Into the Belly of the Beast

Seventy years ago on this date, March 9, 1945, a small cog in the Allied war machine penned a limited note to his only sibling, his sister, Anita. Written by my Father, Roy Bernard Hovel who was a member of the Counter Intelligence Corps attached to the 83rd Infantry Division, the letter gives a few clues as to something big having occupied his time for several days. First, just below the date, was headlined “Germany.” Second, he noted that he had not written to “Mother and Dad …in the past 10 days (it was actually longer). I hope they won’t be worried due to lack of mail.” It is the next paragraph that provides some basic information, he wrote: “We are kept very busy now days. From the newspaper & radio broadcasts you should know where are at as there was a lot of publicity concerning the division.” Correspondence to the home front was subject to censorship. His letters contained a little information on the trials and tribulations of war, gave a broad geographic notation like country, but nothing on movements passed or planned. A mother with a son in a war zone is likely to be concerned from having not had any mail. If one is looking for details beyond mundane living conditions you will not find much direct information in the letters. What was going on that concerned his division and would occupy his time?

Roy B Hovel
Source:  family photo

One only need to turn to the news around that period of time. The March 2, 1945 edition of the “The Wisconsin State Journal” blares out in its lead headline—“U.S. TROOPS SMASH TO RHINE.” The US war machine had reached the Rhine. This feat was accomplished by elements of the 83rd Infantry Division at 1000 hours on Friday, March 2. The 83rd was in the belly of the Beast, next stop the heart of the Beast--Berlin!

Wisconsin State Journal, 2 March 1945
Source:  Newspaper archive

The race to the Rhine had started among regiments of the 83rd at 1400 hours the previous day. But, the march was not a straight line. The battle started on 23 February 1945 after having crossed the Roer River, and for a division who thought they would be held in reserve for this movement the moment of glory would be theirs. The move to the city of Neuss was not to be a straight line, but, as described in the “9th Army Overview of Operations, May 1944-May 1945” (declassified NND 735017) they would be required to “execute a vast wheeling movement to the north” and wheel once again, a bizarre movement later described in the "Overview of Operations" report as a “crooked figure S.” After having reached the Rhine, the division spent much of the next day taking the city of Neuss.

Map showing Allied troop movements
 from "Wisconsin State Journal" 2 March 1945
83rd Infantry was part of US Ninth Army

Today it seems like no big deal, but to those involved in World War II reaching the Rhine was a BIG deal. The Rhine was the last bastion of a natural defense feature before Berlin. The Rhine is the river which the Nazi propagandist, Goebbels had noted the Allies would never reach. The banks of the Rhine was home to cities producing the armaments for the failing German Wehrmacht, SS, and the deflated Luftwaffe. Not only did the Allies control the skies, they now were at the Rhine, and things were not going well for the former corporal who thought himself more knowledgeable of war tactics than those men of the German high command that were under him. Adolph Hitler and only a few within his inner circle would not believe the end was near. Instead, at this point they believed their own words that the German people would not allow their enemy to get past the Rhine. German propaganda was regularly reported in the newspaper of the 83rd Division, and they relished having turned the tables on the propaganda by turning up on the east bank of the Rhine.

Sign commemorating 83rd reaching the Rhine
Source:  Google images

After having survived three weeks of continuous battle in the bitter cold and deep snow found late December into January in the Ardennes Forest, commonly known as the "Battle of the Bulge," the 83rd Infantry had a training interlude for part of February to prepare for the push to and beyond the Rhine. The Rhine was indeed a prize of the war. British Field Marshall Montgomery hearing that allied troops had reached the Rhine on that early March day noted that the events of the previous 12 hours “are the most significant of the war in the west since D-Day.” The 83rd, was commanded by Major General Robert Macon, which was part of the U.S. Ninth Army under the command of Lieutenant General William Simpson. The allies had five armies streaming toward Berlin from the west, which was complimented by Russian troops heading for the same prize from the east.

Roy Hovel overlooking a European Mountain
Source: family photo

Under the banner headline, the “Wisconsin State Journal” article for that day has two front page stories, the first is a news account with the headline “Ninth Army Rips Front in Half; Trier, Venlo, Krefeld Fall” which recounts the events leading to the Rhine, and the second is an “Eyewitness” account titled “U.S. Guns Loose Hell Over Rhine” by war correspondent Clinton Conger. Conger’s account begins with a simple lead-in letting every reader know which division had reached the prize: “WITH THE U.S. 83rd DIVISION ON THE RHINE….” I am sure not only did Roy’s sister see the story, but so too did his parents. One only wonders what thoughts were going through his mother’s mind wondering if he had been injured, was he in some sort of mess, or was he simply busy. Personal communication was by letter.  Pieces of basic war information could be had by radio or newspaper. It was not unusual for letters to arrive in a different order from date written. Not unlike the Christmas cookies that were sent in early December, but arrived in February, although still reported by her dutiful son to be “tasty.” Either he was being polite, or they were good.  Compared to army food two month old cookies may indeed have been tasty. (Although I have to think with my grandma's baking, they were still good.) Without Facebook, tweets, and email a mother’s worry today is not the length of mother’s worry seventy years ago. Having lived with my wife for her 23 + years as a mother, I know that is what a mom does—worry-- it becomes part of their DNA.

