@Markeos77 they actually did, that was one of their logistical issues. Due to the rubber shortage in Europe at the time the German military started issuing boots with cardboard soles
German reich making naval invasions using British and US troops. Classic (also, US is in the war but germany has only 70 factories, pretty shitty germany-player)
*My great-grandfather served in the Italian army during ww2.* I know little about him, as he died a couple years before I was born, but I know that he was drafted at the age of 22 at the outbreak of the war, and that he fought in Sicily against Allied landings of Operation Husky. *It's incredible to me,* especially after watching this video, *how he miraculously managed to survive such an hell.* Especially, keeping in mind how terribly equipped Italian soldiers were. *With what they were given, Italian soldiers managed to accomplish great things.* It's like trying to climb a mountain bare handed. Even if you fail in doing that, it's still incredible you even tried it.
Although, he was in the Axis army that does NOT make him bad! You did say he was DRAFTED meaning he didn't have a choice. I hope you and your family are doing okay. Know god is watching over you and your family.
@John Cornell That's kind of the point of modern warfare. You attack where the enemy is weak, not where they are strong. To an extent its not even all that modern. "So in war, the way is to avoid what is strong, and strike at what is weak.” ---Sun Tzu
Hugo Boss did not design the suits, they just made them. It is like saying that an oversees factory company were the owners of the product just because they manufactured them. Karl Diebitsch is the man who designed the uniforms. Unlike Boss, he was part of the SS itself. Edit: Thx for Chilly tee for the correction from "hugo boss Designed them" to "Hugo boss made them"
@@This1Person germany Lost the second world war and i was Just going to Say that when they Invaded Russia they should have weared Winter clothing not the Hugo Boss suits
@@alessandramontali7234 yes they did lose, partly because of operation barbarossa. But this Video is about the allied invasion of Sicily, not the german invasion of Russia. Comment is out of place.
Historians: "The Situation was fierce, The weather was Unstable. And the Generals argued. Supplies were low for the allies. and it would be impossible for them to take Sicily." Americans and British: *Take Sicily anyway*
Hey! make in the next video (in part), the participation of the FEB (força expedicionária brasileira) we foth in italy as well, we won importante battles (battle of monte castelo and the battle of Montese) we have capture the mayority of the facist soldiers in the battle of fornovo and we were the only country in latin america to officially fight in europe during the second world war, a hug from brazil❤️😋. And we also have a sabaton song.
From the German perspective it was a strategic victory for them because they tied up more than 3x as many allied troops and were able to withdraw most of their troops and weaponry intact where they would continue to tie up allied divisions until the end of the war. They were already aware that Italy might overthrow Mussolini and accept a separate peace with the allies so they had reserves standing by. They were more concerned that the allies might try to invade Sardinia. Patton's recon in force might seem like a victory for the allies but Montgomery was hoping to cut off the German's retreat and leave them stranded on Sicily and instead they were able to escape because of Patton's move. Granted, Montgomery would never have been able to pull it off anyway but there were reasons for him not wanting Patton to be aggressive. Oh, and Canada was there too, eh?
Oh I can't wait for the overwhelming flood of generic "ItAlY InCOmpEteNt" memes. (-_-) Good video though, very informative, happy to see the facts visualised for my two braincells. Can't wait for the next part.
The animations look amazing congrats! Not a fan of mixing 2020 gaming with WWII history though. That looks really weird and distracts me from the content. (I mean specifically the planning of the invasion and then having two historical figures looking at a flat screen and bickering over a gaming controller....)
He invades sicily witg only 6 divisions I have to invade it with atleast 50 As in 1940 i would of already researched the sealand vessels 2. Hoi 4 is a cool game
von Rundstedt: "Halt at the Meuse." Guderian and Rommel: "SHhsszzhhSS...you are breaking up!...SchSHhhhSZZ...can't hear you!...Will continue "recon"....hsszzhhSS.."
fun fact my great uncle was deployed in sicily to defend her in case of invasion, one day members of the mafia simply showed up to his unit and told him to go away because the allies were coming and he simply left
@@roiq5263 Yup, fascism basically almost eradicated organized crime but the roots were still there. Basically Cosa Nostra (Sicilian Mafia) wanted the fascists gone and so did the allies, thus an alliance was inevitable. Also, several prominent Cosa Nostra members got put into office in Sicily by the Allies in place of whoever was there during fascist rule.
