Italian war in Soviet Union, 1941-1943
Encyclopedia
The Italian participation in the Eastern Front
during World War II
began after the launch of Operation Barbarossa
on 22 June 1941. Barbarossa was the German
war against the Soviet Union
. To show solidarity with the Germans, Italian dictator Benito Mussolini
ordered a contingent of the Italian Royal Army to be prepared for the Eastern Front and, by early July, an Italian force was in transport. Mussolini did this despite the lack of enthusiasm shown by German dictator Adolf Hitler
.
From 1941 to 1943, the Italians maintained two units to fight in the war against the Soviet Union. The first Italian fighting force was a corps
-sized unit called the Italian Expeditionary Corps in Russia
(Corpo di Spedizione Italiano in Russia, or CSIR). The second force was an army
-sized unit which subsumed the CSIR. The second force was called the Italian Army in Russia
(Armata Italiana in Russia, or ARMIR) and was also known as the Italian 8th Army
.
(Corpo di Spedizione Italiano in Russia, or CSIR) arrived in southern Russia between July and August 1941. The CSIR was initially subordinated to German General Eugen Ritter von Schobert
’s 11th Army
. On 14 August 1941, the CSIR was transferred to the control of German General Ewald von Kleist
’s Tank Group 1. On 25 October 1941, Tank Group 1 was redesignated as the 1st Panzer Army. The CSIR remained under von Kleist’s command until 3 June 1942 when it was subordinated to German General Richard Ruoff
’s 17th Army
.
The CSIR's original commander, Italian General Francesco Zingales, fell ill in Vienna during the early stages of transport to Russia. On 14 July 1941, Zingales was replaced by Italian General Giovanni Messe
.
The CSIR had three divisions: the 52 Motorised Division Torino
, the 9 Motorised Division Pasubio
and the 3 Cavalry Division Amedeo Duca d'Aosta
.
and Dniestr River. Subsequently, before the 11th Army joined the Romanian Army during the Siege of Odessa, the CSIR was attached to German General Ewald von Kleist
’s Tank Group 1. Between 20 October and 2 November 1941, Kleist employed the CSIR in the assault on the city of Stalino (now Donetsk
), an important steel center in Eastern Ukraine, and in occupying the neighbouring towns of Gorlowka and Rikovo. While the CSIR was detached from the German 11th Army during the Siege of Odessa, elements of the Italian army did assist with the occupation of the area around Odessa after the city fell to the Romanians and Germans on 16 October 1941.
In July 1942, Mussolini scaled up the Italian effort on the Eastern Front
and the CSIR became the 8th Italian Army
. The 8th Italian Army was also known as the Italian Army in Russia
(Armata Italiana in Russia, or ARMIR). The ARMIR was subordinated to German General Maximilian von Weichs
' Army Group B.
Italian General Italo Gariboldi
took command of the newly formed ARMIR from General Messe. As commander of the CSIR, Messe had opposed an enlargement of the Italian contingent in Russia until it could be properly equipped. As a result, he was dismissed. Just prior to commanding the ARMIR, Gariboldi was the Governor-General
of Libya
. He was criticized after the war for being too submissive to the Germans.
Mussolini sent seven new divisions to Russia for a total of ten divisions. Four new infantry divisions were sent and included: The 2 Infantry Division Sforzesca, the 3 Infantry Division Ravenna, the 5 Infantry Division Cosseria, and the 156 Infantry Division Vicenza
. In addition to the infantry divisions, three new Alpini
divisions were sent; The 2 Alpini Division Tridentina, the 3 Alpini Division Julia, and the 4 Alpini Division Cuneense. These new divisions were added to the Torino, Pasubio, and Prince Amedeo Duke of Aosta divisions already in Russia.
) troops of the Prince Amedeo Duke of Aosta Fast Division eliminated the Soviet bridgehead at Serafimovič. In the same month, with the support of German tanks, the Bersaglieri repelled a Soviet attack during the first defensive battle of the Don.
's 62nd Army in Stalingrad. The Italian line stretched along the River Don for more than 250 km from the positions of the Hungarian 2nd Army
in Kalmiskowa to the positions of the Romanian 3rd Army in Veshenskaja, a village 270 km northwest of Stalingrad. The Italians threw up a thin screen along the river. No trench lines had been dug nor effective defensive positions set up. Heavy snow and severe frost were hampering troop movements.
