My grandfather, Ed Fisher (d. 2010), USA 5th Army, served at Anzio. Before he passed, I documented his war stories on camera, and he said that he watched a lot of his buddies get bombed to shit on the beach. Some nights he'd go to sleep, and wake up the next morning to see a crater where another soldier has been laying. He also said that the British, though nasty bastards, were the toughest soldiers he'd ever seen. I believe him.
My dad was a machine gunner with the 5th. He passed away from cancer at age 57. I never got to talk with him about the war, I thought I’d ask more when he was older and it was further behind him (a contradiction, I know). We’d planned a trip to Italy, which of course never happened. I have a suitcase of letters and correspondence from him to his sweetheart (who became my mother).
MY FATHER WOULD AGREE. ALTHOUGH HE SAID THERE WAS NOTHING LIKE AN AUSSIE. THAT THEY WERE SHOT & SHELLED, AND THEY WOULD NOT "GO DOWN"...THE AUSSIES HAD TO BE "KILLED" TO MAKE THEM STOP!!! MY FATHER'S WORDS, IN THE RARE TIMES HE SPOKE OF ANZIO.
My Great Grandfather was one of those tough British soldiers. He didn't make it - he died on the 8th Feb 1944 and is buried in the Anzio War Cemetary. He was 31.
@@thevahandbook My grandfather survived anzio with the Irish Guards. Im heading over there in 2 weeks. Can try and get a photo of your gt grandads grave if u like? Maybe you already have it though?
My father landed on Anzio Beach. They fought all the way to Germany where he was captured and liberation came after the war. He was a spotter for the infantry and in much heavy fighting. RIP Earnest D Crews.
Roger Waters father was killed at the Anzio beach head, he was a gunnery sergeant and pink Floyd write about it on the Final Cut 1984 album. #OurHistory ☘️ 📚
My dad served in the 5th Army as a lieutenant. The 442nd were the Japanese Americans who went in front and took a lot of casualties; he said they saved his butt. He didn't talk about the war to us; only fellow vets. He didn't want to tell us about the horrors he saw. I always look for him in these documentaries.
My Pop as on The Beach Head in an Anti Aircraft Pit. He manned a 40mm Bofors Gun. His crew was credited with 2 1/2 aircraft killed.His position was strafed and his 18 year old Loader from Jersey City NJ took a round through his head. Pop said he was dead before he hit the ground. Everyone was wounded except Pop.He didn't get a scratch that time.
Sorry to read this both. My Grandfather was a Captain in the British army and led a night attack after landing in Anzio. His squad was killed after he took out a german machine gun position with a grenade. He was injured and captured and was a POW in Oflag 7B
My dad was on a DD offshore. One day he was at his position in the wheelhouse as they were providing fire support. He noticed a puff of smoke ashore near a railroad tunnel. Passed the info on to the OoD, and sure enough, it was one of the German "anzio annie" cannons. They were firing, then backing into the tunnel for cover during the long reload process. Whole DESDIV opened up on the tunnel mouth and brought the mountain down on it. I don't think it took out the gun like he though, but it at least denied the germans that firing point. He got an extra day liberty back in Mers-El-Kabir for it!
Thanks Stephen for sharing this story. Great respect for your father and he did for us, the greatest generation. We will always be in remembrance of there sacrifices ~ My grandfather, officer in the 7th Dutch division was at that time at Stalag 4B Muhlberg a/d Elbe in 1944. He was there until may 1945. He did his job in may 1940, but it couldnt stop the germans.
Mom loves telling me this story about how my great uncle was in this battle. He was paralyzed from the legs down and Germans were shooting the bodies, he prayed and said to God something along the lines of "If you let me live then I swear Ill go to church every Sunday." He miraculously got out of Italy alive, and he did uphold that promise he made. Its too bad I never knew the specifics, man died way before I was born but that story lives on in my family through stories.
My Great Grandfather was a British soldier at Anzio. He didn't make it - he died on the 8th Feb 1944 and is buried in the Anzio War Cemetary. He was 31 and left two young sons and a wife.
