Moro River Campaign

The Moro River Campaign was a military campaign during the Second World War fought between units of the British 8th Army and the LXXVI Panzer Corps (LXXVI Panzerkorps) of the German Tenth Army (10. Armee). Lasting from 4–26 December 1943, the campaign occurred primarily in the vicinity of the Moro River in eastern Italy. The campaign was designed as part of an offensive launched by General Harold Alexander with the intention of breaching the German Winter Line defensive system and advancing to Pescara — and eventually Rome.

Beginning on 4 December, four infantry divisions—one British, one Canadian, one Indian and one New Zealand (which included an armoured brigade)—and two armoured brigades (one British and one Canadian) of the British V and XIII Corps attacked heavily defended German positions along the Moro River, achieving several exploitable bridgeheads by 8 December. Throughout the next week, nearly continuous combat operations by both sides—designed to keep one another pinned down—created stagnated defensive positions near Orsogna and a narrow pit known as "The Gully". After being held at the Gully for 10 days, the 1st Canadian Infantry Division succeeded in outflanking German defences, and forcing a withdrawal to the Ortona–Orsogna Line. On 20 December, the line was attacked by both corps.

By 26 December, strong German defences had stalled Canadian forces in Ortona and British and New Zealand forces in Orsogna. Although both Ortona and Villa Grande were captured by the end of December, general exhaustion among the Allied forces prevented the capture of Orsogna and an advance to Pescara. When harsh winter weather set in, it became clear to the Allied generals that no further progress would be made and Alexander called off the offensive.