 Heilmann had replaced the commander Oberstleutenant Von Carnap after he had been killed by British artillery fire in late July.The 78th "Battleaxe" Infantry Division, under the command of Major-General Vyvyan Evelegh, assembled for a drive towards Catenanuova and to capture Centuripe as part of Operation "Hardgate".The country between the two villages was wild and rough with great rocky crags, similar to those among which the 78th had fought in the campaign in Tunisia, and this terrain covered the one mountain road between them.