Allied strategy in WWII for campaign on mainland Italy - Essay Example

Running Head: Allied strategy in World War II Allied strategy in WWII for campaign on mainland Italy of organization] Allied strategy in WWII for campaign on mainland Italy INTRODUCTION Opportunism is defined as doing something not out of necessity but to have an ulterior motive. The whole discussion of opportunism is a post war analysis of the intentions of Great Britain's delay of opening the culminating cross channel attack so as to bring a speedy end to the war. One of the aftermaths of the cessation of hostilities was the development of cold war and all the members of the triple alliance became suspicious of each others intent and a blame game started. We need to analyze the allegation of opportunism on the allied forces keeping in mind that we learn from out past by carefully sifting through the facts, as McCullough very rightly reflects: We are raising a generation of young people who are historically illiterate to a large degree. Everything we have--our institutions, our material advantages, our laws, our freedom, not to say our poetry...music and...architecture--all comes to us from people who went before us. And to not know anything about them, to be indifferent to them, which is even worse than being ignorant...is...really...mass ingratitude1. BACKGROUND The allied invasion of mainland Italy began in September 1943. General Harold Alexander's 15th Army Group was responsible for starting this invasion. The first step was invasion of Sicily. This was completed successfully during the campaign. How did it all start After the defeat in North Africa, the differences between the axis powers began to grow. The next strategic step of the allied forces was now not clear. Winston Churchill said the next step should be to invade Italy. He wanted to remove the influence of Regia Marina on Italy. The invasion of Italy would open the routes for the allied forces to enter the Mediterranean. The entrance in the Mediterranean was important as later on it could give way to the allied forces to enter Middle East and Far East. Another important reason for this was the increase in supply from America and Britain. This invasion would also help stop Germans who were planning to execute operation Overload. Operation overload was about invading Normandy. General George Marshall was against this operation. He did not want to delay the operation overload in any circumstances. However, when no solution could be made and differences started to grow, it was planned that first Sicily should be invaded2. Joint Allied Forces Headquarters AFHQ planned out all of this operation. They ordered the invasion of Sicily and the Italian mainland. Operation Husky, or in other words the invasion of Sicily began in July 1943. It was a very successful operation. Many of the allied forces escaped to the mainland Italy. Benito Mussolini was overthrown by a rebellion. He was the head of the Italian government. The actions were quick and swift. They thought that Italy would surrender if a quick invasion is done. However, they did not know that Italians and Germans together will be very strong. Even after Berlin was invaded, the Italians put up really good. The allied forces were now in a difficult position. They now had to provide food and other supplies to the troops in Italy. Germany was putting up resistance too. In fact it was because of the Germans that the Italians felt so strong. Even though Germans whole economy was at war too, they were putting up a lot of resistance. According to Milward "here was little that was new and less that was orderly in the New Order"3.Solely in economic terms, the new German Empire in Europe would have been a large-scale structure organized for, and run on the principles of, a colonialism of the crudest kind. Germany's economic policy toward occupied countries can in essence be summed up in two terms: exploitation and colonization. "Anti-Semitism as a political movement neither can nor should be based on fleeting emotions, but on the acceptance of fact. And the fact is that Judaism is a matter of race and not religion ... reasonable anti-Semitism ... must lead to a systematic and lawful campaign for the removal of those privileges which the Jew enjoys, unlike other foreigners in our midst who are subject to the law applying to aliens. The final aim of such anti-Semitism must be unquestionably the removal of the Jews4." These excerpts are from a letter written by the fur her is mirroring the philosophy of the Nazis .The axis power were a threat to the egalitarian ideologies and perpetuation of mankind. There is no doubt that it was required that The German objective of becoming a world power be defeated but the participating nations should not on grounds of principle try and fulfill their selfish objective without bothering for the fact that whether such an offensive is the need of the hour or not. The military planners first and foremost objective is to see to it whether such an offensive is feasible in terms of human lives