Fifth Army in Italy, 1943–1945
Title | Fifth Army in Italy, 1943–1945 PDF eBook |
Author | Ian Blackwell |
Publisher | Casemate Publishers |
Pages | 476 |
Release | 2014-01-19 |
Genre | History |
ISBN | 1783032448 |
A history of the Allied coalition in Italy during World War II. The US Fifth Army first saw action during the Salerno Landings in September 1943. While commanded by US Lieutenant General Mark Clark, from the outset one of its two Corps was the X (British) Corps; the other V1 (US) Corps. The multi-national composition of Fifth Army is demonstrated by the French Expeditionary Corps, the Brazilian Expeditionary Force, the South African Armoured Division, the Italian Co-Belligerent forces, formations from the New Zealand Corps and the 4th Indian Division. Clark’s Fifth Army was itself part of the Fifteenth Army Group, commanded by Field Marshal Alexander. Alexander’s light and diplomatic touch oiled the wheels of this uneasy arrangement but inevitably there were tensions and disagreements that threatened success. The low priority accorded to Italy as compared with OVERLORD and NW Europe did not help matters. Seen as a backwater, crack units were taken away and insufficient resources allocated to the Italian Campaign. This combined with the tenacity of the Germans, the difficult terrain and the harsh climate caused real problems. Allied morale was at times particularly brittle and desertion rates worryingly high. This superbly researched book objectively examines the performance of Fifth Army against this complex and troublesome backdrop. The author’s findings make for authoritative and fascinating reading and give food for thought about multinational cooperation in more recent conflicts.
Tug of War
Title | Tug of War PDF eBook |
Author | Shelfold Bidwell |
Publisher | Pen and Sword |
Pages | 452 |
Release | 2004-05-30 |
Genre | History |
ISBN | 1844150984 |
When the Allies invaded mainland Italy in 1943 they intended only a clearing-up operation to knock Italy out of the war, but Hitler ordered the German armies to defend every foot of the country. The 'Tug of War' was the mysterious force which caused a war to race out of control, and attract vast numbers of men, tanks, guns and aircraft. The book analyses the main battles of Salerno, Cassino, Anzio and the march on Rome.
Circles of Hell
Title | Circles of Hell PDF eBook |
Author | Eric Morris |
Publisher | Random House (UK) |
Pages | 542 |
Release | 1993 |
Genre | Cassino, Battle of, Cassino, Italy, 1944 |
ISBN |
From the Volturno to the Winter Line (6 October-15 November 1943).
Title | From the Volturno to the Winter Line (6 October-15 November 1943). PDF eBook |
Author | United States. War Department. General Staff |
Publisher | |
Pages | 136 |
Release | 1944 |
Genre | World War, 1939-1945 |
ISBN |
From Salerno to the Alps
Title | From Salerno to the Alps PDF eBook |
Author | Chester G. Starr |
Publisher | |
Pages | 602 |
Release | 1948 |
Genre | World War, 1939-1945 |
ISBN |
Allied Armies in Sicily and Italy, 1943–1945
Title | Allied Armies in Sicily and Italy, 1943–1945 PDF eBook |
Author | Simon Forty |
Publisher | Pen and Sword Military |
Pages | 144 |
Release | 2020-03-30 |
Genre | History |
ISBN | 152676623X |
The Italian campaign was one of the most debated of the Second World War, splitting the American and British allies, and causing great disharmony. After the fall of Rome and the surrender of Italy, the invasion of Normandy led to the Italian campaign becoming a sideshow as the ‘D-Day Dodgers’ fought their way through Italy to the Alps against a grinding defence and extreme weather. In a sequence of 200 wartime photographs Simon Forty sums up the major events of the conflict – from the landings on Sicily to the crossing of the Po. Commanded first by Sir Harold Alexander and then Mark Clark, the Allied armies (US Fifth and British Eighth) drew men not only from Britain, the United States, France and Poland but from all over the Commonwealth – from Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand and South Africa – as well as such other countries as Brazil, Czechoslovakia, Greece and Palestine. The devastation caused by the war in the cities, towns and countryside is part of the story, but perhaps the most powerful impression is made by the faces of the soldiers themselves as they look out from the Italian front of so long ago.
Forgotten Battles
Title | Forgotten Battles PDF eBook |
Author | Charles T. O'Reilly |
Publisher | Lexington Books |
Pages | 390 |
Release | 2001 |
Genre | History |
ISBN | 9780739101957 |
Italy's War of Liberation takes issue with the apparently prevalent attitude among Allied commanders during World War II that the Italian military was ineffective. O'Reilly recounts the little-known story of the significant contribution made by the Italian military during the Italian Campaign, including the contribution of relatively unacknowledged Italian Partisan formations that fought in Italy, France, Yugoslavia, and Greece. Despite the fact that Italians fought on the front lines with the British and American soldiers, and despite the service of the Italian Navy and Air Force, the Allies refused repeated Italian pleas for more involvement in combat. This book not only attempts to correct the record of military history by illustrating the ways in which the Italians were underutilized by the Allies, but it also serves to paint a fair portrait of the Italian military's substantial efforts to defeat Hitler and eradicate Fascism.