Oh No Yeah, there are so many variables that can go wrong. Pretty much any power that used airborne troops in WWII, stopped using them pretty quickly, though I will say that Market Garden could’ve worked if not for the fact that an armored division was refitting in the area. That’s more a failure of intelligence rather than the troops themselves (though, iirc, the Brits actually knew about the armored troops stationed there & didn’t take it properly into account).
The most common variable is just plain Confusion is the fog of war. The only thing that pull it together is the troops knowing their Obj and being able to operate independently
+Oh No I work as Historian here in Germany and having read a ton of Battle Reports of German Fallschirmjäger Missions (Both from Elite Units like the "Brandenburger" and just the normal ones) i also noticed how often such Assaults go wrong. I have not checked through the Reports from any Allied Nations yet, but i'm sure they had the same Experiences. One has to keep in mind that this kind of Troop was still in its Infancy during World War 2 Prost and Cheers from the Bavarian Alps
funnily enough, i think stalin and the soviet general staff might have known that, considering the fact the soviets weren't into that type of stuff. i'm now imagining what if the soviets tried to make extensive use of paratroopers and naval invasions insted of their standard infantary+artilery+tanks+other stuff tactics...
@@jamesmmcgill So where does that leave Ares in all this? Surely Athena would have a say in this. But in all seriousness that is interesting to take note of
@@HemlockRidge Isorrowproductions had a video where he just read The Communist Manifesto. It was immediately demonetized and forcefully put on private. What's with this BS idea that left always means communist?
As I recall, the Italian mafia(US and Italian) helped make this landing go smoother in terms of regional mapping, and getting local aid. The mob, didn't exactly get along well with fascists.
Mafias tend to hate authoritarians like fascists and Stalinists. They can pay off cops and judges and intimidate witnesses, but authoritarians don't bother with due process. Mussolini would have them shot in the streets. It's harder to operate a criminal enterprise when you have competition from the government.
They didn't get along very well with US authorities too. The cooperation with Lucky Luciano was necessary to avoid further sabotages at the port of New York (since mafia bosses used to control the port syndicates), and in Sicily, in the aftermath of the invasion, mobsters proved to be not so reliable as expect, as captain William E. Scotten writes in his report "The problems of the Mafia in Sicily". But, as you said, they definitely hated Mussolini's regime, and as soon as the invasion started, they saw the opportunity, came and took advantage of the situation.
@@marcello7781 They also ran off any and all paper hangin sons o bitches trying to spark and spread localized pro nazi support, with the govt's approval, blind eye and even partial light support, due to its intensely unamerican nature.
@@saguntum-iberian-greekkons7014 why cowards? Most of the Italians didn't want to fight and when did used poor machinery so actually they were very brave fighting knowing to be inferior ballistically. Also Italy was in a civil war during the war, because again the majority didn't want to be under Mussolini and the Germans.
@@MrWolf-xk8sl i wouldnt say the mayority. In fact, during the civil war, the RSI army (mussolinian-axis army) had more italian soldiers than the royal army (allies).
@@Centurio_1 that's because when Italy divided herself, the RSI controlled the northern part which is the most populated, hence more troops to fill in.
Airborne assault at Sicily: Is a bit of a disaster Command computer: *Information logs have been updated* Inter channel plans: Exists *Information logs have been corrupted*
Italy: **Collapses into a civil war after losing an island to the Allied Forces and signed an armistice with the Allies** German Reich: That's it, I'll make them an offer they can't refuse! **Operation Achse initiated**
This was great, my grandpa’s uncle was combat engineer. He was a US soldier attached to a British unit in charge of holding and repairing one of the bridges in Sicily during the initial invasion. It was so cool as Kid sitting around and hearing the stories of snipers, underwater bridges, booby traps and his brief encounter with General Patton. This reminded me of these memories. Thanks
The decision to put the Americans in a support role was a calculated one from the British perspective, after their disastrous performance at Kasserine pass in February there was a prevailing opinion amongst British commanders that the Yanks simply weren't up to the task of fighting. Montgomery even going so far to say “The real trouble with the Americans is that the soldiers won’t fight; they haven’t got the light of battle in their eyes. The reason they won’t fight is that they have no confidence in their generals.” After Harold assigned route 124 to Monty's sector it left Bradley and his generals furious, famously starting the rivalry between Patton and Monty but Patton remarkably accepted the order as it stood. Likely due to the recent dressing down Eisenhower had given him and his subsequent fear of dismissal due to Eisenhower being an Anglophile. Rommel however thought differently of the Americans, feeling they'd learnt a great deal from Kasserine with the high price they'd paid and sure enough he was right and the Americans proved it in Sicily.
