The story of this place
On 9 September 1943, the day after Italy's surrender was announced, the Allied Fifth Army under General Mark Clark landed at Salerno in Operation Avalanche—the main invasion of the Italian mainland. The Germans, expecting the assault, counterattacked ferociously; by 13 September their panzers had driven a wedge toward the beaches, and Clark contemplated evacuation. Naval gunfire, airlifted paratroopers, and the arrival of Montgomery's Eighth Army from the south finally stabilised the beachhead after nine desperate days. The victory opened the road to Naples, which fell on 1 October, but at heavy cost. Salerno proved that the campaign up the Italian 'boot' would be a long, grinding slog rather than a quick liberation.