On May 18, the Allied forces dispatched about 100 sorties and carried out two air strikes on the island. Air strikes of this scale continued until May 28. The island's defense fortifications, communication facilities and roads were severely damaged.
The island's urgently needed supplies can only be provided by submarines and small ships.
Starting from May 29, Allied air strikes became more frequent, reaching six to seven times a day, and the number of aircraft dispatched reached 200.
Entering June, the frequency and intensity of air raids increased greatly. On June 9, they continued for 24 hours. After nightfall, Allied aircraft dropped flares and air raids continued all night. The defenders could hardly rest under the fierce air raids, and their physical strength was reduced.
and energy were almost exhausted, and transportation was interrupted, each support point fell into an isolated and helpless situation, the food and drinking water supplies were all cut off, and the defenders' defense was about to collapse.
While carrying out large-scale air strikes, the Allied forces also conducted a tight naval blockade and naval artillery bombardment. On May 12 and 13, the cruiser "Orion" shelled the island twice. On May 31
, two Allied destroyers bombarded the island. On June 1, a formation composed of one Allied cruiser and two destroyers conducted fierce bombardment of the island, but the cruiser "Penelope" was destroyed during the bombardment.
The Italian shore artillery was damaged. On the same day, two Allied destroyers responsible for naval blockade discovered two Italian transport ships in nearby waters and sank them immediately.
On June 2, the Allied forces violently bombarded the island with one cruiser and four destroyers. In the following days, warships conducted shelling almost every day. By June 10, the Allied naval and air forces launched an attack on Banterella.
The ammunition dumped on the island reached 6200 tons!
On June 7, the Allies demanded that the defenders on the island surrender, but Major General Pavesi refused.
On the evening of June 10, Pavesi reported to the Italian high command that the strength of the garrison had been exhausted and asked for permission to surrender. The high command therefore authorized him to contact the Allies about surrender. In fact, the casualties of the Italian army in the air raid were only
56 people died and 196 were injured.
At about nine o'clock in the morning on June 11, Pavesi ordered a cessation of fighting and raised a white flag on the flagpole of the island's radio station. Due to the fierce bombardment of the Allied sea and air fire, the smoke everywhere obscured the flag to express surrender.
The Allies failed to detect the white flag in time.
Almost at the same time, the Allied landings also began. The British 1st Infantry Division took 2 landing ships and 2 destroyers, and under the cover of 5 cruisers, 8 destroyers and 8 torpedo boats, attacked Panterella Island.
, because the whole island was shrouded in thick gunpowder smoke, the landing force did not find the white flag, but still rushed ashore at about 12 o'clock according to the scheduled plan. They immediately occupied the entire island and captured all the defenders. There were no casualties in the British army. This
It was the first successful example in the history of war of using sea and air forces to carry out violent bombardment and force the defenders to surrender!
On June 13, the defenders on the two small islands near Panterella also surrendered to the Allies. At this point, all obstacles to the attack on Sicily had been removed. Of all the Allied forces' pre-war preparations, the most surprising was
What impressed me was the strategic deception codenamed "Trojan Horse" and later renamed "Mincemeat Plan".
Because anyone with a little military knowledge knows very well that after the Allied forces have eliminated the Axis powers in North Africa, in the Mediterranean theater, the Allied forces' next target will undoubtedly be Sicily, especially when the Allied forces capture
After Panterella, the attack on Sicily was obvious, as British Prime Minister Churchill said:
“Any fool knows Sicily is next!”
At that time, the German and Italian troops had deployed about 300,000 troops in Sicily, and the Allied forces had only a slight advantage in the landing force, which was far lower than the at least 3:1 troop advantage in the landing operations on the Pacific battlefield. Once
If the Axis powers determine the Allied attack targets and strengthen the defense of Sicily, then the landing operation will face failure. Even if they win, they will have to pay a heavy price. In order to avoid such a passive situation, the Allies decided to organize and implement strategic deception
and camouflage to convince the Axis powers that, precisely because Sicily was an obvious target, the Allies would use it as a feint to cover landings in other areas of the Mediterranean. The Allied High Command determined that Greece and Sardinia would be used as strategic deceptions.
