Invading Hitlers Europe
Invading Hitlers Europe
From Salerno to the Capture of Gring The Memoir of a US Intelligence Officer
Roswell K. Doughty
Introduced and Edited by Reiner Decher
First published in Great Britain in 2020 by
Frontline Books
An imprint of
Pen & Sword Books Ltd
Yorkshire Philadelphia
Copyright Roswell K. Doughty 2020
ISBN 978 1 52677 322 7
ePUB ISBN 978 1 52677 323 4
Mobi ISBN 978 1 52677 324 1
The right of Roswell K. Doughty to be identified as Author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
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Acknowledgements
A word of thanks is due to many people; Ros Doughtys daughter Ann Doughty Bunting, her husband Charles, and to his grand-daughter Laura Landsiedel Ford, who all made material available for this memoir, written almost completely in the authors own words. His diary from which these words evolved has not been found, but luckily with the help of his wife El and daughter Martha, its content has been saved in the form of this memoir. Special thanks is hereby given for the familys trust in my delving so intimately into its history. A special thanks for the map-making skills of Andreas Illert.
and a dedication
Most books begin with a dedication. R.K. Doughty did not leave one for this memoir, although his words are intimately reflective. An event as tumultuous as war surely leads to the full range of human emotions and interactions. As you read this, you will see that a lot of feelings, human feelings, are expressed. Perhaps we can dedicate this writing, these stories, to the good in people and whatever good can come out of war.
Reiner Decher, with my diligent proof reader
and life partner, Mary
September 2020
Maps, Photographs, and References
M aps are provided to orient the reader. The artist is Andreas Illert who noted points in the journey of the 36th Division from the text.
Photos are attributed to the source in the captions. Where such attribution is not provided, the images are from a scrapbook kept by the author with the identity of the photographer unknown.
The reader might benefit from consulting a book produced by the US Government Printing Office: Riviera to the Rhine by J.J. Clarke and R.R. Smith, Center for Military History, Washington DC, 1993.
A more general review of the history of the 141st Regiment and 36th Division, including shorter stories that are rewritten (by the author) versions of this memoir, is available at: http://www.texasmilitaryforcesmuseum. org/36division/archives/141/ps3.htm.
Another excellent book covering this part of the Second World War is The Day of Battle: the War in Italy and Sicily, 19431944 by Rick Atkinson (Henry Holt, 2007). It describes the larger movements of the 36th Division and its regiments with excellent pictures and maps. This (second) volume is part of a trilogy about the war.
Key Officers
US Officers
Omar Bradley (18931981)
Mark W. Clark (18961984)
John E. Dahlquist (18961975)
Roswell K. Doughty (19092001)
Dwight D. Eisenhower (18901961)
Otto F. Lange (b. 1891)
Alexander Patch (18891945)
Robert I. Stack
Fred L. Walker (18871969)
William H. Wilbur (18881979)
German Officers
Walther von Brauchitsch (18811948)
Hermann Gring (18931946)
Erwin Rommel (18911944)
Gerd von Rundstedt (18751953)
Karl Wolff (19001984)
Abbreviations
AA | Anti-Aircraft see Ack-Ack in the Glossary |
AG | Adjutant General (G-1: administration) |
BU | Boston University |
CCB | Combat Command B |
CIC | Combat Information Center, also Criminal Investigation Command |
CG | Commanding general |
CO | Commanding Officer |
CP | Command Post |
DSC | Distinguished Service Cross |
FFI | Forces Franaise de lIntrieur (French Interior Force) |
FTP | Francs-Tireurs et Partisans (French shooters and partisans) |
GI | General Issue: American soldier |
I&R | or I and R, Intell and Recon (Intelligence and Reconnaissance) |
LCT | Landing Craft, Tank |
LCVP | Landing Craft Vehicle and Personnel |
LST | Landing Ship, Tank |
M., Mme. | In French: Monsieur and Madame |
MLR | Main Line of Resistance |
MP | Military Police |
OD | Officer of the Day |
OP | Observation Post |
Pfc | Private first class (military rank) |
PR | Public Relations or Personal Reconnaissance |
PW | Prisoner of War |
PX | Post Exchange |
R and R | Rest and Relaxation |
ROTC | Reserve Officer Training Corps |
SOP | Standard Operating Procedure |
SP | (gun) Self Propelled (gun) |
TAC | Tactical Air Command |
TD | Tank destroyer |
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