The situation for the German troops in Stalingrad remained stable until the Soviets launched "Operation Uranus
” on 19 November 1942. The aim of this operation was the complete encirclement and isolation of the German 6th Army. To accomplish this, the Soviets struck at the weak Romanian armies to the north and south of Stalingrad. The Soviets planned Operation Uranus
as a double envelopment. The twin attacks smashed through portions of the Romanian 3rd Army
and the Romanian 4th Army
and successfully met at Kalach four days after the operation began.
” on 11 December 1942. The aim of this operation was the annihilation of the Italian, Hungarian, Romanian, and German positions along the Don River. The first stage of Operation Saturn
was known as Operation Little Saturn. The aim of this operation was the complete annihilation of the Italian 8th Army.
The Soviet 63rd Army
, backed by T-34
tanks and fighter-bombers, first attacked the weakest Italian sector. This sector was held on the right by the Ravenna and Cosseria infantry divisions. Both divisions were driven back and defeated.
On 17 December 1942, the Soviet 21st Army
and the Soviet 5th Tank Army attacked and defeated what remained of the Romanians to the right of the Italians. At about the same time, the Soviet 3rd Tank Army and parts of the Soviet 40th Army
hit the Hungarians to the left of the Italians.
The Soviet 1st Guards Army then attacked the Italian center which was held by the 298th German, the Pasubio, the Torino, the Prince Amedeo Duke of Aosta, and the Sforzesca divisions. After eleven days of bloody fighting against overwhelming Soviet forces, these divisions were surrounded and defeated and Russian air support resulted in the death of General Paolo Tarnassi, commander of the Italian armoured force in Russia.
On 14 January 1943, after a short pause, the 6th Soviet Army attacked the Alpini
divisions of the Italian Mountain Corps. These units had been placed on the left flank of the Italian army and, to date, were still relatively unaffected by the battle. However, the Alpini’s position had turned critical after the collapse of the Italian center, the collapse of the Italian right flank, and the simultaneous collapse of the Hungarian troops to the left of the Alpini. The Julia Division and Cuneense Division were destroyed. Members of the 1 Alpini Regiment
, part of Cuneese Division, burned the regimental flags to keep them from being captured. Part of the Tridentina Division and other withdrawing troops managed to escape the encirclement.
On 26 January 1943, after heavy fighting which resulted in the Battle of Nikolajewka, the Alpini remnants breached the encirclement and reached new defensive positions set up to the west by the German Army (Wehrmacht Heer). But, by this time, the only operational fighting unit was the Tridentina Division and even it was not fully operational. The Tridentina Division had led the final breakout assault at Nikolajewka. Many of the troops who managed to escape were frostbitten, critically ill, and deeply demoralized.
Overall, about 130,000 Italians had been surrounded by the Soviet offensive. According to Italian sources, about 20,800 soldiers died in the fighting, 64,000 were captured, and 45,000 were able to withdraw. When the surviving Italian troops were eventually evacuated to Italy, the Fascist regime tried to hide them from the populace, so appalling was their appearance after surviving the "Russian Front."
. By the end of February 1943, the rout of the ARMIR was complete. Mussolini then withdrew what remained of his 8th Army from Russian soil. The Italian forces in Russia had been reduced to less than 150,000 men, and 34,000 of these were wounded. The disaster in Russia was a fierce blow to the power and popularity of the dictator. Both sank as the gloomy news soon reached the public in Italy. Survivors blamed the Fascist political elite and the army generals. The survivors said they both had acted irresponsibly by sending a poorly prepared, ill-equipped, and inadequately armed military force to the Russian Front. According to veterans, weapons in Italian service were awful: hand grenades rarely went off and rifles and machine guns had to be kept for a long time on a fire to work properly in extreme climatic conditions, thus often not capable of firing in the midst of battle. The German commanders were accused of sacrificing the Italian divisions, whose withdrawal was supposedly delayed after the Soviet breakthrough, in order to rescue their own troops.
Throughout 1943, Italy's fortunes worsened. On 25 July 1943, Benito Mussolini
and his Fascist government were put out of power by King Victor Emmanuel III
. On 8 September, the new Italian government led by the King and Marshal Pietro Badoglio
signed an armistice with the Allies.
Soon, competing Italian armed forces
were being raised to fight for both the Allies
and the Axis
. Forces of the Royalist
Co-Belligerent Army
(Esercito Cobelligerante Italiano
, or ECI) were forming in southern Italy. Forces of the Fascist National Republican Army
(Esercito Nazionale Repubblicano
, or ENR) were forming in northern Italy. The ECI was the army of what was known as "Badoglio's government." The ENR was the army of Mussolini's Italian Social Republic
(Repubblica Sociale Italiana
, or RSI).
