 323

Bay of Pampelonne, southern France, 324–25

Bazookas, 296, 314. See also Rocket launchers.

Beaches. See Invasion beaches.

Bivouac area, Corsica, 166

Bizerte, Tunisia, 74–75

Blood plasma. See Plasma.

Bologna, Italy, 441

Bomb damage Italy, 226, 282, 287 railroad, 110 repair shop, 167

Bombardment, aerial, 94, 109, 117, 282, 306, 307 See also Air attacks.

Bombers heavy, B-17, 47, 91, 93, 109, 157, 193, 194, 210 heavy, B-17, damaged, 395 heavy, B-24, 12, 92, 100, 194, 305, 308, 393 heavy, B-24, damaged, 394 light, A-20, 46, 168, 240 medium, B-25, 10, 71, 225 medium, B-26, 44, 239

Bombs, loading of, 224, 225

Bomporto, Italy, 443

“Bouncing Betty,” 66. See also Mines.

Brazilian troops, 354

Bridges construction of, 145, 187, 286, 375 destroyed, 187, 286, 307, 374 Highway 7, Italy, 199 Panaro River, Italy, 443 ponton, treadway, 372, 449 railroad, damaged, 446 treadway, 425, 444

Bridging equipment, 425

British troops, 208, 400

Brolo beach, Sicily, 146

Bulldozers, 183, 236, 374. See also Tractor, diesel.

Cagliari field, Sardinia, 165

Caiazzo, Italy, 198

Cameraman, motion picture, 440

Camino Hill mass, Italy, 200

Camouflage aircraft, 44, 285 antiaircraft gun, 244 foxhole, 248 howitzers, 207, 221, 266, 284 “Long Tom,” 250 radar, 219 tank destroyer, 255 vehicle, 263

Campoleone, Italy, 280

Campoleone station, Italy, 246

Cannes area, France, 308

Cape Drammont beach, southern France, 328–29

Cape Sardineau beach, southern France, 326

Capodichino air base, Italy, 191

Carbines. See Small arms.

Cargo gliders. See Gliders.

Cargo ships. See Transport planes.

Caronia Valley, Sicily, 143

Casablanca, French Morocco, 18, 28

Caserta, Italy, 196

Cassino, Italy, 282

Casualties, 277, 319, 334, 435 evacuation of, 126, 127, 179, 212, 258, 336, 408, 420 treatment of, 259

Cavalaire beach, southern France, 323

Cerami, Sicily, 129

Cervaro, Italy, 226

Cheylus area, Tunisia, 56

Christmas dinner, Italy, 213

Cisterna di Littoria, Italy, 240, 247, 279

Civilians French, 345 Italian, 245 Sicilian, 139, 149

Clothing, winter, 378, 401

Colli al Volturno, Italy, 204

Comiso air base, Sicily, 162

Communications repair of, 138 telephone lines, 138, 417, 426 telephone switchboard, 251

Construction bridges, 145, 187, 286, 375 detour, 374 road, 147

Convoy en route to North Africa, 13, 17 en route to southern France, 315 motor, 97, 374

Coreglia Antelminelli, Italy, 396

Crane, truck-mounted, 158

Crew heavy bomber, 92 machine gun, 373 mortar, 229 tank, 40

Cruiser, 21, 116, 124, 316 Italian, 164

Cub planes, 22, 238

Delousing of native labor, 99

Destroyer escort, 14

Detour, 188, 375

Distribution points, gasoline, 355, 405

Djebel Azag, Tunisia, 68

Djebel el Ajred, Tunisia, 68

Djebel Ksaira, Tunisia, 48

Djebel Tahent, Tunisia, 67

Docks Bandar Shahpur, Iran, 96 Khorramshahr, Iran, 95

“Duck.” See Amphibian trucks.

Dugout, German, 334

DUKW. See Amphibian trucks.

Dump ammunition, 161, 232, 416 gasoline, 355, 405

Easter service, Italy, 430

Enclosure, prisoner of war, 76

Equipment, German damaged, 343, 344 on fire, 344

Evacuation of wounded, 126, 127, 212, 336, 420

Evacuation hospital, Italy, 421

Faïd Pass, Tunisia, 48

Fedala harbor, French Morocco, 20

Ferry, Siebel, German, 70

Field bakery, 156

Field hospital. See Hospitals.

