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Operation Achse (german: Fall Achse, lit=Case Axis), originally called Operation Alaric (), was the codename for the
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
operation to forcibly
disarm "Disarm" is a song by American alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins. It was the third single from their second album, ''Siamese Dream'' (1993), and became a top-20 hit in Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom despite being banned in ...
the
Italian armed forces The Italian Armed Forces ( it, Forze armate italiane, ) encompass the Italian Army, the Italian Navy and the Italian Air Force. A fourth branch of the armed forces, known as the Carabinieri, take on the role as the nation's military police and a ...
after
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
's
armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the ...
with the
Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
on 3 September 1943. Several German divisions had entered Italy after the fall of
Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in ...
in July 1943, while Italy was officially still an ally of Germany, despite the protests of the new Italian government under
Pietro Badoglio Pietro Badoglio, 1st Duke of Addis Abeba, 1st Marquess of Sabotino (, ; 28 September 1871 – 1 November 1956), was an Italian general during both World Wars and the first viceroy of Italian East Africa. With the fall of the Fascist regime ...
. The armistice was made public on 8 September. German forces moved rapidly to take over the Italian zones of occupation in the
Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
and
southern France Southern France, also known as the South of France or colloquially in French as , is a defined geographical area consisting of the regions of France that border the Atlantic Ocean south of the Marais Poitevin,Louis Papy, ''Le midi atlantique'', A ...
, and to disarm Italian forces in Italy. Some Italian troops, with no orders from superiors, and hampered by many desertions, resisted the Germans. Most notably on the Greek island of
Cephalonia Kefalonia or Cephalonia ( el, Κεφαλονιά), formerly also known as Kefallinia or Kephallenia (), is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece and the 6th largest island in Greece after Crete, Euboea, Lesbos, Rhodes and Chios. It ...
, where 1,315 Italian soldiers were killed in action against the Germans and over 5,100 prisoners of war of the
33rd Infantry Division "Acqui" The 33rd Infantry Division "Acqui" ( it, 33ª Divisione di fanteria "Acqui") was an infantry Division (military), division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Acqui was classified as a mountain infantry division, which meant that ...
were
summarily executed A summary execution is an execution in which a person is accused of a crime and immediately killed without the benefit of a full and fair trial. Executions as the result of summary justice (such as a drumhead court-martial) are sometimes include ...
by the
German Army The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...
after running out of ammunition and surrendering. In Rome, with the
royal family A royal family is the immediate family of kings/queens, emirs/emiras, sultans/ sultanas, or raja/ rani and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term pa ...
and the government having fled, a disorganized defense by Italian troops of the capital was unable to defeat a German attack. Additionally, individual soldiers or whole units, like the 24th Infantry Division "Pinerolo" in
Thessaly Thessaly ( el, Θεσσαλία, translit=Thessalía, ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thes ...
, went over to the local resistance movements. Only in
Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label= Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, aft ...
,
Corsica Corsica ( , Upper , Southern ; it, Corsica; ; french: Corse ; lij, Còrsega; sc, Còssiga) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of ...
,
Calabria , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...
and in the southern part of
Apulia it, Pugliese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographic ...
were Italian troops able to offer successful resistance and hold off the Germans until relieved by the arrival of the Allies.


German plan

The first German combat units were sent to Italy to bolster its defenses against a probable Allied attack on Italian soil. Germany and Italy were still allies. The decision to create German units in Italy was made during the final phase of the
Tunisian campaign The Tunisian campaign (also known as the Battle of Tunisia) was a series of battles that took place in Tunisia during the North African campaign of the Second World War, between Axis and Allied forces from 17 November 1942 to 13 May 1943. Th ...
; on 9 May 1943, two days after the fall of Tunis to the Allies, the German High Command ( OKW) informed the Italian Supreme Command (''
Comando Supremo ''Comando Supremo'' (High Command) was the highest command echelon of the Italian armed forces between June 1941 and May 1945. Its predecessor, the ''Stato Maggiore Generale'' (Supreme General Staff), was a purely advisory body with no direct cont ...
'') that three new German units would be formed, mostly employing second-line German units evacuated from
North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...
. They would be the Sardinia Command (later 90th Light Infantry Division), the Sicily Command (later 15th Infantry Division), and a "ready reserve".
Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and the ...
wrote to a dubious
Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in ...
that since they were weak units that needed reinforcements, two additional German divisions would be sent from France. The
1st Fallschirm-Panzer Division Hermann Göring The Fallschirm-Panzer-Division 1. ''Hermann Göring'' (1st Paratroop Panzer Division ''Hermann Göring'' - abbreviated Fallschirm-Panzer-Div 1 ''HG'') was a German Luftwaffe armoured division. The ''HG'' saw action in France, North Africa, Sic ...
arrived mid-May 1943 and was sent to Sicily, and the 16th Panzer Division arrived in early June and was sent west of
Bari Bari ( , ; nap, label= Barese, Bare ; lat, Barium) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, southern Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Ital ...
. On 19 May also, the headquarters of general Hans Hube's
XIV Panzer Corps XIV Panzer Corps (also: XIV Army Corps or XIV. ''Armeekorps'') was a corps-level formation of the German Army which fought on both the Eastern Front and in the Italian Campaign. History The XIV Panzer Corps was originally formed as the XIV Mot ...
was also sent from France to strengthen the command structure of the Commander-in-Chief South (''Oberbefehlshaber Süd''),
Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...
Albert Kesselring Albert Kesselring (30 November 1885 – 16 July 1960) was a German '' Generalfeldmarschall'' of the Luftwaffe during World War II who was subsequently convicted of war crimes. In a military career that spanned both world wars, Kesselring beca ...
. On 20 May 1943, during a prolonged discussion at his headquarters, Hitler expressed his doubts about the political stability of the Fascist government and the danger of a collapse of his Italian ally. A report by the German diplomat
Konstantin von Neurath Konstantin Hermann Karl Freiherr von Neurath (2 February 1873 – 14 August 1956) was a German diplomat and Nazi war criminal who served as Foreign Minister of Germany between 1932 and 1938. Born to a Swabian noble family, Neurath began his di ...
found declining morale among the Italian population and pro-British sentiment spreading through the professional classes and the military. Hitler was convinced that the situation in the Mediterranean needed great attention, and a detailed plan had to be prepared for a collapse of Italy or an overthrow of Mussolini. More reports about a speech delivered by the Italian diplomat
Giuseppe Bastianini Giuseppe Bastianini (8 March 1899 – 17 December 1961) was an Italian politician and diplomat. Initially associated with the hard-line elements of the fascist movements he later became a member of the dissident tendency. Early years Bastianini ...
, information from
Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was of the (Protection Squadron; SS), and a leading member of the Nazi Party of Germany. Himmler was one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany and a main architect of th ...
's men in Italy and the presence in Sicily of General
Mario Roatta Mario Roatta (2 February 1887 – 7 January 1968) was an Italian general. After serving in World War I he rose to command the Corpo Truppe Volontarie which assisted Francisco Franco's force during the Spanish Civil War. He was the Deputy Chief o ...
, who was considered untrustworthy, strengthened Hitler's suspicions. On 21 May, Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, the head of the OKW, issued guidelines developed to respond to the possible defection of Italy from the Axis. The plan envisioned a series of operations in different theaters: Operation Alarich, the invasion of the Italian mainland; Operation Konstantin, the neutralization of the Italian forces in the
Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
; Operation Siegfried, occupation of the Italian-occupied areas in
Southern France Southern France, also known as the South of France or colloquially in French as , is a defined geographical area consisting of the regions of France that border the Atlantic Ocean south of the Marais Poitevin,Louis Papy, ''Le midi atlantique'', A ...
; Operation Nürnberg, to guard the
France–Spain border The France–Spain border (; ) was formally defined in 1659. It separates the two countries from Hendaye and Irun in the west, running through the Pyrenees to Cerbère and Portbou on the Mediterranean Sea. Features Main border The Franco-Sp ...
; Operation Kopenhagen, to control the passes on the France–Italy border. Meanwhile, German reserves kept being redeployed to face potential threats in the Mediterranean theater. Hitler, seriously worried about the Balkans and in conflict with the Italian leadership and Mussolini himself because of collaboration agreements between the Italian and local partisan forces, decided to send the 1st Panzer Division to the
Peloponnese The Peloponnese (), Peloponnesus (; el, Πελοπόννησος, Pelopónnēsos,(), or Morea is a peninsula and geographic region in southern Greece. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmus of Corinth land bridge which ...
and even considered sending to Italy his three elite
Waffen-SS The (, "Armed SS") was the combat branch of the Nazi Party's ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscripts from both occup ...
armored divisions, then deployed on the Eastern Front for
Operation Citadel Operation Citadel (german: Unternehmen Zitadelle) was a German offensive operation in July 1943 against Soviet forces in the Kursk salient, proposed by Generalfeldmarschall Fritz Erich Georg Eduard von Manstein during the Second World War on ...
. On 17 June Mussolini, after a partial refusal, urgently asked for two German armoured divisions, as a reinforcement to confront the powerful Allied forces. After more arguments caused by another change of mind by Mussolini and by a proposal by General
Vittorio Ambrosio Vittorio Ambrosio (28 July 1879 – 19 November 1958) was an Italian general who served in the Italo-Turkish War, World War I, and World War II. During the last phase of World War II Ambrosio supported the fall of Benito Mussolini and Italy's ...
, the
Chief of Staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...
of the Italian armed forces, to turn down German reinforcements and to move to Italy the Italian troops deployed in France and the Balkans, the ever-deteriorating situation (during Operation Corkscrew, Pantelleria had surrendered without resistance on 11 June) induced Hitler to send three more German divisions: the 3rd Panzergrenadier Division, the 29th Panzergrenadier Division (both newly reconstituted in France after their destruction at
Stalingrad Volgograd ( rus, Волгогра́д, a=ru-Volgograd.ogg, p=vəɫɡɐˈɡrat), formerly Tsaritsyn (russian: Цари́цын, Tsarítsyn, label=none; ) (1589–1925), and Stalingrad (russian: Сталингра́д, Stalingrád, label=none; ) ...
), and the 26th Panzer Division. The last of them was deployed at
Salerno Salerno (, , ; nap, label= Salernitano, Saliernë, ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' in Campania (southwestern Italy) and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after ...
on 9 July. The 29th Panzergrenadier Division was sent to
Foggia Foggia (, , ; nap, label= Foggiano, Fògge ) is a city and former ''comune'' of Apulia, in Southern Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. In 2013, its population was 153,143. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere, also known ...
in mid-June and the 3rd Panzergrenadier Division was deployed north of Rome in the first days of July. Meanwhile, on 24 June, the ''Reichsführer-SS'' Brigade had been moved to Corsica, and in mid-July, the command of the 76th Panzerkorps (General Traugott Herr) also arrived.


