85^th Infantry Division

The 85th Infantry Division entered combat in Italy in April 1944, moving into line north of the Garigliano River facing the Gustav Line. It attacked on May 11, its regiments clearing Monte Scauri, taking Formia, and opening Highway 7 through Terracina — the 337th Infantry Regiment securing an evacuated Terracina on May 24 and opening the road to the Anzio beachhead. Pursuing retreating German forces, the division cleared Monte Artemisio, fought the Battle for Monte Ceraso, and passed through Rome on June 5 before being relieved.

Campaign map image

World War II Campaign Map of the 85th Infantry Division. Map courtesy of HistoryShots.

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The division's most significant single action came in September 1944 during the assault on the Gothic Line. The 338th Infantry Regiment fought the Battle for Monte Altuzzo on September 14-17 — a sustained assault against one of the key heights guarding Il Giogo Pass — and its capture alongside the fall of adjacent peaks broke through the main Gothic Line position. The pursuit that followed carried the division across the Santerno River and through Firenzuola, but autumn rains and determined resistance slowed the advance into another prolonged ridge and mountain struggle through October and into November.

When the final spring offensive opened in April 1945, the division drove through the Po Valley, reached Bologna on April 20, and crossed the Po River at Quingentole on April 23-24 without opposition before crossing the Adige near Verona on April 26. The German surrender in Italy on May 2 ended the campaign, completing the Custer Division's service from the Gustav Line to the Po Valley and beyond.