Map of the Invasion of Italy.

In the summer of 1943 the Allies invaded Sicily, the southern most city in Italy, and this was the physical start of the Italian campaign. This campaign was designed by the Allies to spread the German strength and allow Allied troops to push towards Germany from the soft underbelly of Europe (Italy). Allied troops pushed up through the boot, defeating German and Italian Axis soldiers along the way making it roughly half way before needing to assault the town of Ortona. The city of Ortona was one of Italy’s deep water ports on its eastern coast, the Allies believed it had great militaristic and strategical importance. The allies wanted to occupy Ortona so they could dock ships and shorten the supply routes of the Eighth Army, one of Britain’s best know field army formations. The city of Ortona was one of the greatest and bloodies battles of the Italian Campaign, claiming roughly 1400 Canadian lives.

Defending Ortona were two battalions of elite German paratroopers know as the Fallschirm Jäger Divisions. These battle hardened soldiers had been fighting since the start of the war and were elite fighters. These German soldiers had been ordered by Adolf Hitler to Defend Ortona at any cost. Leading them was Generalleutnant Richard Heidrich, a renowned German Commander.

Fallschirm Jäger Division’s unit insignia

Attacking Ortona were Canadian troops from the Canadian 1st Infantry Division under Major General Chris Vokes. The Canadian 1st Infantry Division has a long history of war success, being founded during WWI where they fought at the historic battle of Vimy Ridge and The Battle of Ypres. But this wasn’t the WWI Canadian 1st Infantry Division, most of the soldiers involved in this assault were fresh meat, where their first battle was the attack on Sicily. 

The Canadians within the Canadian 1st Infantry Division were distinguishable by there red and gold Canadian flag

Below is amazing authentic WWII Canadian news reel footage of the Battle Of Ortona.

So, How did Canadian Troops single handedly Defeat the Germans and two of their renowned German 1st Parachute divisions In the Battle of Ortona? 

1. Tactics ) The main central attack on the south side of the town was orchestrated and fulfilled by the Canadian 2nd Brigade’s Loyal Edmonton Regiment with help from the Seaforth Highlanders of Canada. A flank was commencing from the north west. The Third Brigade flanked around a mountain range and ended up north of Ortona, where they stopped German reinforcements, supply carriers and fleeing soldiers. This blockage turned the battle from a battle of strength into a battle of supplies and numbers, with the German supplies and numbers dwindling
   

   A map that shows the actions of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Canadian Brigade during the assault on Ortona.

2. Mouse Holing ) Mouse holing is the tactic of using explosives to blow holes in the walls of adjacent buildings. Soldiers would then throw grenades into the new holes, fatally surprising the occupants of that building. The battle of Ortona was a very similar battle to the one of Stalingrad, the town was made up of very closely packed houses and and tight knit streets, every house was adjacent to another. This meant that the battle was all close quarters combat. The Canadians made use of mouse holing to their great advantage to overcome the structure of the town. The tactic of mouse holing was used throughout the entire battle resulting in major casualties on the German side, almost 900 german lives were taken. The German side did use mouse holing against the Canadians as well resulting in many deaths.  The city was reduced to rubble by the end of the 8 days of fighting.
3. Dedication and Perseverance. The battle of Ortona was the bloodiest and most deadly battle in the Italian campaign. The 1400 dead Canadians accounted for almost a quarter of all Canadians killed during the Italian campaign. Ortona was nicknamed the ‘Courtyard of Hell’ because of the brutality and misery that came with the battling. Nothing looked positive for the Canadians during the early days of battle. Only yards of ground were being captured daily and the deaths were tallying. With all this death and loss, fresh Canadian soldiers still fought bravely and courageously. This courage and bravery is why the Canadian army was so feared by our enemies and revered by our allies.

“It wasn’t hell. It was the courtyard of hell. It was a maelstrom of noise and hot, splitting steel…the rattling of machine guns never stops … wounded men refuse to leave, and the men don’t want to be relieved after seven days and seven nights… the battlefield is still an appalling thing to see, in its mud, ruin, dead, and its blight and desolation.” – Matthew Halton.

The Battle of Ortona was a Brutal and deadly battle, but Canadian strength and smarts overcame Hitler and two of his most elite paratrooper divisions. Sadly, after the battle had been won and the deaths had been tallied the worth of the battle was being speculated. Most believe now that the city had little to no strategic military value. But the deaths of 1400 Canadian men will not go unforgotten, we cherish their sacrifice, and their actions of bravery are responsible for Canada’s respected identity.

Links and Such:

Wikipedia: The Battle of Ortona 

Canada at War: The Battle of Ortona

• Quote and Images

Canadian Soldiers: The Battle of Ortona

• Tactics and Maps