THE GOTHIC LINE-ITALY 1944
Posted: Sat Dec 13, 2014 11:08 am
The Gothic Line, renamed Green Line in June 1944, was the final main German defensive line in northern Italy. The line stretched from the area south of La Spezia on the west coast of Italy through the Appennine Mountains to the area between Pesaro and Ravenna on the east coast. It featured 2,376 machine gun nests, 479 gun positions, concrete bunkers, barbed wire, anti-tank ditches, and natural terrain favouring the defenders.
By Aug 1944, the Germans in Italy were plagued with increased Italian partisan activity behind the front lines, while the Allies commanders in Italy were frustrated by their superiors transferring forces under their control for the new front in France; by the first week of Aug, strength of British 8th Army had fallen from the height of 249,000 men to about 153,000, for example.
Although France now became the main front for the Allies to break into the heart of Germany, the Italian campaign was not cancelled, as it had political value. If the American and British forces were able to take northern Italy, they would have a chance to advance further north into Austria and Hungary to lessen post-war Soviet influence in that region.
The Battle of the Gothic Line was to cost the Allies 40,000 casualties-was it worth these losses in the long run?? Did the Allies advance into Austria and Hungary and if so -to what end??
By Aug 1944, the Germans in Italy were plagued with increased Italian partisan activity behind the front lines, while the Allies commanders in Italy were frustrated by their superiors transferring forces under their control for the new front in France; by the first week of Aug, strength of British 8th Army had fallen from the height of 249,000 men to about 153,000, for example.
Although France now became the main front for the Allies to break into the heart of Germany, the Italian campaign was not cancelled, as it had political value. If the American and British forces were able to take northern Italy, they would have a chance to advance further north into Austria and Hungary to lessen post-war Soviet influence in that region.
The Battle of the Gothic Line was to cost the Allies 40,000 casualties-was it worth these losses in the long run?? Did the Allies advance into Austria and Hungary and if so -to what end??