Italian Troops Research Articles

The Armistice of Villa Giusti

In the First World War, the Austro-Hungarian Empire was a part of the Central Powers. As from 1916, the Empire had been very keen for the war to end. The Austro-Hungarian Empire, which was deprived of the financial power to continue the war and faced with the demands of independence from the minorities before and during the war, approached the armistice proposals very positively that could end the war in 1916 and 1917. In mid-June 1918, the failure of the attack launched by the Austro-Hungarian troops against the Italian troops and the superiority of the Allied Powers over Germany on the western front in July-August put the situation of the Central Powers in the European fronts in trouble, and after the successful attack launched by the Italian troops on 24 October, there was no possibility for Austria-Hungary to continue the war. The Austro-Hungarian Empire withdrew from the First World War by signing an armistice with Italy on 3 November 1918 at Villa Giusti del Giardino outside the city of Padova. The armistice contained very harsh terms and severely limited the empire in every respect. The Armistice of Villa Giusti consisted of two chapters and nineteen clauses including eight military and eleven naval and maritime provisions. The additional protocol of the armistice consisted of two chapters and nineteen clauses, ten of which were military and nine of which were related to the naval forces and maritime affairs.

“The Сrown Тext to the Tiara”: The Capture of Rome by Italian Troops and Its Aftermath

“The Сrown Тext to the Tiara”: The Capture of Rome by Italian Troops and Its Aftermath

Pietro Aretino's (un)Virgilian Sack of Rome☆

AbstractPietro Aretino was a particularly frequent commentator on the catastrophic 1527 Sack of Rome by the Spanish, German and Italian troops of Charles V. This article examines one of his most extended, and curious, responses to the Sack: the explicit parody of Virgil's Books I‐IV of The Aeneid that opens Day Two of his Dialogo. The episode features a satirical Cinquecento take on the story of Aeneas and Dido: a despicable baron who escaped Rome and a ruling lady in whom his tale of the city's fall stoked a desire that ultimately resulted in her abandonment and suicide. Commentary on these pages has centred especially on the Didonian scenes of the lady's laments and Aretino's explicit acknowledgement of his having ‘filched’ them from Virgil's Book IV. The baron's account of the Sack, in contrast, often has been summarized as a mere attempt – largely ineffective – to offer readers a conveniently contemporary equivalent to Aeneas's narration of the fall of Troy in Books II and III. This article argues instead that the baron's description is pointedly unVirgilian and draws on another body of unheroic texts: publications, including Aretino's own, on the Sack that circulated in its aftermath.

Landscape transformations in Albania. A photographic survey on the traces of Italian travellers in the Balkans


 
 
 After the fall of the Ottoman Empire, Albania became a possible land of conquest for Italy, France, and Austria. Explorations and surveys of the newly liberated territory involved numerous scientific a nd military expeditions. At the end of the nineteenth century, the Reale Società Geografica Italiana had been carrying out a systematic study of Albanian landscape, mainly aimed at geographical research. Relevant Italian scholars and geographers travelled to Tirana and Valona. Antonio Baldacci (1867-1950) between 1892 and 1902, Roberto Almagià (1884-1962), Aldo Sestini (1904-1988) in 1940, Bruno Castiglioni (1898-1945) who recorded geomorphological aspects as an army officer following Italian troops. Two expeditions in 1940 allowed them to collect all the information needed to publish the fundamental monograph “L’Albania”, printed in 1943. Bruno Castiglioni oversaw the geomorphological aspects of the study, Ferdinando Milone covered anthropology and economics, and Aldo Sestini investigated the geographical features of each region. Another landmark contribution is Antonio Baldacci’s Itinerari albanesi: (1892-1902), which described discovering an obscure land, its natural features and the built environment.
 The contribution for the sixth issue of Sophie draws on a photographic campaign carried out between July 2016 and June 2018, and currently being finalised in the form of a Catalogue of Landscape Typologies. The author c onducts a photographic c ampaign a long the s ame itineraries covered by the aforementioned geographers, discovering similarities and differences with the contemporary Albanian landscape. Manuscripts, diplomatic accounts, publications, and photographs produced by Italian travellers of the early twentieth century are being compared with the current status of the visual environment. Tourism-related activities have altered the scenery of the coast, particularly the so-called Riviera that connects Vlorë with Sarandë, while other sectors of the northern mainland have remained relatively unchanged.
 This ongoing research is expected to inform a general catalogue of Albanian landscapes, intended as a tool for planning future interventions across the country. The catalogue could be a useful tool to build an alternative visual cartography. The Catalogue of Landscape Typologies collects four hundred geolocated shots of selected views, which have been classified and redrawn to identify recurring features and visual landmarks. Images are being disassembled in coherent morphological layers: woods, agricultural plains, cultivated slopes, spontaneous vegetation fields, urbanization areas, water bodies and the profile of the mountains. Contemporary Albania and other countries in the Balkans are rapidly changing the quality of its built environment in an attempt to emerge and progress towards the European standards. On the other hand, one could argue that unique views can be lost along the way.
 
