Sicily
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It was July 10, 1943, the beginning of the Sicily Campaign. The sound
of 26,000 Canadian men splashing through the waters off the coast of Pachino, filled
your ears. It was windy and the swells were higher than what troops
would normally attempt to land in. The 1st Canadian Division waded
through sandbars, drop-offs, and false beaches. The ocean actually
caused more of a problem than the beach did, as after making it to land,
the 1st Canadian Division was met with very little resistance from the
Italian Army. Their defense was surprised that anyone would attack on
such a windy day.
In the weeks prior to Operation HUSKY (aka the Sicily Campaign) Allied planes raided western Sicily to try and mislead the defenders of the Allies’ plans to attack from the South and East. Apparently the Allies also wrote fake documents, put them in a briefcase, dressed a corpse as a British officer, and let it drift to shore. They called it Operation Mincemeat. It was extremely effective as it ‘revealed’ that the Allies had no intention of invading Sicily but instead they planned on invading Greece. A lot of German troops moved out, and then the Allies moved in. |
After the German/Italian troops realized what the Canadians, British and American divisions were doing, they set off to block the main way to Messina (Messina is the closest city to mainland Italy). On July 15, a German division attacked Canadian troops outside of the village of Grammichele. Canadians triumphed and took the village. Piazza Armerina and Valguarnera fell on following days. Then Canadian troops had to capture the towns Leonforte and Assoro (Assoro is a village on the side of a mountain on the island and the Germans had made it into a big defensive station.) The only road to the village was winding and had switch backs. Brigadier Howard Graham said, “To hope for success by moving up the torturous road was out of the question,” he said. “The regiment would be slaughtered.” So instead, the regiment had to climb the almost sheer cliff on the other side of the mountain. The men had to scale the cliff in the dark. The cliff had been sculpted into 47 terraces, but they were now un-kept and badly overgrown. The Canadian regiment had to go terrace by terrace, which meant they first had to climb up and then haul all their gear up. Not one man fell and not one gun was dropped! After hard fighting both Assoro and Leonforte succumbed to the Canadians. Even tougher combat was needed as the Germans were determined to stand on the route to Agira. The allies tried three separate attacks before a new division with artillery and air support, managed to defeat the Axis(Germans/Italians). On July 28, after five days of heavy fighting, Agira was taken. Citizens of Sicily weren’t much help to the German soldiers, they acted like the war was a game and in the cities they liked to point out the German snipers to the Canadians!
While Canadians were fighting all these battles, the Americans were fighting on the western part of the island and the British were clearing the east coast near Catania. Both of these forced the Germans to the base of Mount Etna where the Canadians captured Catenanuova and Regalbuto. The Canadian’s last job was to defeat the main enemy position and capture Adrano. Canadians fought hard against not only enemy troops, but also the terrain. Their mortars, guns, ammunition, and other supplies had to be transported by mule trains. Still, the Canadians advanced, fighting literally from mountain rock to mountain rock. The path for the closing of the Sicilian campaign was cleared. The Canadians did not take part in this final phase because they were withdrawn on August 7. They were withdrawn to be conserved for the battles to come. Eleven days later, British and American troops entered Messina. Sicily had been conquered in 38 days.
Operation HUSKY was a success. The Allies secured air bases, freed the Mediterranean sea lanes, and contributed to the downfall of Italian leader, Mussolini. In their first campaign, Canadians fought over more ground then any other formation of the British army (more then 240km!). Canadian casualties throughout the fighting ended with 562 killed, 664 wounded and 84 prisoners of war. Although there were casualties and tragedies there were also triumphs and victories, Canadians worked as a team, as a nation, and did very well in their first campaign.
