Bombing of Cagliari in World War II

Last updated
Bombing of Cagliari
Part of World War II
Via Farina Cagliari.jpg
A bomb-damaged street in Cagliari
DateJune 1940-July 1943
Location
Belligerents
Flag of the United States (1912-1959).svg  United States
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
Flag of Italy (1861-1946) crowned.svg  Kingdom of Italy

The bombing of Cagliari was a series of attacks by the United States Army Air Force and the Royal Air Force on the Italian city of Cagliari, the regional capital of Sardinia, during World War II. The raids, aimed at destroying the port facilities and airfields of Cagliari, also resulted in the destruction of most of the city.

Contents

History

Background

Cagliari, the main port and largest city in Sardinia, was a target of strategic importance as it was the location of some of the most important Axis air bases in the island (Elmas and Decimomannu), which enabled the Regia Aeronautica and the Luftwaffe to operate in the Western Mediterranean, as well as a submarine base.

1940-1942

In the first two years of war, Cagliari was repeatedly attacked by Fleet Air Arm aircraft, usually launched by British Force H aircraft carriers that sailed from Gibraltar for operations in the western Mediterranean. Such attacks, usually targeting either the port or the Elmas air base, took place on 16, 18 and 24 June 1940, 3 August 1940, 2 September 1940, 10 November 1940, 27 and 30 September 1941, 17 October 1941, 3 and 8 June 1942, 12 August 1942, 10 November 1942, 22 January 1943 and 2 February 1943. These attacks, carried out with small numbers of aircraft (never more than a dozen), caused little damage and few casualties. [1]

1943

The situation changed in early 1943, when Cagliari came within range of the USAAF bombers operating from the newly conquered airfields in Algeria and later Tunisia. In order to interdict Axis air operations against Allied-controlled ports in French North Africa, the Sardinian airfields became a prime target for the Allied air forces; at the same time, the escalation of air raids on Sardinia was part of the Allied effort to mislead the Axis high commands into thinking that this island, rather than Sicily, would be the next target for Allied invasion.

On 7 February 1943, 51 Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and Martin B-26 Marauder bombers dropped 81 tons of bombs on the Elmas airfield, destroying ten Axis aircraft on the ground and killing 31 servicemen. Some bombs fell on the suburbs of Cagliari, killing two civilians; four bombers were shot down by anti-aircraft fire and by Italian and German fighter planes, four of which (two Italian and two German) were downed in turn. In the following night, sixteen Vickers Wellington of the RAF also attacked the airfields. [2] [3] [4]

On 17 February, 43 B-17s attacked the Elmas airfield with fragmentation bombs, but heavy cloud cover caused most of the bombs to miss the target and hit the city; while damage to buildings was relatively light, the fragmentation bombs killed some 200 civilians, in addition to 44 soldiers. [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10]

On 26 February, nineteen B-17 bombers dropped fifty tons of bombs over the port and the Elmas air base; many of the bombs also fell on the city, causing severe damage and casualties in the Bonaria, Castello, Stampace and Marina districts. At least 73 civilians were killed, but some estimates place the death toll at over 200. [11] [12] [13] [14]

Two days later, 47 B-17s dropped 123 tons of bombs on the harbour and the Elmas airfield, hitting the targets (one steamer was sunk and another damaged in the port), the railway station, and part of the city, especially the Stampace district. According to data of the Prefecture of Cagliari, the two raids on 26 and 28 January caused 600 deaths: 411 or 416 civilians and 189 servicemen. After these raids, damage was widespread in the city: on 4 March the prefect of Cagliari, Leone Leone, wrote in his report that "…there is not a single street left without destroyed homes, and in many parts destruction is complete…"; most of the population left the city, and those who remained spent most of their time in air raid shelters. State offices were also relocated to Sassari, Oristano and other towns. [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20]

On 31 March 1943, 27 B-17s of the 12th USAAF attacked the harbour, dropping 65 tons of bombs. The target was hit, sinking two steamers at their moorings, but many bombs also fell on the city, killing sixty civilians and wounding 52. Three bombers were shot down and four damaged by Italian fighter planes, three of which were shot down in return. [21] [22] [23] [24]