My dad was with the Fifth Army, the OSS team attached to them. Before the initial beach landing my dad was with a team of OSS operatives who were on a submarine. The submarine surfaced and then came shore in a rubber dingy at night. Their mission was to reconnoiter the area and assess German troop strength. I only heard this story a year before my dad died in 2006 at the age of 83. He was able to keep a secret for 6 decades.
Dad was in the first wave invasion in Anzio and it was the 2nd place he was wounded, the first wound was in N. Africa. I'm so glad that as I got older he told me of the war, sometimes the gritty truth and sometimes he held back things that he thought was too much for me to know. Dad was 1st Armored Division, Infantry. He was an Ack Ack gunner and Mark Clark was the commanding General. Got to meet Gen. Clark at one of many 1st Armored Division reunions, nice man but you could tell when it came to his job he would have been no nonsense.
You dad's story sounds like my Dad's. He served with the 1st armoured division in North Africa, wounded, then sent to Anzio. I wonder if they knew each other. Small world.
my dad was in this Anzio landing. He didnt talk much about the war but actually mentioned this battle once stating that the Germans let them land on the beaches but once they got away from the beaches they got their asses kicked due to the fact that the German soldiers were waiting - dug into the mountains and prepared.
@@HSSBaker I think they are known also as "The devil's brigade" I think FSSF is the official appellation. But I will stand corrected if wrong on the other points.
I'm finding myself becoming increasingly sympathetic to Gen Clark. If you watch the clip of him speaking at the start of this, you'll notice the left side of him mouth drooping slightly. That was the physical result of stress, the responsibility of fighting at Cassino and Anzio. His front was arguably the toughest outside Russia and at least he didn't lose the fight.
General Clark's son was a FAC pilot in Vietnam. One of my uncles was at a firebase that got attacked and they got assistance from Air Force bombers directed by the younger Mark Clark. I think he was a Captain at the time.
No sympathy for Gen. Clark. First of all, he was too slow & hesitant to expand the beachhead before Kesselring's forces arrived in large numbers. But, worst of all, Clark ignored clear orders to feather his own cap. His orders were to break out from the Anzio beachhead and drive East, rhen block the huge number of German units & armour which were now retreating along a very limited number of roads from the Gothic Line (which was finally breached by Polish & Indian troops in the centre, and by Canadian & British troops near the eastern coast of Italy). If Clark had followed orders, the Germans would have been sandwiched between Clark's large & well-equipped American & British forces, and the American, Polish, British Commonwealth forces now pouring through the disintegrating Gothic Line. Given the Allies air power, effective artillery, and sufficient armour, it was very likely that the German army in Italy would have been bottled-up & obliterated in the same way that the German 7th Army was the following year in the Falaise Pocket in Normandy. After that, it would have been next to impossible for the Germans to stop the Allies from retaking all of Italy & perhaps the Balkans. But none of that happened because Clark, who was as hungry for glory as Patton, decided to send his forces up the highway to Rome, and also ensured that the American forces under his command entered Rome before the British forces under his command. His selfishness & political narcissism caused the Allies the opportunity of a massive victory that would have also saved thousands & thousands of American, Polish, British & British Commonwealth lives. Furthermore, it cost the Allies an opportunity to be in a far better bargaining position when Churchill & Rooosevelt met with Stalin to discuss how Europe would be divided up by the victors once Germany unconditionally surrendered. Some have suggested that, at minimum, Yugoslavia & Czechoslovakia would not have ended up under communist rule. When it comes to Clark's transgression & his responsibility, the proof is in the pudding. If I recall correctly, Clark was relieved of his command in Italy by Roosevelt, temporarily demoted, and was not assigned any high profile command position during the remainder of the war... As far as American newsreels & subsequent documentaries go, most have ignored Clark's massive blunder & repeatedly used the footage of American troops entering Rome for propaganda purposes.
