Rome Liberated 5 Jun '44
North Africa Cemetery
The MTO:    Background   Overview    North Africa    Italy   Air War    Sea War    Comm. Zone 
​bigpigeon.us webpage  WWII Germany > The MTO, © 2024 by Robert A. Christiansen, updated by RAC 27 Sep 2024.

World War II's Mediterranean Theater of Operations - the MTO - consisted of North Africa, Italy, and southern France.
US ground combat in the MTO began with Allied landings in northwest Africa on 8 Nov 1942 and ended with the surrender of Axis forces in northern Italy effective 2 May 1945.
Links to Big Pigeon's WWII Germany > The MTO webareas:
The MTO - Background - WWII in the Mediterranean area before November 1942 
The MTO - Overview - ground campaigns in the Mediterranean area starting in November 1942
The North Africa Campaigns The Italian Campaigns ​​​The MTO Air War
The MTO Sea War​
The MTO Communications Zone
About the above links to WWII Germany > The MTO subpages:​
  • Some webpages are currently incomplete.
United States Army official list of MTO campaigns:
  1. Algeria–French Morocco Campaign, 8 November 1942–11 November 1942 - Allied victory over Vichy French.
  2. Tunisia Campaign, 17 November 1942–13 May 1943 - Allied victory; Axis forces surrender.
  3. Sicily Campaign, 9 July–17 August 1943 - Allied victory; Axis forces retreat into mainland Italy.
  4. Naples–Foggia Campaign, 9 September 1943–21 January 1944 - Axis forces conduct a fighting withdrawal to the Gustav Line.
  5. Anzio Campaign, 22 January–24 May 1944 - stalemate at first as Allies fail to capture Rome and Germans fail to destroy Allied beachhead;  Allies break out from the beachhead in late May.
  6. Rome–Arno Campaign, 22 January–9 September 1944, Allied victory; Axis forces withdraw to the Gothic Line.
  7. North Apennines Campaign,10 September 1944–4 April 1945 - limited Allied advances and then a stalemate.
  8. Po Valley Campaign, 5 April–2 May 1945 - Allied victory; Axis forces in Italy surrender.
Also the one-month Southern France campaign, which began with the Allies' Operation Dragoon in August 1944, was officially part of Mediterranean Theater operations, but I include it in the European Theater.
The Allied Armies in the Mediterranean Theater, 1942–45
For North Africa:
  • British First Army, Algeria & Tunisia, November 1942–May 1943 (General Kenneth Anderson)
  • British Eighth Army, Egypt, Libya & Tunisia, August 1942–May 1943 (General Bernard Montgomery)
For Sicily, July-August 1943, 15th Army Group (General Harold Alexander):
  • US Seventh Army (General George Patton)
  • British Eighth Army (General Bernard Montgomery)
For the Italian mainland, September 1943–May 1945, 15th Army Group (General Harold Alexander until December 1944, then General Mark Clark):
  • US Fifth Army (General Mark Clark until December 1944, then General Lucian Truscott)
  • British Eighth Army (General Bernard Montgomery until December 1943, then General Oliver Leese until October 1944, then General Richard McCreery)

Mediterranean Theater Executive Summary
(See The MTO - Overview for a fuller treatment.)

North Africa:
  • MTO ground combat began with Operation Torch, the Allied amphibious invasion of Morocco and Algeria on 8 November 1942.
  • After subduing Vichy French opposition, Allied forces entered northern Tunisia.
  • Meanwhile, Germany rushed Axis troops into northern Tunisia.
  • A six month land campaign in Tunisia ensued, which included the arrival by land of Rommel's Afrika Corps and Montgomery's British Eighth Army from western Egypt via Libya.
The US in the Mediterranean
The US Landings in the Mediterranean (Operation Torch was in November).
Italy:
  • Sicily, 1943 - Operation Husky landings 9 July, campaign ended 17 August.
  • Salerno, 1943 - Operation Avalanche landings 9 September by US Fifth Army. (British Eighth Army landed at Messina and Taranto and then joined up with the Fifth Army.)
  • Late September 1943 - Allied armies advanced readily through southern Italy.
  • Winter 1943–44 - The Italian campaign bogged down near the Gustav Line between Naples and Rome.
  • Anzio, 1944 - Operation Shingle landings 22 January south of Rome soon bogged down. Beachhead breakout in late May.
  • Summer 1944 - Allied advance through central Italy to Gothic Line.
  • Winter 1944–45 - The Italian campaign bogged down in and near the Gothic Line.
  • April–May 1945 - Allies advanced through the Po Valley in northern Italy.
The Mediterranean Theater - Italy
The Mediterranean Theater - Italy

                                  ██  Sources for Big Pigeon's WWII Germany > The MTO webpage  ██​​