Even after the evacuation of the Italian troops from Russia and even after the armistice in 1943, some ENR units remained on the Eastern Front
fighting for the Axis. There were five specialized 'smoke cover' battalions serving in defense of Baltic
ports. In addition, the 834th Field Hospital continued to operate in Russia, as well as the battalion "IX Settembre"; a small unit that fought alongside the Brandenburgers
in East Prussia for a brief period of time.
Mario Rigoni Stern
Nuto Revelli
Eugenio Corti
Giulio Bedeschi
Blessed Fr. Carlo Gnocchi
Egisto Corradi
Renato Dulbecco
Eastern Front (World War II)
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of World War II between the European Axis powers and co-belligerent Finland against the Soviet Union, Poland, and some other Allies which encompassed Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
began after the launch of Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
on 22 June 1941. Barbarossa was the German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
war against the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. To show solidarity with the Germans, Italian dictator Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
ordered a contingent of the Italian Royal Army to be prepared for the Eastern Front and, by early July, an Italian force was in transport. Mussolini did this despite the lack of enthusiasm shown by German dictator Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
.
From 1941 to 1943, the Italians maintained two units to fight in the war against the Soviet Union. The first Italian fighting force was a corps
Corps
A corps is either a large formation, or an administrative grouping of troops within an armed force with a common function such as Artillery or Signals representing an arm of service...
-sized unit called the Italian Expeditionary Corps in Russia
Italian Expeditionary Corps in Russia
During World War II, the Italian Expeditionary Corps in Russia was a corps-sized expeditionary unit of the Regio Esercito that fought on the Eastern Front...
(Corpo di Spedizione Italiano in Russia, or CSIR). The second force was an army
Army
An army An army An army (from Latin arma "arms, weapons" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
-sized unit which subsumed the CSIR. The second force was called the Italian Army in Russia
Italian Army in Russia
The Italian Army in Russia was an army-sized unit of the Italian Royal Army which fought on the Eastern Front during World War II...
(Armata Italiana in Russia, or ARMIR) and was also known as the Italian 8th Army
Italian Army in Russia
The Italian Army in Russia was an army-sized unit of the Italian Royal Army which fought on the Eastern Front during World War II...
.
The Italian Expeditionary Corps in Russia
Constituted on 10 July 1941, the Italian Expeditionary Corps in RussiaItalian Expeditionary Corps in Russia
During World War II, the Italian Expeditionary Corps in Russia was a corps-sized expeditionary unit of the Regio Esercito that fought on the Eastern Front...
(Corpo di Spedizione Italiano in Russia, or CSIR) arrived in southern Russia between July and August 1941. The CSIR was initially subordinated to German General Eugen Ritter von Schobert
Eugen Ritter von Schobert
Eugen Siegfried Erich Ritter von Schobert was a German general who served in World War I and World War II. He died in the Soviet Union when his observation plane crashed in a Soviet minefield.-Early life:...
’s 11th Army
11th Army (Germany)
The 11th Army was a World War I and a World War II field army.-World War I:The 11th Army was formed in early 1915. It briefly fought on the Western Front during the Battle of Ypres, holding the line against the allied attack...
. On 14 August 1941, the CSIR was transferred to the control of German General Ewald von Kleist
Ewald von Kleist
Ewald von Kleist is the name of:*Ewald Jürgen Georg von Kleist , co-inventor of the Leyden jar*Ewald Christian von Kleist , German poet and soldier*Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist , German Field Marshal...
’s Tank Group 1. On 25 October 1941, Tank Group 1 was redesignated as the 1st Panzer Army. The CSIR remained under von Kleist’s command until 3 June 1942 when it was subordinated to German General Richard Ruoff
Richard Ruoff
Richard Ruoff was an officer in the German Army before and during World War II.Colonel-General Richard Ruoff commanded the 4th Tank Army from 8 January 1942 to 31 May 1942...
’s 17th Army
17th Army (Germany)
The German Seventeenth Army was a World War II field army.-Commanding officers:* General der Infanterie Carl-Heinrich von Stülpnagel * Generaloberst Hermann Hoth...
.
The CSIR's original commander, Italian General Francesco Zingales, fell ill in Vienna during the early stages of transport to Russia. On 14 July 1941, Zingales was replaced by Italian General Giovanni Messe
Giovanni Messe
Giovanni Messe was an Italian general, politician, and Field Marshal . He is considered by many to have been the best Italian general of the Second World War.-Early life and career:Born in Mesagne, Apulia, Giovanni Messe pursued a military career in 1901...