On 14 April, the Elmas airfield was bombed by 23 aircraft of the 12th USAAF. On 13 May, Cagliari suffered the heaviest raid of the war: 197 B-17 bombers, escorted by 186 fighters, dropped 404 tons of bombs over the city. Main objectives were the port and the marshalling yard, but according to some sources part of the bombers were also specifically tasked with attacking the city itself, in order to weaken the morale of the population. Indeed, this raid caused widespread damage to the entire city. At the same time, thousands of propaganda leaflets were dropped, denouncing the alliance between Italy and Germany and urging the population to pressure the government to make peace with the Allies. The submarine Mocenigo and a merchant ship were sunk in the harbour. The Italian and German air forces claimed seven B-17s shot down, and lost six fighters in return. On the following night, Vickers Wellington bombers of the Northwest African Strategic Air Force dropped a further fifty tons of bombs. The 13 May raid was the most destructive attack suffered by Cagliari, but civilian casualties were relatively low (estimates vary between thirty and sixty) as most of the population had already left the city. [25] [26] [27] [28] [29]

After this raid, Cagliari had become a ruined, deserted city; by June 1943, less than 10,000 of Cagliari's pre-war population of 100,000 were still living in the city. [30] On 16 May 1943 capitano di fregata Francesco Murzi, commander of the 7th Submarine Group, reported that "…the city is almost completely destroyed. Only a few homes in the suburbs are still standing (…) All public services are interrupted. The supply of electricity will become possible in fifteen days, but only in certain areas of military importance. The problem of water supply is very serious, as (…) all the main pipes have been destroyed (…) The city is almost completely deserted". [31] Further raids were carried out on 31 June (by twenty RAF bombers), 2 July (by twenty British bombers), 3 July (by the RAF), 4 July (by B-17 bombers of the USAAF) and 20 July (by the RAF), usually targeting the port and the marshalling yard. These attacks, however, were not as heavy as the previous ones, as by this time the Allied air forces in the Mediterranean were focused on the invasion of Sicily. [32]

Aftermath

By the late summer of 1943, only one-fifth of the city had not been damaged; out of 4,500 buildings, 720 had been completely destroyed, 540 badly damaged, and 2,295 moderately or lightly damaged. Of the 945 buildings that did not suffer substantial bomb damage, 855 had lost doors and windows to bomb blast. [33] According to the 1948 appendix of the Treccani Encyclopaedia, 75% of buildings were either destroyed or rendered uninhabitable. [34] One thousand civilians had been killed by the air raids (in addition to at least 300 military personnel) and over 40,000 had been left homeless. [35] [36]

About 70% of the city's cultural heritage suffered damage; among the damaged landmarks were the Basilica of San Saturnino (Cagliari's most ancient church), several other churches, the municipal palace, the municipal theatre Bastion of Saint Remy. [37]

On 17 September 1943, nine days after the Armistice of Cassibile, Allied troops landed in Cagliari. The Armistice marked the end of the air raids over Sardinia, and over the course of 1944 most of the inhabitants returned to the city; Cagliari was gradually rebuilt during the following years.[ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Corkscrew</span> Military operation

Operation Corkscrew was the code name for the Allied invasion of the Italian island of Pantelleria on 11 June 1943, prior to the Allied invasion of Sicily, during the Second World War. There had been an early plan to occupy the island in late 1940 but it was cancelled when the Luftwaffe arrived in the Mediterranean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Strategic bombing during World War II</span> Airborne warfare throughout World War II

World War II (1939–1945) involved sustained strategic bombing of railways, harbours, cities, workers' and civilian housing, and industrial districts in enemy territory. Strategic bombing as a military strategy is distinct both from close air support of ground forces and from tactical air power. During World War II, many military strategists of air power believed that air forces could win major victories by attacking industrial and political infrastructure, rather than purely military targets. Strategic bombing often involved bombing areas inhabited by civilians, and some campaigns were deliberately designed to target civilian populations in order to terrorize them and disrupt their usual activities. International law at the outset of World War II did not specifically forbid the aerial bombardment of cities – despite the prior occurrence of such bombing during World War I (1914–1918), the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939), and the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Cologne in World War II</span> Aerial bombing of Cologne, Germany during World War II