and economic feasibility. The allied powers were no doubt standing on a higher moral grounds and it was required that any invasion should be undertaken until and unless there is an absolute necessity of it and it is very clear that the success is more or less guaranteed unless there is some unpredictable turn of events. The military strategist had expected that after the surrender of Italy the Germans will recede to the Alps5 The invasion on the mainland of Italy by the Allied forces will always be questioned as reason for initiating such an offensive doesn't seem to be that of bringing the war to a quick end. Opportunism is defined as doing something not out of necessity but to have an ulterior motive. The allied forces had the initiative. It is they who decided to launch an offensive. There were a quarter of a million causalities and the objective to alienate was also not achieved because the war ended simultaneously with the Allied occupation of Mainland Italy. The charges of opportunism can be leveled if it could be proved that there was no efficacy of attacking Italy as far as the war strategies was concerned. There needs to an objective analysis of this question before coming to a conclusion. The Japanese attacked the Pearl Harbor and a grand triple alliance was formed .These countries together massed produced the industrial products .This is going to lead to the material superiority of the Allied forces and it was one of the deciding factors in the final outcome of the world war . The World War II was fought between the axis powers and the allied forces These powers had inherent propensities that would have brought about the results that the world would witness in the times to come .Battles are not won because one power puts up a show of courage and the other doesn't .There are many factors that go in the making of battle The axis were pitted against the allied forces who had a backing of more than half of the worlds population and industry either directly or indirectly The Nazis didn't have a lot of time as time is money and they were interested in a swift and lightning attack called Blitzkrieg .These rapid strategies of warfare was utilized to annex Netherland, Belgium and France. The Nazis were not at economic parity with the allied forces therefore they preferred these quick wars. The Allies could afford wars that spread over longer period of time. In fact the strategy of buying time was utilized to gain victories. The Italian campaign if it could be termed as victory was gained in a similar manner. It is not only the case of world war but the history of wars fought throughout the world shows that those who can wage long term wars have more chances of winning than those who have the capacity to wage short term war. There are researchers like Hancock who have argued against this premise that German economy was geared up for shot term wars6. Nevertheless the most substantiated view point is the fact that Germans were pitted against The Triple Alliance and hence the Axis had less economic superiority The allied invasion on the mainland of Italy was poorly and executed action as the amount of forces required to make a decisive victory was not granted to the Allied forces. There was a mounting pressure to buildup forces in Great Britain to prepare for the final showdown in the cross channel attack. It was planned to remove seven divisions of the veteran forces from the Italian campaign because it was to be used in the mission overlord .Three divisions of American forces were sent when the causalities started mounting and the three of the experienced veteran division was finally removed .The American divisions were relatively less experienced. There skills in strategies of war and leadership were honed as a result of their involvement in the Sicilian and Italian campaign. The winter of 1944-1945 saw little progress as the allied forces lacked ammunitions and engineer support .The objective of the offensive on the mainland Italy was to keep the Germans engaged and tie them down .It seems a bit exaggerated claim that instead of dividing the Nazi forces it was the allied forces who ere tied down . In fact only 20 divisions of the allied forces were being utilized on mainland Italy .Had the allied used more men and ammunition it might have gained an early victory. The Nazis were compelled to keep its forces in the Balkan region as it was contemplating that support supply might disrupted due to Allied occupation .There were about 250,000 German casualties7 The Germans had been in Italy for long and they had equipped themselves and had become acclimatized to the to the harsh weather conditions of the deserts of Italy. The rugged Italian terrain also worked in favor of Germans. The continuous spine shaped mountains were of strategic importance as it made it easy to defend rather than to invade. Italy was headed by the dictator Benito Mussolini and he was removed after a peaceful coup as soon as Sicily fell in the Allied hands. The invasion of Italy was planned before Mussolini was overthrown .The Sicilian campaign by the allied forces produced the desired result of bringing an end to the fascist rule in Italy The Italian invasion can be questioned on grounds that it could have been stopped at the last moment as the Italian officials were negotiating for peace although they were a wary of the unconditional surrender as the allied powers had decided that at the Casablanca conference that the axis power would asked for surrendering without putting any condition .In fact The announcement of Italian surrender was announced on 8th although it was signed on 3rd . The people of Italy were from the very beginning against the Triple alliance. The masses and the government of Italy were against war and therefore it seemed ethically wrong to attack a country which was making pleas for peace. But they couldn't guarantee a strong support while opposing Germans. The government in Italy was deposed but the Germans were still exercising a considerable hold .It was stated that there was a lot of German forces still left in Italy and an invasion was the only alternative left .In the meanwhile the Germans started strengthening their hold as they were anticipating the Allies to start an offensive . This was the main reason apart from various other reasons for mounting an attack. The friendship of Italy with Germany gave very little strategic help to the Axis power .In fact a temperamental leader like Mussolini who was following his wishes and whims became very costly for the Nazis .It lost thousand of soldiers in unnecessary Italian campaign in North Africa8 There was huge build up of allied army in Great Britain .Premier Churchill advocated that an effective utilization of the forces in the Mediterranean can lead to many useful outcomes. This could lead to weakening of the Nazi forces It diverted the axis power's attention from more important matter .The premise that annexation of Italy was required so as to deprive Germany of the Italian support doesn't hold good because the Italian support was less beneficial and more costly in terms of money and men for Germany Hancock discusses this The Italian campaign is time and again charged with the unduly pressurizing the Italian government to surrender. This is not based on facts as there had been mass uprising against the war even before Mussolini was disposed .After the surrender of the Italian government there was continues clashes between the Italian and the German forces and this have largely went undocumented .Consequently18 thousand Italian soldiers were killed and thousands were deported to the German concentration camps. It is at the best an ambiguous battle It can be called a battle of attrition at the worst and the best it can be said to have some strategic directives .From the president to the Generals responsible for the invasion of the mainland Italy there was constant debate over the need and efficacy of such an offensive. The Allied forces were in constant disagreement on the necessity of an attack on Italy No consensus was reached even during the Casablanca conference in January .They thought that the continuous bombing of mainland Italy would pressurize it to yield .Churchill felt that the fall of Italy would make the formidable Italian navy available to the Allied forces. The Italian forces were not worth the amount of energy and time and money spend as they were not well equipped and lacked modern ammunitions and they were poorly trained. The morale of the Italian troops was low as they had frequently faced defeat. 30 divisions of the Italian army were employed by the Germans either to protect the coastal areas or were used to continue the German occupations of the Balkan regions and parts of France. The onus of protecting the Balkans lay on the Italian forces as the germans were engaged in Russia .Some six hundred thousand men and one hundred thousand draft animals in 1942 were required to do the task. It was Italy which had to bear the coast and burden of the German initiative in Soviet Union9 . it would also force Turkey to provide Access to its airbase so that raids can be conducted to secure Ploesti, the Romanian Oil refineries .But to Roosevelt it was sheer wastage of resource .No reconciliation on it was reached even though they meet six times during the Trident conference And once even in Africa. General Eisenhower and Adm Sir Andrew Cunningham were given the responsibility to decide whether to launch an offensive or not .Even they could not reach consensus It was only after Eisenhower informed the CCS that operation husky had produced the desired result of the Italian surrender that the permission to attack the Italian mainland was given. .In 1943at Tehran meeting of Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin debated the efficacy of the offensive in mainland Italy and it was questioned by none other than Stalin who demanded an invasion of France .Italian campaign counted nothing to him .Now we can see how an important ally in war considered the Allied operations in Italy which began in 1943 and ended after the