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Battle of Monte Cassino

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Battle of Monte Cassino
Part of World War II, Italian Campaign
Battle of Monte Cassino
Ruins of Monte Cassino after the battle
DateJanuary 4, 1944 – May 19, 1944
Location
Monte Cassino, Italy
Result Allied victory
Belligerents
Western Allies:
United States
United Kingdom
Poland
New Zealand
India
Free French
Morocco
and others		 Nazi Germany
Commanders and leaders
Harold Alexander Albert Kesselring
Frido von Senger
Richard Heidrich
Strength
? ?
Casualties and losses
54,000 20,000

The Battle of Monte Cassino (also known as the Battle for Rome and the Battle for Cassino) was a costly series of battles in World War II, fought by the Allies with the intention of breaking through the Gustav Line, seizing Rome and linking up with Allied forces that had landed at Anzio in Operation Shingle and were still contained there.

Destruction of the Abbey

It was decided that in order to take the town of Cassino, the 1300 year old Benedictan Monastery at the top of the 1100 metre peak of Monte Cassino would have to fall to the allies. The final decision to bomb the monastery came from a surprising place. The New Zealand general, Lieutenant-General Freyberg was reluctant to bomb such an important piece of world history. He did however request to do this from the leadership of the Church. On February 15th, Pope Pius XII granted permission, and American B17 bombers began dropping the first of 2,500 tons of bombs to destroy the stone monastery. The rubble, however provided excellent places for the Germans to defend it. [1]

Initial assaults

The first battle started on January 4, 1944 and the monastery atop the hill was destroyed by Allied bombing on February 15. Allied aircraft heavily bombed the ruins of the monastery and staged an assault on March 15.

During three failed attempts to take the heavily-guarded monastery of Monte Cassino (January 17–25, February 15–February 18, March 15–March 25), the forces of the USA, the UK, France, India, Canada, South Africa and New Zealand lost approximately 54,000 men yet did not manage to seize the city or the castle overlooking the Rapido River valley.

Fourth and Final battle

The so-called Fourth Battle of Monte Cassino was fought by the 2nd Polish Corps under General Władysław Anders (May 11–May 19) and the 4th Indian Division of the British Army. The Indian divisions stationed there helped in the capturing of the main Gunnery for which a member of the Indian armed forces was awarded with the Victoria Cross for his daring raid into the gunnery and killing all there.

The first assault (May 11–May 12) brought heavy losses but also allowed the British Eighth Army under General Sir Oliver Leese to break through German lines in the Liri river valley below the monastery.

The second assault (May 17–May 19), carried out at immense cost by the Polish troops and the key out-flanking movement in the mountains by skilled Moroccan soldiers of the 4ème Division Marocaine de Montagne (French Expeditionary Corps CEF), pushed the German 1st Parachute Division out of its positions on the hills surrounding the monastery and almost surrounded them. In the early morning of May 18 a reconnaissance group of Polish 12th Podolian Uhlans Regiment occupied the ruins of the monastery after it was evacuated by the Germans.

The capture of Monte Cassino allowed the British and American divisions to begin the advance on Rome, which fell on June 4 1944 just two days before the Normandy invasion.

In the course of the battles the historic monastery of Monte Cassino, where St. Benedict first established the rule that ordered monasticism in the west, was entirely destroyed by the US Army Air Force. Fortunately its irreplaceable library had been removed for safekeeping to Rome at the start of the Battle by the Germans. The site has since been rebuilt, but the historic buildings are gone.

Immediately after the cessation of fighting at Monte Cassino, the Polish government in Exile (in London) created the Monte Cassino campaign cross to commemorate the Polish part in the capture of the strategic point. Later, an imposing Polish cemetery was laid out; this is prominently visible to anybody surveying the area from the restored monastery.

The destruction of the abbey was also the inspiration for Walter M. Miller Jr. to write his critically acclaimed novel A Canticle for Leibowitz, which gives a view of monastic life in a post-apocalyptic world. He served as bomber crew member in the U.S. Army Air Force during the battle and it was his traumatic first-hand experience of the annihilation of the monastery that led to him writing the book.

Bibliography and references

English

  1. Tadeusz Krząstek (1984). Battle of Monte Cassino, 1944. Polish Interpress Agency.
  2. David Hapgood (1984). Monte Cassino. St. Martin's Press. ISBN 0865531056.
  3. Herbert Bloch (1979). The bombardment of Monte Cassino (February 14-16, 1944): A new appraisal. Tipografia Italo-orientale.
  4. Sven Hassel (2003). Monte Cassino (Cassell Military Paperbacks). Cassel. ISBN 0304366323.
  5. Matthew Parker (2004). Monte Cassino: The Hardest-Fought Battle of World War II. Doubleday. ISBN 0385509855.
  6. various authors (2000). Monte Cassino : historia, ludzie, pamięć = history, people, memory. Askon. ISBN 8387545252.
  7. John Ellis (2003). Cassino: The Hollow Victory: The Battle for Rome January-June 1944. Aurum Press. ISBN 1854109162.
  8. Monte Cassino: The Story of the Most Controversial Battle of World War II. Da Capo Press. 2002. ISBN 0306811219. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |Aur= ignored (help)
  9. George Forty (2004). Battle For Monte Cassino. Ian Allan Publishing. ISBN 0711030243.
  10. Gerhard Muhm : German Tactics in the Italian Campaign , http://www.larchivio.org/xoom/gerhardmuhm2.htm

German

  1. Katriel BenArie. Die Schlacht bei Monte Cassino 1944. Rombach Verlag. ISBN ISBN 3793001881.
  2. Janusz Piekałkiewicz. Die Schlacht von Monte Cassino. Zwanzig Völker ringen um einen Berg. Augsburg: Bechtermünz Verlag. ISBN 3860479091.
  3. E. D. Smith. Der Kampf um Monte Cassino 1944. Stuttgart: Motorbuch Verlag. ISBN 361301095X.
  4. Heinz Konsalik. Sie fielen vom Himmel. ISBN 3704313297.
  5. Gerhard Muhm : German Tactics in the Italian Campaign , http://www.larchivio.org/xoom/gerhardmuhm2.htm
  1. Gerhard Muhm, La tattica tedesca nella campagna d'Italia, in Linea gotica avamposto dei Balcani, a cura di Amedeo Montemaggi - Edizioni Civitas, Roma 1993

Polish

  1. Melchior Wańkowicz (1993). Szkice spod Monte Cassino. Wiedza Powszechna. ISBN 832140913X.
  2. Melchior Wańkowicz (1989). Bitwa o Monte Cassino. Warsaw: Wydawnictwa MON. ISBN 8311076510.
  3. Melchior Wańkowicz (1990). Monte Cassino. Warsaw: PAX. ISBN 8321113885.
  4. various authors (2000). Monte Cassino : historia, ludzie, pamięć = history, people, memory. Askon. ISBN 8387545252.
  5. various authors (2004). Monte Cassino. Warsaw: Askon. ISBN 8387545805.
  6. Janusz Piekałkiewicz (2003). Monte Cassino. Agencja Wydawnicza Morex. ISBN 8372500789.
  7. Zbigniew Wawer (1994). Monte Cassino 1944. Bellona. ISBN 8311083118.

Belarusian

  1. Piotra Sych (1963). Сьмерць і салаўі (Death and nightingales).
  2. various (2004). Беларусі ў бітве за Монтэ-Касіна. Minsk: Беларускі кнігазбор. ISBN 9856730767.
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