In Salerno

THE BRITISH ARMY

september 1943

Memories from the

the following picture are available on the thImperial War Museum website released with IWM non commercial license

Imperial War

Museum

On June 1940, Italy
aligned itself with
Germany
and declared war
upon France.

November 1941

Eastern Africa

The Italian Army
in East Africa were
finally defeated at the
Battle of Gondar
only some guerrilla
activities ended
in 1943

IWM E 2367
fascist stone monument at
Kismayu in Italian Somaliland,
11 April 1941.

British forces based in Egypt were ordered to undertake only defensive measures,
but on June they began a series of raids against Italian positions in Libya. After victory
by the Allies in 1943 a new stage was set for the Italian Campaign to begin.
The invasion of european fortress followed few months late.

North African campaign

IWM A 16321

1943, Italian and german war prisoners in Africa

IWM A 17045

Once the Axis forces had been defeated in Africa,
the Allied strategic bomber force commenced
attacks on the principal airfields, ports and
industrial targets of Sardinia, Sicily and southern
Italy. Their attacks didn't save the italian cities.

BOMBING ITALY

IWM C 3772

IWM CNA 1139
Flying Officer
Colin Edmends
from Australia
and his fitter,
D. McMinnemy,
inspect the tail
of his
Curtiss Kittyhawk

IWM A 17959

SICILY 10th JUNE 1943, OPERATION HUSKY

Royal Navy brings the invasion forces, troops dashing ashore from landing craft.
Two American and two British attacks were carried out just after midnight

On 25 July 1943, during the Great Council of Fascism an "order of the day"
of Dino Grandi was adopted by majority vote, with that order Mussolini
was dismissed as prime minister. Leaving the council,
Mussolini was arrested by carabinieri and spirited off to the island of Ponza.
Badoglio became prime minister.

MUSSOLINI ARRESTED

IWM MH 10946 Lieutenant General George Patton watches operations

At the end of july
Kesselring had realised
that the outcome of the
campaign would be an
evacuation from Messina.

SICILY DEFEAT

IWM MH 10946
Lieutenant General George Patton
watches operations.

The italian general Alfredo Guzzoni
reported to Rome that,
without German troops,
any defence would only been short.

SICILY DEFEAT

IWM C 3772 British troops advance through Pachino

On 3th september, in Cassibile, the Kingdom of Italy with Giuseppe Castellano
signed an armistice with the Allied Forces and their representative Walter Bedell Smith.
The armistice stipulated the surrender of Italy and was secret for some days.

ARMISTICE

IWM MH 10946 Lieutenant General George Patton watches operations

At the end of july Kesselring had realised that the outcome of the campaign would be
an evacuation from Messina. The italian general Alfredo Guzzoni reported to Rome
that, without German troops, any defence would only been short

BOARDING IN TUNISIA

IWM MH 10946 Lieutenant General George Patton watches operations

IWM C 3772 British troops advance through Pachino

8th september

Dwight D. Eisenhower, to force the Italian Government announced the armistice at
Radio Algeri. Head of italian government Badoglio leaved Rome with the military high
command and the royal family. They leaved the Italian soldiers without a strategy,
Germans began to occupy the italian cities capturing many of them, more than half of
all Italian soldiers laid down their arms and tried to go back home.
In the Salerno war field general Ferrante Gonzaga was the head of italian coastal defense.
He was killed in the night by nazi soldiers because he refused to lay down arms.

IWM NA 6786

IWM HU 51040

IWM NA 7113

A big fleet of ships and submarines leaved the north Africa coast,
with more than 170.000 soldiers on board.
100.000 of them, was serving the Royal British Army.

SALERNO!

IWM A 20224

IWM A 19156

On 9th september started the Operation Avalanche with different
landing in Maiori, Pontecagnano, Battipaglia, Eboli, Capaccio and Sapri.

3.30 am

IWM A 19251

General Mark Clark was the chief of the operations while general Montgomery lead
the troops coming from Calabria. Maresciallo Badoglio had signed the armistice so
that italian Army didn't fight the Allieds but German divisions of Fld. Mrshl. Albert
Kesselring were ready in the coastal italian defense.

IWM NA 6786

IWM HU 51040

IWM NA 7113

taranto

IWM NA 6630

IWM NA 6646

In the Gulf of Salerno landings were carried out with no previous
naval or aerial bombardment in order to achieve surprise.

