Battle of Cisterna
Encyclopedia
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, on 30 January-2 February 1944, near Cisterna, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, as part of the battle of Anzio that followed Operation Shingle
Operation Shingle
Operation Shingle , during the Italian Campaign of World War II, was an Allied amphibious landing against Axis forces in the area of Anzio and Nettuno, Italy. The operation was commanded by Major General John P. Lucas and was intended to outflank German forces of the Winter Line and enable an...
. The battle was a clear German victory which also had repercussions on the employment of U.S. Army Rangers that went beyond the immediate tactical and strategic results of the battle.
During this battle
Battle
Generally, a battle is a conceptual component in the hierarchy of combat in warfare between two or more armed forces, or combatants. In a battle, each combatant will seek to defeat the others, with defeat determined by the conditions of a military campaign...
, the 1st
1st Ranger Battalion
The 1st Ranger Battalion is an elite special operations unit of the US Army that is currently based at Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, Georgia, United States....
, 3rd, and 4th U.S. Army Ranger
United States Army Rangers
United States Army Rangers are elite members of the United States Army. Rangers have served in recognized U.S. Army Ranger units or have graduated from the U.S. Army's Ranger School...
battalion
Battalion
A battalion is a military unit of around 300–1,200 soldiers usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by either a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel...
s, the 83rd Chemical Mortar Battalion
Chemical mortar battalion
The United States chemical mortar battalions were army units attached to U.S. Infantry divisions, and it was their responsibility to service the 4.2 in chemical mortar during World War II. For this reason they were also called the "Four-deucers"....
, and the 509th Parachute Infantry Battalion, which had been brigaded as the 6615th Ranger Force (Provisional), were assigned to support the renewal of an attack by the 3rd Infantry Division, which had previously failed to take Cisterna from 25-27 January. The 3rd Division's attack was part of a large offensive by the U.S. VI Corps
U.S. VI Corps
The VI Corps was activated as VI Army Corps in August 1918 at Neufchâteau, France, serving in the Lorraine Campaign. Constituted in the Organized Reserves in 1921, it was allotted to the Regular Army in 1933 and activated on 1 August 1940 at Fort Sheridan, Illinois...
to break out of the Anzio beachhead before German reinforcements could arrive and concentrate for a counterattack.
Background
On 22 January 1944, the Allies launched Operation ShingleOperation Shingle
Operation Shingle , during the Italian Campaign of World War II, was an Allied amphibious landing against Axis forces in the area of Anzio and Nettuno, Italy. The operation was commanded by Major General John P. Lucas and was intended to outflank German forces of the Winter Line and enable an...
, the amphibious landing by the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
division
Division (military)
A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of between 10,000 and 20,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions typically make up a corps...
s of U.S. VI Corps
U.S. VI Corps
The VI Corps was activated as VI Army Corps in August 1918 at Neufchâteau, France, serving in the Lorraine Campaign. Constituted in the Organized Reserves in 1921, it was allotted to the Regular Army in 1933 and activated on 1 August 1940 at Fort Sheridan, Illinois...
in the area of Anzio
Anzio
Anzio is a city and comune on the coast of the Lazio region of Italy, about south of Rome.Well known for its seaside harbour setting, it is a fishing port and a departure point for ferries and hydroplanes to the Pontine Islands of Ponza, Palmarola and Ventotene...
and Nettuno
Nettuno
Nettuno is a town and comune of the province of Rome in the Lazio region of central Italy, 60 kilometers south of Rome. It is named in honour of the Roman god Neptune...
. This was designed to unhinge the formidable German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
Gustav Line defenses some 60 mi (96.6 km) to the southeast which had been under attack from the south by the other three corps
Corps
A corps is either a large formation, or an administrative grouping of troops within an armed force with a common function such as Artillery or Signals representing an arm of service...
(one British, one French and one U.S.) of Mark Clark
Mark Wayne Clark
Mark Wayne Clark was an American general during World War II and the Korean War and was the youngest lieutenant general in the U.S. Army...
