To the Gustav Line

168th Infantry in Combat

bigpigeon.us webpage WWII - Germany > MTO > Italy > To the Gustav Line, updated by RAC 7 Aug 2022.

During this period, the US-led Fifth Army's advance on the western portion of the Italian front was painfully slow. To the east, the British-led Eighth Army made better progress, actually penetrating the Gustav Line at Ortona.

Background

During this stage, as well as all of the Italian mainland campaign, two Allied armies were involved:

left sector: the US Fifth Army, led by General Mark Clark.
right sector: the British Eighth Army, led by General Bernard Montgomery.

On 1 October 1943, Allied forces in southern Italy realized two major goals.

The Fifth Army occupied the major port of Naples.
The Eighth Army overran the complex of airfields near Foggia northeast of Naples.

Using Italian laborers, Germany was hurriedly constructing a defense in depth in mountainous terrain between Naples and Rome. This series of defensive lines is shown on the accompanying map.

Authors differ on what is meant by the Winter Line, the strongpoints that the Fifth Army beat against on the western end of the Italian front during the long winter of 1943-44. Depending on the author, it can mean:

The Bernardt Line, which the Fifth Army penetrated by the middle of January 1944.
The western third of the Gustav Line, which was not penetrated until mid-May 1944.

Central to the Gustav Line defenses was the Cassino area, guarding the entrance to the Liri Valley where Route 6 led north to Rome. Allied forces would not arrive near Cassino until January 1944 and then would not penetrate the Gustav Line until May.

The Italian Campaign - Defensive Lines in Southern Italy

The Italian Campaign - The German Defensive Lines in Southern Italy.

The word line in this context is misleading. German defenses were not continuous, but rather consisted of strategically placed strongpoints on high ground which commanded the surrounding area.

The Allied Advance to mid-November 1943

The accompanying maps show Fifth Army operations from October to mid-November 1943. During this period, the Fifth Army fought through the Volturno line, after 12 days preparation fought through the Barbara Line, and then fought the first phase of the Battle of the Bernhardt Line before pausing in late November.

The timeline below is taken from wikipedia.

9 - 19 October - Battle of the Volturno Line.
31 October - 4 November - Battle of the Barbara Line.
5 - 15 November - first phase of the Battle of the Bernhardt Line.

Southern Italy, 6 Oct 1943 - 15 Nov 1943

Allied Gains, 6 October - 15 November 1943

Fifth Army Advance towards the Winter Line

Summary of Fifth Army Operations, 12 October - 15 November 1943

This map provides a view of Fifth Army operations in mid-November, at the end of the first phase of the Battle of the Bernhardt Line.

Fifth Army Approaching the Gustav Line

The Allied Advance, mid-November 1943 - mid-January 1944

On 18 November 1943, the US Fifth Army was reorganized, with a new corps headquarters and several new combat units. It now included three corps:

On the Fifth Army left: the British X Corps.
On the Fifth Army middle: the US II Corps (new as of 18 November).
On Fifth Army right: The US VI Corps.

The Fifth Army rested for most of the remainder of November before resuming the effort to advance through the Bernhardt Line.

Ernie Pyle and Captain Waskow

These two men were killed over a month apart in time but only a few straight miles apart in distance. Allied progress against the Bernhardt Line was glacial.

Private Earl Card, an orphan was raised by his grandparents in my home town of Avoca, Iowa and served with the 4th Ranger Battalion, dying southwest of Venafro on November 12.
Captain Henry Waskow of rural Belton, Texas was killed somewhere on Mt. Sammucro on December 14.

During World War II, Americans learned about the human costs of warfare from the newspaper columns of Ernie Pyle. Below is an excerpt from Ernie Pyle's best-known column; click to read the entire article.

Ernie Pyle in Italy

Ernie Pyle was killed by a sniper's bullet on Ie Shima Island near Okinawa on 18 April 1945.

...
I was at the foot of the mule trail the night they brought Capt. Waskow’s body down. The moon was nearly full at the time, and you could see far up the trail, and even part way across the valley below. Soldiers made shadows in the moonlight as they walked.
Dead men had been coming down the mountain all evening, lashed onto the backs of mules. They came lying belly-down across the wooden pack-saddles, their heads hanging down on the left side of the mule, their stiffened legs sticking out awkwardly from the other side, bobbing up and down as the mule walked.
...

Captain Henry Waskow

Sources for the Italy > To the Gustav Line webpage: (this list will be edited)

Salerno to Cassino (scalable maps) (United States Army in World War II, Mediterranean Theater of Operations series, Martin Blumenson, 1993, CMH #6-3) - http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/USA-MTO-Salerno/index.html#index.

