The Battle of Asiago (Battle of the Plateaux) or the Südtirol Offensive (in Italian: Battaglia degli Altipiani), nicknamed ''Strafexpedition'' ("
Punitive expedition
A punitive expedition is a military journey undertaken to punish a political entity or any group of people outside the borders of the punishing state or union. It is usually undertaken in response to perceived disobedient or morally wrong beha ...
") by the Italians, was a major counteroffensive launched by the
Austro-Hungarians
Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1 ...
on the territory of
Vicentine Alps
The Vicentine Alps ( it, Prealpi Vicentine; german: Vizentiner Alpen, ''Vicentiner Alpen'' or ''Vizentiner Voralpen'') are a mountain range of the Eastern Alps in Trentino and the provinces of Verona and Vicenza. The mountains were named after ...
in the
Italian Front on 15 May 1916, during
World War I. It was an unexpected attack that took place near
Asiago
Asiago (; Venetian: ''Axiago'', Cimbrian: ''Slege'', German: ''Schlägen'' ) is a minor township (population roughly 6,500) in the surrounding plateau region (the ''Altopiano di Asiago'' or '' Altopiano dei Sette Comuni'', Asiago plateau) in ...
in the province of
Vicenza (now in northeast
Italy, then on the Italian side of the border between the
Kingdom of Italy and
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1 ...
) after the
Fifth Battle of the Isonzo
The Fifth Battle of the Isonzo was fought from March 9–15, 1916 between the armies of the Kingdom of Italy and those of Austria-Hungary. The Italians had decided to launch another offensive on the Soča (Isonzo) River.
Background
After four ...
(March 1916).
Commemorating this battle and the soldiers killed in
World War I is the
Asiago War Memorial
The Asiago War Memorial is a World War I memorial located in the town of Asiago in the Province of Vicenza in the Veneto region of northeast Italy. Surrounded by mountains that were the site of several World War I battles, the monument houses th ...
.
Background
Already for some time the Austro-Hungarian commander-in-chief, General
Conrad von Hötzendorf
Conrad may refer to:
People
* Conrad (name)
Places
United States
* Conrad, Illinois, an unincorporated community
* Conrad, Indiana, an unincorporated community
* Conrad, Iowa, a city
* Conrad, Montana, a city
* Conrad Glacier, Washingto ...
, had been proposing the idea of a ''Strafexpedition'' that would lethally cripple Italy, Austria-Hungary's ex-ally, claimed to be guilty of betraying the
Triple Alliance, and in previous years he had had the frontier studied in order to formulate studies with regard to a possible invasion.
The problem had appeared to be serious, mostly because the frontier ran through high mountains and the limited Italian advances of 1915 had worsened the situation and excluded a great advance beyond the valleys of
Valsugana
The Valsugana ( it, Valsugana, german: Suganertal) or Sugana Valley is one of the most important valleys in the autonomous province of Trentino in Northern Italy. Leading into the Alps' foothills, an important main north-south Roman road, the Vi ...
and Val Lagarina (both connected by railway) and the plateaus of
Lavarone
Lavarone ( Cimbrian: ''Lavròu''; in local dialect ''Lavarón'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in Trentino in the northern Italian region Trentino-Südtirol Tyrol–South Tyrol–Trentino Euroregion, located about southeast of Trento. As of 31 ...
,
Folgaria
Folgaria ( Cimbrian: ''Folgrait'', from the Latin ''filicaria'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in Trentino in the northern Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about southeast of Trento. As of 31 December 2013, it had a populatio ...
and
Asiago
Asiago (; Venetian: ''Axiago'', Cimbrian: ''Slege'', German: ''Schlägen'' ) is a minor township (population roughly 6,500) in the surrounding plateau region (the ''Altopiano di Asiago'' or '' Altopiano dei Sette Comuni'', Asiago plateau) in ...
.
The geographic location of the routes of advance was conducive to the original plan which called for an advance from
Trent to
Venice, isolating the Italian 2nd and 3rd Armies who were fighting on the
Isonzo and the Italian 4th Army who was defending the
Belluno
Belluno (; lld, Belum; vec, Belùn) is a town and province in the Veneto region of northern Italy. Located about north of Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the ...
region and the eastern
Trentino.
The preparations for the battle began in December 1915, when
Conrad von Hötzendorf
Conrad may refer to:
People
* Conrad (name)
Places
United States
* Conrad, Illinois, an unincorporated community
* Conrad, Indiana, an unincorporated community
* Conrad, Iowa, a city
* Conrad, Montana, a city
* Conrad Glacier, Washingto ...
proposed to his German counterpart, General
Erich von Falkenhayn
General Erich Georg Sebastian Anton von Falkenhayn (11 September 1861 – 8 April 1922) was the second Chief of the German General Staff of the First World War from September 1914 until 29 August 1916. He was removed on 29 August 1916 after ...
, shifting divisions from the
Eastern Front in
Galicia to the Tyrol, substituting them with German divisions.
His request was denied because Germany was not yet at war with Italy (which would declare war on Germany three months later), and because redeploying German units on the Italian Front would have diminished German offensive capability against Russia, as well as against France in the anticipated offensive in Verdun.
After having received a negative reply from the Germans, who refused the proposed replacement and actively tried to discourage the Austro-Hungarian proposed attack,
Conrad von Hötzendorf
Conrad may refer to:
People
* Conrad (name)
Places
United States
* Conrad, Illinois, an unincorporated community
* Conrad, Indiana, an unincorporated community
* Conrad, Iowa, a city
* Conrad, Montana, a city
* Conrad Glacier, Washingto ...
decided to operate autonomously.