The location where the main attack was to be carried out, because after attacking Greece, we could take advantage of the victory to develop towards the Balkan Peninsula; and capturing Sardinia was an ideal springboard for attacking southern France. Both of these places were extremely sensitive and critical places for the Axis powers.
The agency that performs this task is the British London Oversight Office. Its office address is at 2 Great George Street, the seat of Churchill's war cabinet. It is mainly responsible for formulating and implementing strategic deception and reconnaissance operations, and coordinating the joint efforts of British and allied intelligence agencies.
It organizes major operations. It is the organizational structure of the Allied strategic deception. The motto of the place is wit, cunning and sophistication, and the emblem is the statue of Saturn, the half-human and half-goat god of agriculture. Saturn is a special figure in ancient Roman mythology.
The elf making trouble. The current director is British Army Lieutenant Colonel John.
Bevan, his nickname is the Chief of Fraud. Although his position and military rank are not high, he has great authority. Sometimes even Churchill and Pitt have to arrange activities or issue statements at his request. The "Mincemeat Project" is the London Supervision Office
The first strategic deception operation organized since its establishment, the department soon formulated a false plan to attack Greece and Sardinia. However, how to make the plan fall into the hands of the Germans without suspicion was crucial, because
The London Supervision Office will soon be fully committed to the more important strategic deception of the Normandy landing. This task will be undertaken by the 17f Section of the Naval Intelligence Office. The section chief is Lieutenant Colonel Ewan Montague, and will be led by the veteran British intelligence agency Military Intelligence No. 17f.
The fifth department, the famous m15, fully assisted.
Lieutenant Colonel Montague racked his brains to devise how to send false information to the Germans. The initial plans were rejected one by one. Finally, his capable subordinate Lieutenant George suddenly came up with a whim and suggested using a corpse in the briefcase he carried.
Fill it with false intelligence, then use a submarine to throw the body into the sea, and use the tide to wash up on a German or pro-German national beach. In this way, the Germans will think that he drowned and naturally they will not doubt the authenticity of the intelligence.
Swire immediately conducted a feasibility study on this plan and felt that it was completely feasible. It immediately formulated a specific implementation plan and obtained the approval of the Prime Minister.
Then he started to make careful arrangements for all the relevant details. First, Montague asked the pathologist of the Ministry of Interior about the pathological characteristics of the drowned corpse, that is, there must be water in the lungs, and the corpse that died of pulmonary edema also had the same characteristics.
Symptoms, the body of a young man who died of pulmonary edema was secretly requisitioned from the funeral home through the Ministry of the Interior.
Then he carefully created a false identity for the corpse and named it William Martin, a Marine Corps major on the staff of the Joint Operations Command, because during the war, mid-level officers of the Marine Corps often served as field messengers. In the briefcase he carried, the most
The key is the forged documents. These documents should not reveal the landing site too obviously, but also allow the Germans to draw conclusions that are in line with the Allies' wishes. Montague painstakingly prepared two letters, one from the British Deputy Chief of Staff.
The Chief of Staff, General Ney, wrote to Alexander, Commander of the Allied Army in the Mediterranean, and the other was written by Admiral Mountbatten, Commander of the British Joint Operations Command responsible for special operations, to Cunningham, Commander of the Allied Navy in the Mediterranean.
Although the letter did not specify the landing location, it revealed between the lines that the Allied forces would land in Greece and Sardinia.
In particular, Mountbatten's letter also pointed out that Major Martin was a landing craft expert and requested that he be returned immediately after the battle, along with some sardines rationed in the UK. You must know that sardines are a specialty of Sardinia! In order to
To increase the authenticity, in the briefcase, there is also a new book "Joint Operations" by the famous military theorist George Sonders, who is going to ask Eisenhower to write the foreword. Personal items include a affectionate love letter and two photos of his girlfriend.
