Green, Roland J. "George Patton Slept Here"
Divergence: 1943 CE
What if: The Patton "slapping incident" never happened, and U.S. and British troops in Sicily were able to pin down the Germans.
Summary: Surprise landings and bombings prevented German troops from evacuating Messina at the end of the Sicilian campaign. With Patton remaining in charge of American forces, aggressive planning results in the Allies skipping a crawl up the Italian boot, and instead landings near Civitavecchia result in Rome falling seven months early.
Published: In Alternate Generals II (ed. Harry Turtledove), q.v.