@@derekbaker3279 I won't dispute much of what you said. I do know a bit about the war in Italy and certainly Clark was an egotist and a glory hunter. My changing opinion of the man comes partly from the fact that almost every move the Allies made in Italy up to that point had been thwarted, virtually none of their initial plans succeeded. So the plan to attack towards Highway 6 and cut off the enemy retreat may well have completely failed, with the Axis forces smashing the 'roadblock' and getting to Rome. But, at the time of the breakout, Clark knew FOR CERTAIN he could reach Rome before the retreating enemy, so he went for it. And succeeded. He wasn't to know the Germans had no intention of fortifying the capital. Also, it should be remembered that up to that point, there were still lingering doubts about the fighting capability of the US Army (going all the way back to Kasserine), including among members of the american press. Here was Clarks chance to show the world his men were capable of capturing a real prize. Of course this resulted in the German Army living to fight another day. But on a personal, as i said at the top, he developed a droop in his mouth from the stress of it all; that to me shows he wasn't as heartless and singleminded as we might think. But i could be wrong.
James Arness, of Gunsmoke fame, was severely wounded by a German machine gun at Anzio almost taking his leg off. It bothered him for the rest of his life.
I had family fight for the german side in this battle. heres a snippet from one of our family members biography. i saw combat in Italy at Nettuno, Anzio and Cisterna with the 5th Verstark Panzer Grenadier Regiment full motorized 1028. On the 16-2-44 I was captured by soldiers of United States of America 45th Army Division on the Campo Di Carne at Cisterna. I was held prisoner for five hours and received gun butt wounds to the head. During a German mortar counter attack I was able to escape back to the German lines. I was taken to field hospitals at Velletri and Tivoli where I was treated for head wounds, concussion and malaria terciana. I was then sent into combat at Monte Cassino with the 1st Paratroop Regiment. On the day before the monastery on Monte Cassino was captured by Polish forces (17-5-44) the Captain of my unit and myself were able to escape from the monastery and reach the German lines in the Liri Valley. On the 23-5-44 my Captain and I were ambushed by Gurka and Morrocan forces. I was badly wounded in both legs by a hand grenade and received bayonet wounds to my upper right thigh during hand to hand combat. I was forced to defend myself with my signal pistol. I was discovered by an Italian liaison officer. My units’ Captain had died lying on top of me. The Italian officer carried me to a field hospital near Rome where my right leg was operated on.
I don't speak English so I use a translator, what a story, really brutal so to speak, I don't know if brutal means the same thing in English as it does in my language, this shows once again that suffering of war goes both ways and war is cruel as expected
many years after this battle, General mark Clark was criticized for the manner in which he handled this battle...apparently his tactics were not up to combating Smiling Albert Kesselring.
Clark was a pompous ass. He even stated that he would attack the Canadians, who actually opened the way to Rome, if they entered Rome before him. He was severely chastised for that, and rightly so.
Not only a supreme egotist, but a very poor leader..took ages to capitalise on the successful unopposed landing and allowed the Germans loads of time to counter attack..couldn’t believe their luck. Don’t forget that the AMG appointed Genovese to a key position in the administration, who had been in Italy having left the US to avoid a murder rap...He virtually ran the post invasion government, appointing mafia and Camorra men to all the mayorships and supervising hugely corrupt black market operations under that auspices of the AMG.
Clark f*cked-up a lot worse than just that. He ignored orders that may have given the Allies a massive & decisive victory in Italy. See my comment in response to Yellow Jackboots, a bit above this thread.
outofturn If you like listening to music from Luciferians; those celebrities are all child rapists, and they do far worse things to children than that. All of the celebrities and politicians have sold their lives to Satan for wealth, fame and power. I love them, but I hate what they do.
Yes Roger Water's dad died in Anzio. He was only 5 month's old so when he wrote "When the tigers broke free" it was a true story for him. Heartbreaking
My Great Uncle landed on Anzio with the 348th Bomb SQ, 99th Bomb GP as a medic. Bloody, savage war. He made it back, but was never the same. Said the Germans were the most vicious fighters he'd ever seen, and he'd been all over Africa, Italy, the NO Appennines, the Balklands, Rhineland, and even Normandy.