General Eisenhower visiting 83rd With General Simpson
83rd commander, Gen. Macon showing the way
Source:  "83rd Spearhead" 10 March 1945

With stateside mothers worrying about their sons the men would move on to the Rhine. A Ninth Army spokesman would report “rapid progress against light German resistance, which in some sectors could be called a rout.” Tanks and troops of the 83rd were the first to drive a wedge to the Rhine. While reporters and commanders may make it seem easy, it was not always a rout. Congar, in his eyewitness account, quotes a solider from Eagle River, WI who said the 83rd position “consists of practically nothing but flanks.” Not a good way to run a military operation. Confederate General Lee was a master at turning Union flanks and winning battles with significantly lesser forces. The March 10, 1945 issue of “83rd Spearhead”, the division newspaper, provides an account of two companies in the division of having been surrounded by the enemy. In one case, the Germans thought they had killed all  in the unit, only to find some had survived and they surprised the Germans and would win their way through the encirclement. The other company was in more dire straits, and it saw success in a manner not unlike that in the movie “Saving Private Ryan” where near the end of the movie as Captain Miller (Tom Hanks’ character) lays dying, P-47’s come in to handle the German tanks. So too was it in early March 1945 for a platoon of the 83rd. The platoon, which was fighting in another part of town, was surrounded by enemy tanks and infantry. Let us pick up from the Division news account: “By this time P-47's were on the scene. Nothing appeared more beautiful to the men on the ground in the middle of enemy armor and infantry than these planes roaming in and dropping their eggs on Nazi tanks and then returning to strafe the fleeing supermen scrambling from their burning tanks.”

US Soldiers clearing out German Soldiers
Remains of tank and German Soldier due to P-47 attack
Source:  Regimental newspaper TTF, 10 March 1945

As elements of the 83rd division approached the west bank and city of Neuss, which is opposite the east bank city of Dusseldorf, the artillery and unimpeded air flights would pound both cities. But yet the infantry would go through Neuss block by block, dwelling by dwelling. Those German soldiers that had not departed for the protection of the Rhine by going to the east side were said to have easily given up in town. Among the rubble of war, civilians by the thousands could be seen coming out of their cellars and air raid shelters. Allied estimates placed up to 20,000 persons in air raid shelters. The German propaganda of every child of the Fatherland fighting to the last to keep the Americans from reaching the Rhine did not happen. Many of them knew the war was lost and would rather give up to the U.S. than face the Russians. The division news would, in a special edition recognize the achievement by writing: ”that Dusseldorf, once great industrial producer for Germany, is finished as a source of material for the Wehrmacht. Whether the Allies cross the Rhine now or later, artillery falling 24 hours a day makes impossible the operation of factories since workers are forced to remain in cellars.”

German tank hit by P-47
Source: "83rd Spearhead" 17 March 1945

The primary activity of the CIC, as noted in its history “was to secure our forces from espionage, sabotage, and subversion and to destroy all enemy intelligence services.” It is the refugees, evacuees, and civilians who pose threat to security of forces, because there were so many one could easily get lost in the shuffle. A common German trick was to have German soldiers change into civilian clothes and mingle with the hordes of humanity being released from the bondage of fascism. Some of these German soldiers would stay behind as agents. The CIC were charged with sifting through the hordes of humanity to find the bad actors. They not only had to set up systems of security, but capture saboteurs and spies, investigate and question local residents, and evacuees to find collaborators,enemy soldiers and infiltrators. They were the spy catchers. The CIC history notes that as some divisions were moving 20 to 30 miles in one day, the detached CIC personnel, like Roy Hovel, had to “devote themselves to the neutralization of communication between Allied and enemy territory, the arrest of Nazis and other Germans whose presence in the area constituted a threat to the security of Allied operations.” They also had to tend to sealing party buildings and preserve the records therein contained for later use by the occupying forces.

Cover of the History of CIC
Source:  Google images

Over 16 days the 9th Army had captured over 29,000 POW’s, and were on the west side of the Rhine and within shelling distance of the Ruhr industrial complexes. The document of the 9th army, notes that U.S. casualties were under half of what was expected. It is here that we can pick up a longer letter Roy had written to his parents on March 11, the first letter to his parents since February 25. In the middle of the letter he acknowledges something that would concern any mother (perhaps that is why he buried it in the middle of the letter). He writes: “We are still busy and everything is fairly quiet. My guardian angel saved me again last night I’m sure. The 2nd closest occurrence of my stay over here and I know someone’s prayers must be answered. However, it is just one of those things that goes with war and if you are at the wrong place at the wrong time its (sic) a matter of bad luck or just that your time has come.” Later he would comment that he was not able to attend mass the past Sunday, but did find a chapel later in the week and was able to attend a high mass. There are no atheists in foxholes.

German Soldiers, and Civilian evacuees, near Neuss Germany
Source:  "83rd Spearhead" 17 March 1945

A simple letter to his sister written seventy years ago today sent me on a journey of discovery for details of this event. I had recalled hearing of my Dad’s close encounter with death while traveling from a trial of accused spies in Luxembourg back to his unit. A blog account of this was posted last December. But, as far as I know, he never shared the story of his second close call that occurred on March 10, 1945. I never knew that he would write the March 9 letter to his sister as part of a division which was not just at the front line, but was for that time the leading edge of the Allied front. They were heading into the belly of the Beast.  Within two months the Allies would have secured the unconditional surrender of Germany. Adolph Hitler would have killed himself, and the work to rebuild Germany would begin. In between there would be more events to capture the imagination of the home front. More stories to be told.  More lives to be lost. Mothers with but one desire to once again squeeze the cheek (Grandma like squeezing the checks of us grandchildren) of her son. A man who would say little about his experiences overseas. The giant war machine that became the U. S. Army was dependent on the duties of thousands of small cogs, each doing their duty to finish off the Beast and get back home.