's United States Fifth Army since 16 January in the first Battle of Monte Cassino
Battle of Monte Cassino
The Battle of Monte Cassino was a costly series of four battles during World War II, fought by the Allies against Germans and Italians with the intention of breaking through the Winter Line and seizing Rome.In the beginning of 1944, the western half of the Winter Line was being anchored by Germans...
. Following the landings, which had been virtually unopposed, John P. Lucas
John P. Lucas
John Porter Lucas was an American Major General and one of the commanders of VI Corps during the Italian Campaign of the Mediterranean Theater of World War II.-Early career:...
—the VI Corps commander—had chosen a cautious strategy of consolidating the beachhead
Beachhead
Beachhead is a military term used to describe the line created when a unit reaches a beach, and begins to defend that area of beach, while other reinforcements help out, until a unit large enough to begin advancing has arrived. It is sometimes used interchangeably with Bridgehead and Lodgement...
and building up his force strength, which also allowed time for the Germans to reinforce their defensive positions. By 29 January, there were 69,000 men in the beachhead but the Germans had also had time to react and move 71,500 troops to face them.
On 30 January, Lucas launched a two-pronged attack. The main attack, by British 1st Infantry Division
British 1st Infantry Division
The 1st Infantry Division was a regular British Army division with a long history having been present at the Peninsula War, the Crimean War, the First World War, and during the Second World War.-Napoleonic Wars:...
, was to advance northeast up the Via Anziate toward Campoleone and the Alban Hills
Alban Hills
The Alban Hills are the site of a quiescent volcanic complex in Italy, located southeast of Rome and about north of Anzio.The dominant peak is Monte Cavo. There are two small calderas which contain lakes, Lago Albano and Lake Nemi...
. In a secondary simultaneous attack, a Ranger
United States Army Rangers
United States Army Rangers are elite members of the United States Army. Rangers have served in recognized U.S. Army Ranger units or have graduated from the U.S. Army's Ranger School...
force was to infiltrate Cisterna and clear the Conca - Cisterna road during the night preparatory to an attack in the morning by 15th Infantry Regiment on the town and supporting attacks by 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment on their right and 7th Infantry Regiment on their left. 7th Infantry was to cut Route 7, the main supply line to the German Tenth Army
German Tenth Army
The 10th Army was a World War I and World War II field army. During World War I the 10th army was stationed at the Eastern Front against Russia, and occupied Poland and Belorussia at the end of 1918 when the war ended....
on the Gustav Line, at Cassino
Cassino
Cassino is a comune in the province of Frosinone, Italy, at the southern end of the region of Lazio.Cassino is located at the foot of Monte Cairo near the confluence of the Rapido and Liri rivers...
.
The intelligence on which the plan was based was faulty, however. Reconnaissance had indicated that the main line of German resistance was behind Cisterna and the Rangers expected to encounter only a thinly held outpost line. However, the Germans had designated Cisterna as an assembly area for its reinforcement divisions, and had begun moving units into the area unknown to the Allies. A Polish conscript in the German army had deserted to the U.S. lines immediately before the attack, warning of the buildup, but the message was not relayed promptly and the attack proceeded as planned.
Contrary to their designated function as an elite raiding force, the Rangers had been involved in much front line fighting. The heavy losses had been made good with recruits lacking the experience and quality of training of the original members. The presence of less skilled troops in an otherwise skilled force disproportionately degrades its ability in infiltration and night operations.
Battle
The 1st and 3rd Ranger Battalions—preceding the main attack by the 4th Ranger Battalion4th Ranger Battalion (United States)
Activated on 29 May 1943 in Tunisia, 4th Ranger Battalion was a Ranger unit in the United States Army during World War II.-Formation:After the success of 1st Ranger Battalion in the North Africa campaign, the Army saw the merit in small special operations units...
and the 3rd Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment—attempted a night infiltration behind German lines into the town of Cisterna. Their objective was to seize the town in a surprise attack and hold it until the main attack came through.