Transfer of German forces to Italy


From the invasion of Sicily to the fall of Fascism

The
Allied invasion of Sicily The Allied invasion of Sicily, also known as Operation Husky, was a major campaign of World War II in which the Allied forces invaded the island of Sicily in July 1943 and took it from the Axis powers ( Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany). It b ...
began on 10 July 1943, and established solid beachheads, despite Italian and German counterattacks. The political and military leaders of the two countries reacted immediately to the worsening situation. In Rome, Ambrosio urged unrealistic demands for help from Germany on Mussolini. Among the German commanders in Italy, Eberhard von Mackensen and Albert Kesselring became increasingly skeptical about Italian defense capabilities, and asked for reinforcements. Hitler, more and more worried about an Italian collapse, decided to send the 1st Fallschirmjäger-Division to Sicily immediately, and then sent the headquarters of
XIV Panzer Corps XIV Panzer Corps (also: XIV Army Corps or XIV. ''Armeekorps'') was a corps-level formation of the German Army which fought on both the Eastern Front and in the Italian Campaign. History The XIV Panzer Corps was originally formed as the XIV Mot ...
(under General Hube) and the 29th Panzergrenadier Division, ready for deployment, to
Reggio Calabria Reggio di Calabria ( scn, label= Southern Calabrian, Riggiu; el, label= Calabrian Greek, Ρήγι, Rìji), usually referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria. It has an estimated popul ...
. On 17 July, Hitler decided to meet with Mussolini and his collaborators, and assess their resolve to continue the war. The meeting was near
Feltre Feltre ( vec, Fèltre) is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Belluno in Veneto, northern Italy. A hill town in the southern reaches of the province, it is located on the Stizzon River, about from its junction with the Piave, and southwes ...
on 19 July 1943. On the same day, Rome was attacked by over 500 Allied bombers, which accelerated maneuvers by monarchists, high military officers, and even part of the Fascist leadership, more and more concerned with finding a way out of the war. The Feltre meeting accomplished little. Despite pleas by Ambrosio to present Italy's critical situation clearly and to ask for freedom of action to withdraw from the war, Mussolini was weak and indecisive and only asked for more German help in the defense of Italy, while Hitler made an exhausting speech in favor of fighting till the end. Moreover, Hitler gave an optimistic view of the situation and refused the sweeping Italian requests for more land and air support, mentioning technical and operative difficulties. But also, he did not heed the vehement requests of
Jodl Alfred Josef Ferdinand Jodl (; 10 May 1890 – 16 October 1946) was a German ''Generaloberst'' who served as the chief of the Operations Staff of the '' Oberkommando der Wehrmacht'' – the German Armed Forces High Command – throughout World ...
, Keitel, and Warlimont: to create an unified command in Italy under German control, to move the many Italian troops in northern Italy south (towards the regions attacked by the Allies), and to give command of the Axis forces in the theatre to General
Wolfram von Richthofen Wolfram Karl Ludwig Moritz Hermann Freiherr von Richthofen (10 October 1895 – 12 July 1945) was a German World War I flying ace who rose to the rank of ''Generalfeldmarschall'' in the Luftwaffe during World War II. Born in 1895 into a fa ...
. After the meeting, Hitler was convinced that he had lifted Mussolini's morale. Field Marshal
Erwin Rommel Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel () (15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944) was a German field marshal during World War II. Popularly known as the Desert Fox (, ), he served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of Nazi Germany, as well as servi ...
had been put in charge of forces being organized in Bavaria for intervention in case of Italy's defection ("Operation Alaric"). Rommel was worried about the fate of German troops in Sicily and southern Italy, who would be cut off from Germany by an Italian "betrayal". But Hitler ignored warnings from Rommel. On 21 July, Hitler decided to suspend the planning of "Alaric" and to send German reinforcements to Italy. The codename "Alaric" was later quietly changed to "Achse" to avoid offending the Italians ( Alaric was the
Visigoth The Visigoths (; la, Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, Wisi) were an early Germanic people who, along with the Ostrogoths, constituted the two major political entities of the Goths within the Roman Empire in late antiquity, or what is kn ...
ic king who sacked Rome in 410). On 25 July, before he learned of the fall of Mussolini, Hitler sent six Heer (Army) divisions to Italy, including a Panzer division, and three Waffen-SS divisions. Rommel and his headquarters (then in
Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...
) were sent to
Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...
to control a new army group in the Balkans.