A demand letter from the bank, a bankbook with an overdraft of 7 pounds, 19 shillings and 2 pence, an invoice for the engagement ring, two theater ticket stubs from the Royal Theater, officer's ID, Joint Operations Command pass, and keys.
, notebooks, cigarettes, banknotes and other miscellaneous items. All the above-mentioned items, including the clothes worn by the corpse, have been strictly inspected to ensure that there are no omissions and are foolproof.
On April 17, under Montague's personal supervision, the body was loaded into a metal cylinder with the label "Optical Instrument" and then transported to the Greenock Military Port in Scotland under strict security, and then was transported aboard the British Navy's "Seraph"
"" submarine, Montague told the captain, Major Jewell, to release the body into the waters near Huelva, Spain on April 29 or 30, and it must be kept strictly confidential, and the number of insiders must be limited to a minimum.
On April 19, the submarine "Seraph" with a special mission departed from the Greenock Naval Port in Scotland.
At dawn on April 30, the submarine "Seraph" surfaced in the waters near Huelva, Spain. "Major Martin" was carried to the deck. A crew member inflated his life jacket and put his briefcase into the water.
Tie it with an iron chain around your wrist, then put it into the sea and float along the tide to the beach. The submarine "Seraph" then dives and returns.
After dawn, the body was pushed onto the beach by the tide, and was soon discovered by fishermen on the beach. The Spanish military police arrived immediately, inspected the body, and then transported it away. In the distance, James, the head of the British intelligence agency in Spain, was hiding in a hiding place.
All this was monitored and detailed reports were sent back to British intelligence agencies.
Although Spain remained neutral during the war, it actually had an extraordinary relationship with Germany, because in the 1930s, with the strong support of Germany, the Franco government defeated the Spanish Republic and seized power. - Therefore, Spain quickly
He handed all of Martin's belongings to Helm, the head of the German intelligence agency in Spain, and Helm immediately organized someone to take photos of these documents!
The British Ambassador to Spain, Sir Samuel Hall, was unaware of the "Mincemeat Project" and followed normal procedures to make representations to Spain, requesting the return of the body and important letters as soon as possible. After careful inspection and photography, the body and documents were returned
To Sir Hall.
On May 2, Sir Hall held a grand funeral for Major Martin in Huelva. Martin's girlfriend, who was carefully prepared by Montague, also sent wreaths and postcards from London. Everything at the funeral was attended by personnel from the German intelligence agency.
Close surveillance was carried out.
On June 14, Major Martin's name appeared prominently on the list of fallen soldiers provided by the Casualty Division of the Naval Notary Company published by the British newspaper The Times.
Montague got the briefcase returned from Spain and immediately sent it to the Technical Reconnaissance Division for inspection. As expected, the document had been opened by technical means. The Germans had taken the bait, but would they believe it?
As Montague expected, the German intelligence agencies did not believe it easily. Although the German intelligence agency confirmed that all the documents carried by Major Martin were authentic, Hitler ordered an investigation because of the importance of the matter.
In mid-May, the top ace agent of the German intelligence agency sneaked into the UK and conducted a detailed investigation into the store where Martin's underwear was sold, the bank where the debt letter was issued, and the residence of his girlfriend. Because the British intelligence agency had made careful arrangements in advance
Everything was perfect. The German ace agent was not reassured, but used his trump card - deliberately leaving his address to test whether the British intelligence agency would come to capture him, so as to prove Martin's authenticity.
Montague saw through his trick and strictly ordered his subordinates not to alert the enemy and let him leave the country safely. In this way, the German intelligence agency finally believed that Martin was real!
A few days later, Montague followed the same pattern and dropped a body in camouflage uniform in the waters of Sardinia. It was disguised as a commando on a reconnaissance mission, continuing to increase the intensity of strategic deception. Director of the German Western Front Intelligence Division
Based on all this, Colonel Ronner reported to the German high command that the Allied forces were about to launch a landing on Sicily, but this was only a cover for the attack on Greece and Sardinia, and it was just a feint attack.
