November 2009 Meeting Notes

November 2009 Meeting Notes

Major Ian Passingham was introduced by our Patron. John said that Ian was a graduate of Keele University and had written three books on WWI, including “Pillars of fire”, All the Kaiser’s men” and “The German offensives of 1918: Last desperate gamble”.

Ian started by saying that he was speaking about the campaigns in Italy from the German perspective (and thus I shall use the German spelling for towns, as opposed to the Italian ones). This was a read paper, with many interjections and supplemented by the use of OHPs, and his declared aim was to provide an insight into the campaign from the German perspective, but also from the 1st Parachute Regiment as well. He tried to put it into perspective by saying that the Germans were recovering from Stalingrad, and had been thrown out of Africa. They were now asked to defend Italian territory, even though Italy had left the war at the end of 1943.

Ian now introduced a list of characters for the theatre of war: Kesselring was C-in-C in Italy, and had been preferred to Rommel. Von Vietinhoff then succeeded him, and had been commander of 10th Army. Other key players were Von Senger-und Etterlin, commander of the 14th Panzer Corps; Richard Heidrich, 1st Para Division; and Ernst Guenther Baade, 90th Panzer Grenadier Division.

The Allies plan was to break through the Gustav line, and the Caesar line, which lay in front of Rome. The first Allied onslaught took place on 17 January 1944, on the Gustav line, with its aim to outflank the German defences. The German resistance was fierce and devastating. Bad weather then intervened, which meant sporadic fighting. By early February both sides were exhausted, and the Anzio landings (on 22 January) had caught Kesselring off-guard, which was rare. The Allied commanders at this point, Ian felt, underestimated their opponents, which they later learnt to regret.

The next offensive was the bombing of the historic monastery, which was obliterated, said Ian, in one minute. But, the defenders were not obliterated, which the Allies were to discover to their cost. Baade was now in charge of what was left of it, and the Germans put up a good fight, repulsing Gurkha and Indian troops who tried to storm it. Between 20 and 26 February the German troops were relieved, helped by bad weather.

The third battle of Cassino took place between 15-17 March, and was codenamed ‘Operation Dickens’. Ian spoke about the tactics of fighting that were very similar to that in 1915-1918, ie great concentration of firepower, then a pause to re-arm with new kit, which gave the Germans an opportunity to strengthen their defences. Tanks were of little value, due to the fact they had trouble crossing the rubble, thus were easily spotted and were picked off by anti-tank guns. Only five out of 16 were left unscathed! He reiterated that troops had not been trained to fight in built-up areas, and had to learn on the job – which they did well. The frontal attacks were then called off on the 23 March, with sporadic fighting until May 1944.

Next came Operation Dynamo, with five thrusts planned, involving French and Polish troops to break through and cut off the retreating Germans. The Poles were particularly determined to avenge 1939, and fly the Polish flag above the ruins, but Ian reported that it was the French who cracked the nut and took it. Cavalry Hill was then taken by the Poles, and it was now obvious that the German line had been broken, so the Germans evacuated, in good order, by the 17th. The breakout then occurred, through the Liri valley, with the 8th and 5th armies, and thus towards Rome, as well as the breakout from the Anzio bridgehead.

In summary Ian stated that 25,000 Germans were lost in the defence of the Gustave line, but that the ones who were left were able to withdraw in good order. Rome was entered on 4 June 1944, with the Gothic line established north of the city, which witnessed some equally tough battles. He asked whether the cost in taking the objectives could have been reduced, and thought there was a direct parallel with Afghanistan today.

Some interesting questions then resulted: eg are there written accounts by Germans who fought in Cassino and Montecassino? Yes, loads, was the answer, with some translated into English, and there are strong veterans associations. French-Algerians also infiltrated German positions, cutting the throats of sentries, which affected German morale! Also, was the decision to invade Italy justifiable? Ian thought the answer was yes, as it tied down good German troops (as did the Eastern Front) who would otherwise have been used at Normandy. Also, the difference between the German and Allied commanders, with Ian suggesting that Alexander was not firm enough with the American general Mark Clark.

An excellent talk, from a man steeped in German literature of the period.