 

Italian Catholic Chaplains on the Eastern Front during World War II: Perception of Soviet Reality, Military Realities, and Apostolate in the Territories Occupied by Italy

The author focuses on the role of Catholic chaplains accompanying Italian troops on the Eastern Front between 1941 and 1943. It draws on the memoirs, diaries, letters and reports of the chaplains, including direct reports sent by them to the Holy See during the war, which only became available to scholars in March 2020 when the Vatican archives relating to the pontificate of Pius XII (1939–1958) were unsealed. This subject has never been addressed in Russian historiography and has been barely explored in Italian studies. The aim of this article is to analyse the information relayed by chaplains about the territories where the Italian army was deployed, the situation of the local population, including people of different nationalities, the religious situation on the occupied territories, the actions of the armed forces (mainly Italian and German) and the activities of chaplains themselves, including not only the spiritual care of the Italian troops, but also the administration of sacraments and the holding of religious services for the local population. Newly discovered sources make it possible to understand how the chaplains saw life among the local population in the territories occupied by Italian troops, whether the Vatican was aware of the real situation, and to infer what the Vatican tried or intended to do for the apostolic work of the military chaplains in the Soviet Union.

Jugoslovenska vojska u Aprilskom ratu 1941. godine

The Kingdom of Yugoslavia found itself in a difficult position at the beginning of World War II. The internal antinomies caused by unresolved national and political issues reflected badly on the state of the military. The Yugoslav Army was unprepared for a modern war. The military factories in Yugoslavia only produced a segment of light weapons and ammunition, bombs and basic equipment. The active officer staff was few in numbers, which hindered the transition of the peacetime armed forces into the state of war. The military measures that were undertaken were inadequate, inefficient and implemented without a clear plan. The Yugoslav Army's war plan, called R-41, was ill-suited for the situation. It became obvious that three thousand kilometers of state borders were undefendable against a far superior enemy. On April 6th, 1941 Germans launched an attack on the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. The outcome of the war and the faith of the Yugoslav Army were decided by three German attacks, performed from a circular base: in Macedonia on April 6th, in Serbia on April 8th, and in Croatia on April 10th. German and Italian troops advanced rapidly, and by April 13th they took Vojvodina, Slovenia, Croatia and Western Bosnia. German troops entered deserted Belgrade on the eve of April 12th. The unconditional capitulation was signed on April 17th, and the entire fighting ceased on April 18th, at 12 PM. The majority of the Yugoslav Army was taken into captivity.

ВИЗАНТИЙСКИЕ ГАРНИЗОНЫ В ИТАЛИИ В VI ВЕКЕ: ПРОБЛЕМА ЛОЯЛЬНОСТИ ИМПЕРАТОРУ

The article examines the relations between Byzantine garrisons on the Apennine Peninsula and the emperors in the 6th century. Already during the (re)conquest of Italy, measures were taken to integrate these territories into the Byzantine structures of the civil and military administration. However, the remoteness of the region periodically led to the interruptions of material supply of the Italian troops. These difficulties negatively affected the authority of the emperors among the military men. Another major problem was the scarcity of forces stationed in Italy. In addition, among them, there were many soldiers and commanders of barbarian origin, whose loyalty to Byzantium was largely situational. For these reasons, when faced with a numerous and successful enemy, they could defect to its side. Such was the situation on the Apennine Peninsula in 541, when the Ostrogoths, led by King Totila, went over to a counteroffensive. In all likelihood, the situation was similar during the Lombard conquest of Northern Italy in 568. The remoteness from the capital of the empire also led to the fact that the soldiers were more focused on loyalty not to the Byzantine rulers, but to local military leaders. These factors caused the weakness of imperial positions on the Apennine Peninsula.

