Whitlock, Flint Patton and the Battle for Sicily

The General, The Navy, and Operation Husky

The largest amphibious assault to date came at a crucial moment, and both its planning and execution presented numerous conflicts for the Allies. Despite the success of Operation Torch in North Africa, the United States was still considered insufficiently tested by its British partners and was not fully trusted. Stalin was urging the Allies to open a second front to relieve pressure on the Soviet Union. Patton's dreams of military glory and his all-consuming desire to outdo his main Allied rival, General Bernard Montgomery, commander of the British Eighth Army, in the fight for the ultimate prizethe port of Messinaoften clouded his judgment. His primary motivation, however, was to prove to "Monty" and other disparaging British generals that the American soldier was at least the equal, if not superior, to his British counterpart. Drawing on Patton's personal letters and diaries, Whitlock reveals his scathing criticism of Montgomery and virtually everyone else in the Allied hierarchy (including Eisenhower, Marshall, Clark, Bradley, and Alexander)even Admiral H. Kent Hewitt, USN, whose 8th Fleet brought Patton's troops to the beaches and provided support. Indeed, it was the guns of Hewitt's warships that halted the fierce German and Italian attacks that nearly drove the Americans back out to sea. From Tunisia to the landing beaches on the southern coast of Sicily and the final Battle of Messina, this book details how Operation Husky proved decisive for both sides. The operation has been criticized by some historians as a wasteful Allied endeavor that squandered valuable troops and resources and allowed many Italian and German soldiers to escape in the final days of the battlean "Axis Dunkirk." Whitlock argues that Operation Husky contributed to the overthrow of Benito Mussolini and the neutralization of Fascist Italy, opening a second front in support of Stalin. Furthermore, the battle for Sicily demonstrated the value of American soldiers and sailors, as well as the combined planning and logistical capabilities of the Army and Navy. The lessons learned from Operation Husky were ultimately incorporated into the plan for Operation Overlord, launched the following year against the Normandy coast of France.