Review of 'British Forces in Italy 1917-1918' by Dale Hjort (September 2017)

In October 1918, the Italian Army suffered a severe defeat at the hands of a combined German and Austro-Hungarian Army at Caporetto. British forces had been involved with the Italian Army since the spring of 1917 and two heavy Artillery Groups, which had been deployed with the Italians, had been forced to retreat with them.

An immediate appeal to the British and French governments for help had produced the offer of six French divisions and five divisions from the BEF (10% of Haig’s force while the Battle of Ypres was still being fought). These had to be transported to Italy, the divisions travelling by train along the Mediterranean coast and arriving in brilliant sunshine. The Italian defences had stabilized along the Piave River which became the front line for 41st Division. Plumer and XI Corps returned to Flanders in Match 1918 leaving Cavan as GOC XIV Corps with 7, 23 & 48 Divisions which moved to the Asiago plateau, an oval bowl between mountain ranges 5,000 feet high, the last step down from the Alps before the Venetian plane.

There were several new features to take into account, wire had to be strung 12 feet above the ground due to heavy snowfall, snow blindness had to counteracted by wearing coloured lens and the BEF could not use their 3 ton lorries, instead everything had to be transported by mules as horses could not cope with the conditions. The Italian engineers had erected overhead cable-ways where possible and offered over 300 Fiat 30cwt trucks for casualty evacuation. Two divisions operated in the line with an Italian Division on their left and a French Division on their right. The reserve division was 5 hours climb behind and below the plateau. 

The troops soon fell into a normal routine, nightly raids establishing picquets from which to patrol No Man’s Land. Only 5000 yards separated the front line from the edge of the escarpment which resulted in heavy work in limestone and pine forests building redoubts and Switch trenches so as to create ‘Defence in Depth’.

In the early summer, information from Czech prisoners implied that the Austrians were planning a major offensive. XIV Corps ordered postponement of a local offensive in preparation for 18 June – ammunition dumps were reinforced; field guns were re-arranged and the wire thickened. Twelve hours later at 3am on 15 June a three-hour bombardment from the Austrian artillery hit the British Sector. When the infantry attack came, it was 23 and 48 Divisions who took the brunt of the action. 11 Sherwood Foresters were holding their line when the Austrian troops fought their way into the trench. An attempt by Captain Edward Brittain MC to retake the trench resulted in his death (Edward was the sister of Vera Brittain) but the CO, Lt-Colonel Hudson, led his HQ staff in a counterattack (during which he suffered serious injuries) and retook the trench. Hudson was awarded the VC for this action.

At Handley Cross crossroads, the ammunition dump, set up for the British attack, was hit by an Austrian shell, blew up and burned for over 24 hours preventing troop movements between 23 and 48 divisions. As the dump was the responsibility of 48 Division, its commander Maj-General Fanshawe was sacked after the battle. Not all battalions coped as well as others.5Warwicks held off attacks but 5 Gloucesters (under strength due to ‘flu) struggled. Stormtroopers with flame throwers set fire to the woods and the combination of smoke and mist made command and control of the British defence very difficult. As the Austrian troops reached the British supply depots, they were tempted by the quantity and variety of the rations. This led to looting and reduced the forward advance. Eventually, on the following day, Lt-Colonel Knox (7 Warwicks, Brigade Reserve) organized counterattacks and recovered the original front line. Meanwhile the RAF had been in action, Sopwith Camels were involved in bombing and strafing the Austrian reserve area making movement of men and materials very difficult.

Eventually Austrian attacks dwindled to another stalemate. Instead of attacking in force, XIV Corps limited its action to raiding the Austrian lines to destroy morale. In September, nine battalions were transferred back to the Western Front with further transfers planned when the new Italian C-in-C Diaz launched a long-delayed offensive across the Piave. 7 and 23 Divisions were transferred from the Asiago plateau to the Piave, and prepared to take Papadopoli island.

The crossing of the West fork and the attack on the Austrian defences on the island were planned and led by Lt-Colonel Richard O’Connor (CO of 2nd Honourable Artillery Company) While O’Connor’s forces were fighting for possession of the island, Italian engineers erected bridges to carry the troops across the river. Snow melt in the Piave started to damage the bridges and the attack was postponed until it was repaired. A combination of mist and an attack by Sopwith Camels on the Austrian Observation balloons resulted in four brigades being able to cross to Papadopoli unopposed. All did not go well, the main offensive opened under a predicted fire barrage on the East bank but the infantry fording the East fork to storm the East bank took heavy casualties. 

Further upstream the Italian 8th Army attack failed which resulted in 23rd Division having an open left flank. Diaz allocated more troops to Cavan’s Corps and eventually the number of troops available and the movement of Field Artillery resulted in an Austrian withdrawal. 7 and 23 Divisions had to keep in contact with the enemy so as to prevent the Austrians regrouping on a defensive line on the Tagliamento river. The British troops were now advancing without maps and out-running their supply lines. This was solved by the RAF dropping ammunition, clothes and sandbags of rations by parachute as the British forced the Austrians back. The advanced parties crossed the Tagliamento at 3pm on November 4th as the Armistice was announced.

Meanwhile (1 Nov) on the Asiago plateau 48th Division sent out patrols into Asiago town and found it deserted. If the Austrian army was retreating to the defence line of the Winterstellung, British troops had to move quickly to interfere with the plans. On the night of 1 / 2 November, 145 Brigade broke through the Winterstellung to ensure entry into the Val d’Assa mountain road. 7 Warwicks led 143 Brigade onto the Val d’Assa road and reached the old pre-peace settlement line at Osteria all’Antico Termine. Not to be denied the opportunity of chasing a beaten army, the brigade advanced 40 miles in 3 days through the mountains, taking 22,000 prisoners before the 4 November Armistice. The casualties for this final push was around 2,000, a number which included 480 victims of the ‘flu.

Report by Peter Palmer