Allied invasion of Sicily Allied invasion of Sicily The Allied invasion of Sicily, codenamed Operation Husky, was a major campaign of World War II, in which the Allies took the island of Sicily from the Axis powers ( the Kingdom of Italy and Nazi Germany). It began with a large amphibious and airborne operation, followed by a six-week land campaign, and initiated the Italian Campaign. "Husky" began on the night of 9–10 July 1943, and ended on 17 August. Strategically, "Husky" achieved the goals set out for it by Allied planners; the Allies drove Axis air, land and naval forces from the island and
Douglas MacArthur in World War II MacArthur created two new commands, AFMIDPAC under Lieutenant General Robert C. Richardson, Jr., and AFWESPAC under Lieutenant General Wilhelm D. Styer, which absorbed USASOS and USAFFE. This reorganization, which took some months to actually accomplish, was part of preparations for Operation Downfall, the invasion of Japan. The first phase, the invasion of Kyushu, known as Operation Olympic, was scheduled to commence on November 1, 1945. The invasion was pre-empted by the surrender of Japan in August 1945. On September 2, MacArthur accepted the formal Japanese surrender aboard , thus ending hostilities in World War II. In recognition of his role