May 1944 : After 4 months of stalemate on Anzio front, Allies planned northern Anzio breakout with southern British-American offensive against Castelforte on Garigliano river. Intended plan was to draw German forces away from southern front to counter Allied Anzio front drive towards transportation junctions of Cisterna and Campoleone. Once Americans captured Campoleone, then it was to pincer eastward towards Valmontone, thereby cutting off German 10th Army retreat from Gustav Line in Liri River Valley. Nice plan as it was, it was not executed as planned, thus had serious repercussions for Italian front. Landser Page - www.deutschesoldaten.com

Southern Italian city of Castelforte selected as breakout point due to resilient German defense in central Cassino area (especially German Fallschirmjager units in abbey on top of Monte Cassino), which repulsed multiple Allied attacks and inflicted serious casualties. Germans evacuated Monte Cassino when nearby mountain tops were captured by Allies, thereby threatening their flanks with encirclement. Battle of Monte Cassino - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Monte_Cassino

Inset 1 : Early-production Stupa in postwar collection station missing its schurzen. Note track slackness, necessary for proper traction. If tracks are tightly interlinked, their retaining bolts would be prone to breakage from excessive pressure in moving these heavy armored vehicles. Stupa also has bolt-on applique armor below its front glacis plate. Vehicle armour - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Applique_armor

US General Mark Clark : Allied 5th Army commander in Italy, after enduring much British condemnation for failed Anzio venture, ignored original plan to pincer east towards Valmontone and diverted most of American forces north to ROME, which was only 30 miles away. Upon city entry, it was the first Axis capitol to be captured by Allies (also first time in 1,500 years that invading army conquered Rome from southern approach). However, insufficient American troops guarded eastern Liri Valley, hence bulk of German 10th Army escaped north and continued Axis resistance to war's end.

Controversy persists concerning precise Anzio battle plans. According to Gen. Clark, his plan was to launch Anzio breakout after Allied 5th Army broke through German Gustav line and captured Frosinone in Liri Valley, about 40 miles away from Rome. This would create a viable pincer to trap retreating German formations.

However, according to British Prime Minister Churchill and UK Gen. Alexander, Anzio breakout was to capture Alban Hills to dominate high ground and prevent German withdrawal until Allied 5th Army linkup. In reality, 5th Army never made this rendezvous after fighting with great difficulty against well-organized German withdrawal, mountainous terrains, bad weather, and dogged logistics. Clark never made his commitment after diverting bulk of his forces to capture Rome.

Inset 2 : PC Game Battlefield 1942 - The Road to Rome replicates some aspect of Italian mountain combat, Allied and Axis weapons performance, and team cooperation with battlemaps for Salerno, Anzio, Monte Cassino. Above game screen shows Royal Air Force Mosquito ground-attack plane strafing Italian tank, blowing its occupant players into the air. Ofcourse, this is only a game, for in real life this would seriously ruin your day. Battlefield 1942 The Road to Rome - www.gamespot.com/pc/action/battlefield1942thertr/screenindex.html