Listening to this it may come as a surprise, that actually, British Army brigades fought alongside the Americans. In fact General Harold Alexander was suppodedly in overall charge of teh operation 'Shingle', a Britsih initiative ( backed by Churchill so was always going to be accident prone) which unfortunately never had teh full-blown support and blessing of the Americans who believed that it was a flawed idea, and military efforts should have been concentrated elsewhere.
Not really. Further up the coast would have made the landing further from supply lines & closer to the German divisions occupying the southern part of France. Also, the waters just off-shore & characteristics of the beach in a landing zone have to be able to accomodate ships, landing craft, large amounts of supplies, heavy armour, and large amounts of men. Furthermore, the area just beyond the beach has to be conducive to large forces rapidly & safely moving into the surrounding countryside (sufficient roads & open fields,etc.)
The " Soft Underbelly of the Third Reich" was a tough ole gut. The Italian campaign was a horrible slugfest that lasted from 7/43 to 4/45 . The Nazis had a very good army in Italy , and their finatical Fallshirmjagers ( Paratroopers of Germany). Evan after taking Rome , the Italian campaign continued for nearly a yr , almost to the end of WW2 in the ETO?
General mark Clark was a disgrace he basically ignored general Alexander orders ( A very Anglophobia just like Patton through that was largely his diske for Montgomery who he called a prima Donna lol. ) in charge of the Italian campaign just as the allies were making tough progress against Field marshal Kesselring's divisions untill Clark had enough resorted to plan B operation turtle he pulled his troops out of the fight under his command and went for the Glory run to Rome to be first allied forces ito enter Rome instead of the British he certainly succeeded in that if it wasn't for the Navy big guns Anzio would been another Dunkirk
My uncle was killed in Anzio ,March1, 1944. Richard E. Cook. He was just 21 years old.
Mine to - on 9 Feb - around the same age. Is he buried in the Anzio Commentary?
My grandfather, Ed Fisher (d. 2010), USA 5th Army, served at Anzio. Before he passed, I documented his war stories on camera, and he said that he watched a lot of his buddies get bombed to shit on the beach. Some nights he'd go to sleep, and wake up the next morning to see a crater where another soldier has been laying. He also said that the British, though nasty bastards, were the toughest soldiers he'd ever seen. I believe him.
My dad was a machine gunner with the 5th. He passed away from cancer at age 57. I never got to talk with him about the war, I thought I’d ask more when he was older and it was further behind him (a contradiction, I know). We’d planned a trip to Italy, which of course never happened. I have a suitcase of letters and correspondence from him to his sweetheart (who became my mother).
MY FATHER WOULD AGREE. ALTHOUGH HE SAID THERE WAS NOTHING LIKE AN AUSSIE. THAT THEY WERE SHOT & SHELLED, AND THEY WOULD NOT "GO DOWN"...THE AUSSIES HAD TO BE "KILLED" TO MAKE THEM STOP!!! MY FATHER'S WORDS, IN THE RARE TIMES HE SPOKE OF ANZIO.
My father was there he said he never thought he'd make it to the beach.
My Great Grandfather was one of those tough British soldiers. He didn't make it - he died on the 8th Feb 1944 and is buried in the Anzio War Cemetary. He was 31.
@@thevahandbook My grandfather survived anzio with the Irish Guards. Im heading over there in 2 weeks. Can try and get a photo of your gt grandads grave if u like? Maybe you already have it though?
My father landed on Anzio Beach. They fought all the way to Germany where he was captured and liberation came after the war. He was a spotter for the infantry and in much heavy fighting. RIP Earnest D Crews.
Roger Waters father was killed at the Anzio beach head, he was a gunnery sergeant and pink Floyd write about it on the Final Cut 1984 album. #OurHistory ☘️ 📚
My dad served in the 5th Army as a lieutenant. The 442nd were the Japanese Americans who went in front and took a lot of casualties; he said they saved his butt. He didn't talk about the war to us; only fellow vets. He didn't want to tell us about the horrors he saw. I always look for him in these documentaries.