Secret Cables of the Comintern, 1933–1943

Secret Cables of the Comintern, 1933–1943

Свой среди чужих, чужие среди своих: войска аскари, Амедео Гийе и становление современного эритрейского самосознания в контексте итальянского колониализма конца ХIХ – первой половины ХХ века

The article draws attention to the extraordinary, by African standards, respect in Eritrea for the soldiers of the Italian colonial troops, the Ascari, and even for some of their Italian officers, such as Amedeo Guillet. The author reveals the reason for this respect, which was not present in another former Italian colony Libya. After studying the materials on the number and combat path of the Ascari, colonial Libya, Eritrea, and Italy’s policy in it, the author came to the conclusion that Italian colonialism from a clean slate formed an anti-Ethiopian identity in Eritrea. It was expressed in the Ascari who played an important role in the war of independence from Ethiopia that began in 1961. Its roots go back to 1896 when Ethiopians mutilated Eritrean prisoners after the battle of Adwa.

Italian Militaries in the USSR during the Second World War. Objectives of the Campaign and Negotiations in the Post-War Period

Italy’s participation in the war against the USSR was dictated by at least three reasons: the common ideology which Mussolini and Hitler shared; Mussolini’s aspiration to revise the European order in the Mediterranean area, to the detriment of France and Great Britain; the goal of supplying Italy with the Russian raw material. The article examines the behavior of the Italian troops towards the Soviet war prisoners and the local population during the occupation from July 1941 to winter 1942–1943, which also depended on these reasons. Since 1944 some countries occupied by Italian forces, such as the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia, had started asking the Italian government for the extradition of Italian alleged war criminals to be judged by local courts. In 1944, on the grounds of the reports produced by state and local commissions, the list of alleged war criminals in response to the USSR’s requests was limited to ten militaries who had been repatriated after the defeat. Initially the USSR was intransigent, but afterwards began changing its tune, and finally Moscow proved less adamant in its accusations. This new attitude was connected to negotiations on handing over of Soviet citizens who stayed in Italy after the end of the war. This was most likely a contributing factor in persuading the Soviets to relax their demands on the matter of alleged Italian war criminals. The strategy was successful and, according to the Yalta conference, many Russian and Soviet citizens, who had left the Soviet Union, against their own will were handed over to the Soviet authorities facing a very uncertain fate.

КУЛЬТУРНА СПЕЦИФІКА ФРАНКО-ІТАЛІЙСЬКОЇ ДРАМИ РАННЬОГО РОКОКО

This article id dedicated to the issue of the genesis of literary rococo in French-Italian drama. In the following article we provide a brief review of theatrical activity of Italian troops in 1660-1720s and explore the formation of new French-Italian Stylistic concepts. Our research focuses particularly on the oeuvre of Luigi Riccoboni, a dramatist of Italian origin and Italian cultural background who wrote numerous scripts for the plays to be performed on French stage. With regard to the lack of studies of these French-Italian plays in Eastern Europe we provide an outline of Luigi Riccoboni's script for comedy "Le Libéral malgré lui" and analyze the intertwinig of Italian and French cultural elements in this play. Our study contributes to clobal research of French rococo in Eastern Europe and explores the aspect of formation of literary rococo in the process of collaboration between Italian and French authors. This article offers a new interpretation of Luigi Riccoboni's oeuvre as that of the first representative of rococo style both in Italian and French literature.

Гражданский статус коренного населения Итальянской Ливии (1911-1943 гг.)

The article examines evolution of the Libyans’ civil status in the colonial period. The author examines suppression of the Libyan resistance by the Italian troops and Italy’s attempts to involve the Libyans into cooperation with the colonial administration. Influence of the fascist putsch in Rome on the policy of cooperation with the Libyans is identified. It is shown how with rapprochement of Italy and Nazi Germany the ideology of racism (previously non-distinctive for Italy) established itself as an official one, which resulted in further deprivation of the Libyans’ rights. Comparative analysis of Italy’s policy in other colonies is conducted.

