Defeat at Caporetto Flashcards
What did the Austrian army launch in 1916?
In 1916, the Austrian army launched the Strafexpedition
What is a Strafexpedition?
A Strafexpedition is a major offensive in the Trentine salient
Why did they launch the Strafexpedition?
They launched it in order to open a path that would allow it to attack Verona and Bologna
What impact did the Strafexpedition have on the Italian army?
Although the Italian army was able to regroup and halt the Austrian attack, it had a severe impact on the army and public morale
Who was Antonio Salandra criticised by? What Salandra do?
Antonio Salandra was criticised by both military command and parliament and was forced to resign
Who was Antonio Salandra replaced by?
Antonio Salandra was replaced by 78-year-old Paolo Boselli
What impact did Paolo Boselli have on the Italian army?
He had no impact on the Italian army as Italy’s military efforts hardly improved
How did the situation reach its lowest point? On what date?
The situation reached its lowest point with Italy’s humiliating defeat by the Austro-Hungarian forced at the Battle of Caporetto in October 1917
Where did the battle take place? On what date? Why?
The battle took place around the town of Caporetto on 24th October 1917, Austrian forced attacked the Italian front line
What saw the Italian army dissolve in the face of the Austrian forced?
Poor leadership and low morale saw the Italian army dissolve in the face of Austrian forces
What took place?
A humiliating and chaotic retreat took place
What had been an initial victory for the Austrians turned quickly…
into a rout as Italian soldiers streamed down the mountains, many without weapons
[Retreat] What had there been reports of?
There had been reports of looting, violence between Italian troops and celebrations by some troops who thought the war was now over
[Retreat] How many soldiers lost contact with their regiments?
Over 200K soldiers lost contact with their regiments
[Retreat] What was lost?
Large quantities of military arms were lost as was the majority of the Veneto region
What were the actions of the Italian troops described as? How did this contrast with 2 months before?
The actions of Italian troops in the face of the Austrian offense was an embarrassment to the Italian leadership, who only 2 months before had been claiming that the war had finally brought about patriotic unity in Italy
What did one Italian senator do? Why? What was his name?
One Italian senator, Leopoldo Franchetti, was so overwhelmed by the nature of defeat that he committed suicide
How many Italians were killed?
10K Italians were killed
How many were wounded?
30K Italians were wounded
How many were taken prisoner?
300K Italians were taken prisoner
How many vanished? Where did they go (in most cases)?
400K vanished, in most cases using the chaos to head back to their homes in Italy
What did the defeat reveal?
The defeat revealed the poor state of the army
What did the defeat prompt?
The defeat prompted some significant anger and debate within Italy
What had the original Austrian victory been? What was it now?
While the original Austrian victory had been due to tactical reasons, the nature of the retreat afterwards was accentuated by poor morale
