In the Nick of Time MTO (id:#58180)

Lone Canuck Publishing (The Canadians In Italy 1: The Red Patch Devils in Sunny Sicily ID: CDN4)   [next]   [previous]

Leonforte, Sicily 1943-07-22 (2 others)

Overview:

Unlike Assoro, there was no unguarded backdoor, Leonforte had to be attacked frontally. And the town was held in strength by tanks and troops from the 104th Panzer Grenadier Regiment. A savage street battle ensued and all four Edmonton rifle companies were soon involved. With neither artillery support nor anti-tank guns, the Eddies were faced with the choice of remaining in Leonforte and being wiped out, or withdrawing to safety. The battalion commander Jim Jefferson made up his mind quickly ordering his embattled companies to pull out of Leonforte under small arms covering fire provided by the Seaforth Highlanders. At Second Brigade HQ, a despondent Brigadier-General Chris Vokes received a ten-year-old Italian boy named Antonio Guiseppe, who dodging bullets, shells and German patrols made his way to the Canadian lines to pass a message from Jefferson. Vokes acted decisively, organizing a flying column of troops from the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, four Shermans from the Three Rivers Regiment and four 6-pounders from the 90th AT-Battery and led by a PPCLI Company commander, Captain Rowan Coleman.....

Defender: German (Elements of the 104th Panzer Grenadier Regiment)  

Errata (source)