Operation Shingle, a surprise landing behind enemy lines at Anzio and Nettuno on Jan. 22, 1944 was meant to break the stalemate the Allies faced at Cassino. The British First Division and the American Third Division led the invasion under General John Lucas' VI Corps (directed by Gen. Mark Clark's Fifth Army). As Allied supplies and 50,000 men fortified the beachhead, German Field Marshal Kesselring quickly stitched together a defensive force that would trap them there for four months.

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