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On June 3,
Hitler allowed Field Marshal Albert Kesselring to retreat with his
forces from Rome. On June 4, American forces entered the city, and
occupied it with no need to destroy it in bombardments. American
General Mark Clark described the scene: "There were gay crowds
in the streets, many of them waving flags, as our infantry marched
through the capital. Flowers were stuck in the muzzles of the
soldiers’ rifles and of guns on the tanks. Many Romans seemed to
be on the verge of hysteria in their enthusiasm for the American
troops."
The fall of
Rome heralded the beginning of the end of the war in Europe. Two
days after Rome was occupied, Eisenhower’s forces landed at
Normandy and breached Hitler’s stronghold through the front door.
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