In September 1943 Cassino was the first bombing that caused damage to houses and killing some civilians. The bombing, and later the artillery, hammering the area regularly for the next months, up to 3 more bloody attacks occurred respectively in January-February, March and May of 1944.

On Oct. 14 came to the ten Cassino. Schlegel Austrian colonel in command of Göring Panzer Division. These prospectus all’abate Gregory danger that we ran the Abbey, which soon would be at the center of German resistance against (Gustav line), and he, therefore, to make sure the majority of the treasures ‘Abbey itself (delivered in the Vatican on December 8, with a cargo of 120 lorries).

At the same time it was made and displaced people throughout the territory surrounding the Abbey, or the valley, the mountains nearby, and the town of Cassino became a real fortress with trenches, casemate, guns, tanks, minefields. Not just as happened to the monastery that was not fortified, at least until the Allies not destroyed by bombing (February 15 - the first phase of the battle).
At the end of the second phase of the battle (March 25) the city of Cassino was reduced to a heap of rubble, no nothing remained of its old character.
Only after the third phase of the battle (May 1944), with many losses on both sides, the Allies were able to seize the area marking the end of a nightmare.