victory of the allied forces. There was a difference on how to launch an offensive on the Italian main land and whether there is necessity of such an attack in the first place. Great Britain with its expertise in navy was interested in mounting small attacks at the coastal regions and gradually weakening the enemy by attacking the Germans 'soft underbelly' They wanted to continue the momentum of success achieved in North Africa and keep this onslaught so as to break the morale of the Nazi soldiers. The Allied forces had a victory in the operation torch as one of the contributing factors was the fact that Hitler didn't see the African front as a deciding factor in World War II. It was in this battle front that a transformation of the American army from an amateur to professional took place. There was difference in the strategies among the Allied forces after the Tunisian operation. British were in favor of building up army in England for final showdown via the cross channel attack on France and simultaneously attacking the Mediterranean countries .Tackling the Japanese belligerence was the sole responsibility of the U.S. Where as the Americans had a large army and wanted a cross channel attack on France thereby reaching Germany as they wanted a swifter end to war and cessation of hostilities. They wanted that the Japanese chapter of the war to be completely end .Britain which is a small island cannot create a large army for them a naval attack was more suitable as they were a conventionally a naval force at large. The American favored a full scale offensive in northern Europe. Both the British and the American were in agreement that afresh and new offensive was needed as there was a question whether USSR would be able to withstand another offensive in coming summer. The soviet union was pressing for opening of an offensive in Europe so as to relieve pressure on it The British were reluctant to start a cross channel invasion until 1944. There was major conflict between the two allied powers .The U.S was convinced that a lot of men and ammunition would not be worth the price for Italy. TURNING POINT Great Britain had decided that it would not launch an offensive until and unless the African campaign was complete .The difference of opinion between the Britain and American was brought to end by no other than Rommel who captured Tobruke and drove the 380 km into Egypt to al-Alamayn (el Alamein).10It convinced the Americans of the necessity of completing this invasion .It also provide wit a proof of Despite all this conflict there was a consensus that across channel attack or operation overlord as it was later termed was necessary .The only debate was on the timing. The soviet unions red army was hard pressed in Russia for along time and he was asking for a second front to be opened. The question was where to open it .Great Britain thought that the enemy was very strong and a huge build up and planning was required before launching a direct attack en route to northwest Europe and it was not possible before 1944. United States was in favor of an early offensive in 1943. The allied forces didn't have that many ships to take its men and equipments from the African region to Great Britain and such a movement would come to the notice of the Germens and they would either begin an invasion or might start preparing for the final showdown. The allies wanted to catch the Nazis off guard. They also wanted to continue the onslaught and not allow the enemy to have any breathing time. There are various deciding factors in a war and economics also plays a very important factor .Sicily was 160 kilometers away from African front there fore it was more economically viable to move men and ammunition to the Sicilian island than to Great Britain for across channel attack. Egypt was under the control of the British and the ships coming with food supplies for the allied soldiers from there had to take a circuitous route around Africa as the Mediterranean was controlled by the axis powers. Prior to the attack on Italian main land, the Italian island of Sicily was attacked and for the first time Northwest African Force was given the centralized command of air assets .This overemphasis on air supremacy and the fact that it was not well co-ordinate with the ground staff had come under heavy criticism from within the rank and file of the allied forces .In any case the operation husky was successful. . The objective of the offensive was achieved when the Germans were compelled to withdraw their forces from the eastern front and exposed the shorter supply route to the soviets. The island of Sicily fell within 38 days after the Allied land. Another very reason that is cited one of the objectives of such an invasion is the fact that it would make the Italian airbase available for the Allied air force. This again can be questioned because there were other airbase like the island of Sardinia and Corsica which were much closer to Germany and southern France where the final phase of the battle had to be fought. The Germans had made