War is also full of some odd occurrences, this also reminds
me of a scene in "Saving Private Ryan"
Source:  "83rd Spearhead" 17 March 1945

Weather Prognosticator

Four weeks ago, on February 2, Jimmy the Groundhog of Sun Prairie, WI made a prediction through the Mayor of Sun Prairie, that the area would enjoy an early spring.  The theory of groundhog predictions is that if it is sunny, the rodent will see its own shadow and hibernate for six more weeks.  If the shadow is not seen, the groundhog stays out of his hole and the area will see an early spring.  Of course, most of us put no faith in the prediction of a rodent, although it is one of those odd events that can make one help survive the winter. Although we don't have to put our stake in trying to have a furry animal predict our weather, we have highly trained scientists who rely on a variety of detailed computer models to make false predictions as well.

Jimmy biting Mayor Freund's ear

In Sun Prairie this year, even though it was  clear with a bright blue sky being seen on the horizon early that morning when Jimmy came forward to put forth his proclamation, the Mayor of that grand city noted that Jimmy had predicted an early spring.  This has set forth a series of events of which the Mayor may now regret.  First, the handler for Jimmy said the Mayor was wrong and it would be six more weeks of winter.  This was followed by the Economic Development Director of the city saying that no, it would be an early spring as even though with a clear sky and the sun coming up, Jimmy during his conversation said it would be an early spring.  Dispelling the legend of ground hog prognostication, Jimmy he said, takes a variety of factors into account, and the Mayor's prediction was accurate.  Legend in Sun Prairie has it that only the mayor can understand groundhog-speak,   Third, the web site for Jimmy indicates the following:  "As the mayor leaned in to hear Jimmy’s message, Jimmy nipped the mayor’s ear! Not serious, but enough to lend confusion to the event! The Mayor said Jimmy told him Early Spring, but since there was not a cloud in the sky… We’re pretty sure he misinterpreted it!" Yes, the rodent bit the ear of the Mayor, but more importantly the editor of the web site did stay on the message as set by the Economic Development Director. A startled Mayor may well have been shaken by the bite, and indicated the wrong thing, but not according to the Economic Development Director. Mayor Freund would become quite famous as the ear bite made national news. I recall seeing the "CBS Evening News" at 5:30 pm, where it was the second news story following the cold and snow out east. But,the turn of events of that day would last for two weeks, and beyond. The Mayor, who had been appointed to fill an unexpired term of another who left office, was in a primary election facing a former Mayor and a current member of the County Board. Wagging tongues had it that Mayor Freund would receive a boost out of all the local and national coverage of his ear having been bitten. There was no bump up although a bump down may have occurred as Mayor Freund placed third out of three candidates. Perhaps he was not well known beyond his aldermanic district, or the residents of that community do not like the direction the town is taking, or perhaps residents of that community do not like a person who clearly misinterpreted their spring prognosticating groundhog.

An animal only my nephew would love

Of course, what occurred that day may not be misinterpretation, but a matter of micro-geography. The Mayor clearly noted that Jimmy did not see his shadow, and hence would have an early spring. Beyond the mayor one can see blue sky. But the problem was that the Mayor was standing in front of a building which houses my sister-in-laws favorite place to hangout and confabulate--Beans N' Cream coffee house. The multi-story building was east of the Mayor as he stood in Cannery Square. Apparently those who set up the event never thought to make sure the Mayor was not in shadow of a building or other objects. Any student of geography would know that the sun rises in Sun Prairie about 7:12 am, so the sun is very low in the sky and long shadows will be produced. February 2 also happens to be about half way between the winter solstice and the vernal equinox. Where Jimmy was positioned, in building shadow, he would not see his own shadow, and the information passed to the Mayor by the Mr. Ed of the rodent population either before or after the ear bite recognized this fact. While Cannery Square is a fairly nice urban square, holding an event in shadow in front of my sister-in-laws favorite hangout obviously leads to confusion, and lost hope for a Mayor with a nibbled ear. I can think of a recent graduate of the University of Wisconsin in environmental studies and economics that may well be able to discern a better placement for the prognostication in Cannery Square other than in front of that coffee shop which blocks the rising sun. Other than Jimmy's handler, that former UW student is probably the only one who really likes that groundhog.

Photo of Jimmy giving his prediction to Mayor Freund.
If you look behind around the Mayor it is all in shadow, except for the blue sky in the distanced
and the sun shining on the Market Street diner which is west of the Mayor.

The Mayor and his fuzzy compatriot, it appears to me, is clearly in the shadow of Beans N' Cream and other buildings. As those of us in Dane County (as much of those in the Midwest and East Coast) have chattered our way through a cold February, some are perhaps cursing the groundhog, or at least its message. For example, of the twenty eight days in February, 14 or half of those days had low temperatures of zero or below. This, when the average high on February 2 is 28 and average low is 12, while at the end of the month the average high is 36 and low 19. Only two days in the month would surpass the average high temperature, and that was only by a degree or two. Cities out east are certainly cursing Jimmy's nemesis Punxsatawney Phil, who had predicted six more weeks of winter. If we have cold, at least we did not have to clean massive amounts of snow. Spring certainly has not yet sprung

My wife's artwork (photo by author)

Sun Prairie claims that Jimmy has an astounding record of success, but they provide no metrics as to how to say if it is an early spring.   Of course, the whole prognostication thing, of six more weeks, ends with spring beginning at about the time it normally would, at least according to the calendar.  The local weather man tell us that from their stand point spring starts March 1. Anyone who lives in the upper Midwest knows that is a great deal of bunk, and in fact, winter can last beyond the calendar date of the spring equinox.  Spring should not be judged by the calendar, or a weatherman, but how the weather feels. Are temperatures in late February and early March warmer than normal to give a feel of spring? to let us see robins, crocuses and emerging daffodils? Of long-lost snow and kite flying?  That is how to judge the arrival of spring.