Fighter-bomber, A-36, 209

Fighter planes P-38, 45, 85, 390 P-40, 224, 285 P-47, 351, 391 P-51, 392

First aid, 148, 149, 335

Flooded areas, Italy, 194, 195, 214

Foggia air base, Italy, 210

Formia, Italy, 199

Foxholes, 61, 150, 260, 411, 428 camouflaged, 248

Freighters, 242 Allied, on fire, 88, 185

French colonial troops, goumier, 151, 152, 290, 352, 353

French commandos, Corsica, 352

French train, captured, 34

French troops, 86, 339

Furiano Stream, Sicily, 142

Futa Pass, Italy, 368

Gaeta, Italy, 199

Garet Hadid, Tunisia, 48

Garigliano River, Italy, 199

Gasoline cans, 405

Gela, Sicily, 112–13

Generators, smoke, 262, 263

Genoa, Italy, 305

Gibraltar, 30

Gliders, 82, 83, 162, 318

“Green Hill,” Tunisia, 68

Grenade, antitank, 269

“Grizzly Bear,” 299. See also Artillery, German.

Gulf of Gaeta, Italy, 288–89

Gulf of Salerno, Italy, 174

Gun motor carriages, 57, 59, 129, 298, 362, 398

Gunnery practice, aboard transport, 16

Guns. See also Artillery, Antiaircraft guns, and Assault guns. 37-mm., 230 antitank, 287

German, 339

German, 88-mm., 41, 131

German, 150-mm., 376 naval, 3-inch, 16 railway, German, 257 railway, Italian, 231

Half-tracks, 53, 58, 59, 129, 132

Harbors Algiers, Algeria, 36 Anzio, Italy, 241 Bizerte, Tunisia, 108 Casablanca, French Morocco, 18 Fedala, French Morocco, 20 Genoa, Italy, 305 Maddalena, Sardinia, 164 Marseille, France, 341 Naples, Italy, 173 Oran, Algeria, 31 Palermo, Sicily, 137, 159 Safi, French Morocco, 20

Hatab River, Tunisia, 51

Headquarters, underground, 251

Heliopolis Ordnance Repair Depot, Egypt, 6, 7

Highway bridge, demolished, 143

Highways. See also Roads. Albano, Italy, 246 6, Italy, 201, 283, 294 7, Italy, 199, 247, 286 12, Italy, 383 64, Italy, 399, 407, 439 65, Italy, 368, 387, 388, 408, 438 85, Italy, 202 113, Sicily, 140–41, 142, 147 120, Sicily, 130 6524, Italy, 365

“Hill 609,” Tunisia, 67

Hospital, evacuation, Italy, 421

Hospital ship, 258

Hospital train, 212

Hospitals field, 259 field, damaged, 261

Howitzer motor carriages, 11, 128, 132, 133, 309

Howitzers. See Artillery.

Il Giogo Pass, Italy, 365

Immunization of native, Egypt, 9

Infantry column, 69, 79, 189, 342, 366, 414, 419, 423, 432 patrol, 343

Infantrymen, 61, 154, 188, 198, 215, 268, 296, 297, 300, 313, 314, 322, 331, 345, 346, 360, 369, 376, 402, 418, 427, 428, 431, 441, 447, 450 debarking, 35, 321 embarking, 107

Invasion beaches Algeria, North Africa, 31 Anzio, Italy, 235, 236 Brolo, Sicily, 146 Cape Drammont, southern France, 328–29 Cape Sardineau, southern France, 326 Cavalaire, southern France, 323 French Morocco, North Africa, 24, 25 Gela, Sicily, 112–13, 120, 125 Les Andalouses, Algeria, 32 Licata, Sicily, 114 Paestum, Italy, 176–77, 181 Point Anthéor, southern France, 327 Ramatuelle, southern France, 324–25 Scoglitti, Sicily, 115

