Accidental Bombing of Venafro March 1944
Details:
The marker is a small white marble plaque (18” tall) with black etching standing next to a large bomb, both sitting on a concrete slab in the memorial park to the right of town World War 1 and 2 monument.
Plaque
The marker is a small white piece of marble with black inscription sitting next to a WW2 era aerial bomb.
The plaque commemorates the tragic accidental bombing of Venafro by friendly forces during the massive air bombing campaign against the city of Cassino on March 15, 1944. Allied Forces, Italian civilians, and US military were killed and wounded in this bombing. Per the US Army Official History of the Mediterranean Theater of Operations “Salerno to Cassino” notes: “Ten air miles away [from Cassino], several planes bombed Venafro by mistake, killing 17 soldiers and 40 civilians, and wounding 79 soldiers and 100 civilians. The bombing errors were an "appalling" tragedy that General Clark attributed to "poor training and inadequate briefing of crews." Other sources claim much higher figures for dead and wounded.
Monument Text:
The text is written in Italian:
15 MARZO 1944
VENAFRO, PER UN TRAGICO
ERRORE. LE BOMBE ALLEATE
CADDERO SULLA CITTA
15 MARZO 2010
LA CITTA POSE A MEMORIA
DI TUTTI LE VITTIME
CIVILI E MILITARI
SYMBOL OF THE CITY OF VENAFRO - SYMBOL OF THE WINTER LINE MUSEUM (located at the bottom of the plaque)
Translation into English:
15 MARCH 1944
VENAFRO, AS A RESULT OF A TRAGIC
ERROR, ALLIED BOMBS
FALL UPON THE CITY
15 MARCH 2010
THE CITY REMEMBERS
OF ALL THE VICTIMS
CIVILIAN AND MILITARY
