Editing Appian Way (section)

=== World War II,  Battle of Anzio ===
{{Main article|Battle of Anzio}}
In 1943, during [[World War II]], the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]] fell into the same trap Pyrrhus had retreated to avoid, in the [[Pontine Marshes|Pomptine fields]], the successor to the [[Pontine Marshes]]. The marsh remained, despite many efforts to drain it, until engineers working for [[Benito Mussolini]] finally succeeded (even so, the fields were infested with [[malaria]]l [[Mosquito|mosquitos]] until the advent of [[DDT]] in the 1950s).

Hoping to break a stalemate at [[Monte Cassino]], the Allies landed on the coast of Italy at the [[Anzio]]-[[Nettuno]] area – ancient [[Antium]] – which was midway between [[Ostia Antica|Ostia]] and [[Terracina]]. They found that the place was undefended. They intended to move along the line of the Via Appia to take Rome, outflanking Monte Cassino, but they did not do so quickly enough. The Germans occupied Mounts Laziali and Lepini along the track of the old Via Latina, from which they rained down shells on Anzio. Even though the Allies expanded into all the Pomptine region, they gained no ground. The Germans counterattacked down the via Appia from the Alban hills in a front four miles wide, but could not retake Anzio. The battle lasted for four months, one side being supplied by sea, the other by land through Rome. In May 1944, the Allies broke out of Anzio and took [[Rome]]. The German forces escaped to the north of [[Florence]].