Based on this conclusion, Hitler issued an order at the Supreme Headquarters Operations Meeting held on May 12: After the battle in North Africa, the most dangerous areas that are most likely to be attacked are the Greek Peloponnese Peninsula and the Eastern Mediterranean.
Sardinia in the Western Mediterranean requires all German forces to make every effort to strengthen the defense of these areas. Reinforcements to the Peloponnese Peninsula and Sardinia in Greece are given priority. The Germans will station the 1st Armored Division in southern France.
and two armored divisions drawn from the Soviet battlefield were all transferred to Greece. In addition to the original Greek troops, Rommel formed a new army group. At the same time, an SS armored brigade was also transferred to Sardinia. And Sicily
The island's defense has not been strengthened at all, it has even been weakened, and some troops have been transferred to Corsica!
The "Meat Stuffing Plan" was finally completed! It was a complete success and laid a solid foundation for the landing in Sicily.
From July 4 to 8, participating troops boarded ships from various ports in North Africa and the Middle East. The British 8th Army set out from Tripoli, Alexandria, Port Said, Haifa and Beirut; the US 7th Army set out from Oran and Algiers.
, Bizerte ""; all the fleets carrying the landing troops were disguised as escort transport fleets, sailing first to Malta, and then turned to Sicily.
In order to cover the sea crossing of the landing formation, the Allied forces deployed 2 aircraft carriers, 4 battleships, 4 cruisers and 18 destroyers in the Messina Strait and 2 battleships, 2 cruisers and 6 destroyers in the Tunis Strait.
On July 9, the fleet transporting the first echelon of the US 7th Army met in the sea west of Malta, and the fleet transporting the first echelon of the British 8th Army met in the sea east of Malta, and then sailed to the designated landing site.
During the passage of the landing force, the German and Italian forces had lost air and sea control, and their aviation and surface ship forces were unable to block it. So the only thing that could be used was submarines. In fact, the German and Italian forces also planned to
Many submarines were deployed in the Mediterranean to intercept the Allied landing convoys. However, since the main force of the German submarine force had been operating in the waters near Algeria since June 22, only 6 German submarines remained in the waters south of Sicily.
submarines and 9 Italian submarines. These submarines successively sunk 6 transport ships, 1 oil tanker and 2 tank landing ships. However, the Allies relied on their powerful anti-submarine forces to counterattack the German and Italian submarines and sank them.
There were 3 German submarines, 6 Italian submarines, and the Italian submarine "Bronzer" was captured!
After noon on July 9, a storm suddenly rose in the Mediterranean Sea, with the wind reaching level 7. The Allied fleet was tossed in the strong wind and huge waves, the formation of the fleet was in chaos, and the soldiers on the transport ship were all vomiting due to seasickness.
The generals in the Malta headquarters are paying close attention to weather changes. If the storm does not stop, the landing troops will not be able to transfer, the entire combat plan will be disrupted, and all the efforts in the past few months will be in vain. Eisenhower is facing
The decision of whether to move forward or return. Navy Commander Admiral Cunningham had lived and fought in the Mediterranean for many years and was very familiar with the capricious weather in the Mediterranean. He believed that the storm would subside after sunset and suggested continuing to move forward. Eisenhower listened to his advice.
, ordered the fleet to continue moving forward.
At about 20 o'clock, the storm subsided and the fleet successfully arrived at the scheduled transfer area.
At the same time, the Allied airborne operations also started. The Allied landing plan in Sicily stipulated that both armies would use airborne troops during the landing to seize deep defenses and ensure the smooth implementation of the landing. The airborne troops used by the Allied forces were
The British 1st Airborne Division and the US 82nd Airborne Division, which is the largest airborne force that the Allies can muster in the Mediterranean theater, are transported by 1,500 C-47 transport aircraft of the US 52nd Transport Aircraft Wing. The departure airport is Cai, Tunisia.
Rouvain Airport and Susa Airport, via the Pelage Islands, Malta to Sicily. Since the Allied fighter jets could only reach southern Sicily and could not ensure air superiority, they started airborne at midnight and took advantage of the full moonlight.