If you want to judge spring by the equinox,
Sun Prairie should put spot lights behind Jimmy--to create shadow

With February being the shortest month, the weatherman's winter season is the shortest of the four in number of days, although it certainly can feel like the longest.  With the spring equinox coming March 20, we have about as much day light now as we have about October 11.  What does the weather hold for March?  NOAA's prediction for March-April-May has the Midwest with an equal chance of being above or below average temperatures.  They do not say average, but an equal chance of being above or below.  A nice way for a forecaster to hedge their bets--it is either going to be hotter or colder than normal.  More closely, as of today, weather.com, looking ten days out predicts March 11 to have a high of 47 degrees which is  6 degrees above the 41 degree average.  If this occurs, friends of Jimmy may well use this to say he was correct in his prediction of an early spring. That leaves us taking the weather day-by-day, and not putting much effort in long-term prognostications.

Some of my few readers may be wondering why a post on this rodent; I think it is to help have fun with a long winter.  But, no need to worry, next week I hope to write about an historical event that occurred on March 2 seventy years ago.  Until then, as my spouse wrote--Think Spring!

Unless otherwise noted all photos from Google Images.

Irony in the Pacific

Seventy years ago, on this date, February 23, 1945, as United States forces were in the midst of a struggle for the island of Iwo Jima, southeast of Japan,  a well known photograph in United States history was taken.  It is rather ironic that the battle for this small eight square mile atoll would see some of the deadliest exchanges during the second world war.  The photo would become one of the most iconic photographs if not in our nation's history, certainly in its military history.  Taken by photographer Joe Rosenthal, the photo depicts six men, five marines and one from the Navy, raising the stars and stripes over the island on top of Mount Suribachi.  The battle for the island would be further memorialized with the publication of a book titled Flags of Our Fathers, (a movie based on the book was also made) authored by the son of one of those in the photograph.  We all know the photo and perhaps a little bit behind the bloody battle, but little is recalled of what that bloody battle was able to produce for the war effort.  Perhaps we know so little, because this bloody battle produced very little in terms of strategic gain.

Raising US flag over Iwo Jima

The United States, fresh off island hopping victories in the South Pacific which showed supremacy of the American naval and air forces, found Iwo Jima as one of the islands on the route to the battle for Japan. Japan had three airfields on the island, and the main idea was to capture the island and use its air fields for a more aggressive effort on the Japanese homeland.  Military intelligence indicated little in terms of Japanese reinforcements on the island and held the belief that the island would fall in one week.  This would be one of those battles to prove that military intelligence is sometimes, perhaps often times, an oxymoron.

Location of Iwo Jima

Japanese commanders by this time had come to the realization that Pearl Harbor had indeed awaken a sleeping giant.  Their once highly thought of navy and their carriers which so damaged US interests a few years earlier, was now but a distant memory.  The once mighty air force was now short on planes, and even more short of experienced pilots thanks to the building US superiority, and perhaps the code of the kamikaze.  The Japanese would recognize that what was needed was a delay in order to give them time to develop defenses of the homeland.  They anticipated an invasion of the home islands.  To them, Iwo Jima could be used to delay and force concentration of forces on this small island.  In advancing this strategy they had reinforced the island with more troops, unbeknownst to the US.  Perhaps the Americans were duped into believing the strategic importance of Iwo Jima was more important than it actually would turn out to be.

Battle for Iwo Jima

Just because the island had three airfields for Japanese use, did not mean those airfields would assist the US movement to Japan.  In fact, the airfields, after having been rebuilt, would not be used to launch strikes on Japan.  Iwo Jima was useless to the US Army and Naval forces.  But at least the rebuilt airfields would provide an emergency landing strip for B-29 bombers.  It would turn out to be costly battle for an emergency landing field.  This would be the only battle where US Marine casualties would be greater than Japanese casualties.  22,000 Japanese troops were on the island and 18,844 were killed.  Of the rest, just over 200 would be taken prisoner.  Some would kill themselves rather than being taken prisoner.  Over 3,000 would continue to live in caves or tunnels located on the island, eventually giving up or dying from a variety of causes.  The US would have 26,000 casualties of which 6,800 were killed.

John Bradley

We have one of the most recognized of US military photos being taken on an island recognized now for its cost of life, and that such cost was far greater than its realized strategic importance.  The Rosenthal photo was the second flag raising that day.  After having raised the first, the men were asked to raise a larger flag.  Of the six, three would die during the war.  Of the three that survived, one was John Bradley, from Antigo, Wisconsin.  It would be his son, James who would memorialize the flag raising in his book.

Those who raised the flag in the photo

John Bradley entered the Navy at the suggestion of his father as a way to avoid ground combat.  As fate would have it, he would become a Pharmacist's mate and later be assigned to the Marine's.  On March 12 of that year, Bradley would be injured from shrapnel and be awarded the Purple Heart.  He would then tour the US selling war bonds.  Bradley would settle back in Antigo and become a mortician owning his own funeral home.  He and his wife would raise eight children.  Like many in his generation, he would downplay his role saying he happened to be at the right time.  His wife was eventually able to persuade him to record his views as a memory for his grandchildren.  In that recording he would say, if he had known how famous the photo would become he would have declined participation.  However, in a letter to his parents after the event he would say it was the happiest moment in his life.  More importantly his wife would claim he had been tormented by his experiences during the war.

