Operation Herring Memorial
Details:
Just east the hamlet of Dragoncello, just off the roadway.
The memorial includes an altar “Ara” covered by a metal arch surrounded by brick walls which include inscribed plaques remembering the Italian units and dead of the operation. Known in Italian as: “l'ara dei paracadutisti d'Italia”, “the altar to the Italian Paratroopers”.
The local community and the Italian National Military Parachutists (ANPdI) Association plans to add a plaque to the American involvement in the Operation on the 76th Anniversary of the operation on April 20, 2021.
Operation Herring (Arringa in Italian) also know as Operation Herring-1, was a Combined British Commonwealth, Italian Army, Italian Partisan and US Airborne Operation conducted in April 1945. The operation consisted of several airborne drops with the mission to disrupt retreating Germans between the Apennine mountains and the Po River and to secure bridges across the Po. This was the last Airborne Operation in Europe in WW2.
On April 20, 1945, Paratroopers from the Nembo Group (Part of the Folgore Division) along with British of “F” Recce Squadron took of from Rosignano (Livorno) in US C-47 Transport Aircraft of the US 64th Troop Carrier Group (51st Carrier Wing, 12th US Air Force) to drop in areas between the enemy and the Po River. The Nembo Group dropped between Poggio Rusco and Sermide encountering heavy flak, which resulted in the forces being widely dispersed. Despite these difficulties, the Italian Paratroopers linked up with Italian Partisans and created great difficulties for the enemy disrupting operations until the main land forces of the 8thBritish and US 5th Armies arrived, 72 hours later, 36 hours later than planned.
Plaques on the wall of the memorial remember each of the fallen Italian hero paratroopers.
Special thanks to the The Po River WWII Museum (Museo della Seconda Guerra Mondiale del Fiume Po) in Felonica (Mantova) for assistance with this memorial and to the ANPdI for creating the plaque commemorating American involvement in this Combined Allied operation.
Monument Text:
Several Plaques written in Italian line the walls near the altar.
The inscription in Italian on the Altar reads:
Ai Paracadutisti Caduti per la Patria
Which translates to:
To the Paratroopers fallen for their Country
The plaques on the wall remember the Italian units, and the missing and dead of the operation.
The local community plans to add a Plaque remembering the 64th Troop Carrier Group on the 76th Anniversary of the Operation.
The new plaque will read in Italian:
IN MEMORIA DEGLI EQUIPAGGI AMERICANI
DEGLI AEREI DA TRASPORTO DOUGLAS C-47
DEL 64TH TROOP CARRIER GROUP
Translation in English:
IN MEMORY OF THE AMERICAN CREWS OF
THE DOUGLAS C-47 TRANSPORT AIRCRAFT
OF THE 64TH CARRIER GROUP
Commemorates:
Units:
12th Air Force
51th Troop Carrier Wing
64th Troop Carrier Group
8th British Army
Italian Army
Italian Partisans
Office of Strategic Services (OSS)
OSS- Italian Operational Group
SAS (British)
Wars:
WWII
Battles:
Italian Campaign
Operation Craftsman
Po Valley
Other images :