Invasions, preparations for Anzio, 233 Elba, 352, 353 southern France, 311, 312, 313, 314

Invasion fleet, for Sicily, 74–75

Jefna area, Tunisia, 68

Kasserine Pass area, Tunisia, 51, 53

Ladder, chain, 321

La Goulette, Tunisia, 72

Lake Carda, Italy, 451

Landing craft LCI, 108, 122, 190, 236, 237, 331 LCI on fire, 236 LCM, 26, 27, 33, 119, 122 LCP, 26, 35 LCT, 122, 258, 267 LCV, 25, 26, 27, 125 LCVP, 119, 120, 122, 125, 179, 322 LST, 120, 121, 122, 124, 160, 182, 183, 184, 233, 238, 311, 315, 353 LVT, 447

Landing operations Algeria, North Africa, 33, 35 Anzio, Italy, 236, 237 French Morocco, North Africa, 24, 25, 26, 27 Salerno area, Italy, 179, 180, 183, 184 Sicily, 119, 120, 122, 125 southern France, 322, 331, 332, 333, 334

Leghorn, Italy, 359

Les Andalouses beach, Algeria, 31

Liberty ships, 95

Licata, Sicily, 114

Lifebelts, rubber, 17

Lima River, Italy, 383

Linemen, Signal Corps, 426

Liri Valley area, Italy, 199, 203

Litter bearers, 179, 336, 420. See also Casualties. taking cover, 228

Livergnano, Italy, 387, 417, 427

Livergnano area, Italy, 388

Living conditions, Italy, 195, 410, 422

“Long Tom,” 58, 134, 250, 406. See also Artillery.

Machine guns. See also Small arms. .30-caliber, 206, 373 .50-caliber, 16, 58, 230, 244 German, 337

Maddalena, Sardinia, 164

Maiori beach, Italy, 175

Malaria control operations, 168, 274

Maps Anzio area, Italy, 234 Italy, 170 Sicily, 104 southern France area, 302 Tunisia, xii

Marseille, France, 341

Medical aid men, 148, 149, 322, 335, 336, 402, 420, 435

Medical aid station, southern France, 319

Medical inspection, Italy, 402

Mehdia, French Morocco, 19

Mess, 40, 90, 213, 245

Mess kits, sterilization of, 153

Mess line, 39, 153

Messina, Sicily, 157, 163

Mignano, Italy, 201

Mignano Gap area, Italy, 232

Military police, 415

Mines antipersonnel, German, 66 antitank, 249 detector, SCR, 625, 144, 292, 332 sweeping, 65, 292, 333, 359

Minturno, Italy, 199

Monna Casale, Italy, 202, 203

Monte Cairo, Italy, 201, 203

Monte Camino, Italy, 200, 201, 283

Monte Cannavinelle, Italy, 201

Monte Corno, Italy, 201

Monte della Spe area, Italy, 429

Monte delle Formiche, Italy, 389

Monte Lungo, Italy, 200, 201

Monte Pantano, Italy, 203

Monte Petrella, Italy, 288–89

Monte Porchia, Italy, 200

Monte Ruazzo, Italy, 288–89

Monte Sammucro, Italy, 201, 283

Monte Soprano, Italy, 176–77

Monte Trocchio, Italy, 200, 283

Monte Vigese, Italy, 382

Montecassino, Italy, 200, 203, 239, 281

Mortars 4.2-inch, 218 60-mm., 217 81-mm., 206, 229 crew, 229

Mt. Etna, Sicily, 130

Mt. Vesuvius, eruption of, 285

Mountains. See also Terrain. Colli Laziali, Italy, 247 northern Apennines, Italy, 382, 391 Tunisia, 48, 68

