The German leader, Adolf Hitler, cancelled a major offensive at Kursk after only a week, in part to divert forces to Italy, resulting in a reduction of German strength on the Eastern Front. The Italian leader, Benito Mussolini, was toppled from power in Italy and the way was opened for the Allied invasion of Italy. Although some German aircraft came in high, where they were detected by radar, others came ripping down the valleys. At dawn on 10 July, the German (and some Italian) air attacks commenced. Strategically, Husky achieved the goals set out for it by Allied planners the Allies drove Axis air, land and naval forces from the island and the Mediterranean sea lanes were opened for Allied merchant ships for the first time since 1941. The 6-inch/47-caliber guns of a Brooklyn-class light cruiser bombards enemy forces at Licata, Sicily, during the Allied landings, 10 June 1943 (80-G-54550). Husky began on the night of 9-10 July 1943, and ended on 17 August.
'The pictures show what had to be done and by looking at them we can keep in mind to please never let it happen again.' The campaign taught the Allied commanders valuable lessons that were utilized the following year on D-Day. The British suffered 12,843 casualties, including 2,721 killed. US troops make their way through the smoke to Fontainebleau, en route to Paris, during World War II as the allied forces make a bid to take Europe back from fascists In the fighting for Sicily, the Axis forces lost 29,000 killed or wounded, and 140,000 captured.American losses totaled 2,237 killed and 6,544 wounded or captured. Churchill described Sicily and Italy as the soft underbelly of Europe but the Italy campaign was hard fought and only came to an end in May 1945. Operation Husky was the first major Allied assault on German occupied Europe.
The Allied invasion of Sicily, codenamed Operation Husky, was a major campaign of World War II, in which the Allies took the island of Sicily from the Axis powers of Italy and Nazi Germany. Other striking shots show US Sherman M4 tanks landing during Operation Husky, Private Roy Humphrey being given blood plasma after he was wounded by shrapnel and the Liberty ship Robert Rowan as it was hit by a German Ju 88 bomber and its cargo of munitions exploded. Images have been released to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the action showing troops in Pachine, men of the Highland Division up to their waists in water and a 5.5-inch gun of 212nd Medium Regiment of the Royal Artillery. Operation Husky saw soldiers advance through Sicily, marching towards the front lines before the grizzly end of infamous dictator and architect of fascism Benito Mussolini. Magnum co-founder Robert Capa documented the US Army’s push through the island.Ĭapa, already famous for his work during the Spanish Civil War, had arrived in New York at the outset of World War II only to be informed that as a Hungarian National he would be designated an ‘enemy alien.’ In spite of this he continued to photograph for LIFE and eventually received permission to report alongside the US Army, the only enemy alien to receive such accreditation during the war.The bravery of British troops during the invasion of Sicily in World War Two has been brought to life in stunning colour images for the first time. The battle for Sicily provided a support area for future allied operations in the European theater. The taking of Sicily was a vital first step on the long road from North Africa to Berlin, a toe-hold in what Winston Churchill had dubbed the ‘soft underbelly of Europe’. THE ALLIED INVASION OF SICILY 2 Operation Husky: The Allied Invasion of Sicily’s Impact on World War Two Operation Husky proved vital to the liberation of Europe from Axis Control. The Magnum Photos website has a story with lots of pictures of the liberation of Sicily taken by Capa.Ĭodenamed Operation Husky, the Anglo-American invasion of Sicily began on the night of July 9th, 1943. The Coast Road was packed with mounds of ammunition. More men and material were brought to the island. From the depths of the Lascaris War Rooms, the Allies prepared one of history’s largest amphibious operations ever attempted. Two years after the war ended, Capa would co-found the Magnum agency with Henri Cartier-Bresson, David “Chim” Seymour, and George Rodger. By May 1943, Malta was the base of operations for the launch of Operation Husky and the invasion of Sicily. Editor’s Note: Robert Capa, one of the great war photographers, was with American troops in 1943 as they began the liberation of Sicily, the beginning of the end of the war in Italy: Operation Husky.