Photo By Erin Thompson | 45th Infantry enroute to Sicily, June 1943.... read more read more
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by Erin E. Thompson, USAICoE Staff Historian
JULY 1943
On 29 July 1943, 2d Lt. Peter F. Carpentieri and Sgt. Clark B. Keeler were tasked by the Counter Intelligence Corps (CIC) Detachment, 45th Infantry Division, II Corps, to establish an informant system within the 3d Infantry Division for the coming invasion of mainland Italy.
Operation HUSKY, the Allied invasion of Sicily, an island off the coast of Italy, occurred in early July 1943. The operation consisted of approximately 467,000 military personnel and lasted from the evening of 9 July to 17 August. [See This Week in MI History #97 10 July 1943] During this time, CIC agents performed guard and patrol duties, as well as peacekeeping duties when civil uprisings and looting overtook several cities. [See This Week in MI History #49 17 July 1943] With CIC agents frequently working in non-intelligence roles, intelligence efforts on the island became significantly impaired.
The 45th Infantry was encamped at Santo Stefano, a small village in Sicily on the northernmost edge of the Allied invasion. On 29 July 1943, the 3d Infantry Division, VI Corps, commanded by Maj. Gen. Lucian Truscott, Jr., relieved the 45th Infantry from their position so they could be rested and refitted for an advance on Italy once Sicily was secured. As the 45th Infantry moved out, CIC agents Lieutenant Carpentieri and Sergeant Keeler of the 45th’s CIC Detachment, commanded by 1st Lt. Rupert W. Guenther, were transferred to the 3d Infantry Division’s G-2, where they were instructed to establish an informant network across Sicily. The CIC noted that Carpentieri was especially suited for this task, as he showed an aptitude for linguistics.
The Allies required information on all aspects of the region: enemy strength, troop position and morale, terrain features, road conditions, sociopolitical relations with local populations, and a slew of tactical information to help secure Sicily and prepare for the mainland invasion. The agents found priests and members of local police forces, the Carabinieri, often provided the best intelligence on goings on around Santo Stefano. Police proved especially helpful in infiltrating enemy military camps and Fascist government buildings. The CIC made special efforts to recruit former enemy soldiers, as they were able to better observe and report on enemy locations and terrain features than untrained civilians. The inaccuracies in noncombatant reports led Lieutenant Carpentieri to recommend the CIC give informants access to aerial imagery of areas of interest.
Over the course of their time in Sicily, Carpentieri and Keeler formed a vast web of civilian agents who traversed enemy territory to gain valuable intelligence for the Allies. The agents further interrogated refugees crossing into Allied territory to obtain tactical information, which served the mission of both the 3d Division and II Corps. This included reports on roadblocks, mine fields, artillery positions, and enemy strength, movement, and morale.
General Omar Bradley’s II Corps and the 3d Infantry Division left Santo Stefano at the end of July and moved towards the city of Messina. From there, they would depart from the frontlines in preparation to accompany the U.S. Fifth Army during the invasion of Italy in September 1943.
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| Date Taken: | 07.21.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 07.21.2023 15:25 |
| Story ID: | 449771 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 199 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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