.
The CSIR had three divisions: the 52 Motorised Division Torino
52 Motorised Division Torino
The 52 Motorised Division Torino was an Motorised Infantry Division of the Italian Army during World War II. The Division was formed from the expansion of the Torino Brigade in June 1940...
, the 9 Motorised Division Pasubio
9 Motorised Division Pasubio
9 Motorized Division Pasubio was a Motorised Infantry Division of the Italian Army during World War II. The division was mobilized in August 1940, and took part in the Invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941, capturing Split and Sienih...
and the 3 Cavalry Division Amedeo Duca d'Aosta
3 Cavalry Division Amedeo Duca d'Aosta
The 3 Cavalry Division Amedeo Duca d'Aosta was an Cavalry or Celere Division of the Italian Army during World War II. The division was formed in 1934, and during World War II was mobilized in June 1940. As a cavalry division and took part in the Invasion of Yugoslavia and was part of the Italian...
.
August 1941- July 1942, CSIR Operations
In August 1941, as part of the German 11th Army, the CSIR made its first contact with the enemy. Contact was made with the withdrawing Russian troops between the Bug RiverSouthern Bug
The Southern Bug, also called Southern Buh), is a river located in Ukraine. The source of the river is in the west of Ukraine, in the Volyn-Podillia Upland, about 145 km from the Polish border, and flows southeasterly into the Bug Estuary through the southern steppes...
and Dniestr River. Subsequently, before the 11th Army joined the Romanian Army during the Siege of Odessa, the CSIR was attached to German General Ewald von Kleist
Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist
Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist was a leading German field marshal during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords...
’s Tank Group 1. Between 20 October and 2 November 1941, Kleist employed the CSIR in the assault on the city of Stalino (now Donetsk
Donetsk
Donetsk , is a large city in eastern Ukraine on the Kalmius river. Administratively, it is a center of Donetsk Oblast, while historically, it is the unofficial capital and largest city of the economic and cultural Donets Basin region...
), an important steel center in Eastern Ukraine, and in occupying the neighbouring towns of Gorlowka and Rikovo. While the CSIR was detached from the German 11th Army during the Siege of Odessa, elements of the Italian army did assist with the occupation of the area around Odessa after the city fell to the Romanians and Germans on 16 October 1941.
The Italian 8th Army or Italian Army in Russia
Eastern Front (World War II)
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of World War II between the European Axis powers and co-belligerent Finland against the Soviet Union, Poland, and some other Allies which encompassed Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945...
and the CSIR became the 8th Italian Army
Italian Army in Russia
The Italian Army in Russia was an army-sized unit of the Italian Royal Army which fought on the Eastern Front during World War II...
. The 8th Italian Army was also known as the Italian Army in Russia
Italian Army in Russia
The Italian Army in Russia was an army-sized unit of the Italian Royal Army which fought on the Eastern Front during World War II...
(Armata Italiana in Russia, or ARMIR). The ARMIR was subordinated to German General Maximilian von Weichs
Maximilian von Weichs
Maximilian Maria Joseph Karl Gabriel Lamoral Reichsfreiherr von Weichs zu Glon was a German Generalfeldmarschall during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves...
' Army Group B.
Italian General Italo Gariboldi
Italo Gariboldi
Italo Gariboldi was a senior officer in the Italian Royal Army before and during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross...
took command of the newly formed ARMIR from General Messe. As commander of the CSIR, Messe had opposed an enlargement of the Italian contingent in Russia until it could be properly equipped. As a result, he was dismissed. Just prior to commanding the ARMIR, Gariboldi was the Governor-General
Governor-General
A Governor-General, is a vice-regal person of a monarch in an independent realm or a major colonial circonscription. Depending on the political arrangement of the territory, a Governor General can be a governor of high rank, or a principal governor ranking above "ordinary" governors.- Current uses...
of Libya
Italian Libya
Italian Libya was a unified colony of Italian North Africa established in 1934 in what represents present-day Libya...
. He was criticized after the war for being too submissive to the Germans.
