Latest / WW II Gothic Line ghosts haunt modern day Italy, Europe
U.S. Fifth Army begins its Gothic Line thrust with daunting attack up Monte Altuzzo; modern day open-air museum re-enactments fill in the pages of this taboo Italian history for younger generations
By Joe Kirwin
When the U.S. Fifth Army launched its part of the Allied Force Gothic Line one-two punch pincer movement to capture Bologna it began with a one of WW II's most daunting tasks: conquer the imposing heights of Monte Altuzzo 50 kilometers north of Florence. After initial success the offensive bogged down and turned into a WW I type of trench warfare because of a snowy, frigid winter in the mountainous terrain. Eighty years on, the Gotica Toscana Museum, located just below Monte Altuzzo in Tuscany, holds annual day-long re-enactments to not only honor the bravery of the American…
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