The Rock Of Anzio: From Sicily To Dachau, A History Of The U.S. 45th Infantry Division

Overview: Anzio was one of the greatest battles of World War II-a desperate gamble to land a large amphibious force behind German lines in Italy in the hope that the war could be shortened by capturing Rome. It also turned out to be one of the bloodiest battles in U.S. military history. Based on extensive research into archives, photos, letters, diaries, previously classified official records, and scores of personal interviews with surviving veterans of the 45th, The Rock of Anzio is written with an immediacy that puts the reader right onto the battlefield and shows us war through the eyes of ordinary men called upon to perform extraordinary deeds. Anzio was one of the greatest battles of World War II -- a desperate gamble to land a large amphibious force behind German lines in Italy in the hope that the war could be shortened by capturing Rome. It also turned out to be one of the bloodiest battles in U.S. military history. Allied forces quickly found themselves trapped on the beachhead, forced to endure unimaginable hardships, and subjected to four months of constant German attacks. While the Germans decimated most of the Allied units at Anzio, they threw their strongest efforts against one American division -- the 45th Infantry Division. The 45th was a National Guard unit made up of "citizen soldiers" from the Southwest, including thousands of Native Americans. Through sheer determination and against overwhelming odds, the 45th Division "Thunderbirds" saved the beachhead at Anzio from annihilation, just as they had done at Salerno six months earlier, breaking the back of the German onslaught. Eight members of the 45th -- including the first three Native Americans so honored -- earned the Congressional Medal of Honor for the division's 511 days of combat. From Italy, the 45th went on to blaze a distinguished path through France and Germany, suffering some of the heaviest casualty rates of any U.S. Army unit in World War II. And in the war's final days, the 45th Infantry Division liberated the notorious Dachau concentration camp, resulting in a controversial incident in which Nazi camp guards were executed by outraged American soldiers -- a shocking story told here in complete detail for the first time. Based on extensive research into archives, photos, letters, diaries, previously classified official records, and scores of personal interviews with surviving veterans of the 45th, The Rock of Anzio is written with an immediacy that puts the reader right onto the battlefield and shows us war through the eyes of ordinary men called upon to perform extraordinary deeds. - Jacket flap. Introduction Ancient spirits, 1846-1943 Those malign gray slopes, 10 July-8 September 1943 That despondent shore, 9-14 September 1943 Heavy and accursed rain, 19 September 1943-21 January 1944 Dangerous waters, 22 January-2 February 1944 The stream of blood, 2-15 February 1944 The rush of jousts, 16 February 1944 Abandon every hope, 17-18 February 1944 City of flaming red, 19-23 February 1944 Any respite seemed unsuited, 24 February-22 May 1944 Leave this savage wilderness, 22 May-30 June 1944 Dreadful minos stands, 1 July 1944-28 April 1945 To the eternal dark, 29 April-7 May 1945 Epilogue : Things of beauty Content: Early history and training the invasion of Sicily saving the Salerno beach-head ordeal in the Apennines agony at Anzio break-out from the beach-head the liberation of Rome the invasion of southern France cracking the Maginot and Siegfried Lines into the heart of Germany the liberation of Dachau. PRIVATE FIRST CLASS VERE "TARZAN" WILLIAMS was, quite literally, not a happy camper.