Maxwell D. Taylor - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

General Maxwell Davenport Taylor

In 1943, his diplomatic and language skills resulted in his secret mission to Rome to coordinate an 82nd air drop with Italian forces. General Eisenhower would later say that "the risks he ran were greater than I asked any other agent or emmisary to take during the war." Hundreds of miles behind the front lines of battle, Taylor was forced by rules of engagement to wear his American military uniform, so that if captured he could not be shot as a spy. He met with the new Italian Prime Minister, Marshal Pietro Badoglio. The air drop near Rome to capture the city was called off at the last minute, when Taylor realized that it was too late. German forces were already moving in to cover the intended drop zones. Transport planes were already in the air when Taylor's message canceled the drop, preventing the suicide mission.

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This is also covered shortly in " 82nd Airborne Division " by Verier

"... had Taylor been captured or killed and not sent the abort message, the 82nd would have dropped into a disaster that night."

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