Special Missions: Battle of Anzio . The VI Corps could also have cut Highway 6 and then put much more pressure on the 10th Army than it actually did.[73]. Foreword to CMH Edition. Only enough tank landing ships (LSTs) to land a single division were initially available to Shingle. By January 24, the Germans had over 40,000 troops in prepared defensive positions.[22]. Numerous attacks were launched on 1st Battalion, Loyal Regiment (2nd Brigade) and they lost a company, overrun, and the day after had suffered 200 casualties. Thirteen Allied troops were killed, and 97 wounded; about 200 Germans had been taken as POWs. Planners argued that if Kesselring (in charge of German forces in Italy) pulled troops out of the Gustav Line to defend against the Allied assault, then Allied forces would be able to break through the line; if Kesselring didn't pull troops out of the Gustav Line, then Operation Shingle would threaten to capture Rome and cut off the German units defending the Gustav Line. It did not immediately work as planned. The Allies and Germans fought the battle. The American commanders in particular were determined that nothing should delay the Normandy invasion and the supporting landings in southern France. However, this being deemed problematic, President Roosevelt granted permission for the craft to remain until February 5. It really affected the US Rangers. The battle was Germany’s last chance to regain ...read more, The Battle of Britain in World War II was between Britain’s Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Luftwaffe, Nazi Germany’s air force, and was the first battle in history fought solely in the air. [24][25] Lucas initiated a two-pronged attack on January 30. An expeditionary force commanded by U.S. Major General John P. Lucas secured a beachhead near Anzio and Nettuno on Italy’s west coast, but his divisions were quickly contained by German Field Marshall Albert Kesselring. During this battle, many US Ranger groups were ordered to support an attack by the 3rd Infantry Division on Cisterna. Before the United States entered World War II many conflicts erupted throughout Europe such as the advancement of German troops into various countries (Nash 501-502). His concept was to land two divisions at Anzio, bypassing German forces in central Italy, and take Rome, the strategic objective of the current Battle of Rome. An American Ordnance unit that could boast a battle history dating back to Tobruk blamed its presence at Anzio on its proclivity for always being in the worst place at the worst time. The final plan called for Lucas to lead the US VI Corps in a landing in the Anzio area, followed by an advance into the Alban Hills, to cut German communications and "threaten the rear of the German XIV Panzer Corps"[citation needed] (under Fridolin von Senger und Etterlin). It was also intended to trap the bulk of the German 10th Army between the Allied forces advancing through the Gustav Line and VI Corps thrusting inland from Anzio. The Germans suffered too, with the 362nd Infantry Division estimated to have lost 50% of its fighting strength. The operation was officially canceled on December 18, 1943. At the end of 1943, the terrain of central Italy had proved ideally suited to defense. In addition, he requested that OKW send reinforcements, and in response to this they ordered the equivalent of more than three divisions from France, Yugoslavia, and Germany whilst at the same time releasing to Kesselring a further three divisions in Italy which had been under OKW's direct command. He wanted to get around German forces on the Winter Line. Although resistance had been expected, as seen at Salerno during 1943, the initial landings were essentially unopposed, with the exception of desultory Luftwaffe strafing runs. However, by the end of January 22, the lack of aggressive action convinced him that a defence could be made. Anzio, located 30 miles south of Rome, was one of the deadliest battles of WWII. From 1939 to 1945, the majority of the world's countries battled it out. Climbing the steep slopes of Monte Artemisio they threatened Velletri from the rear and obliged the defenders to withdraw. Part of the Italian Theater of World War II (1939-1945), the campaign was the result of the Allies' inability to penetrate the Gustav Line following their landings at Salerno. By early February, German forces in Fourteenth Army numbered some 100,000 troops organised into two Army Corps, the 1st Parachute Corps under Schlemm and the LXXVI Panzer Corps under Lieutenant General Traugott Herr. In March the infantrymen of the "Barbarigo" Battalion (from Decima Flottiglia MAS) joined the frontline along the Canale Mussolini. 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