Book on the subject by James Bradley, son of John Bradley

We have an iconic photo in which at least one participant wished to remain rather anonymous, refusing to participate in events related to the photos or provide comment on the movies that would be popularized regarding the battle for the island (e.g the 1949 "Sands of Iwo Jima"). Yet, it would be one of his children who would remind the nation of this event.  John Bradley, like many other soldiers, would rather not talk about his war experiences.  Rather,he, like most of the others, saw themselves as one band of brothers dutifully performing what was required.  Iwo Jima in part of nation's military lore, and like many other military adventures it had a high cost for little gain.  It is interesting, or perhaps appropriate, that the Second World War's iconic photograph was taken on a small volcanic island in the Pacific.  It shows the breadth and fog of war.

Marine Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery

 Photos from Google images

That Tomb of Miscalculation

It was on this date, February 15, 1944 that the greatest monastery in Christendom was destroyed by Allied bombers.  Its destruction represents hubris, group-think, error, and misrepresentation on the part of the Allies.  The destruction would lead to loss of architectural detailing, loss of artwork, loss of human life, and the loss of what sanctuary means.   Like many stories it embodies a variety of events, unfortunate occurrences, and foolish thoughts put into action.  Unfortunately, it is more about the miscalculations of man rather than about the better angels of our nature.  The Monastery that was destroyed sat 1,500 feet above the valley floor.  As described by Rick Atkinson in his book The Day of Battle: “the great abbey abruptly loomed on the pinnacle, trapezoidal and majestic seven acres of Travertino stone with a facade twice as long as that of Buckingham Palace.”  This great monastery sat on a precipice northwest from the confluence of the Rapido and Liri Rivers, among the mountains of central Italy.

Monte Cassino Abbey prior to 1944 bombing

This was the grand abbey of Monte Cassino near Cassino, Italy. It was the first abbey founded by St Benedict who would write a book simply known as The Rule.  This book would outline in a simple, yet rather elegant manner, the rules for western monasticism.  The book has stood the test of time better than the abbey in which it was conceived.  St Benedict of Nursia was born in 480 AD, and would found the abbey in 529 on the site of a pagan temple to Apollo.  The Patron Saint of Europe, Benedict would be one of the people to lead a continent to a new civilization follwing the decline and fall of the Roman Empire. 

Abbey above village of Cassino

Unfortunately, the Allied bombing in 1944 was not be the first time the abbey had been destroyed. Chaos would reign in much of Europe with the fall of the Roman Empire in the late fifth century.  Monasteries were one of the few places to keep the flame of knowledge alive and well. They did this more than by simply copying texts they had gathered before the books had been burned by the Huns, Vandals, Visigoths, and other tribes roaming about the continent leaving destruction in their midst. Monte Cassino would see occupation by the Lombards in 584, with the monks taking over a century to reclaim the home monastery of Benedict.  A forerunner to the Muslim extremists of today, Muslim insurgents would burn the abbey in 883 and make the Islamic State (ISIS) and Boko Harem proud in the manner in which they murdered the Bishop.  The monks would once again rebuild.  An earthquake would destroy the abbey in 1349, and once again it would be rebuilt.  It would be destroyed in 1799 at the hands of the little Frenchman with a large ego.  The abbey was once again rebuilt following the escapades of Napoléon.  Some things are too important to leave in ruin, and Monte Cassino is one of them.  The great abbey would come to have the motto “Succisa Virecit” meaning “struck down, it comes to new life.”  A fitting motto. The abbey assisted in the preservation of thought, art and architecture, and in so doing embodies endurance.  Perhaps even St. Benedict would be surprised at its resilience.

 

Statute of St Benedict in a Courtyard at
St. John's University, Collegeville
Photo by Author

The grand attribute of the abbey, the way it sat on the precipice above the valley, also presented it as a strategic location and a prime target for attack and destruction.  In 1944, it had the unfortunate location of being between the Allied advances from southern Italy to the main prize--Rome.    While it was rebuilt in the middle part of the last century following destruction by the Allies, the giant jigsaw to which it was rendered left an untold number of pieces of carved stones unable to fit into the giant 3-D puzzle of its recreation.  But, it did not have to be destroyed.  But for the hubris of one, the lack of imagination of a second, the lack of backbone of a third, and the human frailty of many the abbey as it existed on February 4, 1944 would be in place today.  It offers lessons to us, and history can be a great teacher.

Aerial view of destruction

One lesson we learn in school is that the German leaders of WWII were not good people.  Yet, it was a German commander who early in the war, took it upon himself to move much of the artwork of Monte Cassino to the Vatican for safekeeping.  The monks insisted that two monks travel with the truckloads to assure they reached their destination.  Of course, proving that the German leaders were not good people, 15 crates of artwork would still end up in the collection of the Herman Goring division near Berlin. Had much of the abbey's artwork not been taken to the Vatican, the Monuments Men would have been even more busy.  

Herman Goering looking at plundered art

While the German commander, Field Marshall Kesselring kept his promise that the abbey and 300 meters beyond would not be occupied, the area below the clear zone would be well fortified.  Abbey outbuildings, and homes were destroyed to provide for positions and view. Allied artillery would pound the area and by 5 February terrified area residents would pound on the abbey door desiring sanctuary.  Atkinson reports that perhaps up to 2500 refugees were in the abbey, living on the stairs, in the halls, and bunking on the workshop tables.  Benedictine hospitality at work.  If present, wine and the famed Benedictine liqueur were probably the drink of choice. During this trying time, Atkinson notes that the abbey log had a simple recording:  “May God shorten these terrible days.” 