a tactical error on the soviet front by prolonging the stay of their army and making them vulnerable to harsh Siberian winter .The other objective of operation husky was to pressurize Italy into surrendering .This was achieved as soon as the island was conquered. Therefore seeing it necessary to carry on the momentum of the success The allied forces launched first operation Baytown on 3September and then a major offensive in the shape of the Operation avalanche on 9 September 1943 under Lt Gen Mark Clark on south of Naples and on Salerno bay were undertaken .The northern most port city of Naples was selected because of its proximity to the Sicilian airbase. The main reason behind this offensive was to isolate the Germans and threaten their post in Calabria and cut German communication on the west coast Initially the Allied forces had some success but later on the German defenders created a stalemate which could not be overcome till the very end of the world war .According to some military experts the conquest of Italy was not the objective of the Allied forces .The main purpose was to divide the German forces by opening many battle fronts .this would in turn lead to lessening the build up of the Nazi forces along the Normandy coast and prevent the Germans from give a death blow to Soviet Union . The Italian invasion was the first time entered the European scene as the earlier fighting was conducted in Africa .The final phase of the battle had to be fought in Europe until now with the exception of Africa the Allied forces were on the defensive .The conquest of Italy was undertaken as it was thought to be a reluctant party to the Nazi ambitions .This was also anticipated by the Fur her and he instituted Mussolini as Adolf Hitler was also aware that the loss of southern Italy would also mean laying the oil fields and Bauxite reserves open to the. It was vey important that peace remained in Romania as access to it was very important .Germans were heavily dependent on the Oil fields of Ploesti for its supplies. Since the world war I Churchill had cherished dream that the Balkans were on the side of Britain. The Germans were in control of this region and the natural resources were being utilized for furthering the German expansionist dreams. Capture of Italy meant that the supply line of the Germans would become vulnerable to air attacks .Allies therefore he ordered the German commander Kesselring to build defensive lines the Gustav Line This was the most formidable defense line built by the Germans Two lines, the Volturno Line and the Barbara Line, were used to delay the Allied advance .It was this defense line along with severe winter which was responsible for bringing the allied to a complete stop. The U.S military historian Clayton D. Laurie himself admits that the operations in Anzio was poorly planned and was failure as the Gustav defense line was not out flanked and the Italian forces could move across it . The buildup of the Allied armies behind this formidable defense line did contribute to keeping up the pressure on the Germans and consequently did divert the German forces to concentrate on cross channel attack. The defense lines were seized by the Eighth Army's Adriatic front but a heavy price was paid in terms of human life lost. The control of the Italian city came with heavy casualties' .Only five tanks were left when the Canadian regiment reached San Leonardo. They faced in formidable resistance when they reached Casa Berardi "There are enemy in front of us, behind us and on our flanks. There is only one safe place-that is on the objective11." Triquet They paid a heavy price to reach there only 15 soldiers were left of Royal 22e and Squadron "C" of the Ontario Regiment was reduced to four tanks .The crossroad on the Ossogna to Ortona road was seized by the Allied forces but they faced stiff resistance and heavy casualties .Even the Allied forces were forced to accept that it was matched fight .It was mind boggling as to why the Germans were putting up such a stiff resistance "Why would the Germans defend with inordinate fierceness - matched only by the determination of the Canadians - a small coastal town of little strategic value Throughout the world, the showdown made the headlines"- The Capture of Ortona The world seems to be questioning the need of the Italian invasion as thousands of innocent civilians lost their homes and lives with no fault of their own. Civilians suffered injures from shells stray bullets and the network of mines .Allied victory was indecisive .The fact that defeat was thought to lessen the morale of the German soldiers didn't hold good .They were reinforced and remained as in formidable as ever .The time that was calculated to seize Italy proved to be wrong . It took longer than it was expected. 