German countermeasures after 25 July

Hitler and the German leadership were thus taken by surprise by the fall of Mussolini on 25 July; due to wrong information from the ambassador
Hans Georg von Mackensen Hans Georg von Mackensen (26 January 1883 - 28 September 1947) was a German diplomat who served at different stages as "State Secretary" at the Foreign Ministry, German ambassador in Rome and a SS senior Group Leader (''"Gruppenführer"''). ...
and by the military ''attaché'' Enno von Rintelen, who did not foresee that the meeting of the
Grand Council of Fascism The Grand Council of Fascism (, also translated "Fascist Grand Council") was the main body of Mussolini's Fascist government in Italy, that held and applied great power to control the institutions of government. It was created as a body of th ...
would threaten the Fascist regime, and instead thought that Mussolini would be able to strengthen collaboration with Nazi Germany. The news of the fall of Mussolini and the creation of a military government led by Marshal
Pietro Badoglio Pietro Badoglio, 1st Duke of Addis Abeba, 1st Marquess of Sabotino (, ; 28 September 1871 – 1 November 1956), was an Italian general during both World Wars and the first viceroy of Italian East Africa. With the fall of the Fascist regime ...
surprised and enraged Hitler, who immediately understood that, despite assurances by Badoglio and Italian diplomats, the change of regime was a prelude to an Italian defection, which would endanger the German forces fighting in Southern Italy and the entire Wehrmacht presence in Southern Europe. At first Hitler thought about intervening immediately with the forces already on site to occupy Rome and arrest Badoglio, the king and the members of the new government; however he soon changed his mind and, together with Jodl and Rommel (who had been urgently recalled from Greece) he decided to re-activate the planning of Operation "Alarich", to create a detailed plan to react to the Italian defection and swiftly occupy the Italian peninsula, after sending enough reinforcements. Kesselring was told to be ready to the change of sides and to prepare the withdrawal of his forces from Sicily, Sardinia and Southern Italy; new directives were issued, with new operational plans. In a matter of few days, the "Siegfried", "Konstantin", and "Kopenhagen" plans (ready since May) were confirmed, and new operations were studied: "Schwartz" to capture the Italian government in Rome, "Achse" to capture the Italian fleet, "Eiche" to free Mussolini from captivity, and "Student" to capture Rome. On 28 July, Hitler reviewed the operational planning: the "Konstantin" and "Alarich" plans were combined into a single plan for the occupation of Italy and the Balkans, which was called "Achse". On 5 August, on the advice of Admiral Ruge and because of the strengthening of the Italian defenses of Rome, the "Schwartz" plan was abandoned. Another problem for Hitler and the German leadership came from a lack of detailed information about Mussolini's fate and the refusal of
Victor Emmanuel III The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...
to meet Hitler, which would have been an occasion for a sudden attack on the new Italian leadership. While the planning was under way, the Wehrmacht command had begun the transfer of the divisions needed to enact operations when the Italians defected. Starting on 27 July, the 2. Fallschirmjäger-Division of General
Hermann-Bernhard Ramcke Hermann-Bernhard Ramcke (24 January 1889 – 4 July 1968) was a German general of paratroop forces during World War II. He led units in Crete, North Africa, Italy, the Soviet Union and France, and was captured by American forces at the conc ...
was moved by air from Southern France to the Pratica di Mare Air Base, a move that surprised both the Italian commands and Kesselring, as neither had been warned beforehand. Meanwhile, on 31 July, General
Kurt Student Kurt Arthur Benno Student (12 May 1890 – 1 July 1978) was a German general in the Luftwaffe during World War II. An early pioneer of airborne forces, Student was in overall command of developing a paratrooper force to be known as the '' Fallsch ...
(commander of the 11th Airborne Corps, and due to take command of Ramcke's paratroopers) and SS-
Hauptsturmführer __NOTOC__ (, ; short: ''Hstuf'') was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was used in several Nazi organizations such as the SS, NSKK and the NSFK. The rank of ''Hauptsturmführer'' was a mid-level commander and had equivalent seniority to a ...
Otto Skorzeny Otto Johann Anton Skorzeny (12 June 1908 – 5 July 1975) was an Austrian-born German SS-''Obersturmbannführer'' (lieutenant colonel) in the Waffen-SS during World War II. During the war, he was involved in a number of operations, including t ...
reached Kesselring in
Frascati Frascati () is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital in the Lazio region of central Italy. It is located south-east of Rome, on the Alban Hills close to the ancient city of Tusculum. Frascati is closely associated wit ...
and outlined the "Schwarz" plan for him. This was however soon cancelled by Hitler. Meanwhile, at 12:00 on 26 July Rommel had returned from Thessaloniki to Rastenburg, leaving command of the new
Army Group F Army Group F (german: Heeresgruppe F, italic=yes) was a strategic command formation of the Wehrmacht during the Second World War. The commander of Army Group F served also as the ''Oberbefehlshaber Südost'' ( OB South East). Created 12 August ...
to Field Marshal
Maximilian von Weichs Maximilian Maria Joseph Karl Gabriel Lamoral Reichsfreiherr von und zu Weichs an der Glon (12 November 1881 – 27 September 1954) was a field marshal in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II. Born into an aristocratic family, Weichs ...
, and on 29 July he assumed command in Munich of a fake command, denominated ''Auffrischungsstab München'', to hide the creation of a new army group which on 14 August would be moved to Bologna under the name of
Army Group B Army Group B (German: ') was the title of three German Army Groups that saw action during World War II. Operational history Army Group B first took part in the Battle of France in 1940 in Belgium and the Netherlands. The second formation of Ar ...
, and would enact Operation "Achse" in Northern Italy. At 02:15 on 26 July the 215th Infantry Division was the first German unit to enter Italy, heading for
Liguria Liguria (; lij, Ligûria ; french: Ligurie) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is ...
, while the Panzergrenadier Division Feldherrnhalle and the 715th Infantry Division were deployed to protect the passage through the
alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National P ...
passes on the French–Italian border. The Italian commands protested and tried to stop the inflow of the divisions with some pretexts, but Kesselring intervened through the Italian Supreme Command on 1 August, and the 305th Infantry Division marched on foot first to Genoa and then to
La Spezia La Spezia (, or , ; in the local Spezzino dialect) is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy. La Spezia is the second largest cit ...
. Meanwhile, more German units entered Italy: the 76th Infantry Division, on 2 August, heading for
Savona Savona (; lij, Sann-a ) is a seaport and ''comune'' in the west part of the northern Italy, Italian region of Liguria, capital of the Province of Savona, in the Riviera di Ponente on the Mediterranean Sea. Savona used to be one of the chie ...
; the
94th Infantry Division In military terms, 94th Division or 94th Infantry Division may refer to: * 94th Division (People's Republic of China) * 94th Infantry Division (German Empire) * 94th Infantry Division (Wehrmacht) * 94th Division (Imperial Japanese Army) * 94th Gu ...
, on 4 August, heading for
Susa Susa ( ; Middle elx, 𒀸𒋗𒊺𒂗, translit=Šušen; Middle and Neo- elx, 𒋢𒋢𒌦, translit=Šušun; Neo- Elamite and Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼𒀭, translit=Šušán; Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼, translit=Šušá; fa, شوش ...
and then
Alessandria Alessandria (; pms, Lissandria ) is a city and ''comune'' in Piedmont, Italy, and the capital of the Province of Alessandria. The city is sited on the alluvial plain between the Tanaro and the Bormida rivers, about east of Turin. Alessandri ...
; the 87th Corps headquarters (General
Gustav-Adolf von Zangen __NOTOC__ Gustav Adolf Karl Friedrich Ernst von Zangen (7 November 1892 – 1 May 1964) was a German general in the Wehrmacht during World War II and a commander of the 15th Army in the Netherlands in 1944 during World War II. He was a recipie ...
), which on 11 August established itself in
Acqui Acqui Terme (; pms, Àich ) is a city and ''comune'' in the province of Alessandria, Piedmont, northern Italy. It is about south-southwest of Alessandria. It is one of the principal winemaking communes of the Italian DOCG wine Brachetto d'A ...
and assumed command of the three newly-arrived German divisions. Some conflicts and incidents between the German troops on passage and the Italian commands and units took place also at the
Brenner Pass The Brenner Pass (german: link=no, Brennerpass , shortly ; it, Passo del Brennero ) is a mountain pass through the Alps which forms the border between Italy and Austria. It is one of the principal passes of the Eastern Alpine range and has ...
; Rommel, worried by the news of a strengthening of the Italian garrison and mining of the mountain passes, sent the Kampfgruppe Feuerstein south, with part of the 26th Panzer Division and the 44th Infantry Division, with orders to say that they had been sent to help Italy against the common enemy. The Italian Supreme Command in Rome and General Gloria, commander of the XXVI Italian Army Corps in
Bolzano Bolzano ( or ; german: Bozen, (formerly ); bar, Bozn; lld, Balsan or ) is the capital city of the province of South Tyrol in northern Italy. With a population of 108,245, Bolzano is also by far the largest city in South Tyrol and the third ...
, complained vehemently and threatened an armed reaction, but after Kesselring's intervention on 1 August the crisis passed and the German units were allowed to proceed; the 44th Infantry Division reached Bozen, assumed control of the Brenner Pass and thus ensured the transalpine communications with Germany. Right after July 25, Hitler had initially decided to immediately send to Italy the 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler and the 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich, despite the precarious situation on the Eastern Front. Protests by Field Marshal Von Kluge and further worsening of the situation in the East forced however Hitler to send only the Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler, without its heavy weapons. This division crossed the Brenner Pass on 3 August and then placed itself between
Parma Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, music, art, prosciutto (ham), cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 inhabitants, Parma is the second m ...
and
Reggio Emilia Reggio nell'Emilia ( egl, Rèz; la, Regium Lepidi), usually referred to as Reggio Emilia, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, and known until 1861 as Reggio di Lombardia, is a city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has abo ...
. This was soon followed by the transfer of the 65th Infantry Division from
Villach Villach (; sl, Beljak; it, Villaco; fur, Vilac) is the seventh-largest city in Austria and the second-largest in the federal state of Carinthia. It is an important traffic junction for southern Austria and the whole Alpe-Adria region. , the p ...
to the
Ravenna Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the c ...
Rimini Rimini ( , ; rgn, Rémin; la, Ariminum) is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It sprawls along the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia (the ancient ''Ariminu ...
area, and the transfer of the 24th Panzer Division from
Tyrol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...
to
Modena Modena (, , ; egl, label= Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and '' comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. A town, and seat o ...
by 30 August. On 3 August the Waffen-SS
Generaloberst A ("colonel general") was the second-highest general officer rank in the German ''Reichswehr'' and ''Wehrmacht'', the Austro-Hungarian Common Army, the East German National People's Army and in their respective police services. The rank was ...
Paul Hausser Paul Hausser also known as Paul Falk after taking his maiden name post war (7 October 1880 – 21 December 1972) was a German general and then a high-ranking commander in the Waffen-SS who played a key role in the post-war efforts by former mem ...
arrived in Reggio Emilia with the headquarters of the
II SS Panzer Corps The II SS Panzer Corps was a German Waffen-SS armoured corps which saw action on both the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern and Western Front (World War II), Western Fronts during World War II. It was commanded by Paul Hausser during the Thir ...
, to take command of the three incoming divisions. The last German division to enter Italy was the 71st Infantry Division, which was transferred from
Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...
to an area north of
Ljubljana Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...
on 7 August, and from 25 August started entering
Friuli Friuli ( fur, Friûl, sl, Furlanija, german: Friaul) is an area of Northeast Italy with its own particular cultural and historical identity containing 1,000,000 Friulians. It comprises the major part of the autonomous region Friuli Venezia Giuli ...
on orders from Rommel, who feared possible hostile actions by the Italians and the mining of the Eastern alpine passes. After another conflict with the Italian Supreme Command, which once again menaced to result in armed clashes, the situation was solved by the intervention of Von Rintelen, and the Division advanced without problems towards
Gemona Gemona del Friuli ( la, Glemona, fur, Glemone, sl, Humin, german: Klemaun) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Udine in the Italian region Friuli Venezia Giulia, located about northwest of Trieste and about northwest of Udine. T ...
,
Gorizia Gorizia (; sl, Gorica , colloquially 'old Gorizia' to distinguish it from Nova Gorica; fur, label= Standard Friulian, Gurize, fur, label= Southeastern Friulian, Guriza; vec, label= Bisiacco, Gorisia; german: Görz ; obsolete English ''Gori ...
, and Opicina; by 2 September it was fully deployed in the
Julian March Venezia Giulia, traditionally called Julian March (Serbo-Croatian, Slovene: ''Julijska krajina'') or Julian Venetia ( it, Venezia Giulia; vec, Venesia Julia; fur, Vignesie Julie; german: Julisch Venetien) is an area of southeastern Europe wh ...
.