The
11th Austro-Hungarian Army, under the command of Count
Viktor Dankl
Viktor Julius Ignaz Ferdinand Graf Dankl von Kraśnik (Born as Viktor Dankl; 18 September 18548 January 1941) was a highly decorated Austro-Hungarian officer who reached the pinnacle of his service during World War I with promotion to the rare ra ...
, would carry out the offensive followed by the
3rd Army under
Hermann Kövess. It was not so easy, however, because the Italians had deployed in the area about 250,000 well-entrenched troops (General Brusati's First Army and part of the Fourth Army).
Italian intelligence had been gathering information about an impending enemy offensive in Trentino — and a big one — for about a month, but Cadorna dismissed those reports, persuaded as he was that nothing could happen in that region.
Battle
On 15 May 1916, 2,000 Austro-Hungarian artillery guns opened a heavy barrage against the Italian lines, setting Trentino afire. The Austro-Hungarian infantry attacked along a front. The Italian wings stood their ground, but the center yielded, and the Austro-Hungarians broke through, threatening to reach the beginning of the Venetian plain.
The offensive overwhelmed the undermanned and disorganized
First Army, and with
Vicenza about away, all the Italian forces on the Isonzo would face outflanking.
Cadorna hastily sent reinforcements to the
First Army, and deployed the newly formed
Fifth Army under
Pietro Frugoni to engage the enemy in case they succeeded in entering the plain. The situation was critical, but the commitment of reserves and the replacement of several Italian commanders who were judged unfit gradually improved the situation.
On 20 May, Austro-Hungarian troops advanced onto the Asiago plateau, and by May 28th Asiago had fallen. The Austrians, however, were exhausted, low on munitions, and had weak supply lines, and by the end of May had failed to break out into the lowlands.
The new Italian defensive line on Mounts
Pasubio,
Novegno,
Zugna, Buole Pass and Astico Valley held and repelled repeated Austro-Hungarian attacks; on 2 June, Italian troops started their counteroffensive, slowly regaining ground.
Furthermore, on 4 June, the Russians
unexpectedly took the initiative in
Galicia, where they managed to enter Austrian soil. Although they were effectively countered by German and Austro-Hungarian troops, Hötzendorf was forced quickly to withdraw half of his divisions from Trentino. With that, the ''Strafexpedition'' could no longer be sustained and the Austro-Hungarians retired from many of their positions. Italian troops in the region were increased to 400,000 to counter the Austro-Hungarian positions.
Although the ''Strafexpedition'' had been checked, it had political consequences in Italy: the
Salandra Cabinet fell, and
Paolo Boselli
Paolo Boselli (8 June 1838 – 10 March 1932) was an Italian politician who served as the 34th prime minister of Italy during World War I.
Biography
Boselli was born in Savona, Liguria.
Boselli was the first professor of science at the Uni ...
became the new Prime Minister.
Bibliography
*Enrico Acerbi, ''Strafexpedition'', Gino Rossato Editore, 1992
* Gerhard Artl: ''Die "Strafexpedition": Österreich-Ungarns Südtiroloffensive 1916''. Verlag A. Weger, Brixen 2015, .
* Fritz Weber: ''Alpenkrieg''. Artur Kollitsch Verlag, Klagenfurt 1939.
* Walter Schaumann: ''Dall'Ortles all'Adriatico Immagini del fronte italo-austriaco 1915–1918''. Wien 1993.
* ''L'esercito italiano nella grande guerra LEINGG (1915–1918)'' Volume I – IV /Ministero della Guerra – Ufficio Storico, Roma 1929–1974.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Battle Of Asiago
Asiago
Asiago (; Venetian: ''Axiago'', Cimbrian: ''Slege'', German: ''Schlägen'' ) is a minor township (population roughly 6,500) in the surrounding plateau region (the ''Altopiano di Asiago'' or '' Altopiano dei Sette Comuni'', Asiago plateau) in ...
Asiago
Asiago (; Venetian: ''Axiago'', Cimbrian: ''Slege'', German: ''Schlägen'' ) is a minor township (population roughly 6,500) in the surrounding plateau region (the ''Altopiano di Asiago'' or '' Altopiano dei Sette Comuni'', Asiago plateau) in ...
Asiago
Asiago (; Venetian: ''Axiago'', Cimbrian: ''Slege'', German: ''Schlägen'' ) is a minor township (population roughly 6,500) in the surrounding plateau region (the ''Altopiano di Asiago'' or '' Altopiano dei Sette Comuni'', Asiago plateau) in ...
Asiago
Asiago (; Venetian: ''Axiago'', Cimbrian: ''Slege'', German: ''Schlägen'' ) is a minor township (population roughly 6,500) in the surrounding plateau region (the ''Altopiano di Asiago'' or '' Altopiano dei Sette Comuni'', Asiago plateau) in ...
Asiago
Asiago (; Venetian: ''Axiago'', Cimbrian: ''Slege'', German: ''Schlägen'' ) is a minor township (population roughly 6,500) in the surrounding plateau region (the ''Altopiano di Asiago'' or '' Altopiano dei Sette Comuni'', Asiago plateau) in ...
Asiago
Asiago (; Venetian: ''Axiago'', Cimbrian: ''Slege'', German: ''Schlägen'' ) is a minor township (population roughly 6,500) in the surrounding plateau region (the ''Altopiano di Asiago'' or '' Altopiano dei Sette Comuni'', Asiago plateau) in ...
1916 in Italy
1916 in Austria-Hungary
May 1916 events
June 1916 events