The airborne landing was completed before moonset. This was the first large-scale night airborne landing by the British and American troops in World War II.
The airborne troops participating in the war began to conduct combat training in Oujda, Morocco, in early April 1943, and conducted many actual combat exercises in areas with terrain similar to the war zone.
On the night of June 10, commanders of the airborne troops and transport aircraft troops took planes to conduct aerial reconnaissance of the combat area.
On June 20, the airborne troops moved from the training area to the departure airport in Tunisia to enter final pre-war preparations.
The British 1st Airborne Division deployed two brigades. The 1st Airborne Brigade was an echelon. It parachuted in the area south of Syracuse to capture and hold the Pendegrand Bridge to ensure the passage of the landing troops. The 1st Airborne Brigade was
The second echelon is responsible for reinforcing the operations of the first echelon.
The US 82nd Airborne Division deployed two airborne regiments, the 505th Regiment and the 3rd Battalion of the 504th Regiment as an echelon, to parachute in the area east of Jela, cut off the road, prevent enemy reinforcements, and then cooperate with the landing troops at Oliver Airport.
The 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 504th Regiment are the second echelon and are responsible for reinforcing the first echelon in operations.
At 18:40 on July 9th, the first echelon of British airborne troops set off, with a total of 2,578 people. Commanded by Brigadier General Hicks, commander of the 1st Airborne Brigade, they took 137 gliders. After taking off, the group adopted a spread-out dual-plane approach.
Formation, when 2,700 meters away from Sicily, there was no time to rise to the predetermined decoupling height, so the gliders had to decouple at low altitude. Because the altitude was too low, 69 gliders fell into the sea before they could enter the island. There were 600 paratroopers on board.
Many people were drowned. The glider on which the brigade commander, Brigadier General Hicks, also crashed into the sea, but he escaped in time before the plane sank. He was later rescued by an Allied landing craft. It took him a full twenty-four hours to reach Penang.
Degrand Bridge.
Of the gliders that entered the island, only two landed near the Pendergrand Bridge, 22 landed one kilometer away from the bridge, and 49 landed as far away as ten kilometers away.
In the early morning of the 10th, more than 80 paratroopers under the command of Lieutenant Withers rushed to the bridge, wiped out the Italian troops guarding the bridge in one fell swoop, and captured the bridge. At noon, the Italian troops counterattacked under the cover of tanks, and the British airborne troops were weak.
, the ammunition was exhausted and it was difficult to resist. At about 16 o'clock, the bridge was recaptured by the Italian army. But only half an hour later, the leading troops of the army's landing force arrived and re-captured the bridge.
On the 12th, the British landing force had occupied southern Sicily. In order to ensure the continued advancement of the troops, the British Army decided to change the mission of the second echelon of the airborne force to seize Brlimassol.
The second echelon has a total of 2,077 people, equipped with 10 cannons, 18 vehicles, and is transported by 116 transport aircraft and 19 gliders. At 19:20 on the 13th, the fleet took off. Due to the temporary change of plan, the organization was hasty and was not even reported to the Navy.
, so much so that when the fleet was flying over our own fleet, it was actually fired upon by our own warships. 14 transport aircraft were shot down, 35 were damaged, and 25 were suddenly attacked and separated from the formation to avoid the attack.
In the end, they lost their way back; 4 gliders were shot down, and another one fell into the sea due to serious injuries. The remaining aircraft arrived at the Blimasol Bridge at about 22:00. Due to the scattered formation of the fleet, the landing of paratroopers was also very scattered. 14
Only about 200 people were gathered at one o'clock on the day, and about 50 people were gathered on the way, and at four o'clock they launched an attack on the bridge.
Before the British airborne, the Germans realized that the Allies were very likely to seize the Blimasol Bridge. On the evening of the 13th, they sent the 3rd Battalion of the 4th Regiment of the 1st Airborne Division to parachute on the bridge to urgently strengthen the bridge.
