Mediterranean and North Africa · Italy and the Allies vs Germany
Italian armistice announced
8 September 1943
The armistice signed secretly at Cassibile on 3 September was announced by Eisenhower and then Badoglio on the evening of 8 September. The Germans immediately disarmed the Italian army, the King and government fled Rome, and the Italian fleet sailed for Malta.
The armistice is broadcast; Operation Achse begins and German forces seize Italy.
Franco Montanari (standing, left), Walter Bedell Smith (standing, right), and Giuseppe Castellano (seated), signing the armistice on behalf of Badoglio.Unknown authorUnknown author · Public domain · sourceGeneral Giuseppe Castellano (in civilian) shakes hands with Dwight D. Eisenhower after the signing of the Armistice between Italy and Allied armed forces in Cassibile on September 8, 1943. Major General Walter Bedell SmiUnknown author. · Public domain · sourceArmistice of Cassibile between Italians and Anglo-Americans (1943)Lawrence of Italia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · sourceFranco Montanari (standing, left), Walter Bedell Smith (standing, right), and Giuseppe Castellano (seated), signing the armistice on behalf of Badoglio.Unknown authorUnknown author · Public domain · source