Return to Italy

The Gothic Line
(North Apennines Campaign / Po Valley Campaign)

 

Breaking of the Gothic Line

Following its return to Italy at the end of March 1945, the 100th/442nd participated in the North Apennines and Po Valley Campaigns. For five months, the Fifth Army had been unable to break through the Gothic Line, the last major German defensive system in northern Italy, which stretched across the Apennines and guarded the approaches to the Po Valley.

To open the final Allied offensive in Italy, the 100th Battalion, 2nd Battalion, and 3rd Battalion of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team were initially assigned to create a diversion on the left flank of the Fifth Army’s planned offensive. Their attack was along the Ligurian Coast of northwestern Italy. The plan called for the 100th to attack the German positions frontally from the south, while the 2nd and 3rd Battalions attacked from the sides in a pincer movement. The 100th/442nd climbed the extremely mountainous terrain in preparation for an April 5 dawn attack against Georgia Peak and several other fortified peaks in the Apennine Mountains.

The 100th Battalion disembarked from trucks at Pietrasanta, marched to Vallecchia, and climbed the high ridges to its line of departure on Mount Cauala. The 3rd Battalion marched across hilly terrain to Azzano before scaling a dark, perilously steep cliff face during the overnight hours to reach its line of departure at the saddle between Mount Folgorito and Mount Carchio. The men climbed in complete silence so they would not disclose their location. Some soldiers recalled seeing their comrades slip and fall, yet remain completely quiet to preserve the secrecy of the mission.

At 5 a.m. on April 5, the 100th Battalion began its frontal assault, reaching its first objective, Georgia Peak, in a little over 30 minutes and breaching a segment of the Gothic Line. The 100th drew the enemy’s attention from the front while the 3rd Battalion launched its surprise attack from the flank and rear. The 2nd Battalion was also committed to the attack and, on April 6, moved into position for its assault on Mount Belvedere.

Through April 8, the 100th/442nd continued attacking German positions on Mount Cerreta, Mount Carchio, and Mount Belvedere, breaking the western anchor of the formidable Gothic Line. In just four days, the unit destroyed German positions that had withstood Allied efforts for the previous five months. The 100th/442nd continued advancing north along the Ligurian Coast, fighting and pursuing the retreating German forces. By mid-April, the regiment had captured Massa, Carrara, and surrounding towns.

The fighting produced numerous acts of individual heroism. On April 5, Private First Class Sadao Munemori of Company A, 100th Battalion, was killed in action. A replacement who had volunteered from the Manzanar Relocation Center in California, he was transferred from the 442nd as an early replacement to the 100th, joining the unit in May 1944 in Anzio, Italy. Munemori took command of his squad after its leader was wounded, and destroyed a German machine-gun nest with a grenade. When an enemy grenade bounced off his helmet, he threw himself over it, using his body to shield his fellow soldiers from the blast. His comrades survived. For his actions, Munemori was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in 1946. Until 2000, Munemori was the only American soldier of Japanese ancestry (AJA) to have received the Medal of Honor for actions during World War II. In 2000, 20 additional AJA soldiers received upgrades of their awards to the Medal of Honor.

Other members of Company A were also recognized for their actions during the April 5 assault. Sergeant Robert Nakasaki was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for destroying two enemy machine-gun positions under heavy fire. He was killed by an enemy sniper, but his actions opened a gap that allowed his platoon to advance and seize its objective.

Staff Sergeant Henry Arao was also awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. Under heavy enemy fire, he treated his wounded squad leader before advancing alone against two enemy positions. His actions forced the enemy into a fortified dugout and allowed his platoon to advance.

For its part in the breaking of the Gothic Line in the Po Valley campaign, the 100th earned its third Presidential Unit Citation (PUC) — the seventh PUC awarded to the 100th/442nd during World War II. The citation was awarded to the 442nd Regimental Combat Team (less the 2nd Battalion and the 522nd Field Artillery Battalion), for turning its assigned diversionary action into a full-scale and victorious offensive, pivotal in the final destruction of the German army in Italy during April 1945.

The citation, issued in War Department General Orders 34, 10 April 1946, as amended by War Department General Orders 106, 20 September 1946, reads in part:

“The 442d Regimental Combat Team (less the 2d Battalion and the 522d Field Artillery Battalion) . . . is cited for outstanding accomplishment in combat for the period 5 to 14 April 1945 in the vicinity of Serravezza, Carrara, and Fosdinovo, Italy. When the 92d Infantry Division with the 442d Regimental Regimental Combat Team attached was ordered to open the Fifth Army offensive by executing a diversionary attack on the Ligurian Coast of Italy, the combat team was ordered to make the main effort of the attack. It was done by executing a daring and skillful flanking attack on the positions which formed the western anchor of the formidable Gothic Line.

In 4 days, the attack destroyed positions which had withstood the efforts of friendly troops for 5 months. This was accomplished in the face of skilled enemy forces nearly equal in strength to the attacking forces and who had at least 5 months in which to improve their position.

The 442d Regimental Combat Team drove forward, despite heavy casualties. Allowing the enemy no time for rest or reorganization, the combat team liberated the city of Carrara, seized the heights beyond, and opened the way for further advances on the way to the key road center and port of La Spezia and to Genoa.

It accomplished the mission of creating a diversion along the Ligurian Coast, which served as a feint for the subsequent break-through of the Fifth Army forces into Bologna and the Po Valley. The successful accomplishment of this mission turned a diversionary action into a full scale and victorious offensive, which played an important part in the dual destruction of the German armies In Italy.”

 

Assault on Aulla

As the Germans retreated, they fell back toward Aulla, a strategically located town in the Tuscany region of Italy, through which many of the remaining German forces were attempting to withdraw.

On April 23, a special commando unit, Task Force Fukuda, was formed to move quickly through enemy territory toward Aulla. Led by Captain Mitsuyoshi “Mits” Fukuda, executive officer of the 100th Battalion, the task force advanced toward Aulla as the 100th/442nd cleared German positions in the surrounding hills. On April 25, Task Force Fukuda and the 2nd Battalion converged on Aulla and captured the town as the Germans retreated.

The 100th/442nd spent another week pursuing the retreating Germans northward from the Ligurian Coast toward Turin and Milan, large cities in the Po Valley. By May 2, 1945, German resistance in Italy had been broken, German forces were surrendering by units, and the war in Italy was effectively over.

• Italy (Naples-Foggia Campaign / Anzio Campaign/ Rome-Arno Campaign)
• France (Rhineland Campaign)