Salerno 1943
Angus Konstam
After the defeat of the Afrika Korps
in North Africa in the Spring of 1943 the Allies drew up
plans for the invasion of Italy. The first objective was
Sicily, and once the island was secured in mid-August the
British and Americans turned their attention to the Italian
mainland. Three weeks after last German troops escaped from
Sicily the British crossed the Straits of Messina to establish
a bridgehead on the “toe” of Italy. Four days
later on 9 September 1943 a joint Anglo-American force commanded
by General Mark Clark landed on the Italian mainland near
Salerno, to the south of Naples.
At first the British met little resistance, but the German
response was swift, and local counter-attacks and the determined
defence of German strongpoints pinned the attackers close
to the beaches. What followed was a gruelling week of attack
and counter-attack, as both sides fought a grim battle for
possession of the hamlets and road junctions which formed
the only landmarks in an otherwise flat river-crossed landscape.
Further to the south the Americans suffered substantial
casualties on the beach near Paestum, but after breaking
the crust of the German defences they managed to advance
far enough inland to safeguard their bridgehead. This meant
they the Americans were also less concentrated than the
British, a point noted by the Germans who concentrated their
troops against the American sector and launched a powerful
counter-attack. The German attack was eventually halted,
but the crisis had been sufficient for General Clark to
contemplate re-embarking his troops. This German defeat,
combined with the advance of Montgomery’s troops from
the south prompted the Germans to break off the fighting
on 16 September and pull their forces back beyond Naples.
The hard-fought battle resulted in an Allied victory, but
for eight days the outcome was in doubt, and defeat was
a distinct possibility. This campaign title will provide
a spirited chronicle of those crucial days in September
1943 when the future of Italy hung in the balance.