Therefore, when the British paratroopers landed, they were attacked by the German paratroopers. The paratroopers from both sides started a fierce battle. With their numerical superiority, the British troops repelled the German troops, captured the bridge, and quickly built fortifications at both ends of the bridge.
At noon, German paratroopers came from the south of the bridge, and Italian bridge defenders and German reinforcements came from the north of the bridge. They began to carry out a two-sided attack. The British army was forced to abandon the bridge at 18:00 due to heavy casualties. However, in the next two days, the British
The military paratroopers continued to organize attacks and fought repeatedly with the German and Italian troops. It was not until the evening of the 16th that the main force of the British landing force arrived and the bridge was completely controlled.
The first echelon of the U.S. Airborne Forces took off at 20:45 on July 9, with a total of 3,405 people, commanded by Colonel Gavin, the commander of the 505th Regiment, and aboard 226 C-47 transport aircraft. After takeoff, the fleet took off in a nine-plane formation.
Due to the pilot's lack of experience in night flying and the prohibition of using radios for concealment reasons, the fleet deviated from the route and flew to the east coast of Sicily. They could not find a landing site and had to fly back to the sea to re-enter. As a result, they were attacked by German anti-aircraft guns.
Fierce fire resulted in 8 aircraft being shot down, 10 aircraft damaged, and 3 aircraft lost their way and returned.
As the formation was disrupted by German anti-aircraft fire, the airborne process lasted for more than an hour. The landing of paratroopers was also very scattered. Only one company landed at the predetermined location, and the rest of the paratroopers landed in far away places, with the farthest distance reaching a hundred
Kilometers. The place where Gavin landed was 48 kilometers away from the scheduled location. In addition, the wind speed during landing reached 15 meters per second. Many paratroopers were blown by the strong wind onto rocks, trees, and houses, resulting in heavy casualties. The paratroopers who landed at the scheduled landing site were
Only one highway junction was occupied. The paratroopers who landed in other places took the initiative to join the battle. In particular, Colonel Gavin gathered more than 200 people on Mount Biazzo to block the German reinforcements heading for the landing beach. The battle was extremely fierce, and Gavin took the lead.
, personally used rocket launchers to shoot at German tanks. The U.S. paratroopers fought tenaciously. Many German tanks were destroyed and were forced to withdraw from the battle. The U.S. military, at the heavy cost of killing more than 50 people and injuring more than 100 people, deterred the German counterattack and effectively supported the landing.
Troops on the beach.
In view of the failure of the first echelon to complete its scheduled mission, Patton, commander of the US 7th Army, decided to use the second echelon to seize Gela Airport and determined to parachute landing at Falero Airport, which the Germans had abandoned.
On the evening of the 11th, more than 2,000 people from the second echelon took off on 144 C-47 transport aircraft. The leading force landed smoothly. When the follow-up formation flew past our own fleet, like the second echelon of the British army, it encountered "friendly fire" from our own fleet and was shot down.
23 aircraft were damaged, 37 were damaged, and 6 lost their way back. The remaining 70 aircraft were scattered in formation and airborne. The paratroopers were shot by the landing force when they landed. In the end, only more than 400 people landed at Falero Airport.
It failed to effectively support the landing force. On the 12th, the landing force developed in depth. The remaining personnel of the two US airborne echelons joined the landing force and participated in the battle. By the 15th, the 82nd Airborne Division had participated in the battle with 5,307 people and only 3,024 people were left. Their vitality was severely damaged.
Then they evacuated the front line to rest and recuperate.
During the Sicily landing campaign, the Allied forces carried out four airborne operations, dispatching a total of 642 transport aircraft sorties, 153 glider sorties, and a total of 9,816 airborne personnel, including 7,816 parachuting people. However, the four airborne operations failed to achieve the mission, and the airborne troops
There were more than 1,500 casualties, accounting for 15% of the total number of people. 45 transport planes were shot down, 86 were damaged, and 25 were missing; 69 gliders were shot down, 15 crashed during landing, and 10 were missing. 70% of these losses were caused by our own side.
The first large-scale airborne operation caused by the Allied forces ended in a serious defeat.