Saturday 10th
The first Allied troops go ashore on Sicily along a 100-mile front.
Tuesday 13th
The Allies capture Augusta and Ragusa and land new forces near Catania.
Monday 19th
Hitler and Mussolini meet in northern Italy to discuss the worsening military situation.
Five hundred US bombers rained down 1,000 tons of high explosive onto the Italian capital today in a massive daylight raid. For two and a half hours Rome shuddered under its first air-raid, as 4,000 pound bombs devastated the city’s railyards, airfields, factories and government offices, but pilots were under strict orders to avoid Rome’s famous historical buildings and the Vatican.
A Swedish newsman who toured the city immediately afterwards reported: “All well-known streets and squares beloved by the world’s tourists, look as peaceful as ever.” But around the US targets, he said, “fires were still raging, and the dead were being dragged from under the ruins, for the loss of life was extremely high”.
This was the day we landed we sailed up the eastern coast & on approaching Augusta two fighter bombers dropped a couple of bombs in between our ship & the one to the side of us. We then sailed into the anchorage at Augusta & we transferred to landing craft which took us & our baggage ashore. There somehow we seemed to leave the orderliness of the ship & descend into a chaotic living again. We assembled on shore & piled our kit bags together & a baggage party was detailed & took charge. the rest of us marched about 1/2 miles to a lemon grove where groups of us had to select a tree to sleep under. Water was a problem & had to be drawn from various wells in the vicinity we had rations from the boat mainly bully & biscuit & tea brewings & we started to cook our own grub. That night we made our beds in the open & as it was warm we were alright as far as the weather was concerned. On the approach of dusk Jerry’s bombers came over to attack the harbour & we found ourselves in the centre of flying shrapnel from our own A.A. guns which was very unpleasant & dangerous judging by the pieces of metal we picked up next day.
Tuesday 20th
During the day we did a foraging hunt & managed to pick up some tomatoes & also watermelons to help out our rations. What I found very hard at first was to go to the lavatory. Whether this was due to having to crouch down over a hole in a position which I had not been used to & found very awkward to begin with I don’t know. Later in the day Johnny Jock & I dug a hole to shelter us somewhat during the coming night which again proved as hectic as the first one. Jock this night was on guard & did not therefore sleep in the hole with us. Again we survived being hit but felt very uncomfortable & helpless. One other point about sleeping was one had to smear ones face with mosquito cream to keep away malaria & it brought quite a perspiration out on the face. Which was altogether very uncomfortable sleeping. During this day as well we went for a swim in a disused hole which had filled up with water. Bathing costumes were not necessary & I had quite a good swim the water being very warm.
Wednesday 21st
This day passed very similar to the previous ones mainly getting food & cooking it. One unpleasant job we had & that was to go down to the banks of a nearby river & cut down bamboos which grew to a height of 10 feet. These were used for camouflaging the trees under which we slept. There was plenty of air activity during the day but they were always ours we never saw a german plane. At night it was unfortunately my turn for guard & after digging the hole further down to sleep in I had to sleep on top of the ground again under a tree which served as a guard room. I got very little sleep as during the period off we were kept awake by the A.A. Nothing extraordinary happened on guard.
