Campaign
3 total works
In the wake of Italy's rapid annexation of Albania in April 1940, Mussolini's decision to attack Greece in October that year is widely acknowledged as a fatal mistake, leading to a domestic crisis and to the collapse of Italy's reputation as a military power (re-emphasized by the Italian defeat in North Africa in December 1940). The Italian assault on Greece came to a stalemate in less than a fortnight, and was followed a week later by a Greek counter-offensive that broke through the Italian defences before advancing into Albania, forcing the Italian forces to withdraw north before grinding to a half in January 1941 due to logistical issues. Eventually, the Italians took advantage of this brief hiatus to reorganize and prepare a counteroffensive, the failure of which marked the end of the first stage of the Axis Balkan campaign.
The first of two volumes examining the Axis campaigns in the Balkans, this book offers a detailed overview of the Italian and Greek armies, their fighting power, and the terrain in which they fought. Complimented by rarely seen images and full colour illustrations, it shows how expectations of an easy Italian victory quickly turned into one of Mussolini's greatest blunders.
The first of two volumes examining the Axis campaigns in the Balkans, this book offers a detailed overview of the Italian and Greek armies, their fighting power, and the terrain in which they fought. Complimented by rarely seen images and full colour illustrations, it shows how expectations of an easy Italian victory quickly turned into one of Mussolini's greatest blunders.
The Wehrmacht's last Blitzkrieg campaign was indeed a lightning war, since German forces were required to seize both Yugoslavia and Greece before redeploying immediately to the East ready to attack the Soviet Union in a matter of weeks. Although the plans for the conquest of Yugoslavia were developed in haste, the campaign was extremely successful: in a short space of time, both Yugoslavia and Greece had fallen, accompanied by the capture of large numbers of British, Australian and New Zealand troops. The 1941 Balkan campaign was an apparently brilliant military accomplishment that demonstrated once again the superiority of the Wehrmacht, and its cutting-edge campaigning skills.
This superbly detailed work details the opposing forces that took part in this campaign, documents their weapons and analyzes the effectiveness of their tactics. It explores the initial Axis campaign against Yugoslavia, the breakthrough of the Metaxas Line and advance into Macedonia and the withdrawal of Allied troops south. Detailed battlescenes depict key moments in the land, sea and air battles that took place in the Balkans, vividly bringing to life events of almost 80 years ago.
This superbly detailed work details the opposing forces that took part in this campaign, documents their weapons and analyzes the effectiveness of their tactics. It explores the initial Axis campaign against Yugoslavia, the breakthrough of the Metaxas Line and advance into Macedonia and the withdrawal of Allied troops south. Detailed battlescenes depict key moments in the land, sea and air battles that took place in the Balkans, vividly bringing to life events of almost 80 years ago.
Enjoy a detailed examination of Operation Olive as US, British, Commonwealth and Allied forces seek to smash through the last German defensive line in Italy.
The Italian Theatre post-summer 1944 was not, as was often surmised at the time, populated with "D-Day-dodging" soldiers killing time in a quiet sector. The true nature of the hard fighting that took place is exemplified perfectly by the Allied assault on the Gothic Line defences (Operation Olive).
Covering the dual Allied offensive spearheaded by American and British units, Italian military historian Pier Paolo Battistelli explores the overall strategic aims for both Hitler and the Allies, before guiding you through the progress of the phased battles in unrivalled detail, notably in the expertly researched and highly original maps and 3D diagrams. The level of detail helps explain why the various Allied troops on the ground struggled so hard to overcome the German and Italian Fascist forces dug in on the line.
The photographs and specially commissioned artworks reveal the fascinating array of units involved on both sides – Indian Army troops, Buffalo soldiers, Brazilians, Poles, New Zealanders, Brits, Mountain Infantry, Canadians, Panzergrenadiers, Fallschirmjägers. Special attention is given to the segregated US 92nd Division – the only African-American infantry division to see combat in Europe during World War II.
The Italian Theatre post-summer 1944 was not, as was often surmised at the time, populated with "D-Day-dodging" soldiers killing time in a quiet sector. The true nature of the hard fighting that took place is exemplified perfectly by the Allied assault on the Gothic Line defences (Operation Olive).
Covering the dual Allied offensive spearheaded by American and British units, Italian military historian Pier Paolo Battistelli explores the overall strategic aims for both Hitler and the Allies, before guiding you through the progress of the phased battles in unrivalled detail, notably in the expertly researched and highly original maps and 3D diagrams. The level of detail helps explain why the various Allied troops on the ground struggled so hard to overcome the German and Italian Fascist forces dug in on the line.
The photographs and specially commissioned artworks reveal the fascinating array of units involved on both sides – Indian Army troops, Buffalo soldiers, Brazilians, Poles, New Zealanders, Brits, Mountain Infantry, Canadians, Panzergrenadiers, Fallschirmjägers. Special attention is given to the segregated US 92nd Division – the only African-American infantry division to see combat in Europe during World War II.