|
The Battle of Garfagnana ((イタリア語:Battaglia della Garfagnana)), known to the Germans as Operation Winter Storm (''Unternehmen Wintergewitter'') and nicknamed the "Christmas Offensive" (Italian: ''Offensiva di Natale''), was an offensive of Axis forces on the western sector of the Gothic Line during World War II. It took place in December 1944 in the north Tuscan Apennines, near Massa and Lucca.〔(Oland, pp. 25-26 )〕 In late December 1944 the German 14th Army under General Kurt von Tippelskirch, using a mixed Italian / German force of some eight infantry battalions, launched a limited objectives attack on the left wing of the U.S. Fifth Army in the Serchio valley in front of Lucca to pin units there which might otherwise be switched to the central front. Anticipating some operation of this sort, the Allies had ordered two brigades from Indian 8th Infantry Division to be rapidly switched across the Apennines to reinforce the US 92nd Infantry Division. By the time they had arrived the Germans and Italians had broken through to capture Barga and to rout the US Division. Reports from captured US soldiers indicated that they had intended to retreat to Lucca and beyond,〔Pellegrinetti, p. 79〕 but decisive action by the Indian Division's Major-General Dudley Russell stabilised the situation. With their objectives achieved, the German / Italian force broke off the attack and withdrew. Barga was recaptured one week later by the New Year,〔(Moseley, page 156 )〕 and the front in the western Gothic Line remained nearly stable until late March 1945. ==Historical background== Benito Mussolini and his Defense Minister, Marshal Rodolfo Graziani, wanted to create for their Italian Social Republic (RSI) an Italian Army, independent from German control. Furthermore, they wanted some of the newly created Italian Divisions to participate in a major offensive against the Allies in the Italian peninsula. They planned an offensive in Garfagnana for two of their new Divisions (the "Monte Rosa" and the "San Marco") and a German Division (and possibly another motorized), with 40,000 men and air support: their final objective would have been the reconquest, from the Allies, of Lucca, Pisa and Livorno in Tuscany. But the Italians lacked armaments, tanks and airplanes; furthermore only the Monterosa Division was ready in December 1944 for the offensive. As a consequence the Germans created their own offensive, called ''Operation Wintergewitter'' under general Fretter-Pico's leadership, but with minor size and objectives: just 9,000 soldiers (mostly Italians) attacked in Garfagnana a small area of the Gothic Line, aiming to push the Allies back and reduce their pressure in the Rimini area. Meanwhile, units of the U.S. 92nd Infantry Division moved to the Garfagnana sector, in November 1944, and advanced along the Serchio River Valley against light resistance. However, an attempt to capture Castelnuovo di Garfagnana did not succeed. US Patrol activity continued until after mid December. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Battle of Garfagnana」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|