Mussolini sent seven new divisions to Russia for a total of ten divisions. Four new infantry divisions were sent and included: The 2 Infantry Division Sforzesca, the 3 Infantry Division Ravenna, the 5 Infantry Division Cosseria, and the 156 Infantry Division Vicenza
156 Infantry Division Vicenza
The 156 Infantry Division Vicenza was a Infantry Division of the Italian Army during World War II. The Vicenza was formed in January 1942 as a Garrison Division. It was then sent to the Eastern front, as part of the Italian Army in Russia to act as a reserve and carry out rear area security...
. In addition to the infantry divisions, three new Alpini
Alpini
The Alpini, , are the elite mountain warfare soldiers of the Italian Army. They are currently organized in two operational brigades, which are subordinated to the Alpini Corps Command. The singular is Alpino ....
divisions were sent; The 2 Alpini Division Tridentina, the 3 Alpini Division Julia, and the 4 Alpini Division Cuneense. These new divisions were added to the Torino, Pasubio, and Prince Amedeo Duke of Aosta divisions already in Russia.
July 1942-November 1942, ARMIR Operations
The ARMIR advanced toward the right bank of the Don River which was reached by July 1942. In August, the highly-mobile riflemen (BersaglieriBersaglieri
The Bersaglieri are a corps of the Italian Army originally created by General Alessandro La Marmora on 18 June 1836 to serve in the Piedmontese Army, later to become the Royal Italian Army...
) troops of the Prince Amedeo Duke of Aosta Fast Division eliminated the Soviet bridgehead at Serafimovič. In the same month, with the support of German tanks, the Bersaglieri repelled a Soviet attack during the first defensive battle of the Don.
November 1942-February 1943, Operation Little Saturn
By late autumn 1942, the ARMIR was placed on the left flank of the German 6th Army between Hungarian and Romanian forces. The German 6th Army was then investing Soviet General Vasily ChuikovVasily Chuikov
Vasily Ivanovich Chuikov was a Russian lieutenant general in the Red Army during World War II, twice Hero of the Soviet Union , who after the war became a Marshal of the Soviet Union.-Early life and career:Born into a peasant family in the village of Serebryanye Prudy, he joined the Red Army during...
's 62nd Army in Stalingrad. The Italian line stretched along the River Don for more than 250 km from the positions of the Hungarian 2nd Army
Hungarian Second Army
The Hungarian Second Army was one of three field armies raised by the Kingdom of Hungary which saw action during World War II. All three armies were formed on March 1, 1940...
in Kalmiskowa to the positions of the Romanian 3rd Army in Veshenskaja, a village 270 km northwest of Stalingrad. The Italians threw up a thin screen along the river. No trench lines had been dug nor effective defensive positions set up. Heavy snow and severe frost were hampering troop movements.
The situation for the German troops in Stalingrad remained stable until the Soviets launched "Operation Uranus
Operation Uranus
Operation Uranus was the codename of the Soviet strategic operation in World War II which led to the encirclement of the German Sixth Army, the Third and Fourth Romanian armies, and portions of the German Fourth Panzer Army. The operation formed part of the ongoing Battle of Stalingrad, and was...
” on 19 November 1942. The aim of this operation was the complete encirclement and isolation of the German 6th Army. To accomplish this, the Soviets struck at the weak Romanian armies to the north and south of Stalingrad. The Soviets planned Operation Uranus
Operation Uranus
Operation Uranus was the codename of the Soviet strategic operation in World War II which led to the encirclement of the German Sixth Army, the Third and Fourth Romanian armies, and portions of the German Fourth Panzer Army. The operation formed part of the ongoing Battle of Stalingrad, and was...
as a double envelopment. The twin attacks smashed through portions of the Romanian 3rd Army
Romanian Third Army
The 3rd Army was a field army of the Romanian Land Forces active from the 19th century to the 1990s. It that fought as part of the German Army Group B during World War II, in Ukraine, Crimea, and the Caucasus...
and the Romanian 4th Army
Romanian Fourth Army
The 4th Infantry Division Gemina is one of three major units of the Romanian Land Forces, with its headquarters in Cluj-Napoca. Until June 15, 2008 it was designated as the 4th Territorial Army Corps "Mareşal Constantin Prezan" .-Structure in April 2007 :This structure was in force when the...
and successfully met at Kalach four days after the operation began.
Stalingrad
The situation for the Italian troops along the Don River remained stable until the Soviets launched "Operation SaturnOperation Saturn
Operation Saturn, revised as Operation Little Saturn, was a Red Army operation on the Eastern Front of World War II that led to battles in the northern Caucasus and Donets Basin regions of the Soviet Union from December 1942 to February 1943....