8 September 1943


End of an alliance

Right after the removal of Mussolini from power, the new government led by Badoglio had officially proclaimed the decision to continue the war alongside Germany and kept reassuring the German leadership of its loyalty to the Axis cause, but at the same time it started a series of confused attempts to start secret negotiations with the Allies, to get out of the war and to avoid the consequences of a sudden change of sides. The need to gain time induced the new Italian government to make a show of loyalty to the alliance, asking for a more active participation of the German ally in the defense of the Italian Peninsula and thus for the arrival of more German divisions, which however worsened the German threat to Italy. The Italian leadership tried to keep a grip on this difficult phase by alternating requests for help and obstructionism towards the incoming German forces and requests to deploy the German divisions in the South, on the frontline; already on 31 July, during the meeting between Ambrosio and Kesselring, arguments began about the positioning and role of the new German divisions. At the conference held in
Tarvisio Tarvisio (German and fur, Tarvis, sl, Trbiž) is a comune in the northeastern part of the autonomous Friuli Venezia Giulia region in Italy. Geography The town is in the Canal Valley (''Val Canale'') between the Carnic Alps and Karawanks rang ...
on 6 August between the Italian Foreign Minister Raffaele Guariglia, Ambrosio,
Joachim von Ribbentrop Ulrich Friedrich Wilhelm Joachim von Ribbentrop (; 30 April 1893 – 16 October 1946) was a German politician and diplomat who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nazi Germany from 1938 to 1945. Ribbentrop first came to Adolf Hitler's not ...
and Keitel (with the menacing presence of SS guards), the mutual distrust became apparent; Ambrosio asked to increase the German divisions from nine to sixteen, but to deploy them in Southern Italy against the Allies, while Keitel and Warlimont instead stated that the new German units would be deployed in Central and Northern Italy, as a strategic reserve force. A last meeting was held in Bologna on 15 August, between generals Roatta and Jodl, the latter accompanied by Rommel (who had just been made commander of the new Army Group B in Northern Italy) and by a SS guard of the ''Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler''; the Germans consented to recalling to Italy part of the 4th Italian Army from Southern France, but they were alarmed by Roatta's plans about a positioning of the German forces that, in case of defection, seemed to expose them to the risk of becoming isolated and being destroyed by the Allies. The meeting was a failure and convinced the German generals that, despite reassurances from Roatta (possibly not yet informed by Ambrosio of the contacts that were under way with the Allies), who assured that Italy would not defect and added "we are not Saxons!", that an Italian defection was imminent. The atmosphere at the meeting was so tense that the German delegation refused food and beverages offered by the Italians, fearing they would be poisoned. The preparations against an Italian betrayal therefore proceeded swiftly; detailed dispositions were issued to the subordinated commands, which in turn studied detailed operative plans to act with speed and efficiency. The German leadership expected only weak resistance by the Italian armed forces and counted on quickly solving the situation. General Von Horstig, a representative of the weaponry office of the Wehrmacht in Italy, was already preparing plans for the plunder of the resources and the systematic destruction of factories and infrastructures of military importance in Southern Italy. At the end of August, Hitler sent to Italy his new representatives: the diplomat
Rudolf Rahn Rudolf Rahn (16 March 1900 – 7 January 1975) was a German diplomat who served the Weimar Republic and Nazi Germany. As a member of the Party, and as Plenipotentiary to the Italian Social Republic in the closing stages of the Second World War, h ...
(who replaced the ambassador Von Mackensen) and General
Rudolf Toussaint Rudolf Toussaint (2 May 1891 – 1 July 1968) was a German Army officer. Toussaint saw action in both World Wars. During World War II he was appointed Commissioner of the German army in the office of the Reich Protector of Bohemia and Moravia. Bi ...
, who replaced Von Rintelen as military attaché. Kesselring had already authorized General Hans Hube (in command of the XIV Panzer Corps), on orders from OKW, to organize the withdrawal of his four divisions from Sicily and its redeployment in
Calabria , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...
, which Hube skillfully carried out on 17 August ( Operation Lehrgang). The vast majority of the German troops in Sicily, after an effective fighting retreat, managed to cross the Straits of Messina and even to save a great part of the heavy equipment. In the following days Hube deployed the XIV Panzer Corps (16th Panzer Division, 15th Panzergrenadier Division, and Hermann Goring Division) in the area between
Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adm ...
and
Salerno Salerno (, , ; nap, label= Salernitano, Saliernë, ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' in Campania (southwestern Italy) and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after ...
, while the 1st Parachute Division was sent to
Apulia it, Pugliese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographic ...
and General Herr with the 76th Panzerkorps assumed the defense of Calabria with part of the 26th Panzer Division and the 29th Panzergrenadier Division; his orders were to carry out delaying actions in case of Allied attack across the straits. On 3 September, indeed, XIII British Corps of the Eighth British Army under
General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". O ...
Bernard Law Montgomery Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, (; 17 November 1887 – 24 March 1976), nicknamed "Monty", was a senior British Army officer who served in the First World War, the Irish War of Independence and th ...
crossed the straits northwest of
Reggio Calabria Reggio di Calabria ( scn, label= Southern Calabrian, Riggiu; el, label= Calabrian Greek, Ρήγι, Rìji), usually referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria. It has an estimated popul ...
(
Operation Baytown Operation Baytown was an Allied amphibious landing on the mainland of Italy that took place on 3 September 1943, part of the Allied invasion of Italy, itself part of the Italian Campaign, during the Second World War. Planning The attack was ...
), landed without meeting much resistance and started a cautious advance along the coastal roads towards Pizzo Calabro and
Crotone Crotone (, ; nap, label= Crotonese, Cutrone or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Calabria, Italy. Founded as the Achaean colony of Kroton ( grc, Κρότων or ; la, Crotona) in Magna Graecia, it was known as Cotrone from the Middle Ages unti ...
. The 76th Panzerkorps avoided engagement and slowly retreated northwards.


