U.S. FIFTH ARMY

Cisterna di Lit­toria, Italy • January 30, 1944 The Allied invasion of mainland Italy began in early Septem­ber 1943, nearly 6 weeks after the Fascist Grand Council had deposed Germany’s Axis ally Benito Musso­lini on July 24–25, 1943, and placed the Italian dicta­tor in deten­tion. Ele­ments of British Gen. Ber­nard Law Mont­gom­ery’s multi­national Eighth Army landed at…