J - 174: Salerno - Dress Rehearsal for Overlord

View over Salerno towards the 32 km long Beach to the South of the town

A good 50 km southeast of Naples lies the town of Salerno, once the Norman capital for their lands in Southern Italy  (11^th century). The town is known for the world’s first medical school established in the 9^thcentury and the landings of British and American forces on 9^th of September 1943 during Operation Avalanche. The day before, the Italian Government had announced its capitulation and declared a cease fire. The day after, the Wehrmacht occupied Rome. War on mainland Italy had started in full.

British and American Operations in September 1943 in Southern Italy

Rather than fighting their way up the Calabrian coast, the Supreme Allied Command opted for a shortcut and landed 6 divisions, three in the first wave, on the wide beach south of Salerno. Millennia of sedimentation had turned the bay between Salerno and Agropoli into a coastal plain with a 32 km long, sandy beach. On this fertile plain Greek colonists from Sybaris established in 600 BC Poseidonia. Called Paestum today, the town became one of the most flourishing Greek colonies in Italy. Due to its sea port, commerce & trade flourished. Now, old Poseidonia lies 2 km inland.

The well preserved Temple of Poseidon (Neptun) in Poseidonia (Paestum)

Operation Avalanche was a dress rehearsal for future amphibious landings in Europe. Anzio (Shingle - Jan 1944), Normandy (Overlord - June 1944) and Provence (Dragoon - Aug 1944) all built on lessons learned from the Salerno landing whose primary objective was to capture the port of Naples. Allied operations in Italy needed a logistic base to supply their troops. It took the US 5^th Army three weeks to reach Naples though (1^st of October 1943). For these long weeks British and American troops had to be supplied through the beachhead.

The comparison between Avalanche and Overlord shows some of the lessons learnt.

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      The artificial Mulberry Harbor in Arromanches-les-Bains in the Normandy in June 1944

• Since the failed raid on Dieppe in 1942, the British High Command discussed the necessity of having a port to supply an invasion. If none could be captured within a week, it had to be build. Conceptual discussion took all of 1942 - 1943. By December 1943, construction of two Mulberry Ports started. By June 1944 they were ready, pulled over the Channel and anchored in front of the Normandy beaches. The two Mulberries handled more than 290’000 tons in June 1944 alone. The failure to capture Naples quickly must have given people working on the project a sense of urgency.

The Salerno Landing "Avalanche" 9 - 16 Sept 1943

• The Salerno landing almost failed. On 9^th of September, the 5^th US Army landed two British and one US Division. This first wave was separated by 16 kilometers. It took days for them to join. It quickly became evident that there were not enough troops to beat back the German counteroffensive. The situation was so desperate that the US 82^nd Airborne Division had to parachute by night into the bridgehead. It was the biggest night time jump so far in American paratrooper history. It succeeded. The German tanks were stopped. As a consequence the landing zone in Normandy was doubled in size and the number of first wave divisions increased to five. Never again should the Wehrmacht be able to concentrate its forces on an amphibious landing too small. And indeed, in Normandy the Germans were never able to counterattack the entire Allied bridgehead.

Operation Overlord in Normandy from 6 - 12 June 1944 - Beachhead is 80km wide ·     

• For Operation Overlord, the Para’s role was completely redefined. Based on optimistic planning, the US 82^nd Airborne Division was to jump near Rome and over Capua to cut enemy communications and possibly capture Rome (together with 4 Italian Divisions). Capua is 35 km north of Naples. The 4 Italian Divisions never showed up. The dire situation in Salerno on 12^th of September forced US 5^th Army command to cancel the jump and insert the paras directly into the beachhead. The Wehrmacht though had freedom of maneuver on the flanks. In Normandy, paras would secure the western (101^st, 82^nd US Airborne) and eastern flank (6^th British Para) in a night jump.

A Para from the 82nd Airborne jumping from his C-47

into the Salerno Beachhead on 13. Sept 1943·     

• Once troops landed in Salerno at dawn on 9^th of September, they dug in. This allowed the Wehrmacht to use prepared positions to launch counterattacks and almost throw the landing force back into the sea. Had it not been for the reserves coming in every night, the Germans might have succeeded. It was a close call. For Overlord, landing troops were instructed to immediately push inland and deepen the beach head. The English, Canadian and US 4^th Infantry Division on Utah Beach did so successfully – the exception was Omaha Beach where German resistance was fierce and led to 2’400 US casualties

US Soldiers from the 36th Division unloading Material north of Agropoli

• Another lesson learnt was that far more landing craft were necessary for a successful landing. In Salerno, only 338 crafts were available. Troops had to be shuttled to the beach. Overlord was different. There were almost 4’200 landing crafts of different types. Large numbers of troops could be brought simultaneously to the beaches, denying the defenders the time needed to adjust defenses. The number of available landing crafts was always the BOTTLENECK in allied planning. Only in spring 1944 were there enough landing crafts for Overlord. The launch of Operation Dragoon in the South of France, once planned as a simultaneous landing in June 1944, had to be postponed to August for the lack of landing craft.

A US Landing Craft as we know it from the Spielberg Movie "Saving Private Ryan"     

• Last but not least, air superiority was a big problem at Salerno. The allied Air Force was far too small. Only three British aircraft carriers provided air support: HMS Illustrious, HMS  Formidable and HMS Unicorn with less than 200 combat aircraft. In Normandy, there were 4’000 allied aircraft against 580 German. Allied air superiority in Normandy made a big difference. Once the German defense run out of ammunition, no supply came forth anymore. The Royal Airforce and the US Air Force were able to completely isolate the Normandy beaches.

US Spitfire shot down over the Salerno landings by German Air Defence

Overlord, the successful landing in Normandy  and the first step to the liberation of Western Europe, owes a lot to lessons learnt from the Salerno landings. The Allied casualties during Operation Avalanche were high. 13’700 dead or wounded or missing soldiers did not compare well with the Wehrmacht’s 3’500 casualties. When we walk along the peaceful Salerno beach this summer, we should remember the price British and American people were willing to pay to liberate Europe. It would be a different place without their sacrifices.

The long, sandy Salerno Beach is today a peaceful Holiday Destination for Europeans