The Canadians in Sicily

The WRAP Guidebook and “The Canadians in Sicily” launching July 10th, 2023

Use our detail Maps guide to walk the 325 Km WRAP path and learn about the actual battles in Operation Husky and their impact on the local Sicilians in “The Canadians in Sicily”

July/August 1943

Commemorative history of Canada’s and Sicily’s Operation Husky 1943, to be published in 2023.

Canada’s involvement in the Sicilian Campaign – Operation Husky – arose from a desire by the Canadian government for the Canadian Army to gain battlefield experience. Canada’s Army had been in the UK since December 1939, and had seen no action, except for the disastrous Dieppe Raid in August 1942. Many voices in Canada urged the government to commit Canadian troops to battle, including that of former Prime Minister R.B. Bennett. … By 24 April 1943, the choice of 1st Canadian Division was confirmed to replace the 3rd British Division and planning began in earnest for an invasion in only ten weeks’ time.

The assaults on Roger and Sugar beaches of the Bark West sector went ahead as planned in the early hours of 10 July 1943. Though some delays were experienced due to rough seas and delays in organizing landings, the troops of the 1st and 2nd Brigades stormed ashore and seized beachheads from the overwhelmed defenders of an Italian coastal division. Casualties were light with 10 killed and 22 wounded among the assaulting battalions, and by evening on 10 July the Division held a 10-kilometre beachhead from Pachino to Punta Castellazzo. The long drive inland began the next day.

Chapters on each leg of the campaign, with battle descriptions from the Canadian point of view, and with a description of events from the Italian perspective, both civilian and military.

Walk with us with the Guidebook

The trilingual (IT-EN-FR) Guidebook will be available in e-book and PDF versions for free download. There will also be a moderately priced hard copy version available for purchase at Operation Husky Network locations.

Each leg of the journey is between 10 and 20 km, over mountain trails, country paths, and paved roads, for a total journey of 325 km.

 

Each leg of the journey will be illustrated by a full colour, marked route map.

 

The route map will be supplemented by detailed directions of each sub-leg. There will also be downloadable gpx files for GPS devices.

AGIRA - REGALBUTO km 19,640

Legs in the journey

  1. Landing to Pachino 
  2. Pachino to Ispica 
  3. Ispica to Modica 
  4. Modica to Ragusa 
  5. Ragusa to Giarratana 
  6. Giarantana to Vizzini 
  7. Vizzini to Grammichele 
  8. Grammichele to Caltagirone 
  9. Caltagirone to San Michele di Ganzeria 
  10. San Michele di Ganzeria to Piazza Armerina 
  11. Piazza Armerina to Valguarnera Caropepe 
  12. Valguarnera to Enna 
  13. Valguarnera to Leonforte 
  14. Leonforte to Assoro 
  15. Assoro to Nissoria 
  16. Nissoria to Agira 
  17. Agira to Regalbuto 
  18. Regalbuto to Catenanuova 
  19. Catenanuova to Centuripe 
  20. Centuripe to Adrano

Short history for each leg of the journey

There will also be a short description of the military actions for each of the legs. This can be supplemented by the much more detailed information that will be available in the commemorative history book.