The armistice

After some unrealistic and fruitless attempts by personalities of minor importance (embassy official Blasco Lanza D'Ajeta, Foreign Ministry official Alberto Berio, industrialist Alberto Pirelli) to contact the Allies and start negotiations for an exit of Italy from the war, possibly avoiding the dangerous consequences of a surrender at discretion and a German occupation, on 12 August General
Giuseppe Castellano Giuseppe Castellano (September 12, 1893 in Prato – July 31, 1977 in Porretta Terme) was an Italian general who negotiated the Armistice between Italy and Allied armed forces on September 8, 1943. Biography Military career Of Sicilian descent ...
, Ambrosio's counselor, left Rome for
Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
, where he met the British ambassador Sir Samuel Hoare. The latter informed Churchill and then directed Castellano to
Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administrative limits w ...
where, on 17 August, the first meeting with the Allied emissaries, General
Walter Bedell Smith General Walter Bedell "Beetle" Smith (5 October 1895 – 9 August 1961) was a senior officer of the United States Army who served as General Dwight D. Eisenhower's chief of staff at Allied Forces Headquarters (AFHQ) during the Tunisia Campai ...
and political advisers Kenneth Strong and
George F. Kennan George Frost Kennan (February 16, 1904 – March 17, 2005) was an American diplomat and historian. He was best known as an advocate of a policy of containment of Soviet expansion during the Cold War. He lectured widely and wrote scholarly hist ...
, took place. The Allies' demands, definitively established by the Allied governments at the end of July, called for a completely unconditional surrender; Castellano thus found himself in great hindrance, as the instructions Badoglio had given him required to bargain the exit of Italy from the war and a strong military collaboration with the Allies, including the intervention of as many as fifteen British and American divisions that were to make contemporaneous landings north and south of Rome simultaneously with the announcement of the armistice, in order to defend the capital and deal with the German reaction. During a new meeting between Castellano and Bedell Smith in Cassibile, Sicily, on 31 August, the Italian envoy unsuccessfully insisted again to be made a part of the Allied operative details; the intervention of an American airborne division to protect Rome and the Italian government ( Operation Giant 2) was agreed. On 1 September, after a consultation between the king, Guariglia and Ambrosio, the Allies were radioed the reception of the conditions of the armistice. On 3 September, Castellano and Bedell Smith therefore signed the
Armistice of Cassibile The Armistice of Cassibile was an armistice signed on 3 September 1943 and made public on 8 September between the Kingdom of Italy and the Allies during World War II. It was signed by Major General Walter Bedell Smith for the Allies and Bri ...
, in presence of the representatives of the British and American governments,
Harold Macmillan Maurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, (10 February 1894 – 29 December 1986) was a British Conservative statesman and politician who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1957 to 1963. Caricatured as " Supermac", ...
and
Robert Daniel Murphy Robert Daniel Murphy (October 28, 1894 – January 9, 1978) was an American diplomat. He served as the first United States Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs when the position was established during the Eisenhower administration. E ...
; there was however a grievous mistake about the timing of the announcement of the Italian surrender. The Badoglio government hoped to gain more time to organize the resistance against the German forces, delaying the announcement at least till 12 September. Only in the night of 8 September did Badoglio learn from General Maxwell Taylor (the second-in-command of the
82nd Airborne Division The 82nd Airborne Division is an airborne infantry division of the United States Army specializing in parachute assault operations into denied areasSof, Eric"82nd Airborne Division" ''Spec Ops Magazine'', 25 November 2012. Archived from tho ...
, whose intervention was planned for "Giant 2", who had been secretly sent to Rome) that General
Dwight Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War I ...
would make the announcement that very evening. Badoglio protested and vainly tried to obtain another delay; the Italian leaders and generals, extremely worried about the German reaction, made an awful impression on General Taylor, who advised the Allied command to give up Operation "Giant 2", which he deemed to be destined to fail, given the disorganization of the sizable Italian forces stationed around Rome. In the morning of 8 September, Allied bombers bombed Kesselring's headquarters in Frascati. While they failed their objective and caused heavy civilian casualties, the Allied fleets approached the Gulf of
Salerno Salerno (, , ; nap, label= Salernitano, Saliernë, ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' in Campania (southwestern Italy) and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after ...
to launch Operation Avalanche (the main landing of the 5th American Army of General Mark W. Clark). Badoglio, more and more anxious, sent Eisenhower a
telegram Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas ...
asking for a deferment of the announcement of the armistice. The Allied commander-in-chief, sustained by an order from
Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
of the Allied heads of state, firmly rejected the request, confirmed his intentions in a threatening tone, and cancelled Operation "Giant 2". At 18:00 on 8 September a hurried and dramatic Council of the Crown was held at the
Quirinale Palace The Quirinal Palace ( it, Palazzo del Quirinale ) is a historic building in Rome, Italy, one of the three current official residences of the president of the Italian Republic, together with Villa Rosebery in Naples and the Tenuta di Castelporzia ...
; the king, Badoglio, Ambrosio, Guariglia, General
Giacomo Carboni Giacomo Carboni (29 April 1889 – 2 December 1973) was an Italian general who was the commander of ''Corpo d'armata motocorazzato'' deployed around Rome in the early days of September 1943. Life and career Born in Reggio Emilia he joined the ...
(head of the
Military Intelligence Service The Military Intelligence Service ( ja, アメリカ陸軍情報部, ''America Rikugun Jōhōbu'') was a World War II U.S. military unit consisting of two branches, the Japanese American unit (described here) and the German-Austrian unit based ...
and commander of the Corpo d'Armata Motocorazzato tasked with defending the capital), General
Antonio Sorice Antonio Sorice (Nola, 3 November 1897 – Rome, 14 January 1971) was an Italian general during World War II, Undersecretary for War from February to July 1943 and Minister of War from July 1943 to February 1944. Biography He was born in N ...
(War Minister), Admiral
Raffaele de Courten Raffaele de Courten (Milan, 23 September 1888 – Frascati, 23 August 1978) was an Italian admiral. He was the last Chief of Staff of the Regia Marina. Life Raffaele de Courten was born in Milan in 1888. He joined the Naval Academy of Leghorn ...
(Minister of the Navy), General Renato Sandalli (Minister of the Air Force), General Paolo Puntoni, General Giuseppe De Stefanis, and Major
Luigi Marchesi Luigi Marchesi (; 8 August 1754 – 14 December 1829) was an Italian castrato singer, one of the most prominent and charismatic to appear in Europe during the second half of the eighteenth century. His singing was praised by the likes of Mozart ...
(secretary of Ambrosio) participated. Faced with the clear instructions transmitted by Eisenhower and the first indiscretions leaking on foreign radios about the armistice, the Italian leadership, after heated discussions where Carboni went as far as to propose that they retracted Castellano's actions, finally agreed with Marchesi, who said that they should unavoidably keep the word they had given to the Allies, and confirm the news. At 18:30 General Eisenhower, speaking on Radio Algiers, officially announced the armistice, and at 19:42 Badoglio gave in turn the announcement via the public service broadcaster EIAR. During the previous days, the German representatives in Rome had been given reiterated statements of loyalty to the alliance, expressed at the highest levels; on 3 September Badoglio himself had confirmed to Rahn his firm will to remain at the side of Germany, and still on 6 September General Toussaint thought that the Italians had rejected the harsh demands of the Allies. Even in the morning of 8 September, Rahn met the king and the latter reassured him about his decision not to surrender, and in the afternoon Roatta reaffirmed by telephone that news coming from abroad were a propagandist hoax. Rahn was thus taken by surprise when at 19:00 on 8 September, having been warned by Berlin about the news of the armistice, he met Guariglia whom immediately confirmed the news and told him about the exit of Italy from the war and from the Axis alliance. Rahn replied bitterly, then hastily left Rome along with Toussaint and the embassy personnel and went to Frascati, where Kesselring's headquarters were located. Despite the initial surprise, the German response, having been accurately planned and organized in detail, was swift and effective; Hitler, who at 17:00 came back to Rastenburg after spending a few days in
Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inva ...
at the headquarters of Field Marshal
Erich von Manstein Fritz Erich Georg Eduard von Manstein (born Fritz Erich Georg Eduard von Lewinski; 24 November 1887 – 9 June 1973) was a German Field Marshal of the ''Wehrmacht'' during the Second World War, who was subsequently convicted of war crimes and ...
, soon learned of the armistice from a BBC transmission, and acted with extreme resolve. At 19:50, a few minutes after Badoglio had finished his announcement, the aide of General Jodl broadcast the coded word "Achse" to all subordinated commands; it was the signal for the German forces to attack Italian forces in all the war theaters of the Mediterranean.