” on 11 December 1942. The aim of this operation was the annihilation of the Italian, Hungarian, Romanian, and German positions along the Don River. The first stage of Operation Saturn
Operation Saturn
Operation Saturn, revised as Operation Little Saturn, was a Red Army operation on the Eastern Front of World War II that led to battles in the northern Caucasus and Donets Basin regions of the Soviet Union from December 1942 to February 1943....
was known as Operation Little Saturn. The aim of this operation was the complete annihilation of the Italian 8th Army.
The Soviet 63rd Army
63rd Army (Soviet Union)
The 63rd Army of the Soviet Union's Red Army was formed in July 1942, by the order of Headquarters Red Army Supreme Command № 994110, by renaming Stavka's 5th Reserve Army....
, backed by T-34
T-34
The T-34 was a Soviet medium tank produced from 1940 to 1958. Although its armour and armament were surpassed by later tanks of the era, it has been often credited as the most effective, efficient and influential design of World War II...
tanks and fighter-bombers, first attacked the weakest Italian sector. This sector was held on the right by the Ravenna and Cosseria infantry divisions. Both divisions were driven back and defeated.
On 17 December 1942, the Soviet 21st Army
21st Army (Soviet Union)
-June to September 1941:21st Army was a part of the Second Operational Echelon of the RKKA. It was formed from the forces of the Volga Military District in May 1941 and was initially based on 63rd Rifle Corps and 66th Rifle Corps. The army was under the command of Lieutenant-General Vasilii...
and the Soviet 5th Tank Army attacked and defeated what remained of the Romanians to the right of the Italians. At about the same time, the Soviet 3rd Tank Army and parts of the Soviet 40th Army
40th Army (Soviet Union)
The 40th Army of the Soviet Union's Red Army was an army-level command active from 1941 to 1945 and then again from 1979 to circa 1990.It was first formed, after Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union, had commenced, from elements of the 26th and 37th Armies under the command...
hit the Hungarians to the left of the Italians.
The Soviet 1st Guards Army then attacked the Italian center which was held by the 298th German, the Pasubio, the Torino, the Prince Amedeo Duke of Aosta, and the Sforzesca divisions. After eleven days of bloody fighting against overwhelming Soviet forces, these divisions were surrounded and defeated and Russian air support resulted in the death of General Paolo Tarnassi, commander of the Italian armoured force in Russia.
On 14 January 1943, after a short pause, the 6th Soviet Army attacked the Alpini
Alpini
The Alpini, , are the elite mountain warfare soldiers of the Italian Army. They are currently organized in two operational brigades, which are subordinated to the Alpini Corps Command. The singular is Alpino ....
divisions of the Italian Mountain Corps. These units had been placed on the left flank of the Italian army and, to date, were still relatively unaffected by the battle. However, the Alpini’s position had turned critical after the collapse of the Italian center, the collapse of the Italian right flank, and the simultaneous collapse of the Hungarian troops to the left of the Alpini. The Julia Division and Cuneense Division were destroyed. Members of the 1 Alpini Regiment
1 Alpini Regiment
The 1st Alpini Regiment was a light Infantry regiment of the Italian Army, specializing in Mountain Combat. The Alpini are a mountain infantry corps of the Italian Army, that distinguished itself in combat during World War I and World War II.- Formation :...
, part of Cuneese Division, burned the regimental flags to keep them from being captured. Part of the Tridentina Division and other withdrawing troops managed to escape the encirclement.
On 26 January 1943, after heavy fighting which resulted in the Battle of Nikolajewka, the Alpini remnants breached the encirclement and reached new defensive positions set up to the west by the German Army (Wehrmacht Heer). But, by this time, the only operational fighting unit was the Tridentina Division and even it was not fully operational. The Tridentina Division had led the final breakout assault at Nikolajewka. Many of the troops who managed to escape were frostbitten, critically ill, and deeply demoralized.
Overall, about 130,000 Italians had been surrounded by the Soviet offensive. According to Italian sources, about 20,800 soldiers died in the fighting, 64,000 were captured, and 45,000 were able to withdraw. When the surviving Italian troops were eventually evacuated to Italy, the Fascist regime tried to hide them from the populace, so appalling was their appearance after surviving the "Russian Front."
Aftermath
Since the beginning of the Italian campaign in Russia, about 30,000 Italians had been killed and another 54,000 would die in captivityItalian war prisoners in Soviet Union 1942-1954
Italian prisoners of war in the Soviet union is related to the POWs, from the Italian ARMIR and CSIR, and their fate in Joseph Stalin's Soviet Union during and after World War II.-Characteristics:...
