The Battle of Ortona and the Moro River: A Canadian Journey of Courage, Sacrifice, and Memory
In December 1943, the Canadian 1st Infantry Division faced one of the most grueling campaigns of the Second World War — the assault on Ortona and the Moro River valley, part of the larger effort to break through the German Gustav Line. From Sant’Apollinare to San Leonardo, Villa Rogatti, and into Ortona, every hill, vineyard, and street became a battleground. At San Leonardo, Canadian troops crossed the Moro River under fire, fighting through mud, mines, and resistance in a campaign that tested their resolve. They advanced through Cider Crossing, endured the deadly terrain of The Gully, and captured Casa Berardi, where Captain Paul Triquet earned the Victoria Cross.
The battle reached its climax in the ancient streets of Ortona — where brutal house-to-house fighting raged from December 20 to 28. At the center stood Sterlin Castle (Sterlin House), a stronghold fiercely defended by German paratroopers, and eventually taken in bitter close-quarters combat. But the story of Ortona was not only written on the front lines. Just south, in San Vito Chietino, Canadian medical units set up a field dressing station and forward hospital. It was here that Dr. Krakauer, a Canadian military physician, treated wounded soldiers evacuated from the front. Fifteen years ago, I had the profound honor of guiding Dr. Krakauer’s family across these very sites — walking with them through Ortona, San Vito, and the Moro Valley as they retraced his wartime journey. Their memories and the stories they shared brought a deeply human perspective to the history I tell today.
This tour is more than a battlefield experience. It is a personal and national journey through places where Canadian courage was tested and remembered — from San Donato to Sterlin House, from the crossing at San Leonardo to the quiet compassion of the San Vito hospital. It is a tribute to both those who fought and those who saved lives, told with historical precision and human connection.