From the Volturno to the Winter Line, 6 October-15 November 1943 (scalable maps) (American Forces in Action series, U.S. Army Center of Military History, CMH #100-8) - https://history.army.mil/books/wwii/volturno/volturno-fm.htm.

Fifth Army at the Winter Line, 15 November 1943 - 15 January 1944 (scalable maps) (American Forces in Action series, U.S. Army Center of Military History, CMH #100-8) - https://history.army.mil/books/wwii/winterline/winter-fm.htm#cont.
Naples-Foggia, 9 September 1943-21 January 1944 (The U.S. Army Campaigns of World War II, The U.S. Army Center of Military History, Kenneth V. Smith, illustrated brochure, CMH #72-17) - https://history.army.mil/html/books/072/72-17/CMH_Pub_72-17.pdf.
The webpage header photo, 168th Infantry in Combat, www.nationalguard.mil/Resources/Image-Gallery/Historical-Paintings/Heritage-Series/Red-Bull-in-the-Winter-Line/FileId/50771/.
The Italian Campaign - The German Defensive Lines map - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winter_Line#/media/File:ItalyDefenseLinesSouthofRome1943_4.jpg.
Allied Gains, 6 October - 15 November 1943 map - https://history.army.mil/brochures/naples/map3.JPG.
Summary of Fifth Army Operations, 12 October -15 November 1943 map - https://history.army.mil/books/wwii/volturno/map30.jpg.
https://erniepyle.iu.edu/wartime-columns/captain-waskow.htm
Anzio Beachhead - https://history.army.mil/catalog/pubs/100/100-10.html

Pottawattamie Area Dead - Italy > To the Gustav Line:

Taken from the bigpigeon.us WWII Roster module.

02-02 - Italy > To the Gustav Line: (nine dead, updated 6 Feb 2022)
† Card, Earl E., SN 20-706-381, US Army, Pott Co.

Co. B, 4th Ranger Bn., VI Corps, Fifth Army; KIA 12 Nov 1943, Venafro, Molise, Italy, 16 miles E of Cassino; Italian Mainland > To the Gustav Line.

† Cox, Leslie, SN 37-197-965, US Army, Pott. Co.

Co. K, 30th Inf. Regt., 3rd Inf. Div., VI Corps, Fifth Army; KIA 26 Oct 1943, near Pietravairano, SE of Cassino & NW of Caserta, Italy; Italian Mainland > To the Gustav Line.

† Dixon, Gene Willard, SN 38-006-349, US Army, Pott. Co. & Denver Co., CO

HQ Co., 157th Inf. Regt.; 45th Inf. Div., VI Corps, Fifth Army; KIA 15 Dec 1943 near Conca Casale, W of Venafro & E of Cassino, southern Italy; Italian Mainland > To the Gustav Line.

† Foss, Howard Edward, SN 20-706-596, US Army, Pott. Co.

Co. L, 168th Inf. Regt., 34th Inf. Div. --> 30th Inf. Regt., 3rd Inf. Div., VI Corps, Fifth Army; KIA 7 Nov 1943, Mt. Rotondo, SE of Cassino, Italy; Italian Mainland > To the Gustav Line.

† Knight, DeVere Hiram, SN 20-706-798, US Army, Mills Co.

Co. M, 168th Inf. Regt., 34th Inf. Div. VI Corps, Fifth Army; KIA 4 Nov 1943 near Hill 400, NE of Venafro, 20 miles E of Cassino, Italy, sniper fire; Italian Mainland > To the Gustav Line.

† Koenemann, Howard Oscar, SN 20-706-799, US Army, Montgomery Co.

Co. M, 168th Inf. Regt., 34th Inf. Div., VI Corps, Fifth Army; KIA 3 Dec 1943 Mt. Pantano, NE of Cassino, Lazio, Italy; Battle of Mt. Pantano - Italian Mainland > to the Gustav Line.

† Lembke, Orlan Palmer, SN 37-121-080, US Army, Pott. Co.

Co. H, 7th Inf. Regt., 3rd Inf. Div., VI Corps, Fifth Army; KIA 16 Oct 1943 Dragoni, N of Caserta, Italy; Italian Mainland > To the Gustav Line.

† Stacey, Louis Clarence Jr., SN 20-704-227, US Army, Pott. Co.

Service Co., 168th Inf. Regt., 34th Inf. Div., VI Corps, Fifth Army; KIA 29 Oct 1943 near Naples, Italy; Italian Mainland > To the Gustav Line.

† Stone, Warren Floyd, SN 20-706-222, US Army, Mills Co.

Co. I, 168th Inf. Regt. & Co. I, 133rd Inf. Regt., both 34th Inf. Div., VI Corps, Fifth Army; KIA 5 Dec 1943 near Venafro, Molise, Italy; Battle of Mt. Marrone - Italian Mainland > To the Gustav Line.