Thursday 22nd
Today we moved our location. All our kit except webbing & small packs rifles went by lorry & we walked or rather marched & it was pretty gruelling due to the heat from the sun which we were not used to. Half way there we had a halt by a stream which we immediately stripped off at & got in. On the other side was a big lemon grove with some lovely big ripe lemons in. We finally arrived at our destination rather done up a couple of fellows had to fall out on the way. After much casting of kit up & down a terraced hill to find a suitable spot we finally settled & were issued with mosquito nets. Two to each one. Johnny & I slept together. We erected these & were soon in bed. During the evening rations were issued in the form of compo rations. These are boxes of tinned food for 12 or 14 men the latter are best having for example beans & bacon for breakfast. M&V & pudding for dinner & sardines or cheese for tea. Of course the inevitable tin of biscuits which one is always running up against. Also a bar of chocolate & 7 cigarettes & a few matches & also some lavatory paper. Making the days rations pretty comprehensive. The nights were much more quiet although we still saw the A.A. over the harbour but were in no danger from it. Our days consisted mainly of getting wood for the fires & digging latrines each day we were very fortunate in having a very deep artificial pool at hand which had running water through it & provided irrigation for the grove. In this we swam numerous times during the day again without any bathing costumes on. During our stay here I contracted a violent diarrhoea which later landed me in hospital. I went sick with it & it was getting cured somewhat although at times I felt extremely ill & could not eat or do any work at all. During our stay here though we managed to hitch hike to a town nearby called Carlentini & had a wander round. Here I had my first taste of Italian ice cream. I was not very impressed by the town which had narrow streets & a pauper look about the houses. The people on the whole were very friendly & were very ready to talk to one even though we only understood a word here or there. We struck camp eventually on August 5th:-
Friday 23rd
The Sicilian capital, Palermo, has fallen to the Americans without a struggle. In a rapid thrust to the north from the Allied-held southern part of the island, US troops overwhelmed the city yesterday, trapping an estimated 45,000 Axis troops who must now surrender or be annihilated.
General Eisenhower, the Allied C-in-C, described the success as “the first page in the story of the liberation of the European continent”. Axis troops are now on the run right across the island.
Further south, the Axis-held port of Catania is besieged. It is being softened up with a fierce bombardment from sea and air while the British Eighth Army, under General Montgomery, advances on it from the south, and Canadian troops drive east, against fierce resistance from German panzers, to cut off the city from behind.
Meanwhile, the American Seventh Army is today advancing along the island’s northern coast road, pursuing Italian troops towards the volcanic massif of Mount Etna. It is here that Axis forces plan to fight a final rearguard action, to allow the evacuation that has just begun from the port of Messina to be completed.
The attack on Palermo – the result of a 60-mile advance in just 58 hours – was so swift that the defenders had no time to demolish dock and railhead facilities which had escaped Allied bombs.
The victory also deprives the Axis of one of its chief Mediterranean submarine bases, and has given the Allies access to a new airfield, from which planes can strike at German and Italian positions far behind the battle lines. US Warhawks, for instance, today shot down 17 enemy fighters in a raid over the island of Sardinia, and Flying Fortress bombers plastered the railway marshalling yards at Foggia, on the eastern side of southern Italy.
Sunday 25th
Mussolini, Fascist dictator of Italy for 21 years, has fallen from power. King Victor Emmanuel has assumed command of the Italian armed forces, and the anti-Fascist Marshal Badoglio has been appointed Prime Minister and Chief of Government. This dramatic news, broadcast by Rome radio tonight, comes at a time when Italian soldiers in Sicily are surrendering in their thousands, and it is obvious that the Allied invasion of Italy itself will not be long delayed.
Both the King and the Marshal appealed to the Italian people for loyalty and said that the war would continue, but it is expected that the Duce’s downfall will soon be followed by Italy’s surrender.
Mussolini has made no public appearances for weeks; none of the recent events has brought him into the open. He neither visited bombed cities nor rallied his followers when the Allied invasion of Sicily rendered all his pledges worthless.
The news of his resignation did not come as a surprise in London, in view of the obvious difficulties of his regime and the vain appeals for help which the Fascist leaders have recently made to Germany.
At the same time it is being received with the greatest satisfaction as the first sign of the inevitable collapse of Fascism and, after it, of Nazism.
Monday 26th
In Rome Badoglio declares martial law to prevent civil war.
Tuesday 27th
In Rome Badoglio asks the Allies for peace terms as demonstrations celebrate Mussolini’s downfall.
Wednesday 28th
The Fascist Party is abolished in Rome.
Thursday 29th
Political prisoners are released; Eisenhower offers “peace with honour” if Italy ends aid to Germany.