92,757 Canadian soldiers served in Italy. Among them, 408 officers and 4,991 soldiers of other ranks were killed in action; 1,218 officers and 18,268 other ranks were wounded. Over 1,000 men were made prisoners. I This is just the tip of the iceberg ,the total number of casualties were 60000 on the side of Allies and 50000 on the side of the Axis powers .Reflects poorly on the decision to attack Italy It was the most costly war in western Europe in terms of life lost and injuries inflicted on human beings . General House was independently responsible for the for the air cover and was subordinated to the in charge of ground forces .Co-ordination between the forces remained a problem and the other contributing factor to this chaos was the fact that the airbase was some 150 km away on the Sicilian island and hence distance was a hindrance in providing a suitable air cover. There was different military tactics that was being utilized by the axis powers and that of Allied forces The Nazi Germany with its organization experience, resources was responsible for its success in routing the Allied forces in Norway Greece France and North Africa. It was at the Qubec conference that decision to launch an offensive on Italy was taken. The Italian island of Sicily was first invaded by the Allies in an operation that was named husky .It was an amphibious attack and the Germans surrendered without putting up a lot of resistance REVIEW The post war 1950 saw the official publication of official histories on both the side i.e the British and the American side in a sort of mudslinging competition. The other reason for the dilly dallying on part of the British was that they had incurred heavy losses during the first world war and this time they wanted to fight a battle of attrition without engaging in a deadly offensive .The American could afford to throw caution to the winds as the war time industries were churning out weapons of war. Great Britain had an earlier experience with the Germans and they had information that the Nazis had formidable combat Power in their acquisition and they had developed strategy of involving them in different combats on various fronts so that the German forces are divided and considerably weakened and couldn't concentrate on the most important invasion across the channel .the All the countries forming the allied forces reaped the benefits of the war at the cessation of hostilities .It is very far flung allegation that had it not been for the American pressure to launch the operation overload Britain would have continued with its peripheral invasions and evaded. The main action across the channel United States entered war only after the Pearl Harbor attack convinced it of its vulnerability in 1941 and it could be charged being a naivet as far as the war was concerned. In 1942 the thrust of launching a decisive body bow to the German waned as it was realize that U.S didn't posses enough military strength to move forward according to its plan The British have time and again charge with having a devious political agenda behind launching an Italian offensive. They were for delaying the operation overlord not because they were trying to please the Soviet Union but because they were fearful of the Germans. Dunn says the fact that the decision was made supposedly on military grounds that are not supported under close scrutiny leads us to search for other reasons". 12 Even if the premise that the British estimate exaggerated the combat power of the Germans is accepted the result of the war doesn't seem to point fingers at the main proponent of this view. If end justifies the means then it could be very conclusively said that the British policy of delay didn't pay them in terms of outcome .Even the American with their agenda of first the Germans can be charged to being political Roosevelt was trying to garner public support in their favor. The factor of opportunism on part of the Britain can never be solved because the strategy of opening a second front will always center around the fact that politics can never be separated from the decisions made by people at the top .World war II was a coalition warfare so any decision has to be seen in the light of the fact that there were three major allies in fighting the wars and they all had their motives and were suspicious of each other. This factor had a manifestation in the post war era in the form of the cold war. The capitalist nation wanted that no second offensive be launched as a war between the Germans and soviets would considerably damage the red army and consequently reduce its sphere of influence. The whole discussion on whether the second front in Italian mainland is reflective of opportunism on part of the British Empire is reflective of the cold war era which saw that the world order was changed as a result of the World War. America which had been a country of very little significance rose to eminence after the war the other party which greatly benefitted from this campaign was the leftist soviet union .It increased its territorial influence as the countries espousing its ideologies increased in numbers .Poland china some of the Balkan regions purported this ideology .Haste is not always good .A quick cessation of hostilities is what every body was seeking but this doesn't mean that caution and