Original subtitles

We hit Salerno. God almighty, that's when things started.

All hell broke loose.

On September 9, 1943, supported by naval artillery, the Americans and British

launch an amphibious assault on the shores of Salerno, Italy.

But the men are untested, the attack plan is flawed, and the Germans are

in wait.

The 36th Infantry composed of National Guard troops from Texas, helps lead the

way past minefields and barbed wire onto the beach.

Although a powerful German counterattack nearly drives the American GIs back

into the sea, the 36th fights back, man against tank.

Supported by powerful naval and ground artillery fire and the 82nd Airborne,

Allies finally secure the beach.

The 36th alone.

has suffered 1 ,900 casualties.

Meanwhile, farther south, the British have landed on Italy's toe and are

advancing to meet the Americans.

The battle for the Italian peninsula is underway.

The good news for the Allies, Italy has surrendered just days prior to the

invasion. The bad, Hitler has poured massive reinforcements into Italy.

And to leave them, he has appointed as theater commander the shrewd Albert

Kesselring, a master at stalling and wearing down armies.

He has engineered the Gustav Line, a brilliant defensive entanglement of

guns, booby traps, and mines, stitched into Italy's unforgiving mountains.

Here, the Germans, aided by horrible winter weather, will grind the Allied

campaign to a halt for months.

Intent on breaking stalemate, Allied Commander General Mark Clark, attempts

another high -risk amphibious invasion behind enemy lines, this time to the

north, at Anzio.

The landing catches the Germans off guard, but the Allies then hesitate long

enough to give the enemy time to bring in reinforcements.

German artillery pummels Allied forces on the beach for four months.

You hear a shell coming two or three seconds before it hits. You just hit the

ground and wait.

Wonder if it's... Got your dog tag number on it.

In the mountains, as the impasse at the Gustav line drags on, rain comes,

followed by snow, swallowing the

men in a nightmare of mud, misery, and death.

It was difficult to stand, much less walk.

Every hill had a German gun on it.

They were always looking down at us.

Advances of but a few yards come at a staggering toll.

Frustration boils over from the ground all the way up to General Eisenhower.

The Allies come to pin their troubles on a 6th century abbey perched high atop

Monte Cassino, convinced the Germans are using it as a formidable observation

post.

At first, the Allies resist attacking this ancient religious site.

But when further land battles fail to advance the front line, the Allies

an intense bombing assault that flattens the abbey and kills over 200 innocent

Italian civilians.

The truth emerges from the dust and rubble.

Monte Cassino wasn't the German reconnaissance site the Allies imagined

be.

Finally, in May 1944,

A major offensive undertaken by many Allied nations ends the stalemate.

The forces trapped at Anzio break out. The Gustav Line collapses.

And on June 4th, 1944, the Allies take Rome, the first Axis capital to

fall. But the jubilation of freeing the Eternal City lasts just long enough to

be captured by the newsreels, as once again the campaign comes to a bloody

stalemate. this time at Kesselring's new defensive position north of Rome, the

Gothic Line.

Fresh regiments pour onto the front line, including the Japanese -American

Regimental Combat Team.

Even though their families back home are seen as a threat to national security,

these men will become some of the most decorated soldiers of the war.

We were not just fighting for our country.

We were fighting for ourselves, our family, and for the Japanese American

community. We were determined to be the best.

With American forces spread thin, the 442nd is assigned to the 92nd Infantry,

which includes African American soldiers of the segregated 370th Infantry

Regiment. These men also fight valiantly in service of a nation that treats them

as second -class citizens.

Everybody was watching to see whether or not we'd be able to stand up under the

pressure of combat.

And we proved to them that, hey, if you can do it, we can do it.

In the winter of 1944, American and British allies finally pierced the

Line.

But still, the fighting drags on.

Altogether, the Italian campaign will be a grueling 20 -month war of attrition.

costing the Allies over 300 ,000 casualties and the Germans over 400

Despite this overwhelming sacrifice, the Allies' road to Berlin will not pass

through Italy. That fight is taking place elsewhere.