While Canadians were fighting all these battles, the Americans were fighting on the western part of the island and the British were clearing the east coast near Catania. Both of these forced the Germans to the base of Mount Etna where the Canadians captured Catenanuova and Regalbuto. The Canadian’s last job was to defeat the main enemy position and capture Adrano. Canadians fought hard against not only enemy troops, but also the terrain. Their mortars, guns, ammunition, and other supplies had to be transported by mule trains. Still, the Canadians advanced, fighting literally from mountain rock to mountain rock. The path for the closing of the Sicilian campaign was cleared. The Canadians did not take part in this final phase because they were withdrawn on August 7. They were withdrawn to be conserved for the battles to come. Eleven days later, British and American troops entered Messina. Sicily had been conquered in 38 days.
Operation HUSKY was a success. The Allies secured air bases, freed the Mediterranean sea lanes, and contributed to the downfall of Italian leader, Mussolini. In their first campaign, Canadians fought over more ground then any other formation of the British army (more then 240km!). Canadian casualties throughout the fighting ended with 562 killed, 664 wounded and 84 prisoners of war. Although there were casualties and tragedies there were also triumphs and victories, Canadians worked as a team, as a nation, and did very well in their first campaign.
War Veteran - Bert Hoffmeister
Bert Hoffmiester in Italy
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Bertram Meryl (Bert) Hoffmeister was born May 15, 1907 in Vancouver, BC. In 1927 he enrolled in the NPAM, the Canadian Army Reserve Force. In 1934 Mr. Hoffmister was made Captain and in 1939 he was made Major. After that he was made Officer, commanding the Seaforth Highlanders of Canada. In 1942 He was made Lieutenant Colonel. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order while fighting in the Sicily Campaign on the rough mountainous roads in 1943. His division was known as ‘Hoffy's Mighty Maroon Machine.’ Mr. Hoffmeister's 5th Armoured Division attacked the highly esteemed Gothic Line blocking the Allied advance North. Under Hoffmeister's guide the 5th division broke through! It is thought of as one of the most impressive Canadian actions of the war. He went on to be promoted to Brigadier General, Major General, and General Officer. Mr. Hoffmeister retired from active service in 1945 but was given many titles after retiring. After the war he was the president, chairman, and on the council of many companies. In 1982 he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada. He passed away in December of 1999 but his story will always live on.
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Resources
"Canada Remembers the Italian Campaign." Veterans Affairs Canada. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/history/second-world-war/italian-campaign/history/pish
"THE ITALIAN CAMPAIGN." WarMuseum.ca. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. http://www.warmuseum.ca/cwm/exhibitions/chrono/1931italian_e.shtml
"The Italian Campaign - History." The Italian Campaign - History. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2014 http://custermen.com/ItalyWW2/History.htm
"Sicily." Sicily. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. http://www.worldwar2history.info/Sicily/
"The Battle of Assoro." Operation Husky 2013. N.p., 11 June 2013. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. http://www.operationhusky2013.ca/the-mission/the-battle-of-assoro/
"Project MUSE - The Soldier's General: Bert Hoffmeister at War (review)." Project MUSE - The Soldier's General: Bert Hoffmeister at War (review). N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2014.http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/jmh/summary/v071/71.2milner.html
"Bert Hoffmeister." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2014.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bert_Hoffmeister
"THE ITALIAN CAMPAIGN." WarMuseum.ca. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. http://www.warmuseum.ca/cwm/exhibitions/chrono/1931italian_e.shtml
"The Italian Campaign - History." The Italian Campaign - History. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2014 http://custermen.com/ItalyWW2/History.htm
"Sicily." Sicily. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. http://www.worldwar2history.info/Sicily/
"The Battle of Assoro." Operation Husky 2013. N.p., 11 June 2013. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. http://www.operationhusky2013.ca/the-mission/the-battle-of-assoro/
"Project MUSE - The Soldier's General: Bert Hoffmeister at War (review)." Project MUSE - The Soldier's General: Bert Hoffmeister at War (review). N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2014.http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/jmh/summary/v071/71.2milner.html
"Bert Hoffmeister." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2014.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bert_Hoffmeister