The German city of Cologne was bombed in 262 separate air raids by the Allies during World War II, all by the Royal Air Force (RAF). A total of 34,711 long tons of bombs were dropped on the city by the RAF. 20,000 civilians died during the war in Cologne due to aerial bombardments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Prague</span> Aerial attacks by the Allies on German-occupied Prague during WWII

Prague, the capital and largest city of the German-occupied Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, was bombed several times by the Allies during World War II. The first Allied aircraft to fly over Prague was a single bomber of the French Air Force in April 1940, but it dropped propaganda leaflets, not bombs. The first bombing mission was flown by the Royal Air Force (RAF) in October 1941. Prague was then bombed three times by the United States Army Air Forces between the fall of 1944 and spring of 1945. During the Prague uprising of 5–9 May 1945, the Luftwaffe made use of bombers against the rebels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Naples in World War II</span> The bombardment by the Allied Powers from 1940-1944

During World War II the Italian city of Naples suffered approximately 200 air raids by the Allies from 1940 to 1944; only Milan was attacked more frequently. Almost all of the attacks — a total of 181 — were launched in the first nine months of 1943 before the Four days of Naples and the Allied occupation of the city at the beginning of October. Estimates of civilian casualties vary between 20,000 and 25,000 killed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Yawata (June 1944)</span> Air raid on Japan during World War II

The Bombing of Yawata on the night of 15–16 June 1944 marked the beginning of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) strategic bombing campaign against the Japanese home islands during World War II and was the first such raid to employ strategic bombers. The raid was undertaken by 75 Boeing B-29 Superfortress heavy bombers staging from bases in China. Only 47 of these aircraft dropped bombs near the raid's primary target, the Imperial Iron and Steel Works at Yawata in northern Kyūshū, and little damage was caused. Five B-29s were lost in accidents during the operation and two were destroyed by Japanese aircraft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Milan in World War II</span>

As the main economic and industrial center in Italy, and the country's second largest city, Milan was subjected to heavy bombing during World War II, being the most bombed city in Northern Italy and one of the most bombed cities in the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Ancona in World War II</span>

The bombing of Ancona was a series of attacks by the United States Air Force on the city of Ancona in the Marche, Italy during World War II. The raids caused heavy civilian casualties and destroyed or damaged nearly 70 % of the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Pisa in World War II</span>

The bombing of Pisa took place on 31 August 1943, during World War II. Aimed at disabling the city's marshalling yard, it also resulted in heavy damage to the city itself and civilian casualties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Vicenza in World War II</span> Historical event

The bombing of Vicenza was a series of attacks by the United States Army Air Force and the Royal Air Force on the Italian city of Vicenza, Veneto, during World War II. The purpose of these raids was to disable the city's marshalling yard and airport, but the bombing also caused considerable collateral damage to the city itself.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Ferrara in World War II</span>

The bombing of Ferrara was a series of attacks by the United States Army Air Force and the Royal Air Force on the Italian city of Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna, during the final two years of World War II. The purpose of these raids was to disable the city's marshalling yard, but they also resulted in considerable collateral damage to the city itself, and over a thousand deaths among the population.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Turin in World War II</span>

Owing to its importance as an industrial center, home to Fiat and several other industries engaged in war production, Turin, the regional capital of Piedmont, suffered over a hundred raids by the Allied air forces during World War II; the Piedmontese capital was thus among the most bombed cities in Northern Italy, suffering damage to about 40% of its housing stock, and over 2,000 victims among its population.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Palermo in World War II</span>

During World War II the Italian city of Palermo, the regional capital and largest city of Sicily, was heavily bombed by both the Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Force.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Bologna in World War II</span>