My poor Father was shot to pieces on the Anzio Beachhead. Emotionally, he never recovered.
My Pop as on The Beach Head in an Anti Aircraft Pit. He manned a 40mm Bofors Gun. His crew was credited with 2 1/2 aircraft killed.His position was strafed and his 18 year old Loader from Jersey City NJ took a round through his head. Pop said he was dead before he hit the ground. Everyone was wounded except Pop.He didn't get a scratch that time.
Sorry to read this both. My Grandfather was a Captain in the British army and led a night attack after landing in Anzio. His squad was killed after he took out a german machine gun position with a grenade. He was injured and captured and was a POW in Oflag 7B
I am sorry read that for your father. Great respect for your father and his service on the anzio landings.
My uncle Thomas was killed at the Rapido River. They died in vain. My grandmother never recovered, he was her youngest.
My dad was a medic in the American army at Anzio Beech
My dad was on a DD offshore. One day he was at his position in the wheelhouse as they were providing fire support. He noticed a puff of smoke ashore near a railroad tunnel. Passed the info on to the OoD, and sure enough, it was one of the German "anzio annie" cannons. They were firing, then backing into the tunnel for cover during the long reload process. Whole DESDIV opened up on the tunnel mouth and brought the mountain down on it. I don't think it took out the gun like he though, but it at least denied the germans that firing point. He got an extra day liberty back in Mers-El-Kabir for it!
Thanks Stephen for sharing this story. Great respect for your father and he did for us, the greatest generation. We will always be in remembrance of there sacrifices ~ My grandfather, officer in the 7th Dutch division was at that time at Stalag 4B Muhlberg a/d Elbe in 1944. He was there until may 1945. He did his job in may 1940, but it couldnt stop the germans.
OH MY GAWD!
Behave yourself kid, I suppose you support Man U! 😂
@@DaveSCameron no, because they are owned by the Yank-mee’s
Mom loves telling me this story about how my great uncle was in this battle. He was paralyzed from the legs down and Germans were shooting the bodies, he prayed and said to God something along the lines of "If you let me live then I swear Ill go to church every Sunday." He miraculously got out of Italy alive, and he did uphold that promise he made. Its too bad I never knew the specifics, man died way before I was born but that story lives on in my family through stories.
Bet alot of soldiers did. My Dad was a P.O.W.in ww2.But I can recall that it seemed like there were many ww2 vet's that attended church regularly.
ALL OF THEM WERE VERY, VERY BRAVE MEN! ALL OF THEM, IN A DESPERATE SITUATION.
What branch did he fight in and what outfit was he in. ?? My grandfather was an amphibious driver for this battle
@@gordongiobanni7543 Just some regular infantry I think
Im surprised they let him serve, with his disability.
My Great Grandfather was a British soldier at Anzio. He didn't make it - he died on the 8th Feb 1944 and is buried in the Anzio War Cemetary. He was 31 and left two young sons and a wife.
My dad was with the Fifth Army, the OSS team attached to them. Before the initial beach landing my dad was with a team of OSS operatives who were on a submarine. The submarine surfaced and then came shore in a rubber dingy at night. Their mission was to reconnoiter the area and assess German troop strength. I only heard this story a year before my dad died in 2006 at the age of 83. He was able to keep a secret for 6 decades.
Dad was in the first wave invasion in Anzio and it was the 2nd place he was wounded, the first wound was in N. Africa. I'm so glad that as I got older he told me of the war, sometimes the gritty truth and sometimes he held back things that he thought was too much for me to know. Dad was 1st Armored Division, Infantry. He was an Ack Ack gunner and Mark Clark was the commanding General. Got to meet Gen. Clark at one of many 1st Armored Division reunions, nice man but you could tell when it came to his job he would have been no nonsense.
You dad's story sounds like my Dad's. He served with the 1st armoured division in North Africa, wounded, then sent to Anzio. I wonder if they knew each other. Small world.
my dad was in this Anzio landing. He didnt talk much about the war but actually mentioned this battle once stating that the Germans let them land on the beaches but once they got away from the beaches they got their asses kicked due to the fact that the German soldiers were waiting - dug into the mountains and prepared.