planning should not be given its due regards. America in its haste to bring an early end to war used the atom bomb over Hiroshima and Nagasaki and maimed the innocent civilians for their generations to come. This decision i.e of dropping atom bomb of America has been seen as an attempt to demonstrate a threat to the soviets that it was capable of weapons of mass destructions .One of the fallouts of the World war was that it deprived Europe of the leadership of the world .British empire paid a heavy price in the shape of huge debt it incurred as it had to pay the U.S for its support with its men and machinery. America benefitted most financially and went on to become the superpower. It is very strange that the even the German economy got a boost after the war. The sun which had never set over the British Empire did finally set. Great Britain received a body blow as it was relegated to the background after the cessation of hostilities. The two big wars which were fought by Europeans brought an end to the supremacy of Europe .the world leadership slipped from the hand of the Europeans. According to General Dwight .D. Eisenhower commends the navy for its contribution had been in silencing individual batteries but the he lays bare the fact that it was saturation bombing of the Air Force instilled fear in the mind of the enemy and broke the defenses and the enemy's will to fight. The seas were thereby secured for the Allies for future use in case of an attack on France or Italy .Now the estimates of General Dwight Eisenhower can be questioned because he was the involved party and all his speeches were also meant to boast to the morale of the men fighting According to one point view the allied strategy was to open another front so as to divide the German forces and weaken them when a full fledged offensive is launched in Germany via France. This diversion of the German combat power could lead also to reduction of forces in Soviet Union. The other possibility was that if Italy was taken over it lead to it being a co-belligerent with the allied powers or at the minimum it would be expelled out of war and Germans would have no one to support them .The war in Italy continued till the end of world war II. According to Germans the British attacking at a very slow speed and didn't exploit the physical terrain to their benefit .The battle at Anzio is reflection of how the cumbersome hierarchy and a lot of planning didn't give any freedom to the lower rank officers to maneuver as and when the circumstances demanded. Despite the fact that the best technology like the precision guided munitions in the form of radio controlled glide bombs were utilized for the first time by Luftwaffe the war continued in Italy till the very end of the world war .The Germans were fearful of the air power of the Allied forces. This meant that they could move only during the daytime 13 ANALYSIS Britain was playing a central role in the decision making process in the World War II .It had faced severe economic depression after the First World War had ended .It wanted to plan and execute the main offensive in a manner that there were no chances of defeat. The initial phase of the world war saw a very belligerent side of Germany. It seized Poland, Netherland and in lightning attack it captured a sizeable portion of the Soviet Union .The hesitation on the side of Great Britain to launch a final culminating phase of the battle can stem from its fear of German combat power and its policy of fighting at a distance. It is very difficult to establish the motives of an individual because the truth lies within the recesses of an individuals mind but it is possible to a certain extent to find the motives of nations undertakings as many individuals are involved in the decision making process. The campaigns in the Mediterranean occupied five years of the world war IIs war efforts. The axis power would have been given an early death blow by directly launching on the cross channel attack. Britain's previous experience of World war were responsible for the launching an attack on Italy as it was more interested in exhausting the enemy .The peripheries of The Nazi Germany were attacked under the British persuasion.as it would lead to occupation of the Italian airbases which will come in handy at the time of attck on Germany via france The view that that the British intention can be doubted as having some selfish motives without bothering for putting the lives of the thousands of soldiers have been strengthened with the publishing of the memoirs of the military strategist General Wedemeyer. He alleged that the British didn't want their there sphere of influence to lessen and therefore they were in favor of prolonging the war. It is very ironic that World war II imposed on Britain huge debt and as an repercussion of the war was that most of the colonies like India saw a resurgence in the movement of independence and they gained they soon gained their independence .The very sphere of influence which it was trying to preserve shrank . These allegations