Željezničke prometnice u obalnom pojasu Nezavisne Države Hrvatske do kapitulacije Kraljevine Italije

U članku se, znatnim dijelom na temelju novih arhivskih izvora, prikazuje stanje željezničkih prometnica u obalnom pojasu Nezavisne Države Hrvatske. Talijanska vojska preuzela je početkom rujna 1941. upravu u tom pojasu. Članak prati stanje na tim prometnicima do talijanske kapitulacije u rujnu 1943. godine. Kroz ovo istraživanje može se doći do određenih novih spoznaja o odnosima Nezavisne Države Hrvatske i Kraljevine Italije, ali i do novih spoznaja kada je riječ o prometnim vezama, u konkretnom slučaju željezničkim, koje su u ratnim okolnostima povezivale krajeve uz jadransku obalu sa zaleđem, odnosno Zagrebom i drugim krajevima sjeverno od rijeke Save.

The hard way home: Italian troops in Yugoslavia after the 8 September 1943 Armistice

The paper deals with the fate of Italian troops stationed in Yugoslavia in theperiod from the 8 September 1943 Armistice between Italy and the Allies to the endof World War II. Based on Italian and foreign historiography, memoirs and documentsdrawn from Italian and foreign archives, the paper aims at examining the roleplayed by Italian troops fighting alongside the partisan units in Yugoslavia after thearmistice, and at closing some gaps in the historiography of World War II, specific tothis issue. It will also concentrate on the fate of the thousands of Italians taken byTito’s army as prisoners of war who suffered a very harsh treatment. Among the latterand the Italians fighting alongside the partisans, an antifascist propaganda activitywas carried out with the aim of re-educating them into antifascists. Thefinal partwill deal with the servicemen’s repatriation and will show how the Italian prisonersof war were used by Tito as a bargaining chip in order to obtain some advantages,such as the recognition by the Italian government of the new Yugoslav State

Італійські війська на Луганщині у період 1941–1943 рр.

The purpose of the article is an attempt to comprehensively study the facts of the occupation of the occupying troops of the 8th Italian Army (hereinafter – ARMIR) in the territory of Luhansk region: analysis of personnel, organizational structure, level of completeness of units of occupying troops of ARMIR, features of fascist „new order”, their interaction of joint action with German troops in the occupied territory of Luhansk region during the Second World War, using archival materials and research conducted by J. Scotoni, Mac Smith and Aldo Valori, as well as and the memories of the battle of ARMIR by Justo Tolloy and Giovanni Messi. In particular, for the purpose of giving an overview, the following issues are considered: the contribution of the 8th Italian Army to rear security policies with the involvement of auxiliary police and collaborators to carry out occupation measures to counter the anti-fascist movement in the Luhansk region from 1941 to 1943. As a result of the study, the author concluded that, based on the analysis of the number and location of the Italian occupation troops in the Luhansk region, we can say that they performed the functions of ensuring the activities of the German occupation administration. Among the main tasks assigned to the Italian command in the region were the implementation of a „new order”, cooperation on organizing joint actions with German troops in the occupied territory, expansion of the agent network, involvement of auxiliary police and collaborators in the suppression of Soviet underground and security railways and highways. The military specifics of the activities of the 8th Italian Army in Luhansk region will be discussed in more detail in the following scientific publications.

Кризис Корфу 1923 года: оккупация Керкиры в контексте итальянской политики в Восточном Средиземноморье

The history of the Italian occupation of the island of Kerkyra (Corfu), one of the Ionian Islands currently part of Greece, is considered. The period after 1912 when Italy, having won a military victory over the Ottoman Empire, occupied Libya and the Dodecanese Islands is characterized. It is noted that at this time another goal of Italian foreign policy in the Mediterranean was Albania, independence of which was proclaimed in 1912, and the adjacent Islands of the Ionian archipelago. The author of the article dwells on the fact that the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne of 1923, which finally secured the possession of the Dodecanese Islands for Italy, allowed Italy to intensify its policy in the Ionian sea region. The author was able to identify the main stages of the diplomatic struggle over the occupation of the island of Corfu, to show the special interest of Italy in resolving the issue of Corfu outside the structures of the new international organization - the League of Nations. It is proved that the final withdrawal of Italian troops from the occupied island was the result of negotiations between Italy, Britain and France, while the opinion of Greece was practically not taken into account. The article is based on Italian and British official publications of diplomatic documents.

Pier Diego Siccardi (1880-1917) and the "Clinica del Lavoro" in the trench warfare.

