World War II

This program will be rescheduled.

The Forgotten Mediterranean Front of World War II
When Americans think of World War II, they jump straight to D-Day and the battles in France. But the U.S. Army’s first combat against the European Axis came in an unexpected place—and against an unexpected foe. In November 1942, American troops landed in North Africa not to fight the Germans, but the French. From those uneasy beginnings, General Dwight Eisenhower—then an untested commander with no combat experience—would grow into the Supreme Commander of Allied Forces in Europe.

After North Africa came Sicily, captured in just six weeks, and then the long, grinding slog up the Italian peninsula. Why land at the bottom of Italy’s boot? Why commit to a campaign of mud, mules, and mountains that would test Allied armies to their limits? The fighting in Italy was some of the most brutal of the war, with the United States fighting shoulder to shoulder with Britain, Poland, Brazil, and other nations in a truly multinational effort.

Along the way, unforgettable figures emerge: Audie Murphy, the most decorated U.S. soldier of the war; Colonel Felix Sparks, who later led the liberation of Dachau; and Pittsburgh’s own Sgt. Guy Prestia, who fought with Sparks in the famed 45th Infantry Division. Chronicling the experience was Bill Mauldin, a 21-year-old infantryman whose cartoons of weary GIs, “Willie and Joe,” captured the mud-soaked misery and dark humor of the frontline soldier. Mauldin’s work became a lifeline for the troops and earned him a Pulitzer Prize.

This lecture presented by Glenn Flickinger of the Veterans Breakfast Club will take you through the Mediterranean theater of World War II—North Africa, Sicily, and Italy—where the Allies forged the hard lessons and leadership that made victory in Europe possible.