Eric Fletcher Waters 1943. Pink Floyd's Roger Waters father was blown away on an Anzio beach also 🇬🇧🎸🎸🍀🌊
Yeah the truth is that silly maybe but you were fooled by the Germans. Italy like many other places were just to many mistakes made by the Allies.🇩🇪💪
My Grandfather was at Anzio as a Canadian member of The U.S./Canada First Special Service Force (Black Devil's).
My grandfather is MIA from the battle at Anzio 1st Lt Joseph E Georgie.
RIP, grandad.
I remember watching this channel when it was active, thoroughly enjoyed its learned and exciting uploads. 👍
Grew up watching these. Late at night, out of Columbus and Keesler Air Force bases. My Father was Air Force.
My great great uncle corporal Samuel wooldridge of the green howards died of wounds at anzio our family hero
My Grandpa was wounded in anzio and came back to the states and met my grandmother at the army hospital..
A good bit of a geography and history lesson all in one.
RIGHT ON!
19:41the Johnson light machine gun.
These are the Thunderbirds commandos in action.
Sure it's not the Forst Special Service Force? The attack on that town is FSSF troops
@@HSSBaker
I think they are known also as "The devil's brigade"
I think FSSF is the official appellation.
But I will stand corrected if wrong on the other points.
I'm finding myself becoming increasingly sympathetic to Gen Clark. If you watch the clip of him speaking at the start of this, you'll notice the left side of him mouth drooping slightly. That was the physical result of stress, the responsibility of fighting at Cassino and Anzio. His front was arguably the toughest outside Russia and at least he didn't lose the fight.
General Clark's son was a FAC pilot in Vietnam. One of my uncles was at a firebase that got attacked and they got assistance from Air Force bombers directed by the younger Mark Clark. I think he was a Captain at the time.
No sympathy for Gen. Clark. First of all, he was too slow & hesitant to expand the beachhead before Kesselring's forces arrived in large numbers.
But, worst of all, Clark ignored clear orders to feather his own cap. His orders were to break out from the Anzio beachhead and drive East, rhen block the huge number of German units & armour which were now retreating along a very limited number of roads from the Gothic Line (which was finally breached by Polish & Indian troops in the centre, and by Canadian & British troops near the eastern coast of Italy). If Clark had followed orders, the Germans would have been sandwiched between Clark's large & well-equipped American & British forces, and the American, Polish, British Commonwealth forces now pouring through the disintegrating Gothic Line. Given the Allies air power, effective artillery, and sufficient armour, it was very likely that the German army in Italy would have been bottled-up & obliterated in the same way that the German 7th Army was the following year in the Falaise Pocket in Normandy. After that, it would have been next to impossible for the Germans to stop the Allies from retaking all of Italy & perhaps the Balkans.
But none of that happened because Clark, who was as hungry for glory as Patton, decided to send his forces up the highway to Rome, and also ensured that the American forces under his command entered Rome before the British forces under his command. His selfishness & political narcissism caused the Allies the opportunity of a massive victory that would have also saved thousands & thousands of American, Polish, British & British Commonwealth lives. Furthermore, it cost the Allies an opportunity to be in a far better bargaining position when Churchill & Rooosevelt met with Stalin to discuss how Europe would be divided up by the victors once Germany unconditionally surrendered. Some have suggested that, at minimum, Yugoslavia & Czechoslovakia would not have ended up under communist rule.
When it comes to Clark's transgression & his responsibility, the proof is in the pudding. If I recall correctly, Clark was relieved of his command in Italy by Roosevelt, temporarily demoted, and was not assigned any high profile command position during the remainder of the war...
As far as American newsreels & subsequent documentaries go, most have ignored Clark's massive blunder & repeatedly used the footage of American troops entering Rome for propaganda purposes.