The two battalions—totaling 767 men and supported by a platoon of 43 men of the 3rd Reconnaissance Troop—moved out at 01:30 and moved in the darkness along a drainage ditch in column formation. Although they were able to bypass numerous German positions, at first light they were still short of their objective and needed to cross open ground for the final portion of the approach. At this point the Rangers were attacked by strong German forces of the 715th Motorized Infantry Division and Herman Göring Panzer Division
Fallschirm-Panzer Division 1 Hermann Göring
The Fallschirm-Panzer-Division 1. Hermann Göring was an élite German Luftwaffe armoured division. The HG saw action in North Africa, Sicily, Italy and on the Eastern front...
, including at least seventeen German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Panzer IV
Panzer IV
The Panzerkampfwagen IV , commonly known as the Panzer IV, was a medium tank developed in Nazi Germany in the late 1930s and used extensively during the Second World War. Its ordnance inventory designation was Sd.Kfz...
tank
Tank
A tank is a tracked, armoured fighting vehicle designed for front-line combat which combines operational mobility, tactical offensive, and defensive capabilities...
s. According to the Army history of the operation, the infiltration movement had apparently been discovered and an ambush prepared.
The 1st Battalion commander—Major Dobson—personally knocked out one tank by shooting the commander with his pistol, climbing atop the tank, and dropping a white phosphorus grenade down the hatch. Two other tanks were captured by Rangers, but then knocked out by other Rangers who did not know they had been captured. Despite fierce fighting, there was little chance of success once the Rangers were attacked on the open ground. German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
units put Ranger prisoners in front of their tanks and commanded other Rangers to surrender. After the approximately seven-hour battle, only six of the 767 Rangers and one member of the 3rd Recon troop returned to Allied lines, resulting in an overall loss of 803 men. The exact number of killed, wounded and captured is unknown, although historian Carlo D'Este
Carlo D'Este
Carlo D'Este is an American military historian and biographer, author of several books, especially on World War II. He is a retired U.S...
estimated well over 400 Rangers became POW
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
s. German casualties reached a similar level.
A fictionalized account of the battle was produced in the motion picture Anzio
Anzio (film)
Anzio, also known as Lo Sbarco di Anzio or The Battle for Anzio, is a 1968 war film about Operation Shingle, the 1944 Allied seaborne assault on the Italian port of Anzio in World War II...
in 1968.
Attempted relief of the Rangers
The main assault also jumped off, now attempting to rescue the trapped battalions. Led by the 4th Ranger Battalion, it encountered serious opposition and failed to break through. However, the overall attack—which also included an attack by the 7th Infantry Regiment7th Infantry Regiment (United States)
The United States Army's 7th Infantry Regiment, known as "The Cottenbalers" from an incident that occurred during the Battle of New Orleans, while under the command of Andrew Jackson, when soldiers of the 7th Infantry Regiment held positions behind a breastwork of bales of cotton during the...
and 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment
504th Parachute Infantry Regiment
The 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment is an airborne infantry regiment in the United States Army, first formed in 1942 as part of the 82nd Airborne Division.-Organization:...
s—did push forward the Allied lines 3 mi (4.8 km) on a 7 mi (11.3 km) wide front on 31 January and 1 February, although failing to achieve the desired breakthrough and Cisterna was to remain in German hands until May 1944. However, German counterattacks on 1-2 February—conducted by the Herman Göring Panzer
Fallschirm-Panzer Division 1 Hermann Göring
The Fallschirm-Panzer-Division 1. Hermann Göring was an élite German Luftwaffe armoured division. The HG saw action in North Africa, Sicily, Italy and on the Eastern front...
and 71st Infantry Divisions—failed to recapture any of the ground from the Allies and suffered severe casualties.
Aftermath
Gen Lucas' employment of the lightly armed Rangers to spearhead the attack was heavily criticised. The shattered Ranger forces within Italy were subsequently disbanded, although Ranger units continued to serve in northern Europe (spearheading D-Day) and in the Pacific theatre of operations.William O. Darby had commanded the American Ranger Force during the battle. When the 179th Infantry Regiment of the 45th Infantry Division was nearly overrun on 18 February during the major German attempt to take out the beachhead, Darby was sent to take command and hold the ground. Darby later was Assistant Division commander of the 10th Mountain Division. He was killed in action on 30 April 1945, and was the only U.S. officer honored with a posthumous promotion to General during World War II.