Field Marshall Kesselring

The New Zealand dentist turned General, Bernard Fryberg, who had the ear of General Alexander would push for the destruction of the abbey.  Fryberg would write to American General Clark and Alexander demanding its destruction.  French General Juin, and American General Keyes would disagree. Keyes took several flights over the abbey and came to the conclusion that those who claimed they saw Germans in the abbey were intent on inventing a scene not viewed.  The Germans understood something that Freyberg did not—observation posts dug below the hill crest were better camouflaged.  Alexander had promised to protect Monte Cassino but we would accede to Fryberg’s demand.  Clark attempted to forestall the attack, but was unsuccessful.  Clark would note to Alexander that first, no clear evidence placed the Germans in the abbey.  Second, previous efforts to bomb a building or town to prevent German occupation had always failed.  He felt that it would be a shame to destroy such a treasure, and those who sought refuge within its walls.  Finally, he noted that “if the Germans are not in the monastery now, they certainly will be in the rubble after the bombing ends.” (Atkinson)  Rubble is much better at camouflage than a structure.  Clark would accede to the bombing, but would first dictate a memo noting that General Alexander should not be meddling within the affairs of his command.  If it was up to the on-ground American commanders in Italy, Monte Cassino likely would not have been destroyed during WWII.  One man, Fryberg insisting on its demolition, and Clark, who tried to forestall the action but in the end would back down to his superior (Alexander) who stuck his nose into the tactics of the field commander. 

Abbey as it stands today

On the night before the bombing, Allied planes dropped leaflets noting that the abbey would be bombed the next morning.  Abbey attempts to communicate with the German lines to arrange safe passage failed.  This may be in part attributed to the death of a young monk who had been suffering from a fever, and the monks being busy in preparation for a quick burial.  In any event, some refugees thought the leaflets were a ruse by the abbey to get them to leave.  One must expect that food and supplies, were running short, and the Benedictine liqueur likely out.  The most well-known abbey in Christendom was turned into an animal house. 

Abbey Chapel

It was about 9:24 am, on the morning of February 15, 1944 when the first of eight waves of Allied bombers arrived.  A total of 250 bombers would appear over the great abbey.  The monks were in the lower level of the monastery doing morning prayers when they heard explosion, after explosion, after explosion.  By 1:13 pm, the bombing campaign was over.  Atkinson would report that over 600 tons of high explosives and incendiary devices would be dropped on the abbey, along with hundreds of artillery rounds.  In only a few hours the abbey, which arose from stone, was now but a pile of smoldering rubble.  No one knows exactly how many refugees were in the abbey, so no one knows how many died.  Bodies were disintegrated into dust due to the concentrated bombing.  The British estimated that 300 to 400 refugees perished during the assault.  Folly at the highest level, as not one German soldier was known to have died.  But, due to miss-drops, allied soldiers would die. Two days later, on Thursday, February 17, the abbot with 40 monks and the remaining refugees who were mostly aged, orphaned and widowed, would depart.  In perhaps an understatement of irony, and but by the grace of God, the great arched stone entrance to the abbey was left standing.  Carved in the lintel above this still standing entry door was PAX. 

 

Abbey Door

Showing once again that a dentist does not a general make, Fryberg would fail to follow the bombardment with infantry.  Thus, as Clark predicted, the Germans would soon take the hill and burrow into the rubble.  Any advantage Alexander and Fryberg hoped to gain never materialized.  It would be May before the allies would make an advance beyond Cassino from this position.   One US corporal, as reported by Atkinson, would refer to the abbey destruction as —“that tomb of miscalculation.”  A war of attrition was now in progress.

General Fryberg

Proving the remark of that US corporal, British Col. Hunt, who was an aide to General Alexander, commenting on a German message intercepted prior to the bombing would say that the bombing “was idleness by the man who read the intercept.”  That would have been a British interpreter.  The intercept was first translated as “Is the HQ in the Abbey?  Yes” but the translator did not read and properly translate the whole intercept.  Col Hunt would notice that the translation did not match the intercept, but unfortunately he was too late to stop the bombing raid.  After questioning the interpreter it came out that the intercept was only partially translated and it contained errors.  The proper translation, Hunt discovered was:  “Is the abbot in the monastery?  Yes, the abbot is with the monks in the monastery.” To avoid conflict with the abbey, and civilians, the German soldiers likely kept track of their coming and goings. If the interpreter had read the full last sentence of the intercept he would have noticed that the original interpretation of the question which preceded it was not correct.  The destruction of the abbey was caused, at least in part, by a poorly interpreted message, following the folly of a chain of command where no one wished to fully question the evidence. 

Monte Cassino Abbey near present time
Photo from Blog of Eric Hollis, OSB

Once again the Abbey would be rebuilt.  Pope Paul VI would consecrate this rise from the dust in the 1960’s.  But today, rooms within the bowels of the abbey are occupied not by monks but by pieces that did not fit back within the massive 3-D jig saw puzzle.  Exquisitely carved stone work friezes, frescoes, paintings, and mosaics are left in heaps of leftover debris.  Yet, the waste of human life for those seeking sanctuary is even worse.  It was a death trap for many refugees.  But, while a building can be rebuilt, the dead mourned, the human mind can be fragile.  Let us take the example of an American named Walter M. Miller.

