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Hello, and thank you for listening to the history of World War II podcast.

Episode 593, Patton plans his revenge.

Last time, despite the tragedy of hundreds of U.S. paratroopers being killed by friendly fire,

the American consolidation of Sicily's southern coast was coming along, well, the eastern half as the GIs were guarding

the British left flank. Speaking of the British, their landings were succeeding as well,

and because of these combined landings, plans were already being made by the Germans

to draw a new line in the sand, this one, around their exit route at Messina.

An exit strategy, but a defiant one to be sure, had to be considered, mostly because of the

British landing and taking the town of Augusta on

the east coast by July 12th. But about to test Monty's logistics and his patience was the road

system, or lack thereof, of eastern Sicily. In the Syracuse area, there are two roads that lead north, the way that

Monty wanted to go. The better one was along the coast, the one that had been used by the advancing

fifth division, as it came upon Patty Main and his men who now held Augusta. And then there was

the one further inland. It was less well maintained and had

...