Mud Italy, 384, 385, 386, 424 Tunisia, 93

Mussolini Canal, Italy, 248

Naples, Italy, 173, 189, 354

Native laborers, Tehran, Iran, 99

Naval aircraft, 14, 21, 22

Naval fire support, Sicily, 116, 124

Negro troops, 361, 363, 383, 434

Night firing, 433

Nurse, Army, 259 digging foxhole, 260

Observation posts Italy, 211, 276 Sicily, 135

Obstacle, antitank, 370

Oil tanker, refueling aircraft carrier, 15

Oran, Algeria, 87

Oran harbor, Algeria, 31

Ordnance Repair Depot, Egypt, 7

Pack mules, 154, 155, 379, 384, 424

Pack trains, Italy, 205, 206, 290, 367

Paestum beach, Italy, 176–77

Palace, Caserta, Italy, 196

Palermo, Sicily, 136, 137, 159

Panaro River, Italy, 443

Parachute troops, 80, 81, 111

Partisans Free French, 338 Italian, 442

Patroling, 401, 431

Pianoro, Italy, 438

Pierced steel planks, 210, 225

Pillboxes, German, 131, 337 cast iron, 293 portable, 293

Pipelines, Italy, 403, 404

Pisa, Italy, 360

Plasma, 149

Ploesti oil refineries, on fire, 12

Po River, Italy, 444, 445, 447, 448, 449

Point Anthéor, southern France, 327

Pomigliano air base, Italy, 191

Ponton causeways, portable, 236, 237

Ponton treadway bridges, 449

Ports. See also Harbors. Bandar Shahpur, Iran, 96 Khorramshahr, Iran, 95 Lyautey, North Africa, 19

Pozzilli, Italy, 202

Prato, Italy, 432

“Priest,” 11, 133, 309, 362. See also Vehicles armored.

Prisoners of war French, 33, 38 German, 76, 254, 437, 452, 453 Italian, 123

Pumping station, pipeline, Italy, 403

Pyramids, Egypt, 5

Quarters aboard transport ship, 77 Italy, 410

Querceta, Italy, 436

Radar SCR 268, 29 SCR 547, 219 SCR 584, 252

Railroads Iran, 95, 96, 98 Italy, 199 North Africa, 34 Sicily, 110

Railroad bridges demolished, Sicily, 143 Italy, 446

Railroad station, Iran, 98

Railroad yards on fire, 173 Italy, 94 Sicily, 137

Railway guns German, 280-mm., 257 Italian, 231

Ramatuelle, southern France, 324–25

Ramatuelle beach, southern France, 324–25

Ramp, ponton, sectional, 121, 182, 184

Rapido River area, Italy, 227

Ration depot, Anzio, Italy, 270

Recreation concert, 272 sight-seeing, 412

Red Cross worker, Italy, 421

Refueling of aircraft carrier, 15

Reno River, Italy, 429, 440

Repair of aircraft, 91

Repair depot, Italy, 223

Repair shop, electrical, 167

Rhone River, France, 307

Rifles. See also Small arms. .30-caliber Garand M1, 427 .30-caliber M1903A 4, 198 Browning automatic, 296

River crossings, Italy, 363, 440, 446, 448

Rivers France, 307 French Morocco, 19 Italy, 197, 199, 202, 214, 363, 364, 372, 383, 429, 440, 444, 445, 447, 448, 449 Tunisia, 51

Roads. See also Highways. Iran, 97 Italy, 204, 228, 384, 386, 415, 423, 432, 439 Sicily, 114, 128 Tunisia, 48, 69

Rocket gun, German, 150-mm., 64

Rocket launchers, 314, 351, 413

Rocket ship, converted LCT, 320

Rome, Italy, 94, 295, 298, 299, 412 outskirts of, 297

Russian pilots, 101

Russian troops, Iran, 100

Safi harbor, French Morocco, 20

Salerno, Italy, 187

Salvage depot, Italy, 377

Salvage of shell cases, 267

San Fratello ridge, Sicily, 140–41, 142

San Pietro Infine, Italy, 201, 283

Santa Maria Infante, Italy, 287

Scoglitti, Sicily, 115

Scout observation plane, 21

Seaplane base, Sardinia, 165

Searchlight for radar, 29

Sebou River, French Morocco, 19

Semaphore flags, 26

Shell, German, explosion of, 409

Shell fire, German, 216

Small arms, 198, 206, 268, 296, 419, 427

Smoke pots, 227

Smoke screens, 159, 211, 263, 332, 381

Snowplow, 407

Staging area, Italy, 310

Submachine gun, .45-caliber, 268

Submarine base, Toulon, France, 306

Supply depot, 87

Supply operations aerial drop, 209, 317 Italy, 242, 369, 418, 423

Tank destroyers, 57, 59, 255, 397, 436, 451 damaged, 278 German, 357

Tank recovery vehicles, 278, 293, 399. See also Tanks.