Walter M. Miller

Miller was involved in over fifty bombing missions during the Second World War, including the assault on Monte Cassino.  Some consider this bombing to have been a traumatic experience for Miller.  He would have PTSD, before PTSD had its current name.  At school and during the war Miller called himself an atheist.  But, in 1947, at the age of 25 he became a Roman Catholic. Some believe the experience of Monte Cassino, and the torment it caused would take Miller to an early grave.  He committed suicide in 1966.  Perhaps he was the last casualty of the bombing.  Miller’s greatest known work is A Canticle for Leibowitz, a novel about the long, slow rebuilding process following nuclear holocaust.  As one commentator would write: 

Miller's epic tale is not a political allegory, but an illustration of the dictum that those who fail to learn from history are condemned to repeat it. Miller once said, that it ‘never occurred to me that Canticle was my own personal response to war until I was writing the first version of the scene where Zerchi lies half buried in the rubble. Then a light bulb came on over my head: "Good God, is this the abbey at Monte Cassino?.... What have I been writing?’

 

Cover of book by W. Miller

Bernard Fryberg may have well believed the destruction of the abbey would provide the allies with an advantage.  A proper translation may not have affected Alexander's thoughts.  Clark may have realized there are sometimes you should question a command, particularly when history informs you of the likelihood of a different outcome.  A series of human failings would lead to loss of life, and loss of heritage.  The allies, in a measure of deceit reaching the highest level of government, would quickly shift blame for the attack saying Germans were in the abbey. Besides saying incontrovertible evidence would be provided to justify the breaking of a promise to not attack the abbey, the British have yet to provide anything to the Vatican.  To the victor go the spoils, and the writing of history.  It may have been more a tomb of folly, than a “tomb of miscalculation.” As Walter Miller understood, our past influences and shapes our future in ways we may not recognize. Unfortunate events help form us, and it is our duty to learn from circumstances provided.  As the doomsday clock has now clicked closer to zero, is peace ever more fleeting?

Unless otherwise noted, images from Google images

The Last Warm-up

On this date in 1980, the US Olympic Hockey team, coached by Herb Brooks, played a match at Madison Square Garden, three days before the start of the Olympics.  The match was against the team from the Soviet Union which would represent the USSR in the Olympics at Lake Placid, New York. The United States team would lose this match, in rather convincing fashion, 10 to 3, leading many to conclude that they had little or no chance against the red curtain power houses of the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia.

Soviet Coach Victor Tikhonov

Members of the Soviet team were primarily soldiers within the Red Army.  Of course, their main occupation was not as a soldier, but hockey.  Some teams, like Canada refused to play the Soviets due to the fact that while they may have met the letter of amateurs, they were in fact, professionals. The Soviet team was well renowned as the best team in the world. No training facility matched theirs.  No goal tender could come close to the ones they could put on the ice.  They had power, they had speed, they had skill.  The Soviet program had produced four consecutive gold medal winners in the Olympics from 1964 through 1976.  The 1960 US team would upset the Soviets at Squaw Valley. During this span, the powerful Czechoslovakian team would claim three silver medals, and one bronze.  It would be foolish to think that any team from the west could match up with and play with such juggernauts from behind the Iron Curtain.  

Vladislov Tretiak, was considered the best goal tender in the world

The US team was primarily composed of college students from Minnesota (nine of the twenty played with Brooks at the University of MN), Boston, MA (four played for Boston University), and of course a couple from Wisconsin.  Only one person returned from the 1976 hockey team.  These young men would have competed against each other, but starting the prior July were brought together to form a team.  Animosity was present at first among US team members as college affiliation would, be more important than their intended goal.  The animosity would need to be overcome, and with a hard style of coaching Brooks would see that it was.  As he would say in the movie "Miracle":  "the name on the front is a helluva a lot more important than the name on the back."  With an average age of 21, it was one of the youngest ever US team to play in the Olympics.  it was also the youngest team to play in the 1980 Olympics.  Brooks would introduce a different style of play to these young men, a combination of the North American and European style.  Skills learned during the course of one's life are often difficult to unlearn, but that was what Brooks demanded of his chosen caste.  They may not have been the best, they may not have been the most athletic, but they would come together to undertake a remarkable journey.  Twenty young men who loved to play the game of hockey.

Boris Mikhailov, Soviet team right-wing
Born in 1944.  Contemporary photo.
By contrast most US team members were born a decade or more later

In the movie, during the summer as training began in 1979, the assistant coach asked the trainer if he had ever seen Herb Brooks so hard on the boys who played for him.  The trainer would say, no he had not, but "Herb has a reason for everything he does."  Much to the discontent of the US Amateur Hockey Association Herb Brooks scheduled this game against the Soviets, the last of 61 exhibition games, as a final warm up before the start of Olympic play.  Things did not go well that night for the US team.  Although at least they were not shut out as were NHL all-stars shut out by the same Soviet team.  But, the game had the purpose Brooks desired.  As the Soviet coach would later admit, the game instilled over confidence in his team.  It was a risky move, because it also could have instilled no confidence within his team. One never knows what a situation and opportunity will be presented. One only needs to be prepared to recognize the opportunity and then take advantage of that opportunity.  The 1980 US Olympic Hockey team would do both.  Without this game on February 9, 1980, there would have been no miracle on ice on February 22, 1980.  

Into the Storm

World War II is a major event in the history of the past one hundred years.  It would engulf the world from the islands of the South Pacific to the fjords of Norway.  It called a generation, and more than any other event has shaped the geo-political world in which we live today.  Many will recall Pearl Harbor, D-Day, Battle of the Bulge, and of course the dropping of the atomic bombs on Japan.  There were, however, other key events.  One under-realized event is the Allied invasion of Italy.  Italy was, for much of the conflict, associated with the Axis powers through the dictatorship of Benito Mussolini.  The Allied invasion of Italy, beginning in Sicily in July 1943 would be the downfall of Il Duce.  He would be arrested by his own people, imprisoned, rescued by orders of Hitler, and upon the collapse of German troops in northern Italy once again captured and put to death.