Dissolution of Italian forces in Italy


Uncertainty and confusion

The Italian high commands, in the weeks leading to the armistice, had issued instructions for commanders and troops about their behaviour in case of a withdrawal from the war and possible German aggressions; these orders were Order No. 111 issued by the Staff of the Italian Army on 10 August, the OP 44 Memorandum issued on 26 August by General
Mario Roatta Mario Roatta (2 February 1887 – 7 January 1968) was an Italian general. After serving in World War I he rose to command the Corpo Truppe Volontarie which assisted Francisco Franco's force during the Spanish Civil War. He was the Deputy Chief o ...
(on Ambrosio's orders) to the major peripheral commands (only twelve copies), and the No. 1 and No. 2 Memorandums issued on 6 September by the Supreme Command to the Staffs of the three armed forces, containing indications about the deployment of the forces in the different theaters. These were however general guidelines, lacking details and nearly inapplicable (also due to excessive secrecy measures); they were ineffective and they contributed, along with the vagueness of Badoglio's message on the evening of 8 September, to the confusion of the peripheral commands of the Italian forces about the unexpected news of the change of sides and the aggressiveness of the German forces, thus resulting in insecurity and indecision among those commands. The situation of the Italian armed forces was worsened by the contradictory instructions issued by Ambrosio in the evening of 8 September, which restricted any initiative to mere defensive measures in case of German attacks, and by Roatta in the night of 9 September, who especially demanded to avoid turmoil and ‘seditions’ among the troops. Faced with the efficiency of the German units, which immediately demanded surrender or collaboration with threats and intimidations, most of the Italian commanders, also fearful of the impressive reputation of military capacity of the Wehrmacht and many times tired by a lengthy and disliked war, soon abandoned any intent of resistance; with a few exceptions, the troops, left with neither orders nor leaders, often dispersed. The situation of the German forces in Italy was actually a difficult one; Rommel, with his Army Group B, had the easier task of occupying the northern regions and neutralizing any resistance by Italian forces in that area, but Kesselring, in command of Army Group C, was in great difficulty after September 8: after the bombing of Frascati, he barely managed to receive the communication of the coded word "Achse" and also learned of the Allied landing near
Salerno Salerno (, , ; nap, label= Salernitano, Saliernë, ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' in Campania (southwestern Italy) and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after ...
, where only part of the 16th Panzer Division was stationed. At first, he feared that he would not be able to simultaneously contain the Allied advance and carry out his mission against Rome. Even the OKW considered the possibility of losing the eight German divisions in Southern Italy; Kesselring, however, showed great capability, and his forces fought with ability and effectiveness. Despite advice by Rommel to quickly withdraw from Southern Italy and retreat to the
La Spezia La Spezia (, or , ; in the local Spezzino dialect) is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy. La Spezia is the second largest cit ...
Rimini Rimini ( , ; rgn, Rémin; la, Ariminum) is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It sprawls along the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia (the ancient ''Ariminu ...
line, Kesselring managed to avoid the isolation and destruction of his forces and also to cause trouble to the Allied bridgehead at Salerno, to counterattack with some success (after massing there the 14th and 76th Panzerkorps, with three Panzer divisions and two Panzergrenadier divisions) and then to retreat with minimal losses north of Naples, while simultaneously carrying out the "Achse" plan and capturing Rome with part of his forces.