Tanks damaged, 7, 377 German, heavy, 41, 256, 356 German, medium, 50, 54, 357 Italian, medium, 55 light, 28, 56, 290, 291, 434 maintenance of, 223 medium, 40, 49, 53, 69, 85, 136, 184, 275, 291, 364, 380, 398, 425, 439, 440 medium with “Scorpion” attachment, 65 medium, waterproofed, 84, 330, 335 on fire, 295 rubber, dummy, 275 turret, German, 337

Tarascon, France, 307

Telephone lines. See Communications.

Terracina beach, Italy, 292

Terrain Camino Hill mass area, Italy, 200 Campoleone area, Italy, 280 Cassino area, Italy, 283 Futa Pass area, Italy, 368 Garigliano area, Italy, 199 Gothic Line area, Italy, 365, 366, 367 Gulf of Gaeta, Italy, 288–89 Gulf of Salerno, Italy, 174, 175 Middle East, 97 Mignano Gap area, Italy, 201 Monna Casale area, Italy, 203 Monte Belvedere area, Italy, 419 Monte della Spe area, Italy, 429 Monte del le Formiche area, Italy, 389 Montecassino area, Italy, 281 North Africa, 48, 51, 67, 68, 69, 79 northern Apennines, Italy, 382, 391 Paestum area, Italy, 176–77 Pianoro area, Italy, 438 Salerno area, Italy, 186 Serchio Valley area, Italy, 396 Sicily, 130, 140–41, 142, 143, 146, 152 southern France, 318, 323, 324–25, 328–29 Volturno Valley area, Italy, 202

Toulon, France, 306, 339

Tractors, diesel, 236, 374 with angledozer, 125

Traffic control point, Italy, 415

Trains freight, Iran, 98 French, captured, 34 hospital, 212

Training Italy, 217, 309 North Africa, 79, 80, 81, 84 of British, 6 of French, 86

Transport planes C-47, 5, 82, 100, 111, 162, 317 C-54, 73

Transport ships, 16 en route to French Morocco, 17

Troina, Sicily, 130

Tufo, Italy, 199

Tunis, Tunisia, 72

Unloading operations, 33, 85, 121, 158, 242 Lend-lease, 85, 95

Valmontone, Italy, 294

Vehicles, 310, 384 ambulances, 212, 408 amphibian. See Amphibian trucks. armored, 230, 362, 433. See also Howitzer motor carriages and Gun motor carriages. armored, waterproofed, 309 bogged down, 214 bulldozer, 183. See also Tractors, diesel. cargo carriers, 385, 423 caterpillar, 58 German, 50, 358 half-tracks. See Half-tracks. jeep, waterproofed, 27 jeeps, 53, 213, 383, 386, 415 snowplow, 407 tank destroyers. See Tank destroyers, tank recovery, 278, 293, 399. See also Tanks, tanks. See Tanks, tractors. See Tractors, diesel. trucks, 97, 121, 184, 381, 386, 409 truck, waterproofed, 334 truck, wrecked, 367

Velletri, Italy, 247

Venafro, Italy, 201

Vicenza, Italy, 450

Volturno River, Italy, 197, 202, 214

“Weasel,” 385, 423. See also Vehicles, cargo carriers.

Women Army nurses, 190, 259, 260 Red Cross worker, 421

Wac’s, North Africa, 89

Wounded. See Casualties.

U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1988 0-194-423: QL 3

PIN: 039020-000

FOOTNOTES:

[1] See George F. Howe, Operations in Northwest Africa, 1941–1943, in the series U. S. ARMY IN WORLD WAR II; and T. H. Vail Motter, The Persian Corridor and Aid to Russia, Washington, 1951, in the same series.

Transcriber’s Note:

Obvious printers’, punctuation and spelling errors have been corrected silently.

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