Cassino to the Alps - US Army Center Of Military History

TOWARD A WINTER STALEMATE
nollS signs of enemy buildup opposite
the II Corps' left wing west of Highway
65.
Since the current offensive had taken
only one of three planned objectives,
Clark decided to forego taking Monte
Belmonte and Monte Adone and instead
to concentrate strength on the
corps right, where the enemy seemed
to be weakest. On 22 October Clark
directed Keyes to advance his right
wing as far as Monte Castelazzo, some
three miles to the northeast of Monte
Grande, to a general line extending
from Monte Castelazzo in the 88th
Division's zone of operation northwestward
three miles to Ribiano Hill in the
85th Division's zone. Those two heights,
three and four miles respectively, southwest
of Castel San Pietro on Highway 9,
represented the enemy's last possible
defensive positions short of that highway
and the Lombard plain. If Keyes'
corps could occupy those features before
the end of the month, the Fifth
Army might yet be able to debouch
onto the plain before winter's snows
prevented further operations in the
Northern Apennines. Clark meanwhile
instructed Kirkman to assist Keyes'
thrust beyond Monte Grande by massing
at least four brigades 0 f the 13
Corps west of the Santerno River and
by taking Monte Spaduro and a line of
hills southwest of the Sillaro to increase
pressure along the road between Castel
del Rio and Imola.
In preparation for this final effort,
Keyes instructed the 34th and 91 st
Divisions and 1st Armored Division to
regroup to enable the 91st Division to
withdraw two regiments into corps reserve,
which Keyes might draw upon to
repel a possible spoiling attack against
385
the II Corps left flank. If no spoiling
attack developed the reserve of six
battalions might be used to exploit the
expected capture of Monte Castelazzo
and Ribiano Hill. Three divisions were
to make only holding attacks, to include
continuing efforts by the 34th Division
to take Monte Belmonte.
Shortly after dark on 22 October, the
85th and 88th Divisions began the new
main effort toward high ground northeast
of the three heights of Monte
Grande, Monte Fano, and Monte Cerrere
that the divisions had previously
captured. Coulter's 85th Division on the
left wing was to take Hill 459, a mile
northeast of Monte Fano. Kendall's
88th Division on the right was to capture
Hill 568, about a thousand yards
northeast of Monte Grande. Control of
Hill 568 would enable Kendall to dominate
Montecalderaro, a hamlet at the
junction of two secondary roads leading
to Highway 9, about five miles away.
From the hill Kendall was to send a
force a mile and a half to the northeast
to occupy high ground overlooking the
hamlet of Vedriano within a mile of the
division's final objective, Monte Castelazzo.
A second force, moving northeast
from Monte Cerrere, was to cover the
division's right flank along the Sillaro
River.
Since Colonel Crawford's 349th Infantry
had just taken Monte Grande
and Colonel Fry's 350th had seen considerable
action since the heavy fighting
on Monte Battaglia earlier in the
month, Kendall selected Colonel Champeny's
351st Infantry to lead the attack
toward Hill 568. Crossing the line of
departure on Monte Grande's forward
slope shortly after nightfall, the 351 st
Infantry's 3d Battalion slipped through