were attacked by the famous personalities like Churchill's writings in the form of a book titled Second World War. Britain beat the rhetoric that the American insistence on concentrating on the cross channel attack was responsible for prolongation of the invasion of mainland Italy as six division of the allied forces were pulled back in order to concentrate forces for the final show down and the benefits of the capture of Italy was not fully realized. CONCLUSION The invasion on the mainland of Italy by the Allied forces will always be questioned as reason for initiating such an offensive doesn't seem to be that of bringing the war to a quick end. The allied forces had the initiative. The Nazis were not at economic parity with the allied forces therefore they preferred these quick wars. The Allies could afford wars that spread over longer period of time. It is not only the case of world war but the history of wars fought throughout the world shows that those who can wage long term wars have more chances of winning than those who have the capacity to wage short term war. The allied invasion on the mainland of Italy was poorly and executed action as the amount of forces required to make a decisive victory was not granted to the Allied forces. The winter of 1944-1945 saw little progress as the allied forces lacked ammunitions and engineer support. The objective of the offensive on the mainland Italy was to keep the Germans engaged and tie them down. It seems a bit exaggerated claim that instead of dividing the Nazi forces it was the allied forces who ere tied down. In fact only 20 divisions of the allied forces were being utilized on mainland Italy .Had the allied used more men and ammunition it might have gained an early victory. The rugged Italian terrain also worked in favor of Germans. The Italian campaign is time and again charged with the unduly pressurizing the Italian government to surrender. The Allied forces were in constant disagreement on the necessity of an attack on Italy No consensus was reached even during the Casablanca conference in January .They thought that the continuous bombing of mainland Italy would pressurize it to yield .Churchill felt that the fall of Italy would make the formidable Italian navy available to the Allied forces. The Allied forces had a victory in the operation torch as one of the contributing factors was the fact that Hitler didn't see the African front as a deciding factor in World War II. There was difference in the strategies among the Allied forces after the Tunisian operation. The buildup of the Allied armies behind this formidable defense line did contribute to keeping up the pressure on the Germans and consequently did divert the German forces to concentrate on cross channel attack. 92,757 Canadian soldiers served in Italy. This diversion of the German combat power could lead also to reduction of forces in Soviet Union. The other possibility was that if Italy was taken over it leads to it being a co-belligerent with the allied powers or at the minimum it would be expelled out of war and Germans would have no one to support them .The war in Italy continued till the end of World War II. This factor had a manifestation in the post war era in the form of the cold war. It is very strange that the even the German economy got a boost after the war. REFERENCES Cline Ray S. Washington Command Post: The Operations Division. Washington, DC: Office of the Chief of Military History, 1951 Dunn Walter S. Second Front Now -- 1943. University: University of Alabama, 1979 Film and history (n.d)). Hitler's philosophy. 1919.retrieved March 23, 2008 from: http://academic.sun.ac.za/forlang/bergman/real/holocaust/holo8.htm McCullough. David. (2002). the Danger of Historical Amnesia; A Conversation with Writer David McCullough. Retrieved March 23, 2008 from: http://www.neh.gov/news/humanities/2002-07/danger.html The London Gazette. Captain Paul Triquet. Casa Beradi, Italy. December 14, 1943. Le Royal 22e Rgiment. Retrieved March 23, 2008 from: http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/remembers/sub.cfmsource=history/secondwar/citations/triquet Wilmot chestor (1999) struggle for Europe Berkley (MM); Reissue edition (Dec 7 1999) ISBN-10: 0425089517 Milward, Alan S. 1965. The German economy at war. [London]: University of London, Athlone Press Mount castle, John W. North Apennines 1944- 1945. Retrieved March 25, 2008 from: http://www.history.army.mil/brochures/nap/72-34.htm The Italian campaignby John StrawsonPublisher: New York : Carroll & Graf Publishers, 1988 ISBN: 881843687 : 9780881843682 Horst Grill, Johnpeter 1994 National Socialist Leadership and Total War: 1941-45. Retrieved March 25, 2008 from: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-17312388.html Introduction to the Italian campaign (n.d). Retrieved March 25, 2008 from: http://www.worldwar2history.info/Italy John Grigg, 1943:The Victory that Never Was PRO WO 205/1022,special interrogation report,Gen Han Ebarbach, Commander Panzer GruppeWest (5Panzer armyc.25July1944)9dec1946 Read More