Sicily proved that the Americans had learnt to fight but also that they were right to be wary of their generals - Patton repeatedly hindered his own allies and the broader campaign in order to win glory for himself
@@Septimus_ii The problem between the US army and the British army was that in the British army if an order sounded stupid you could call them on it and have no fear of dismissal but in the US army it was you follow orders full stop or you'll be dismissed and likely court martialed. The Americans proved they'd learnt their lesson in Sicily and army organisation reflected that.
@@drsch That's simply not true is it? Monty beat the Germans in North Africa, forcing them out of Egypt and across Libya whilst the Americans landed in Morocco and Algeria and pushed toward Tunisia to complete the push and proved his command sufficient, again in Tunisia itself repulsing an attack whilst the 8th army was overstretched and again in Italy. He constantly criticised Allied planning in Sicily and Italy remarking he was glad to leave the "Dog's breakfast" in December 1943 when he was transferred to prepare for D-Day. He planned a strategy playing on the American's strengths by reversing the roles of Sicily and having the British and Canadians form a hard shoulder to repulse German counterattacks while the Americans moved to take the Cotentin peninsula and Brittany wheeling south and then east to pincer the Germans at Caen but naturally faced fanatic resistance in the attempt on Caen from Kurt 'Panzer' Meyer's 12th SS Hitlerjugend division, the 1st SS Liebstandarte division and the 2nd SS Das Reich division all sent to face him as Stephen Badsey wrote the "Most forbidable" of all the German divisions based in France. Montgomery was a brilliant General same as Patton and Bradley, he's just unlikeable because he's so full of himself.
Alexander: I’m seeing a 33.33 repeating of course percentage of succeeding. It’s better than what we normally do Patton: *LEEEEEROOYYYYYY JEEEEEENKINNNNNNSSSS*
Fun fact. Sir Alec Guinness, the actor who played obi wan kenobi in the original star wars trilogy, was a commander of one of the landing crafts for the royal navy at the time.
As a brazilian, I really hope you will show the FEB (força expedicionária brasileira) (in English, brazilian expeditionary force) during the Italian campaign
@@omarbradley6807 because it could have broken the military lines and caused a hole in the defences. which would have allowed the axis to cut off and surround the american charge (like the lost battalion in WW1) which could have gotten a lot of people killed and the british line to be stretched thin. And in fact even in this video it point out that his actions caused problems at 8:10 saying his actions caused british casualties and a stall in the eastern advance.
As an italian, I am grateful to you, for giving me a comeback against other hystory fans, like me, who mention Italy's incompetence in ww2 to win an argument against me. Again, thank you
@@Thebluernemace do you know how Elite that unit is they killed Osama Bin Laden and captured Saddam Hussein crushed South American Communist movements and they are one of the most elite units in human history and could kill any other unit from any other army ever
I do have a soft spot for the Italians they were pushed into a war which they didnt want to be in there logistics where terrible their war economy was terrible and why? Because one guy wanted the glory of the roman empire restored in the "modern" era and yet they fought on for about 4 years with poor equipment a lot of poor generals and pretty low moral and yet still pushed on to make this happen even when the entire world is against them.
This is exactly what most uneducated people don't understand and portray the usual stereotype of "coward" Italians. Italians in WW1 on the other hand, had a reason to fight and did it honourably. With a mean age of around 20, bringing cannons up the Alps, fighting with permafrost and also against General Cadorna who was a very old minded general which didn't have a single notch of humanity towards Italian soldiers. Thankfully he was changed by Gen. Diaz and the rest is history.