The year 2017 marks the centenary of the death of the Italian scientist Pier Diego Siccardi (1880-1917), one of Luigi Devoto's assistants at the "Clinica del Lavoro" in Milan. To commemorate Siccardi and to describe the activities of the physicians of the "Clinica del Lavoro" during World War I. A comprehensive analysis was conducted on scientific papers written by Pier Diego Siccardi and by other physicians belonging to the Clinica del Lavoro, in the period 1915-1918. During the Great War, the Clinica del Lavoro became a military hospital, even though it indirectly maintained a role in Occupational Health, assisting women who had started to work to replace the men sent to the front. Devoto and his assistants were drafted as Army doctors, but continued their research activities while at the front; focusing on the diseases that affected the soldiers, mainly infections. Bleeding fevers and jaundice were endemic among Italian troops, but their etiology was unknown. Pier Diego Siccardi identified this syndrome as an infection caused by a spirochete, and was the first one to isolate the infectious agent. Siccardi prematurely died of the same disease as a consequence of a laboratory accident, which provided further confirmation for his research. The heroic life of Siccardi and his tragic death testify the important activities of the scientists of the "Clinica del Lavoro" in the years of the Great War.

L'Italia e il primo conflitto globale, 1914-1918

L'Italia e il primo conflitto globale, 1914-1918

The War That Wasn't There? Italy's “Peace Mission” in Afghanistan, Strategic Narratives and Public Opinion

Factors as culture, values, and symbols are crucial to understand the evolution of the Italian foreign and defense policy. However, scholars’ attention to such variables in the study of Italian defense policies still leaves many gaps. Since the end of the Cold War, Italian troops have been constantly engaged in military operations abroad spreading a “peacekeeper image” of Italy in the international arena. The goal of this work is to investigate the features and the evolution of the main strategic narratives adopted by political leaders to interpret the Italian military involvement in Afghanistan. How have politicians crafted strategic narratives on the Afghan mission? How have these story lines influenced public opinion during the conflict? Has the disproportionate gap between the storyline, based on the traditional values of peace and multilateralism, and the war-torn reality on the ground, affected the level of public approval? Or have the ways in which narratives were built in 2009 played a more significant role? In order to answer these questions, this paper relies on polls, content analysis of parliamentary debates, and public discourse analysis (2001–2011).

Risk Assessment and Prevention of Malaria Among Italian Troops in Afghanistan, 2002 to 2011

Malaria prevention policy is different among coalition troops in Afghanistan, ranging from the combined use of suppressive and terminal chemoprophylaxis to the absence of any prophylactic regimen. The objective of this study was to assess the compliance with malaria prevention measures and the risk of malaria among Italian troops in Afghanistan. Target population was the cohort of 32,500 army soldiers deployed in Afghanistan, 2002 to 2011; eligible subjects were the 21,900 soldiers stationed in endemic areas, who were prescribed mefloquine chemoprophylaxis. Adherence to chemoprophylaxis was assessed by a cross-sectional study in a volunteer sample of 5,773 (26.4%) of eligible subjects. The risk of malaria was assessed by detecting malaria cases in the target population. Mefloquine chemoprophylaxis was administered to 4,123 (71.4%) of the 5,773 enrolled soldiers and 3,575 (86.7%) of these took it regularly; however, compliance dropped from 80.9% (2,592/3,202) in 2002 to 2006 to 59.5% (1,531/2,571) in 2007 to 2011 (p < 0.01). Adverse events were reported by 875 (21.2%) of the 4,123 soldiers taking mefloquine, but caused irregularity or interruption of chemoprophylaxis only in 48 (1.2%) and 113 (2.7%) subjects, respectively. No serious adverse events were reported. No malaria cases occurred in Afghanistan, and one Plasmodium vivax case was reported in Italy, yielding an incidence rate of 3.24 cases per 10,000 person-months of exposure (1/3,091) during the transmission season of 2003. In spite of the decreasing compliance with chemoprophylaxis, suggesting a low perception of the risk of malaria, this study confirmed the good tolerability of mefloquine in the military. The risk of malaria for Italian troops in Afghanistan was very low, and chemoprophylaxis was suspended in 2012. A similar policy may be adopted by the generality of International Security Assistance Force troops, and any chemoprophylaxis may be restricted to soldiers stationing in areas where the risk of malaria is substantial.