Much of history considers the Italian military of WWII to be very much a second-rate fighting force. I know that much of what I grew up reading treated the Italian Army as being good for little more than back-water theaters of operation. Like most generalities, it is not entirely true and yet, there is some truth to the commentaries. The world is not black and white but an infinite variety of shades of grey and it is when we think in absolutes that we run the risk of not fully understanding things and situations.

So it is with the Italians in North Africa during WWII. Few take the time to realize that in the 1930s, the Italian military was basically quite small, with the Army being geared towards being a colonial army. This basically means they were trained to take care of minor skirmishes with local insurgents and not a major European power. When Mussolini came into power, though he made efforts to enlarge and modernize the Italian Military, it was still not enough.

Italian weapons were adequate, but did not keep up with what was being produced by others. Often their weapons were either of insufficient power or were complex and somewhat unreliable. The same can be said for the training that Italian soldiers received. This was insufficient, somewhat outdated, and not up to the standards of other European nations like the UK or Germany. Then there was a huge rift between the officers and other soldiers. Officers generally felt they were privileged and rarely considered their troops to be more than simple pawns that were expendable and quickly replaced. They were often more interested in their own status than in the effectiveness of the troops under their command. This was rife up and down the chain of command. Of course, there were exceptions and there were well run units, but many Italian divisions and regiments had poor training, inadequate weapons and poor morale. All of this was exacerbated by poor mail service, inadequate food and water, severe lack of motor transport, and the knowledge that unless they were badly wounded, they were in action until killed or captured.

Having said all this, some units were well led, had good equipment and high morale. These units performed as well as any they opposed and often better than some. But they were the exceptions rather than the rule.

In this book, the authors take a look at the build up of the Italian Army, the way men were recruited (or snagged for military service), they way they were trained, how they felt about being in the Army and the sorts of weapons and uniforms they wore. Also as a standard part of this series, we see what it was like to be on campaign, how they got along with each other and how well they fought. Several battles are chosen to show how well these units fought as well as what the results of their efforts were.

In all, it makes for a very interesting read about a subject that few enthusiasts truly consider and I'm sure it will change a few impressions during the course of the book. A book I can easily recommend to you. 

January 2014

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