Fall of Rome

In order to defend the political and military leadership and to resist a possible German attack, Italian commanders had concentrated a considerable number of troops in the area around Rome; the main force consisted in the Motorized-Armored Army Corps of General
Giacomo Carboni Giacomo Carboni (29 April 1889 – 2 December 1973) was an Italian general who was the commander of ''Corpo d'armata motocorazzato'' deployed around Rome in the early days of September 1943. Life and career Born in Reggio Emilia he joined the ...
, composed of: * 10th Infantry Division "Piave" * 21st Infantry Division "Granatieri di Sardegna" * 135th Armored Cavalry Division "Ariete" * 136th Armored Legionary Division "Centauro" Other units tasked with the defense of Rome were * the 12th Infantry Division "Sassari" and * the 103rd Infantry Division "Piacenza" (part of the XVII Italian Army Corps of General Giovanni Zangheri), * some battalions of the 13th Infantry Division "Re" and 7th Infantry Division "Lupi di Toscana" Overall, about 55,000 men and 200
armored fighting vehicle An armoured fighting vehicle (AFV) is an armed combat vehicle protected by armour, generally combining operational mobility with offensive and defensive capabilities. AFVs can be wheeled or tracked. Examples of AFVs are tanks, armoured cars, ...
s protected Rome and outnumbered the German forces in the area. The German forces near Rome consisted in the 11th Airborne Corps of General
Kurt Student Kurt Arthur Benno Student (12 May 1890 – 1 July 1978) was a German general in the Luftwaffe during World War II. An early pioneer of airborne forces, Student was in overall command of developing a paratrooper force to be known as the '' Fallsch ...
, headquartered in Pratica di Mare; the Corps comprised the 2nd Parachute Division under General Walter Barenthin, ready for action south of Rome, and the 3rd Panzergrenadier Division (General
Fritz-Hubert Gräser __NOTOC__ Fritz-Hubert Gräser (3 January 1888 – 4 November 1960) was a German general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords. Awards * Iron Cross (1914) 2nd Clas ...
), reinforced by an armored battalion of the 26th Panzer Division (''
Kampfgruppe In military history, the German term (pl. ; abbrev. KG, or KGr in usage during World War II, literally "fighting group" or "battle group") can refer to a combat formation of any kind, but most usually to that employed by the of Nazi Germ ...
Büsing''), stationed between
Orvieto Orvieto () is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Terni, southwestern Umbria, Italy, situated on the flat summit of a large butte of volcanic tuff. The city rises dramatically above the almost-vertical faces of tuff cliffs that are comp ...
and
Lake Bolsena Lake Bolsena ( it, Lago di Bolsena) is a lake of volcanic origin in the northern part of the province of Viterbo called ''Alto Lazio'' ("Upper Latium") or ''Tuscia'' in central Italy. It is the largest volcanic lake in Europe. Roman histori ...
, north of Rome. These units comprised about 26,000 men and some hundreds of armored fighting vehicles, and were activated by Kesselring in the evening of 8 September: already at 20:30 they attacked the Mezzocammino fuel depot, and the German paratroopers immediately started advancing south, overcoming sporadic resistance by the Piacenza Division in Lanuvio,
Albano Laziale Albano Laziale (; it, label= Romanesco, Arbano; la, Albanum) is a ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Rome, on the Alban Hills, in Latium, central Italy. Rome is distant. It is bounded by other communes of Castel Gandolfo, Rocca di Papa, ...
, and Ardea. After reaching the
EUR district The euro (symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . T ...
at 21:30, the 2nd Parachute Division overpowered some units of the Piacenza and Granatieri di Sardegna Divisions and after half an hour, advancing along the
Via Ostiensis The Via Ostiensis ( it, via Ostiense) was an important road in ancient Rome. It ran west from the city of Rome to its important sea port of Ostia Antica, from which it took its name. The road began near the Forum Boarium, ran between the Aventin ...
, reached the
Magliana The Magliana () is an urban zone of Rome, known as 15E of Municipio XI of Rome. It also the name of a neighborhood or ward of the city. Geographically, it is located on the southwest periphery of Rome, Italy along the Tiber River. The neighborho ...
bridge. Meanwhile, the 3rd Panzergrenadier Division advanced from north along the
Via Aurelia The ''Via Aurelia'' (Latin for "Aurelian Way") is a Roman road in Italy constructed in approximately 241 BC. The project was undertaken by Gaius Aurelius Cotta, who at that time was censor.Hornblower, Simon, & Antony Spawforth. ''The Oxford Cl ...
, Via Cassia, and
Via Flaminia The Via Flaminia or Flaminian Way was an ancient Roman road leading from Rome over the Apennine Mountains to ''Ariminum'' ( Rimini) on the coast of the Adriatic Sea, and due to the ruggedness of the mountains was the major option the Romans ha ...
, but was halted near
Lake Bracciano Lake Bracciano ( it, Lago di Bracciano) is a lake of volcanic origin in the Italian region of Lazio, northwest of Rome. It is the second largest lake in the region (second only to Lake Bolsena) and one of the major lakes of Italy. It has a circu ...
by the Ariete II Division (General Raffaele Cadorna) and suspended its advance after some negotiations. The paratroopers, instead, went ahead with their action; fierce fighting erupted at Magliana between the German forces and the Granatieri di Sardegna, supported by armored units of the Ariete II Division, but at 02:00 on 9 September the
Ciampino airport Ciampino () is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Rome, Lazio, Italy. It was a ''frazione'' of Marino until 1974, when it became a ''comune''; it obtained the city ( it, città) status (being therefore officially known as Citt� ...
was captured, and an hour later news came that German troops had arrived in
Tor Sapienza Tor, TOR or ToR may refer to: Places * Tor, Pallars, a village in Spain * Tor, former name of Sloviansk, Ukraine, a city * Mount Tor, Tasmania, Australia, an extinct volcano * Tor Bay, Devon, England * Tor River, Western New Guinea, Indonesia S ...
, along Via Prenestina, just eight km away from the city center. More and more alarming news pushed the political and military leadership, after some uncertain orders by Ambrosio to try to contact Kesselring, to decide to abandon the city. Roatta exhorted the king and Badoglio to leave Rome by the
Via Tiburtina Via Tiburtina is an ancient road in Italy leading east-northeast from Rome to Tivoli (Latin, Tibur) and then, with the via Valeria, on to Pescara (Latin, Aternum). Historical road It was probably built by the Roman censor Marcus Valerius Maxi ...
, then he ordered his forces to try to retreat to
Tivoli Tivoli may refer to: * Tivoli, Lazio, a town in Lazio, Italy, known for historic sites; the inspiration for other places named Tivoli Buildings * Tivoli (Baltimore, Maryland), a mansion built about 1855 * Tivoli Building (Cheyenne, Wyoming), ...
and finally he abandoned the city himself, leaving Carboni without any order. Carboni in turn fled in civilian clothes, then re-entered the city in the morning of 10 September, when the situation was definitely compromised. General
Umberto Utili Umberto Utili (1895-1952) was an Italian general known for his service with the Italian Co-belligerent Army in 1943-1945. Biography Utili took part in the Greco-Italian War and in the Russian Campaign. At the time of the Armistice of Cassibi ...
, head of the Operations Division of the General Staff, declared the General Staff as formally dissolved in the morning of 9 September; the subordinate commands and the troops showed signs of bewilderment and confusion. Meanwhile, at 5:10 on 9 September the King and Badoglio, along with high-ranking officers, dignitaries and family members, fled Rome on seven cars; without encountering any difficulties, they passed Tivoli and
Avezzano Avezzano ( or ; nap, Avezzàne, label= Marsicano ) is a city and ''comune'' with a population of 40,819 inhabitants, situated in the Abruzzo region, province of L'Aquila, Italy. It is the second most populous municipality in the province and the ...
and reached Pescara and later
Ortona Ortona ( Abruzzese: '; grc, Ὄρτων, Órtōn) is a coastal town and municipality of the Province of Chieti in the Italian region of Abruzzo, with some 23,000 inhabitants. In 1943 Ortona was the site of a bloody battle, known as "Weste ...
, where more fleeing officers had gathered. There the King, his relatives, Badoglio, Ambrosio, and Roatta boarded the
corvette A corvette is a small warship. It is traditionally the smallest class of vessel considered to be a proper (or " rated") warship. The warship class above the corvette is that of the frigate, while the class below was historically that of the slo ...
''Baionetta'', which reached
Brindisi Brindisi ( , ) ; la, Brundisium; grc, Βρεντέσιον, translit=Brentésion; cms, Brunda), group=pron is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Histo ...
at 14:30 on 10 September, the city having already been reached by Allied troops which had safely landed in Italian-controlled
Taranto Taranto (, also ; ; nap, label=Tarantino, Tarde; Latin: Tarentum; Old Italian: ''Tarento''; Ancient Greek: Τάρᾱς) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto, serving as an important comme ...
(the
British 1st Airborne Division The 1st Airborne Division was an airborne infantry division of the British Army during the Second World War. The division was formed in late 1941 during the Second World War, after the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, demanded an air ...
), Brindisi, and
Bari Bari ( , ; nap, label= Barese, Bare ; lat, Barium) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, southern Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Ital ...
(two divisions of the 5th Corps) during
Operation Slapstick Operation Slapstick was the code name for a British landing from the sea at the Italian port of Taranto during the Second World War. The operation, one of three landings during the Allied invasion of Italy in September 1943, was undertaken by ...
. Meanwhile, the defenses of Rome had completely collapsed; in the south, the German paratroopers fought a series of sporadic fights against the Granatieri di Sardegna and units of the Ariete II at Magliana and Cecchignola; at 17:00 on 9 September, Magliana was abandoned by Italian forces and the 2nd Parachutist Division proceeded with its advance, arriving near
Porta San Paolo The Porta San Paolo (English: Saint Paul Gate) is one of the southern gates in the 3rd-century Aurelian Walls of Rome, Italy. The Via Ostiense Museum (') is housed within the gatehouse. It is in the Ostiense quarter; just to the west is the Ro ...
in the evening. In the north, the armored fighting vehicles of the 3rd Panzergrenadier Division had restarted their advance; after fighting against the bulk of the Ariete II, they captured Manziana,
Monterosi Monterosi is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Viterbo in the Italian region Lazio, located about 30 km (18,64 mi) north of the Grande Raccordo Anulare of Rome, about 40 km (24,85 mi) south of Viterbo. Geography ...
(at 14:00), and
Bracciano Bracciano is a small town in the Italian region of Lazio, northwest of Rome. The town is famous for its volcanic lake (Lake Bracciano, Lago di Bracciano or "Sabatino", the eighth largest lake in Italy) and for a particularly well-preserved medie ...
(at 17:00), while more German units of the same Division advanced towards
Civitavecchia Civitavecchia (; meaning "ancient town") is a city and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Rome in the central Italian region of Lazio. A sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea, it is located west-north-west of Rome. The harbour is formed by two pier ...
and ''Kampfgruppe Büsing'' reached Cesano and La Storta. At 20:00 the Piave and Ariete II divisions, as they had been ordered, left their positions and retreated towards Tivoli, while units of the Sassari and Re divisions were deployed along the Via Cassia and Via Salaria. The parachutists of Major
Walter Gericke __NOTOC__ Walter Gericke (23 December 1907 – 19 October 1991) was a German paratroop officer in the Luftwaffe of Nazi Germany during World War II and a general in the Bundeswehr of West Germany. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the I ...
, whom had been parachuted at 09:00 over Monterotondo with the task of capturing the Italian Army headquarters (which however had already been abandoned), were engaged in hard fighting, which they ended in success in the evening of 9 September; meanwhile, units of the 2nd Parachute Division attacked Porta San Paolo, two kilometers from
Piazza Venezia Piazza Venezia () is a central hub of Rome, Italy, in which several thoroughfares intersect, including the Via dei Fori Imperiali and the Via del Corso. It takes its name from the Palazzo Venezia, built by the Venetian Cardinal, Pietro Barbo ...
, held by Granatieri di Sardegna units and groups of civilian volunteers. The German troops, mainly consisting in veterans, overcame this resistance after some fierce fighting, and reached the center of Rome in the morning of 10 September. General Siegfried Westphal, Chief of Staff of Army Group C, had started negotiations with Colonel Giaccone of the Centauro (the former 1st CC.NN. Armored Division "M", composed of
blackshirts The Voluntary Militia for National Security ( it, Milizia Volontaria per la Sicurezza Nazionale, MVSN), commonly called the Blackshirts ( it, Camicie Nere, CCNN, singular: ) or (singular: ), was originally the paramilitary wing of the Nation ...
whose allegiances were highly doubtful, which had led the Italian commands to decide to keep it away from the battle), on instructions from Kesselring and Student, in the evening of 9 September. After a series of threats and an ultimatum, Westphal obtained the capitulation of Rome by the afternoon of 10 September, after discussions with Generals Carboni and Sorice and Marshal Enrico Caviglia, while German artillery was already firing directly inside the city. Westphal promised to spare the city and authorized the creation of a provisional Italian command under General
Giorgio Calvi di Bergolo Giorgio Carlo Calvi, Count of Bergolo (Athens, 15 March 1887 – Rome, 25 February 1977) was an Italian general during World War II and the husband of Princess Yolanda of Savoy, the eldest daughter of King Victor Emmanuel III. Biography Bor ...
. This evanescent agreement was soon revoked by the Germans; by 15 September all Italian troops were disarmed, on 23 September Calvi di Bergolo was arrested and the German and RSI forces, under Generals Stahel and Chieli, respectively, assumed control of the city; despite this, they stated that the status of "
open city In war, an open city is a settlement which has announced it has abandoned all defensive efforts, generally in the event of the imminent capture of the city to avoid destruction. Once a city has declared itself open the opposing military will b ...
" was maintained. This status was never recognized by the Allies, and the Germans exploited it to use Rome as a key logistic junction for the supplies sent to the frontline. Meanwhile, the Italian units that had retreated towards Tivoli dissolved; a considerable part of the Sassari and Piacenza divisions and of the 211th Coastal Division escaped capture and crossed the frontline, thus joining the Allies, but most of the men of the ten Italian divisions in the area were disarmed. Only a small part of them, however, were interned or deported; the majority was allowed to return to their homes. Overall German casualties for the capture of Rome were about a hundred dead and about 500 wounded, while Italian casualties were 984 killed, of whom 659 were soldiers, 121 civilians, and 204 "unidentified".