@@derekbaker3279 I won't dispute much of what you said. I do know a bit about the war in Italy and certainly Clark was an egotist and a glory hunter. My changing opinion of the man comes partly from the fact that almost every move the Allies made in Italy up to that point had been thwarted, virtually none of their initial plans succeeded. So the plan to attack towards Highway 6 and cut off the enemy retreat may well have completely failed, with the Axis forces smashing the 'roadblock' and getting to Rome. But, at the time of the breakout, Clark knew FOR CERTAIN he could reach Rome before the retreating enemy, so he went for it. And succeeded. He wasn't to know the Germans had no intention of fortifying the capital. Also, it should be remembered that up to that point, there were still lingering doubts about the fighting capability of the US Army (going all the way back to Kasserine), including among members of the american press. Here was Clarks chance to show the world his men were capable of capturing a real prize. Of course this resulted in the German Army living to fight another day. But on a personal, as i said at the top, he developed a droop in his mouth from the stress of it all; that to me shows he wasn't as heartless and singleminded as we might think. But i could be wrong.
As if that is not bad enough go study the "Disaster at Rapido". The 36th Division Vets tried to get Clark after the war for that slaughter.
@@yellowjackboots2624 Thanks for sharing your thoughts Yellow Jackboots. You made some good points. 🖒🖒
James Arness, of Gunsmoke fame, was severely wounded by a German machine gun at Anzio almost taking his leg off. It bothered him for the rest of his life.
My uncle went in at Anzio. He was killed in Nettuno on March 2, 1944.
Come si chiamava lo zio?
Abito ad Anzio dove ci sono due cimiteri di soldati Americani e Inglesi morti durante la guerra. Sono tenuti con molta cura e rispetto.
I had family fight for the german side in this battle. heres a snippet from one of our family members biography. i saw combat in Italy at Nettuno, Anzio and Cisterna with the 5th Verstark Panzer Grenadier Regiment full motorized 1028. On the 16-2-44 I was captured by soldiers of United States of America 45th Army Division on the Campo Di Carne at Cisterna. I was held prisoner for five hours and received gun butt wounds to the head. During a German mortar counter attack I was able to escape back to the German lines. I was taken to field hospitals at Velletri and Tivoli where I was treated for head wounds, concussion and malaria terciana.
I was then sent into combat at Monte Cassino with the 1st Paratroop Regiment. On the day before the monastery on Monte Cassino was captured by Polish forces (17-5-44) the Captain of my unit and myself were able to escape from the monastery and reach the German lines in the Liri Valley.
On the 23-5-44 my Captain and I were ambushed by Gurka and Morrocan forces. I was badly wounded in both legs by a hand grenade and received bayonet wounds to my upper right thigh during hand to hand combat. I was forced to defend myself with my signal pistol.
I was discovered by an Italian liaison officer. My units’ Captain had died lying on top of me. The Italian officer carried me to a field hospital near Rome where my right leg was operated on.
I don't speak English so I use a translator, what a story, really brutal so to speak, I don't know if brutal means the same thing in English as it does in my language, this shows once again that suffering of war goes both ways and war is cruel as expected
@@Lepusbuns i hope we learn from it one day but sadly history repeats again with war in ukraine. Blood spilled on both sides for no reason.
When was this episode of "The Big Picture" on the Anzio beachhead produced? 1962 or '63?
I had an uncle who fought at Anzio. The man was haunted, hardly ever slept.
many years after this battle, General mark Clark was criticized for the manner in which he handled this battle...apparently his tactics were not up to combating Smiling Albert Kesselring.
Clark was a pompous ass. He even stated that he would attack the Canadians, who actually opened the way to Rome, if they entered Rome before him. He was severely chastised for that, and rightly so.
@@tysmaar148 mark clark was an asshole ! and im american !
Not only a supreme egotist, but a very poor leader..took ages to capitalise on the successful unopposed landing and allowed the Germans loads of time to counter attack..couldn’t believe their luck.
Don’t forget that the AMG appointed Genovese to a key position in the administration, who had been in Italy having left the US to avoid a murder rap...He virtually ran the post invasion government, appointing mafia and Camorra men to all the mayorships and supervising hugely corrupt black market operations under that auspices of the AMG.
