In May U.S. troops led by Generals Dwight Eisenhower and George S. Patton join forces with British troops under the command of Field Marshal Dernard Montgomery to defeat German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in North Africa.

In June Eisenhower is appointed commander of the U.S. forces in Europe.

In July - September Allied forces capture Sicily and key spots in southern Italy. Italian dictator Benito Mussolini is overthrown and imprisoned. Hitler dispatches German troops to fend off an Allied advance in what will be a series of hard fought, costly battles.

In November The "big three," Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin, convene in Teheran, Iran to discuss the invasion of Italy. It is the first time all three have met.

In December Eisenhower is named supreme commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force in Europe