IWM NA 6630

IWM NA 6646

But surprise was not achieved, germans defense was very strong,
they were determined to resist.

IWM MH 6339

IWM MH 6340

But surprise was not achieved, germans defense was very strong, they were determined to resist

IWM A 20225

the germans replied to initial allied effort
with a concerted counterattack
realized with motorized troops,
hoping to throw the allied beachhead
into the sea before it could link with the
British Eighth Army.

GERMAN COUNTERATTACK

IWM NA 6836
During 12 - 13 September, the Germans mounted
their strongest counter-attack, dividing the Allied
forces and almost forcing them to evacuate completely.
Men of the 9th Battalion, Royal Fusiliers at an observation
post at the window of a ruined house.

Before signing the troops re-boarding
order general Clark asked an
intensive bombing.
No location was saved.
That decision caused many damages
and victims among civilians.
Kids killed in Buccino,
remembered in the "pallone di pezza",
at Vallo della Lucania,
the nine "animelle",
Altavilla and Battipaglia destroyed.

NAVAL AND AEREAL BOMBING

IWM CNA 2103
this picture represents a following operation during the Sangro river battle

Due its strategic position the city of Battipaglia
was one of the most critical objectives
of the contenders. It was conquered and lost
both by germans both by allied, many times.

THE BATTIPAGLIA SACRIFICE

IWM NA 6985

IWM NA 6984

IWM NA 6983

IWM NA 6982

Kitted out temporarily as an American private
with bucket helmet, hip-clinging trousers and
gated boots,I picked up a lift in an American
truck going in the direction of Naples, which
had fallen three days before, and where I supposed
my section would already be installed.
At Battipaglia, it was all change, with an opportunity
for close- quarters study of the effects of the carpet
bombing ordered by General Clark.
The general has become the destroying angel
of southern Italy. Here in Battipaglia,
we had an Italian Guernica -a town transformed
in a matter of seconds to a heap of rubble.
An old man who came to beg said that
practically nobody had been left alive,
and that the bodies were still under the ruins.
From the stench, and from the sight of the flies
streaming like black smoke into and out of the holes
in the ground, this was entirely believable.

THE ITALIAN GUERNICA

On the left Norman Lewis, picture not in IWM archives

Original wartime caption:
Three men of the 9th Bn. Royal Fusiliers, who
spent 5 days hiding from the enemy in
Battipaglia.They are:
Sgt. Danny Hogan, Hammersmith,
London L/Cpl. F. Crew of Shoredtich,
London Sgt. S. Judd of Erith, Kent.
The 9th Royal Fusiliers advanced into the town
of Battipaglia at midnight 9th-10th September
1943. There was no opposition, at 8 a.m. on
the 10th September 1943 the Battalion knew
they were cut off by German armour who came
around their right and left flanks.

THE HISTORY OF
HOGAN, JUDD AND CREW

IWM NA 6970

They made a fighting withdrawal and some of
them got back to Allied lines. But 39 men were
still in one house in the centre of the town.
The enemy searched the lower floors and set
up HQ in the next house. The Fusiliers had
no water and no food, a sentry was always
on to stop the men from snoring.
They made occasional recces for food and
water, and on one occasion knocked out
two machine gun nests and killed 8 Germans
on their search for an escape road.
On the fourth day Sgt. Hogan volunteered
to go out and find an escape path, for the others.
He got out, waded down the River Tusciano
with his puttees wrapped

THE HISTORY OF
HOGAN, JUDD AND CREW

IWM NA 6970

The Naval Bombing helped to resists to
the germans counter-attack.
Here the original description of IWM:
The Deputy Commander-in-Chief and
Ground Forces Commander, General
the Hon Sir Harold Alexander with the
Commander of the 5th Army,
Lieutenant-General Mark W Clark
and the Commander of the British
10th Corps, Lieutenant-General
Sir Richard McCreery during Alexander's
flying visit to the Salerno beaches
on 15 September 1943.
His visit finally stopped plans to evacuate
the beachhead.

DEFEAT AVOIDED

WM NA 6822

The British Army

in Salerno

sep. 1943

saved memory

in the

Imperial War

Museum

Archives

2020 published by Mu.Bat

the following images are available on
www.iwm.org.uk
released under the
IWM non commercial license