As B-17s, B-25s, and B-26s soared over the sacred site on February 15, 1944, bombs rained down on much of the structure, reducing it to rubble. Even though German forces were camped on the mountain below, none were harmed during the bombardment. The two monks also survived unscathed, but an estimated 115 refugees taking shelter perished during the attack. In David Hapgood and David Richardson’s book on Monte Cassino, they illustrate the scene as the monks emerged from their underground shelter, “The cloisters and their colonnades were all smashed. Where monumental stairs had led up to the basilica, they saw only a jumble of fallen rocks. . . The statue of Saint Benedict still stood in the cloister, but it had been decapitated.”

The bombing decision came only months after Eisenhower’s Protection of Cultural Property Order, signed in December 1943. Eisenhower details in the order, “If we have to choose between destroying a famous building and sacrificing our own men, then our men’s lives count infinitely more and the buildings must go. But the choice is not always so clear-cut as that. . . Nothing can stand against the argument of military necessity. That is an accepted principle. But the phrase ‘military necessity’ is sometimes used where it would be more truthful to speak of military convenience or even personal convenience. I do not want it to cloak slackness or indifference.”

Eisenhower's Protection of Cultural Monuments Order, December 29, 1943, File: CAD 000.4 (3-25-43) (1), Sec. 2, Security Classified General Correspondence, 1943-July 1949, General Records, Civil Affairs Division, Records of the War Department General and Special Staffs, RG 165. Courtesy of The National Archives.

The total ruin of Monte Cassino evoked mixed emotions on both sides and remains one of the most debated decisions of the war itself. Americans with loved ones and friends involved in the conflict were angry that their family members might be risking their lives to save a building. Preceding the bombing, soldiers and spectators camped out for an optimal view of the destruction. When the initial bombs hit the Abbey, cheers emanated from the troops and reporters below. Many American newspapers published the falsehood that the monastery was inhabited by German troops, capitalizing on the headline that the Nazis violated the religious institution to use it as a safe haven. Instead, the bombing of Monte Cassino became fodder for the German propaganda machine to smear the United States as enemies of ancient and religious traditions.

In the end, the destruction of the Abbey proved to be incredibly detrimental to the Allies. In the coming months, the German forces hid in the rubble, occupied, and fortified the site. Subsequent Allied assaults up the mountain achieved little despite heavy casualties. Polish troops finally captured Monte Cassino on May 18, 1944, five months into the bloody campaign and four months after the monastery was leveled.