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| City of Edmonton Archives (Loyal Edmonton Regiment Collection, A96-215, Box 8). |
Generals Montgomery and Simonds Take Refuge from the Heat, Italy, n.d.).
General Guy Simonds commanded the Canadian First Division into battle at Leonforte against the Germans. Leonforte was the lynchpin of German defences along a line that ran east to Catania and the Ionian Sea. The First Division took up this task on behalf of General Bernard Montgomery and the British Eight Army.
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After securing Leonforte, the Division turned east to attack down Rte
121. The town of Agira was taken on 28 July after hard fighting by 2nd
Brigade, culminating in an uphill assault by B Company of the Edmonton
Regiment that saw bayonets used for the first time in the war. The American
1st Division was now on the left of the regiment, moving down the parallel
Rte 120. The two forces shared responsibility for clearing out the broken
country between the two roads. After a week of hard going with mules
(the only source of supplies) and vicious small unit fights against
the determined resistance of the 15th Panzer Grenadier Division, the
Americans captured Troina to the north and the British took Adrano to
the south, opening the way for the final push to Messina. On 8 August
the Canadians moved out of the fighting and into reserve. The fighting in Sicily, which lasted less than a month, had
provided a severe test for the well-trained but unblooded battalion. In
spite of the intense heat, constant choking dust, loss of vehicles, and
malaria and dysentery, the unit had more than held its own against battle-hardened
German troops. Montgomery visited the 2nd Brigade on 20 August and told
them that he considered them fully the equals of the 8th Army units that
had fought all the way from Egypt. The statement might be considered just
another morale-building exercise, but Montgomery said much the same thing
in his private diary. ()
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| City of Edmonton Archives (Loyal Edmonton Regiment Collection, A96-215, Box 8). |
Canadian Artillery Personnel Italy, 1943.
Canadian troops generally and the Edmonton Regiment in specific acquitted themselves well during the Sicilian campaign. They battled stiffening German resistance, stifling heat, and choking dust throughout the campaign. Nevertheless, they showed their considerable abilities on the battlefield.
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On 11 August the regiment moved to the town of Militello
for three weeks well-deserved rest. There was plenty of fresh produce
to be had from the local farmers, and the camp was close enough to the
coast that one company a day could be bussed to the beaches for swimming.
Sports and the occasional movie at a nearby American air base rounded
out the recreational activities. The Italians had by this time overthrown
Mussolini's government and were negotiating a deal with the Allies in
the vain hope of keeping the Germans from occupying their country and
continuing the war. Rumours began to circulate in
late August that the Allies would move across the mainland in an effort
to encourage the Italians and forestall the Germans.
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| City of Edmonton Archives (Loyal Edmonton Regiment Collection, A96-215, Box 8). |
Canadians Playing Baseball, Sicily, n.d.
Canadian soldiers earned some well-deserved rest and recreation during the latter half of August 1943.
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The plan was for 8th Army to cross directly to Reggio
di Calabria on 3 September in the hope that they would draw as much
attention as possible away from the landing area of the US 5th Army
at Salerno a few days later. Unfortunately for the Americans the Germans
were not taken in by the plan. As a result, the Edmonton Regiment and
the rest of the Canadians had only light and scattered opposition
as they made their way up the toe of the Italian boot. The going was initially
slow, however, because the Division was assigned the road that followed the
central mountain spine of the peninsula to protect the flank of the British
5th Division on the coast road. The Germans had mined the roads and demolished
all bridges. On 8 September, there was a brief fire fight with some Italian
paratroopers who surrendered after taking some casualties. Later that day
the regiment reached the town of Cittanova, where they paused several days
for rest.
The lack of opposition and the capture of Taranto unopposed
after the Italian surrender brought an end to the cautious advance through
the mountains. The Canadians were ordered north to take the city of Potenza,
which was accomplished by elements of the 3rd Brigade on 20 September. The
Edmonton Regiment arrived the following day and, with the rest of 2nd Brigade,
began pushing north-westward through the coastal plain around Foggia with
its large complex of air bases. The Germans at this point had two choices
about how to pursue the defence of Italy. They could make a stand south of
Rome or conduct a fighting withdrawal to the Pisa- Rimini line in the north.