@@MrWolf-xk8sl I never said they were cowards though i do understand that Italy has been mocked for years due to the "switching sides" thing and the "re-fight the last war syndrome". They had victories and Rommel even wrote "The German soldier has impressed the world, The Italian Bersagiell has impressed the German soldier" this especially come into head at the defence of El Ahlamain where they held the line for Rommel to escape. However though that doesn't stop their equipment being bad they had some good weapons the Beretta 1938A (which was prized by Americans) but when a lot of the soldiers are using weapons from the great war and before it puts it into perspective It doesn't stop the fact their logistics were awful and this is really shown in the Greek war in 41' planning to take the country with about 3-5 weeks of equipment when they need at least 3-6 months worth. It doesn't stop their tanks from being awful the crew can be motivated and charge headlong into anything but when driving what is essenncially a modified Vickers 6 ton against Shermans T-34s KV1s and even captured German vehicles it puts into perspective of out classed they really were. I know i seem like an ass for putting this much information down on a comment that a lot of people probably wont read and im not trying to "flex" on how much i know im just saying economically, logistically and in terms of research they couldn't keep up with the other nations
@@humblethrone8480 I'm sorry you understood my comment the wrong way, perhaps I should have expressed my words better, but I was using your explanation against the uneducated people.
Italy *soldiers fight to the end In el alamein,tunisia, east africa, and russia while the Germans ran away at el alamein, russia, and the tunisian front....not to mention the promised air cover at matapan(the Germans sent one unarmed ju88) and the german lies about sinking the allied carriers. Gtfo with this tedeschi crap
@@TheAngelobarker what? The Germans had full control of Tunisia. That was the country they took for themselves in Africa. And they fought there until there was literally no territory left there to defend. Also there were very little Italian operations that succeeded.
@@africalovesbait the Germans surrendered before the Italians in tunisia messe even offered to fight to the death when the Germans abandoned his flank yet Mussolini ordered him to surrender....12th of june he sent that transmission to commando supremo. The Germans surrendered may 12th under arnim. But nice try tho
@@TheAngelobarker Italy getting wrecked by the greeks and almost get pushed back into the sea in albania werent it for big daddy strange moustache guy.
@@FortuneZer0 I mean yeah that'll happen when you ignore your entire general staff to the point the quit while your entire army is fighting on three other fronts leaving only inexperienced units. Tho tbh even if germany hadn't intervened Italy would have won just down to the fact the greeks were out of ammunition, had no effective navy, and had no air force, not to mention no industry even in compared with Italy. The greeks were excellent soldiers but at the point the Germans invaded they had less than a week's worth of ammunition left.
Please don’t forget that Canadians were part of this invasion. My Canadian grandfather landed on those beaches, but died of malaria about a month later. He’s buried at the Canadian war cemetery in Algira.
@@alexseguin5245 Still a Conwealth, i don't deny their bravery, neither the fact who they should be included, but, with that criteria, we should include New Zelanders, Australians, South Africans, Indians, etc, if they would had been remarkable like at Normandy at Juno beach, they should be mentioned, but here is a simplistic, (very simplistic) acount of history, so he could not put details about every country units fighting, because it is irrelevant to the strategic and tactic outcome,
My grandad was a british medic in one of those gliders that made it ashore, he and his team set up a field hospital in a small farmhouse that was attacked by the italians, previously they had captured an ammo cart from some italian troops which thankfully exploded as the italians attacked, they believed it to be british artillery in support and surrendered to 16th parachute field ambulance. My grandad passed away in 1993 but before he did wrote down some of his experiences from WW2 including being captured as a POW during operation market garden. He is my hero and always will be.
To anybody that cares my grandfather was in the OSS,Howard Edward Mcgaw Smyth and was in the division of southern Europe affairs.He helped in some planning of the invasion and was also on staff of captured German war documents at Whaddon Hall where the Marburg files were uncovered. He wrote some books notably Sicily and the surrender of Italy The Mediterranean theater with Ltc. Garland and the other book Sercrets of the Facists Era where he details how the Americans Captuered and archived literally tons of documents.I love this channel and I love History.
My great great uncle, Michael Saleem, was in this invasion. He served as a medic in the 7th Army with one of the Native American brigades even though he was Syrian. He sadly died on the island.
