SEVENTH UNITED STATES ARMY CAPTURES PALERMO

Seventh United States Army captures Palermo

In the middle of the Sicily campaign of the Second World War, Lieutenant General George S. Patton’s Seventh United States Army drove into Palermo and seized one of the island’s most important ports. The advance came after a rapid push along Sicily’s northern coast, with American armored and infantry columns racing over mountain roads and through towns battered by previous fighting. Taking Palermo gave the Allies a deep-water harbor, airfields, and road networks that dramatically improved their ability to feed, fuel, and reinforce troops on the island. It also signaled to both Sicilians and Italians on the mainland that Axis control was crumbling, adding political pressure to an already stressed regime in Rome. The capture sparked some friction with British commanders over priorities and credit, but from a military standpoint it was a major logistical victory. Palermo’s fall helped set the stage for the later crossing to mainland Italy and the long, grinding campaign up the peninsula.