HQ underground / Hospital in a tent - says a lot.
Clark f*cked-up a lot worse than just that. He ignored orders that may have given the Allies a massive & decisive victory in Italy. See my comment in response to Yellow Jackboots, a bit above this thread.
For the musical version Pink Floyd's The Wall covers the impact on one man's family.
outofturn
If you like listening to music from Luciferians; those celebrities are all child rapists, and they do far worse things to children than that. All of the celebrities and politicians have sold their lives to Satan for wealth, fame and power. I love them, but I hate what they do.
Yes Roger Water's dad died in Anzio. He was only 5 month's old so when he wrote "When the tigers broke free" it was a true story for him. Heartbreaking
My Great Uncle landed on Anzio with the 348th Bomb SQ, 99th Bomb GP as a medic. Bloody, savage war. He made it back, but was never the same. Said the Germans were the most vicious fighters he'd ever seen, and he'd been all over Africa, Italy, the NO Appennines, the Balklands, Rhineland, and even Normandy.
They were still fighting in Italy up until German capitulation in May, 1945. The "soft underbelly" idea was proved very wrong.
Rome, Clarke's folly!
Because Patton was sent back to England for slapping 2 soldiers, thousands of Americans would pay with their lives in Anizo
Fiero di essere di questa splendida città
Evan the Africans with spears nearly beat those Italians which were lost troops in the world , a complete disgrace.
my first ship united states Navy was USS Anzio CG68 STAND AND FIGHT!!!!
My father almost lost his left arm at Anzio. his third purple heart.
Churchill said the landing was a beached whale.
Listening to this it may come as a surprise, that actually, British Army brigades fought alongside the Americans. In fact General Harold Alexander was suppodedly in overall charge of teh operation 'Shingle', a Britsih initiative ( backed by Churchill so was always going to be accident prone)
which unfortunately never had teh full-blown support and blessing of the Americans who believed that it was a flawed idea, and military efforts should have been concentrated elsewhere.
3:35 disobedience
Was there a better spot then Anzio land?
Not really. Further up the coast would have made the landing further from supply lines & closer to the German divisions occupying the southern part of France. Also, the waters just off-shore & characteristics of the beach in a landing zone have to be able to accomodate ships, landing craft, large amounts of supplies, heavy armour, and large amounts of men. Furthermore, the area just beyond the beach has to be conducive to large forces rapidly & safely moving into the surrounding countryside (sufficient roads & open fields,etc.)
My mom was in the front line.
The " Soft Underbelly of the Third Reich" was a tough ole gut. The Italian campaign was a horrible slugfest that lasted from 7/43 to 4/45 . The Nazis had a very good army in Italy , and their finatical Fallshirmjagers ( Paratroopers of Germany).
Evan after taking Rome , the Italian campaign continued for nearly a yr , almost to the end of WW2 in the ETO?
One of the most recorded debacle suffered by the americans
My uncle was killed on the beachhead.
How the commentator "uh-lies" instead of allied and "harrissment" instead of harassment I found to be distracting :P
It's Allied Beachhead.
太棒了，那时候的影片还这么清晰。
Да, досталось вам тоже как и нашим дедам !
19:43 Johnson rifle at anzio
24:55 Sherman burning out
General mark Clark was a disgrace he basically ignored general Alexander orders ( A very Anglophobia just like Patton through that was largely his diske for Montgomery who he called a prima Donna lol. ) in charge of the Italian campaign just as the allies were making tough progress against Field marshal Kesselring's divisions untill Clark had enough resorted to plan B operation turtle he pulled his troops out of the fight under his command and went for the Glory run to Rome to be first allied forces ito enter Rome instead of the British he certainly succeeded in that if it wasn't for the Navy big guns Anzio would been another Dunkirk
I know that living during these times was horrible but it was also a great time in history. The women were gorgeous too. Lol.
謝謝您，英國
Mark Clark a thoroughly mediocre General at best.
German counter attack was massive.