World War II calendar
What happened on March 23 during World War II? This date brings together 3 events from 1944 and 1945, with period photographs and links to the full operations documented across WW2 Theatres.
After more than a week of fighting, the New Zealand and Indian assault around Cassino was stopped. Gurkha detachments on the monastery approaches faced acute supply problems, while town positions remained under German fire. The Allied armies began preparing a larger spring attack that would place pressure on the Gustav Line across several sectors at once.
Continue in Cassino and Anzio: The Road to Rome →
The barrage opened along the lower-Rhine assault front and British Second Army began crossing at 21:00. The 51st (Highland) Division crossed near Rees while other formations established bridgeheads farther south. Rees itself was held by German parachute troops and required hard fighting. Elsewhere the bridgeheads developed more quickly, giving engineers the east-bank space needed to begin the crossings for armour, artillery and supply traffic.
Continue in The Rhine Crossings →
Bomber Command attacked Wesel shortly before 1 Commando Brigade crossed toward the town, while German anti-aircraft fire filled the sky above the river. Wesel was a road and rail centre immediately behind the east bank and a key objective on the southern part of Second Army's bridgehead. The commandos moved into a city already heavily damaged by bombing and fought through the ruins into 24 March. German resistance around Wesel remained strong enough to delay the clearance of the town.
Continue in The Rhine Crossings →_Division_use_a_small_assault_craft_to_cross_the_Rhine_near_Xanten,_24_MArch_1945._BU2154.jpg){kind=link}
