9 July 1943

Operation Husky - Allied forces perform an amphibious invasion of Sicily. With the successful North Africa Torch landings behind them and the gradual clearance of Axis forces from Tunisia underway the resources were becoming available to undertake a series of amphibious landings in the Mediterranean. The ambitious "Round Up" (Normandy) was still not feasible so the objective of the next phase in the conduct of the war was to tie down Axis forces thus relieving pressure on the Eastern (Russian) front, and to force Italy out of the war. This was agreed at the Casablanca conference of January 1943 although for a while the Americans were inclined towards increasing pressure in the Pacific and later attacking Germany directly. In the end it was agreed to plan for a large scale assault via the periphery of Europe, or as Churchill preferred to call it "the soft underbelly of Europe" - initially Sicily.

General Guzzoni had 12 divisions - two German and 10 Italian to defend the island; five of the latter were infantry and five immobile coastal defence divisions. The garrison was 350,000 strong but included only 35,000 Germans and even they were not fully mobilised. Beach defences, including pillboxes and barbed wire, were less formidable than those encountered in Normandy the following year and modern tanks were relatively few in number. However the rugged rolling country favoured the defenders.

The Allied Commander was General Eisenhower supported by Admiral Cunningham the Sea Forces Commander. General Alexander was Land Forces Commander and Air Marshal Tedder was Air Forces Commander.

The original Allied plan was to launch two widely separate landings in the north-west and south east of the island. General Montgomery objected on the grounds that this approach violated the principle of a combined and closely coordinated force. The plan was changed with the British 8th Army landing on the south east of the island and the US 7th Army landing on the south.

There were 2,760 ships and major landing craft converging on their rendezvous near Malta. They were from the River Clyde in Scotland, from Norfolk and Virginia in the USA and from ports from Beirut to Algiers in the Mediterranean. Seven and a half Divisions and all their equipment were at sea and eager for action.

The operation was the most meticulously planned to date and benefited from the experience gained at Dieppe (Jubilee), North Africa (Torch) and other raids and landings. However the Commanders in Chief, notably Cunningham and Tedder, failed to set up a joint HQ to co-ordinate all land, sea and air elements and to provide all the advantages of speedy and effective communications that such an arrangement would bestow. There might well have been a price to pay had any unexpected event arisen that required a swift response at this high level. In the event the operation went well despite senior officers being scattered around the Mediterranean from Malta to Bizerta. Eisenhower and Mountbatten were in Malta when they heard a BBC announcer tell the world that Allied forces had landed in Sicily. This was the first definite news they received of the landing!

The disposition of the forces was as follows;

Force A (ex force W) under the auspices of Rear Admiral Troutbridge on the Bulolo comprising Dempsey's 13th Corps (5th & 50th Divisions) which was to land between Syracuse and Avola on the south east coast,

Force B under the auspices of Rear Admiral McGrigor on the Largs. 231 Independent Brigade was 15 miles to the south at Marzamemi and Sir Oliver Leese's 30th Corps (including the 51st Highland Division) were allotted the southernmost tip of the island south west of Cape Passero.

Farther to the west and round the corner of the island was Rear Admiral Sir Philip Vian's Force V and the 1st Canadian Division, both under Leeses's 30 Corps. All three Rear Admirals came under the command of Ramsay who was on the Antwerp,

Further still to the West between Scicli and Licata, with the vital airfield at Gela in the middle, were Divisions of the US 7th Army and US 11 Corps . They were to land on three beaches "Cent," "Dime" and "Joss" with a division allotted to each plus an armoured brigade for "Joss." The remainder of the Armoured Division to which it belonged was kept afloat as a reserve. The American Operation was under the command of Lieutenant-General Patton and Vice-Admiral Hewitt.

In addition a number of special operations were in place. The first was No 3 Commando and the South African Squadron of the SAS to the extreme right near Syracuse. The second involved Nos 40 and 41 Royal Marine Commando, under Laycock, to the left of the Canadians near Pachino. The third was a number of airborne landings, both British and American, to speed up the capture of airfields.



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