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Scarce WWII era map of Sicily, published in India.
The map would seem to correspond with the Allied invasion of Sicily, codenamed Operation Husky.
Operation Husky was a major campaign of World War II, in which the Allies took the island of Sicily from the Axis powers. It began with a large amphibious and airborne operation, followed by a six-week land campaign, and initiated the Italian Campaign.
Husky began on the night of July 9, 1943, and ended on August 17. The Allies drove Axis air, land and naval forces from the island and the Mediterranean sea lanes were opened for Allied merchant ships for the first time since 1941. The Italian leader, Benito Mussolini, was toppled from power in Italy and the way was opened for the Allied invasion of Italy.
The German leader, Adolf Hitler, "canceled a major offensive at Kursk after only a week, in part to divert forces to Italy", resulting in a reduction of German strength on the Eastern Front. The collapse of Italy necessitated German troops replacing the Italians in Italy and to a lesser extent the Balkans, resulting in one fifth of the entire German army being diverted from the east to southern Europe, a proportion that would remain until near the end of the war.
![Barbary and Bildulgerid. [on sheet with:] Egypt and Barca &c.](https://storage.googleapis.com/raremaps/img/small/70916.jpg)
![[ Kingdom of Sicily, with Malta ] Carte De L'Isle Et Royaume De Sicile. Par Guillaume Delisle de l'Academie R. des Sciences. À Venise par P. Santini 1779.](https://storage.googleapis.com/raremaps/img/small/102161.jpg)