. By the end of February 1943, the rout of the ARMIR was complete. Mussolini then withdrew what remained of his 8th Army from Russian soil. The Italian forces in Russia had been reduced to less than 150,000 men, and 34,000 of these were wounded. The disaster in Russia was a fierce blow to the power and popularity of the dictator. Both sank as the gloomy news soon reached the public in Italy. Survivors blamed the Fascist political elite and the army generals. The survivors said they both had acted irresponsibly by sending a poorly prepared, ill-equipped, and inadequately armed military force to the Russian Front. According to veterans, weapons in Italian service were awful: hand grenades rarely went off and rifles and machine guns had to be kept for a long time on a fire to work properly in extreme climatic conditions, thus often not capable of firing in the midst of battle. The German commanders were accused of sacrificing the Italian divisions, whose withdrawal was supposedly delayed after the Soviet breakthrough, in order to rescue their own troops.
Throughout 1943, Italy's fortunes worsened. On 25 July 1943, Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
and his Fascist government were put out of power by King Victor Emmanuel III
Victor Emmanuel III of Italy
Victor Emmanuel III was a member of the House of Savoy and King of Italy . In addition, he claimed the crowns of Ethiopia and Albania and claimed the titles Emperor of Ethiopia and King of Albania , which were unrecognised by the Great Powers...
. On 8 September, the new Italian government led by the King and Marshal Pietro Badoglio
Pietro Badoglio
Pietro Badoglio, 1st Duke of Addis Abeba, 1st Marquess of Sabotino was an Italian soldier and politician...
signed an armistice with the Allies.
Soon, competing Italian armed forces
Armed forces
The armed forces of a country are its government-sponsored defense, fighting forces, and organizations. They exist to further the foreign and domestic policies of their governing body, and to defend that body and the nation it represents from external aggressors. In some countries paramilitary...
were being raised to fight for both the Allies
Allies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
and the Axis
Axis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
. Forces of the Royalist
Royalist
A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of government, but not necessarily a particular monarch...
Co-Belligerent Army
Italian Co-Belligerent Army
The Italian Co-Belligerent Army , or the Army of the South , was the army of the Italian Royalist forces fighting on the side of the Allies during World War II....
(Esercito Cobelligerante Italiano
Italian Co-Belligerent Army
The Italian Co-Belligerent Army , or the Army of the South , was the army of the Italian Royalist forces fighting on the side of the Allies during World War II....
, or ECI) were forming in southern Italy. Forces of the Fascist National Republican Army
Esercito Nazionale Repubblicano
The National Republican Army was the army of the Italian Social Republic from 1943 to 1945 that fought on the side of Nazi Germany during World War II....
(Esercito Nazionale Repubblicano
Esercito Nazionale Repubblicano
The National Republican Army was the army of the Italian Social Republic from 1943 to 1945 that fought on the side of Nazi Germany during World War II....
, or ENR) were forming in northern Italy. The ECI was the army of what was known as "Badoglio's government." The ENR was the army of Mussolini's Italian Social Republic
Italian Social Republic
The Italian Social Republic was a puppet state of Nazi Germany led by the "Duce of the Nation" and "Minister of Foreign Affairs" Benito Mussolini and his Republican Fascist Party. The RSI exercised nominal sovereignty in northern Italy but was largely dependent on the Wehrmacht to maintain control...
(Repubblica Sociale Italiana
Italian Social Republic
The Italian Social Republic was a puppet state of Nazi Germany led by the "Duce of the Nation" and "Minister of Foreign Affairs" Benito Mussolini and his Republican Fascist Party. The RSI exercised nominal sovereignty in northern Italy but was largely dependent on the Wehrmacht to maintain control...
, or RSI).
Even after the evacuation of the Italian troops from Russia and even after the armistice in 1943, some ENR units remained on the Eastern Front
Eastern Front (World War II)
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of World War II between the European Axis powers and co-belligerent Finland against the Soviet Union, Poland, and some other Allies which encompassed Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945...
fighting for the Axis. There were five specialized 'smoke cover' battalions serving in defense of Baltic
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
ports. In addition, the 834th Field Hospital continued to operate in Russia, as well as the battalion "IX Settembre"; a small unit that fought alongside the Brandenburgers
Brandenburgers
The Brandenburgers were members of the Brandenburg German Special Forces unit during World War II.Units of Brandenburgers operated in almost all fronts - the invasion of Poland, Denmark and Norway, in the Battle of France, in Operation Barbarossa, in Finland, Greece and the invasion of Crete,...
in East Prussia for a brief period of time.