Invasion of Italy

Death would come to central Italy.  One of the most difficult circumstances to face the Allies in the invasion of Italy was the river valleys of the Rapido, Liri, and where at their confluence they formed the Garigliano River. Nearby was Highway 6 and upstream of the confluence was the small Italian town of Cassino.  Prior to war, it would have been a picture card of an Italian village; shops and homes built of locally quarried stone sat in a valley and along the lower hillsides. Frank and Marie Barone’s relatives could easily have worked in the town.  The town would become of strategic importance in the Allied move toward Rome.  But, the move was associated with miscalculation, poor assignments and even worse.

British Major General Harold Alexander

 September 1943 saw the Allies advance into the leg of Italy with two major movements from the south, one to the east of the mountain range that forms the bone of the leg, the other on the west side.  The movements were overseen by General Harold Alexander, Lord of Tunis.  Under him, leading the approach from the west side of the bone, was an American, Major General Mark Clark.  Winter in the mountains put the effort to get to Rome solely on the western movement as the forces to the east could not make it through the snow covered passes.  Mark Clark would be thrust into the limelight, and his record as a general would forever be debated.  Two primary routes up the west side of Italy would allow access to Rome.  The primary route, the former Appian Way was inaccessible due to flooding of the roadway in lowland areas.  This was a great defensive move by the Germans, it then required the Allied forces to move up Hwy 6 toward Cassino, and then onto Rome.  But it required crossings of fast flowing mountain snow fed rivers in the valleys among the mountains.  The surrounding hills provided the Germans vantage points for observation and defensive actions; the Germans would form what is known as the Gustav line. 

US General Mark Clark

It took until mid-January 1944 for the Allies to get near this crucial area.  They had sustained 16,000 casualties to advance the last seven miles to reach near the Gustav line.  The soldiers had little time to rest, and the command little time to plan.  Two days after their January 15 arrival, the allies made their first attempt was to cross the Garigliano River.  It was here that the US Commander failed to realize that the German forces in this area were rather thin.  The German commander was asking for reinforcements.  Reinforcements would be pulled from Rome, and by the time of the main attack by US troops on January 20, the German reinforcements had arrived.  Historians continue to debate whether the effect of this lack of decision was a missed opportunity to gain a foothold in the valley to move up the road to Rome.  Whatever it was, part of Clark’s plan worked, as the Germans pulled troops from the defense of Rome.  The central attack would fail and regiments involved in this attack would, for all intents and purposes lose so many men as to fail to exist.  One division lost 2,100 men (killed, missing or wounded) within a 48 hour period.  Lack of preparation did not help as booby traps and mines were not cleared before the advance. 

Allied advance on the Rapido River, just south of Cassino

On January 24, the Allies decided to attempt to move north of Cassio, with the intent of then moving left and coming up behind the German defenses that formed the Gustav line.  Crossing of the fast-moving rivers was difficult and the high water left little room for armor units, thus requiring an exceedingly long time for traction mats to be used on the steep river banks.  Despite the problems, some US troops were able to move south toward Monastery Hill, and by early February were occupying a small hamlet only one mile from the monastery that sat atop an adjoining hill.  By February 7, a battalion was only four hundred yards from the abbey.  Monks would watch Allied and German patrols exchange fire below the abbey walls.  In fact, Rick Atkinson in his book, The Day of Battle notes that a German Corps commander felt that the Allies were within 100 meters of success.  Alexander and Clark had attacked on too broad a front, and failed to prick through cracks in the German defense.  The Allies wanted to take what was a defenseless abbey, but the German defenses well below the walls proved too difficult to break.  Weary US troops would give way to men from New Zealand and India under the command of Lt. General Bernard Fryberg.  Freyberg would essentially desire to continue the plan already in play which was failing miserably.  He would continue the original advance from the south east across the rivers, and at the same time continue the movement to go behind the German lines.

Cassino town after Allied advance

The US was also making another movement toward Rome from Anzio, and US Troops in that location found themselves in a predicament much like they found themselves at Cassino.  Major General Clark, was also in charge of the Anzio attack.  A commander more astute than Clark may have realized the opportunities that were presented early in the battle before German reinforcements arrived at the Gustav line.  A commanding General with a greater sense of purpose than Alexander, may have realized a need to divide command for the two major attacks.  Some historians believe the fault lies with Alexander for having given Clark the duty of arranging advances from both Cassino and Anzio, rather than dividing command.  In contrast, German Field Marshall Kesselring had divided defense of the two areas under separate commands. 

New Zealand Lt. General Bernard Fryberg

War is fraught with failures, and the battle in Italy is no different.  The losses would increase.  Allied troops would find themselves marching into a storm of a strong German defensive line.  The Allied reinforcements commanded by Fryberg would set in motion a series of events that would place taradiddle over truth, and ruination over ingenuity.  Fryberg was a dentist by training, and while he had the ear of General Alexander, an acquaintance, as reported by Atkinson, would say of Fryberg:  “His great fearlessness owed something to a lack of imagination.”  Fearlessness may have allowed his promotion, but his lack of imagination would come into play and enter into one of the most debated decisions of the war.  To find out about that decision, you will need to read the post due on or about February 15 titled:  “That Tomb of Miscalculation”