During World War II the Italian city of Bologna, the regional capital and largest city of Emilia-Romagna, suffered nearly a hundred air raids by the Royal Air Force and the USAAF, mostly aimed at disabling its strategically important marshalling yards, used for the movements of German troops and supplies between Northeastern Italy and central Italy. These raids destroyed or damaged almost half of the city, and caused nearly 2,500 victims among its population.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Livorno in World War II</span>

During World War II, Tuscany, the Italian port city of Livorno was repeatedly bombed by the Allied air forces, suffering about a hundred raids altogether, which resulted in it being among the most war-damaged cities in Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Genoa in World War II</span>

Owing to the importance of its port and industries, the Italian port city of Genoa, the regional capital and largest city of Liguria, was heavily bombarded by both Allied air and naval forces during Second World War, suffering heavy damage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Reggio Calabria in World War II</span>

The bombing of Reggio Calabria was a series of attacks by the United States Army Air Force and the Royal Air Force on the Italian city of Reggio Calabria during World War II. All together, Reggio Calabria suffered 24 air raids, aimed at disabling its port facilities, airfield and marshalling yards, leaving most of the city destroyed or damaged.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Padua in World War II</span>

The bombing of Padua was a series of attacks by the United States Army Air Force and the Royal Air Force on the Italian city of Padua, Veneto, during World War II. These raids were aimed at disabling Padua's marshalling yard, but also resulted in heavy damage to the city and civilian casualties.

The bombing of Grosseto took place on 26 April 1943, day of Easter Monday, during World War II. Aimed at disabling the city's air base, it resulted instead in heavy damage to the city itself and at least 134 civilian casualties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bombing of Gorla</span>

The bombing of Gorla, also known as the Gorla massacre, was an aerial bombing attack on Gorla, a quartiere of Milan, Italy, conducted by the United States Army Air Forces in October 1944. The bombing was precipitated when a navigational error placed an American bomber force over Gorla instead of its intended target.

References

  1. Marco Gioannini, Giulio Massobrio, Bombardate l’Italia. Storia della guerra di distruzione aerea 1940-1945, appendixes for 1940, 1941 and 1942.
  2. Cagliari e le bombe, 1940-1943
  3. Le incursioni aeree del 1943 sulla Sardegna
  4. Bombardate l’Italia: 1943
  5. La città scomparsa. Lo sfollamento di Cagliari nel 1943
  6. Cagliari e le bombe, 1940-1943
  7. Le ferite lasciate dalle bombe
  8. Il cinquantenario del bombardamento su Cagliari
  9. Villacidro: un po’ di storia
  10. Bombardate l’Italia: 1943
  11. Cagliari e le bombe, 1940-1943
  12. Il cinquantenario del bombardamento su Cagliari
  13. Le incursioni aeree del 1943 sulla Sardegna
  14. Bombardate l’Italia: 1943
  15. La città scomparsa. Lo sfollamento di Cagliari nel 1943
  16. Cagliari e le bombe, 1940-1943
  17. Le ferite lasciate dalle bombe
  18. Il cinquantenario del bombardamento su Cagliari
  19. Le incursioni aeree del 1943 sulla Sardegna
  20. Bombardate l’Italia: 1943
  21. Cagliari e le bombe, 1940-1943
  22. Il cinquantenario del bombardamento su Cagliari
  23. Le incursioni aeree del 1943 sulla Sardegna
  24. Bombardate l’Italia: 1943
  25. Comune di Cagliari
  26. Cagliari e le bombe, 1940-1943
  27. Le incursioni aeree del 1943 sulla Sardegna
  28. Villacidro: un po’ di storia
  29. Bombardate l’Italia: 1943
  30. Cantine, Caverne, Bunkers: La protezione antiaerea a Cagliari durante la seconda guerra mondiale
  31. "Un rapporto inedito sul bombardamento del 13 maggio 1943". Archived from the original on 2016-05-20. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  32. Bombardate l’Italia: 1943
  33. Comune di Cagliari
  34. Enciclopedia Treccani
  35. Comune di Cagliari
  36. Enciclopedia Treccani
  37. Enciclopedia Treccani