Notable participants in the campaign
Umberto UtiliUmberto Utili
Umberto Utili was an Italian general known as commander of Primo Raggruppamento Motorizzato of the Regio Esercito.- Biography :He took part to the Greco-Italian War and to the Russian Campaign. At the time of the Armistice between Italy and Allied armed forces he was in Apulia just as Allied...
Mario Rigoni Stern
Mario Rigoni Stern
Mario Rigoni Stern was an Italian author and World War II veteran.His first novel Il sergente nella neve, published in 1953 , draws on his own experience as a Sergeant Major in the Alpini corp during the disastrous retreat from Russia in World War II...
Nuto Revelli
Nuto Revelli
Nuto Revelli was an Italian essayist.-Life:Revelli was a freshly commissioned second lieutenant when, on 21 July 1942, he left Italy on one of the two hundred troop trains sent to the Eastern Front by Mussolini in an attempt to ensure that fascist Italy would share in what, at the time, with the...
Eugenio Corti
Eugenio Corti
Eugenio Corti is an Italian writer. After participating in the Italian retreat from Russia in World War II, he joined the Italian Freedom Fighters...
Giulio Bedeschi
Blessed Fr. Carlo Gnocchi
Egisto Corradi
Renato Dulbecco
Renato Dulbecco
Renato Dulbecco is an Italian virologist who won a 1975 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work on reverse transcriptase. In 1973 he was awarded the Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize from Columbia University together with Theodore Puck and Harry Eagle. Dulbecco was the recipient of the Selman A...
See also
- Military history of Italy during World War IIMilitary history of Italy during World War IIDuring World War II , the Kingdom of Italy had a varied and tumultuous military history. Defeated in Greece, France, East Africa and North Africa, the Italian invasion of British Somaliland was one of the only successful Italian campaigns of World War II accomplished without German support.In...
- Battle of StalingradBattle of StalingradThe Battle of Stalingrad was a major battle of World War II in which Nazi Germany and its allies fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad in southwestern Russia. The battle took place between 23 August 1942 and 2 February 1943...
- List of World War II aces from Italy
- Italian prisoners of war in the Soviet Union
Sources
- Faldella, Emilio. L'Italia nella seconda guerra mondiale. Cappelli Bologna 1959 (Italian)
- Jowett, Philip S. The Italian Army 1940–45 (1): Europe 1940–1943. Osprey, Oxford - New York, 2000. ISBN 978-1-85532-864-8
- Jowett, Philip. The Italian Army 1940–45 (3): Italy 1943–45. Osprey, New York, 2001, ISBN 978-1-85532-866-2
- Mack Smith, Denis. Le guerre del duce. Laterza, Bari 1979 (Italian)
- Messe, Giovanni. La guerra al fronte Russo. Il Corpo di Spedizione Italian (CSIR). Milano 1947 (Italian)
- Mario Veronesi, La mia Russia. Diario di una guerra, Italian University Press, 2009, ISBN 978-88-8258-104-6
- Italian Ministry of Defence. Stato Maggiore Esercito. Ufficio Storico. Le operazioni del CSIR e dell’ARMIR dal Giugno 1941 all’ottobre del 1942. Roma, 1977 (Italian)
- Italian Ministry of Defence. Stato Maggiore Esercito. Ufficio Storico. L’8° Armata Italiana nella seconda battaglia difensiva del Don. Roma, 1977 (Italian)
- Italian Ministry of Defence. Stato Maggiore Esercito. Ufficio Storico. L’Italia nella relazione ufficiale sovietica sulla seconda guerra mondiale. Roma, 1978 (Italian)
Recommended readings
- Revelli, NNuto RevelliNuto Revelli was an Italian essayist.-Life:Revelli was a freshly commissioned second lieutenant when, on 21 July 1942, he left Italy on one of the two hundred troop trains sent to the Eastern Front by Mussolini in an attempt to ensure that fascist Italy would share in what, at the time, with the...
. La strada del davai. Turin, 1966 (Italian) - Valori, A. La campagna di Russia, CSIR, ARMIR 1941–43. Roma, 1951 (Italian)
External links
- Corpo di Spedizione Italiano in Russia (CSIR) (Italian Expeditionary Corps in Russia), by Shawn Bohannon.
- Armata Italiana in Russia (ARMIR) (Italian Army in Russia), by Shawn Bohannon.