Italian campaign (World War II)

Italian Campaign
Part of the Mediterranean and Middle East theatres and European theatre of World War II
Map of the Spring 1945 offensive in Italy
Date 9 July 1943 – 2 May 1945 Location Italy Result Allied victory
Belligerents
Allies  United Kingdom  Newfoundland  India  New Zealand  United States  Free French (until 1944)  Canada  South Africa (from 1944)  Poland  Brazil (from 1944) Greece (until 1944)  Nepal  Australia (naval support) (and others)  Italy (from September 1943) Italian partisans  Yugoslavia	Axis  Germany  Salò Republic (from 1943) Kosakenland (from 1944)  Italy (until September 1943) (and others)  Chetniks
Commanders and leaders
Winston Churchill Henry Wilson Harold Alexander Oliver Leese Richard McCreery Bernard Montgomery Franklin D. Roosevelt # Harry S. Truman Dwight D. Eisenhower Mark W. Clark Lucian Truscott George S. Patton Josip Broz Tito	Adolf Hitler  † Albert Kesselring (WIA) Heinrich von Vietinghoff  Eberhard von Mackensen Joachim Lemelsen  Traugott Herr (POW) Hans-Valentin Hube Benito Mussolini   Rodolfo Graziani  Vittorio Ambrosio  Alfredo Guzzoni (POW) Mario Arisio
Units involved
8th Army 5th Army 7th Army (1943) 4th Army (1945)	14th Army 10th Army 6th Army (1943)  National Republican Army

The Italian campaign of World War II, also called the Liberation of Italy, was a military campaign in the Kingdom of Italy from 1943 to 1945. After achieving victory in the North African campaign, the British and American governments agreed to invade Italy before liberating France. In September 1943, Italy surrendered to the Allies, but the German forces in the country occupied the north of the country and set up a fascist government.

History

In July 1943, the Allied forces landed in Sicily. With the declining popularity of Benito Mussolini, King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy deposed and had him arrested. Then the Allied forces landed in mainland Italy in September and the government surrendered. The German forces occupied Italy and the Italian Social Republic was formed, starting a civil war.

In January 1944, the Battle of Monte Cassino started and it lasted a few months. The Allies won, they liberated Rome and pushed up the Italian mainland.

The Axis forces would build a Defence Line in the north in late 1944 that would be successful with preventing the Allies from reaching the rest of the country for months (thought there were major battles like the Allied victory at Rimini, and the Axis victory at Garfagnana).

In April 1945, the Allied forces began the last offensive into Italy, Mussolini was executed by an Italian partisan on the 28th of April. around the same time Mussolini was executed, Axis forces unsuccessfully fought US-Brazilian forces (and local partisans) at the Battle of Collecchio where the axis surrendered on the 29th. On the 1st of May, the New Zealanders met the Yugoslavs near Monfalcone, that same day the National Republican Army (the army of the RSI) surrendered. The next day, the other Axis forces surrendered and the war in Italy ended.

References