Field Marshall Erwin Rommel, now in command of northern Italy, favoured the
latter, but Hitler came down on the side of Field Marshall Albert Kesselring
who favoured holding the Bernhard/Gustav Line, which ran along the Garigliano
River south of Cassino on the west side of the peninsula and the Sangro River
on the Adriatic side. The allied command at the end of September agreed with
Rommel's assessment and expected no determined opposition. Montgomery planned
a quick advance up the coast to Pescara, after which the 8th Army would turn
left, cross the mountains on Route 5 and meet the Americans in Rome. In the
event, however, the Edmonton Regiment and the rest of the 8th Army faced half
a year of bitter fighting at both ends of the German line before it was broken.
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| Historical Section of the General Staff, Canadian Military Headquarters in Great Britain, From Pachino to Ortona: The Canadian Campaign in Sicily and Italy, 1943 (Ottawa: King's Printer, [1945]). |
Campobasso, Italy, 1943.
The 1st Brigade of the Canadian First Division took Campobasso without much opposition. The town was important because it was positioned along major lines of communication.
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In October, everything seemed
to be going according to plan. The Canadians advanced steadily toward
their next objective, the town of Campobasso, with the Edmonton Regiment
playing their now familiar role of left flank guard of the 8th Army, moving
through the mountains with occasional sharp encounters with German rear
guards. Campobasso, the provincial capital, was located at the junction
of two important roads, highways 17 and 87. It was taken by 1st Brigade
on 14 October without serious opposition, which enabled the undamaged town to be quickly converted into
a maintenance and recreation centre for Canadian soldiers. The
Loyal Edmonton Regiment (the name change came through
on 11 October, although the original order dated from 7 July) ()
moved through the town of Vinchiaturo in preparation for crossing the Biferno
River. The river valley was a major German defence line, and Montgomery intended
to rest the Canadians and use the 5th Division to break through.
In preparation for the British attack, the LER was given the
task of moving across the Biferno and capturing the village of Colle d'Anchise,
held by the 67th Panzer Grenadier Regiment, which dominated the upper reaches
of the Biferno. There was tank, artillery, and anti-tank support for the attack,
but, since a vehicle river crossing would have to be built, the infantry would
have to go in first and rely on surprise. At 0400 on 23 October, the LER troops
waded through icy waist-deep water to cross the river and then started up
a steep 700 foot escarpment to the village. Aided by a heavy fog, the attackers
took the Germans completely by surprise. The LER cleared most of the village
in vicious hand-to-hand fighting. Corporal J.G. Milnes
took out one German machine gun position by himself. Sergeant R.D. Whiteside,
not to be outdone, single-handedly silenced two, killing and wounding eleven
Germans with just his rifle, for which he received the DCM.
Historical Section of the General Staff, Canadian Military Headquarters in Great Britain, From Pachino to Ortona: The Canadian Campaign in Sicily and Italy, 1943 (Ottawa: King's Printer, [1945]).
Edmonton Regiment Soldier, Colle d'Anchise, Italy, October, 1943..
A soldier of the Edmonton Regiment surveys the Biferno Valley from a point near Colle d'Anchise. Members of the LER had to climb a 700 foot escarpment to make their attack on the German held town of Colle d'Anchise.
The situation now began to resemble the Leonforte attack. As
day broke, the Germans brought up reinforcements and armour to counter-attack
while the LER lost radio contact with brigade. By about 0830, the river crossing
was complete, and half a dozen Shermans from the Ontario Armoured Regiment
got across. The guides who were supposed to take them to the LER were absent,
apparently dispersed by enemy fire. Unable to establish contact with regimental
HQ, the tanks finally began to move up the hill to where they believed the
LER to be. They immediately ran into a German ambush, losing three tanks and
halting the rest. By mid-afternoon the German counter-attack had pushed the
LER, who had no artillery support because of radio failure and only their
PIATs to oppose the panzers, back out of most of the village. The regiment
was running very short of ammunition but holding grimly on at the end of the
day, when the Germans suddenly withdrew because of advances by the PPCLI and
1st Brigade farther downstream. The LER lost 30 men (5 dead) in the fight,
but German casualties were about a hundred, including 29 prisoners.
