Bombing of Rome in World War II
| Bombing of Rome | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Winter Line and the battle for Rome | |||||||
 Propaganda inscription on the wall of a bombed building translated as "Work of the Liberators" Rome, 1944 | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
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United Kingdom United States |
Italy Italian Social Republic Germany |
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
Arthur Harris Arthur Tedder Jimmy Doolittle Henry H. Arnold |
Renato Sandalli Albert Kesselring |
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| Casualties and losses | |||||||
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600 aircraft shot down 3,600 air crew |
40,000 civilians | ||||||
The bombing of Rome in World War II took place on several occasions in 1943 and 1944, primarily by Allied and to a smaller degree by Axis aircraft, before the city was liberated by the Allies on June 4, 1944. Pope Pius XII was initially unsuccessful in attempting to have Rome declared an open city, through negotiations with U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt via Archbishop (later Cardinal) Francis Spellman. Rome was eventually declared an open city on August 14, 1943 (a day after the last Allied bombing raid) by the defending Italian forces.
The first bombing raid occurred on July 19, 1943, when 690 aircraft of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) flew over Rome and dropped 9,125 bombs on the city. Though the raid targeted the freight yard and steel factory in the San Lorenzo district of Rome, Allied bombs also struck the district's apartment blocks, damaging the Papal Basilica and killing 1,500 people. Pius XII, who had previously requested Roosevelt not to bomb Rome due to "its value to the whole of humanity", paid a visit to the affected regions of the district; photographs of his visit later became a symbol of anti-war sentiments in Italy. The Allied bombing raids continued throughout 1943 and extended into 1944. In the United States, while the majority of the American media supported the bombing raids, many Catholic newspapers condemned them.
In the 110,000 sorties that comprised the Allied Rome air campaign, 600 aircraft were lost and 3,600 air crew members died; 60,000 tons of bombs were dropped in the 78 days before Rome was captured by the Allies on June 4, 1944.
Correspondences between Pius XII and Roosevelt
Following the first Allied bombing of Rome on May 16, 1943 (three months before the German Army occupied the city), Pius XII wrote to Roosevelt asking that Rome "be spared as far as possible further pain and devastation, and their many treasured shrines… from irreparable ruin."
On June 16, 1943, Roosevelt replied:
Attacks against Italy are limited, to the extent humanly possible, to military objectives. We have not and will not make warfare on civilians or against nonmilitary objectives. In the event it should be found necessary for Allied planes to operate over Rome, our aviators are thoroughly informed as to the location of the Vatican and have been specifically instructed to prevent bombs from falling within Vatican City.
The Bombing of Rome was controversial, and General Henry H. Arnold described Vatican City as a "hot potato" because of the importance of Catholics in the U.S. Armed Forces. British public opinion, however, was more aligned towards the bombing of the city, due to the participation of Italian planes in The Blitz over London. H.G. Wells was a particularly vocal proponent of doing so.
Notable raids
July 19, 1943
On July 19, 1943, during Operation Crosspoint, Rome was bombed again, more heavily, by 521 Allied planes, with three targets, causing thousands of civilian casualties (estimates range between 1,600 and 3,200 victims). After the raid, Pius XII, along with Msgr. Montini (the future Pope Paul VI), travelled to the Basilica of Saint Lawrence outside the Walls, which had been badly damaged, and distributed 2 million lire to the crowds. Between 11 a.m. and 12 noon, 150 Allied B-17 Flying Fortresses attacked the San Lorenzo freight yard and steel factory. In the afternoon, the second target was the "Scalo del Littorio" on the northern side of Rome. The third target was the Ciampino Airport, on south-east side of Rome.
August 13, 1943
Three weeks later, on August 13, 1943, 310 Allied bombers again bombed the city, targeting San Lorenzo and Scalo del Littorio. The surrounding urban districts were also badly hit, and 502 civilians were killed.
September 17, 1943
55 USAAF bombers attacked the Ciampino Airport.
September 18, 1943
Ciampino was attacked again, this time by 35 bombers.
October 23, 1943
73 RAF bombers attacked the Guidonia Air Base.
November 22, 1943
Ciampino was bombed by 39 RAF aircraft.
November 28, 1943
Ciampino was bombed again, by 55 RAF aircraft.
December 28, 1943
Ciampino and Guidonia were bombed by the 12th USAF.
January 13, 1944
USAF bombers attacked the Guidonia and Centocelle airfields.
January 19, 1944
147 USAF bombers attacked the Guidonia and Centocelle airfields, but the surrounding city was also hit.
January 20, 1944
197 USAF bombers attacked the Guidonia and Centocelle airfields, but the surrounding city was also hit.
March 3, 1944
206 USAF bombers attacked the Tiburtino, Littorio and Ostiense marshalling yards; these were hit but so were the surrounding urban districts, with 400 civilian deaths.
March 7, 1944
149 USAF bombers bombed the Littorio and Ostiense marshalling yards, hitting both their objectives and the city.
March 10, 1944
The 12th USAF bombed the Littorio and Tiburtino marshalling yards, but bombs fell also on the city, killing 200 civilians.
March 14, 1944
112 USAF bombers attacked the Prenestino marshalling yard; the objective was hit, but the surrounding districts also suffered damage, with 150 civilian casualties.
March 18, 1944
The 12th USAF bombed Rome, causing 100 civilian casualties. This was the last major air raid over Rome.
Bombing of Vatican City
Vatican City maintained an official policy of neutrality during the war. Both Allied and Axis bombers made some effort not to attack the Vatican when bombing Rome. However, Vatican City was bombed on at least two occasions, once by the British and once by the Germans.
- November 5, 1943
On November 5, 1943, a single plane dropped four bombs on the Vatican, destroying a mosaic studio near the Vatican railway station and breaking the windows of the high cupola of St. Peter's, and nearly destroying Vatican Radio. There were no fatalities. Damage from the raid is still visible.
- March 1, 1944
There is no obscurity about the identity of the British plane that dropped bombs on the edge of Vatican City on 1 March 1944 as this was explicitly acknowledged, at least in private, by the British Air Ministry as an accidental bombing when one of its aircraft on a bombing raid over Rome dropped its bombs too close to the Vatican wall.