Disintegration of Italian forces in southern Italy

Field Marshal Kesselring, despite being busy with avoiding the isolation of his forces and containing the Allied attacks launched in three different landing areas (Salerno, Apulia and Calabria), still managed to retain control of the situation and to carry out the tasks assigned within the "Achse" plan. He managed to quickly dissolve the Italian forces stationed in his area, to capture Rome, and to disengage mobile units that were to be sent south against the Allies (the 3rd Panzergrenadier Division, after capturing Rome, reached Salerno on 12 September), but he had to restrict himself to summarily disarming the majority of the captured soldiers, then sending them back to their homes. Only 24,294 of the 102,340 Italian soldiers captured by Army Group C were held captive. Italian forces in
Campania (man), it, Campana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demog ...
were weak and were quickly overwhelmed by the German troops; the
Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adm ...
garrison was destroyed after two days of resistance by a German armored column, and its commander, Colonel Olivier, was executed. The XIX Italian Army Corps was dissolved on 11 September after its commander, General Del Tetto, abandoned his command post to take shelter in a monastery; the
9th Infantry Division "Pasubio" The 9th Infantry Division Pasubio ( it, 9ª Divisione di fanteria "Pasubio") was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Pasubio was classified as an auto-transportable division, meaning it had some motorized tran ...
(stationed in the Naples area), which was still being re-formed after its near destruction on the Eastern Front, was immediately disarmed, while in the Salerno area the 222nd Coastal Division was attacked and dispersed by the 16th Panzer Division, and its commander, General
Ferrante Vincenzo Gonzaga Ferrante Vincenzo Gonzaga, Marquess of Vescovato (Turin, 6 March 1889 – Eboli, 8 September 1943) was an Italian general during World War II. Biography Early life and career Prince Ferrante Vincenzo Gonzaga was born in 1889, the only son ...
, was killed after refusing to surrender. The 7th Italian Army of General Mario Arisio was stationed in Calabria,
Basilicata it, Lucano (man) it, Lucana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = ...
and Apulia; German forces in these regions were scarce, and were being moved north. On 9 September, the 7th Army headquarters in
Potenza Potenza (, also , ; , Potentino dialect: ''Putenz'') is a ''comune'' in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata (former Lucania). Capital of the Province of Potenza and the Basilicata region, the city is the highest regional capital and one ...
were attacked by surprise and captured by German troops, but the overall weakness of the German forces and the swift intervention of the Allied forces helped the Italian units, the majority of whom maintained unit cohesion. The IX Italian Army Corps (General Roberto Lerici) held central and northern Apulia, despite the collapse of the 209th Coastal Division; General Nicola Bellomo held the harbour of Bari until Allied forces arrived, while to the south the
58th Infantry Division "Legnano" The 58th Infantry Division "Legnano" ( it, 58ª Divisione di fanteria "Legnano") was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Legnano's predecessor division was formed on 8 February 1934 in Milan and named for the ...
, the 152nd Infantry Division "Piceno" and the 210th Coastal Division held their positions between
Grottaglie Grottaglie (; scn, label=Salentino, li Vurtàgghie; la, Criptalium) is a town and '' comune'' in the province of Taranto, Apulia, in southern Italy. Geography Grottaglie is located in the Salento peninsula, dividing the Adriatic sea from Ioni ...
and
Lecce Lecce ( ); el, label= Griko, Luppìu, script=Latn; la, Lupiae; grc, Λουπίαι, translit=Loupíai), group=pron is a historic city of 95,766 inhabitants (2015) in southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Lecce, the provi ...
. More to the north, Foggia was occupied by German troops, and the local garrison commander, General Felice Caperdoni, shot himself after ordering his men to lay down their weapons. The situation of the XXXI Italian Army Corps (General Mercalli), stationed in Calabria with three coastal divisions and the 104th Infantry Division "Mantova", was more difficult: it was attacked by the 76th Panzerkorps and sustained casualties, and the III Battalion/ 185th Paratroopers Regiment "Nembo" sided with the Germans and joined the 1st German Parachute Division. General
Frido von Senger und Etterlin Fridolin von Senger und Etterlin (4 September 1891 – 9 January 1963) was a general in the army of Nazi Germany during World War II. Biography Fridolin Rudolph von Senger und Etterlin was born on 4 September 1891, in Waldshut near the Swiss b ...
, the German commander in Sardinia, was ordered by Kesselring to withdraw to
Corsica Corsica ( , Upper , Southern ; it, Corsica; ; french: Corse ; lij, Còrsega; sc, Còssiga) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of ...
with the 90th Panzergrenadier Division. This manoeuvre was a complete success; the Italian forces present in the area (consisting of the 30th Infantry Division "Sabauda", the 31st Infantry Division "Calabria", the
47th Infantry Division "Bari" The 47th Infantry Division "Bari" ( it, 47ª Divisione di fanteria "Bari") was an infantry Division (military), division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Bari was formed on 15 September 1939 in the city of Bari. After the announ ...
, the
184th Paratroopers Division "Nembo" The 184th Paratroopers Division "Nembo" ( it, 184ª Divisione paracadutisti "Nembo") was an airborne division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. After the Armistice of Cassibile the division joined the Italian Co-belligerent Army's ...
, the 203rd Coastal Division, the 204th Coastal Division and the 205th Coastal Division), under General Antonio Basso, lacked mobility and did not go into action until 12 September; due to previous agreements made with the German commands, they did not impede the transfer of the German forces to Corsica, which was completed by 18 September with a few wounded caused by a skirmish near Oristano. The XII Battalion of the Nembo Division, which had reacted negatively to the news of the armistice, mutinied, killed the divisional chief of staff, Colonel Alberto Bechi Lucerna, and joined the 90th Panzergrenadier Division. In Corsica, after initial confusion and fruitless negotiations, General Giovanni Magli, commander of the VII Italian Army Corps (
20th Infantry Division "Friuli" The 20th Infantry Division "Friuli" ( it, 20ª Divisione di fanteria "Friuli") was an infantry Division (military), division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Friuli was formed on 24 August 1939 by splitting the 20th Infantry Di ...
and 44th Infantry Division "Cremona"), attacked the Waffen-SS "Reichführer-SS" brigade, while some French units landed at
Ajaccio Ajaccio (, , ; French: ; it, Aiaccio or ; co, Aiacciu , locally: ; la, Adiacium) is a French commune, prefecture of the department of Corse-du-Sud, and head office of the '' Collectivité territoriale de Corse'' (capital city of Corsic ...
on 12 September. On 13 September, following the arrival of the 90th Panzergrenadier Division from Sardinia,
Bastia Bastia (, , , ; co, Bastìa ) is a commune in the department of Haute-Corse, Corsica, France. It is located in the northeast of the island of Corsica at the base of Cap Corse. It also has the second-highest population of any commune on the is ...
(where a previous German attempt to capture the port and Italian shipping had been thwarted by Italian ships) fell in German hands, but the Wehrmacht Supreme Command ordered General Von Senger to leave the island and withdraw to
Piombino Piombino is an Italian town and '' comune'' of about 35,000 inhabitants in the province of Livorno ( Tuscany). It lies on the border between the Ligurian Sea and the Tyrrhenian Sea, in front of Elba Island and at the northern side of Maremma. ...
. The German forces were evacuated from Corsica by 4 October, despite attacks by the Italian and French forces (the latter consisting of the 4th Moroccan Mountain Division). On 12 September, paratrooper units under Major
Harald Mors Harald-Otto Mors (18 November 1910 – 11 February 2001) was a Wehrmacht officer (1934–1945) during the Second World War. In the summer of 1943 he commanded a battalion of ''Fallschirmjäger'' and planned and led the Gran Sasso raid to rescue Be ...
, which also included the SS officer Otto Skorzeny (who had located the different prisons where Mussolini had been held), carried out Operation "Eiche" and freed Mussolini from detention in Campo Imperatore,
Gran Sasso Gran Sasso d'Italia (; ) is a massif in the Apennine Mountains of Italy. Its highest peak, Corno Grande (2,912 metres), is the highest mountain in the Apennines, and the second-highest mountain in Italy outside the Alps. The mountain lies ...
; this was an essential premise for the creation of a new fascist collaborationist government wanted by Hitler.


Disintegration of Italian forces in central and northern Italy

The strategic situation in central and northern Italy was much more favorable to the Germans than in the south. Army Group B, under Field Marshal Rommel, had a considerable number of troops, was far away from possible Allied intervention, and its units were deployed so as to be ready to intervene against Italian units, which were much less prepared and lacked clear orders. Moreover, the behavior of many of the Italian commanders further favored the success of the "Achse" plan: the local Italian superior commands, mostly concerned with avoiding riots, devastation, and popular insurrections, refused the help of civilians in the resistance, sometimes autonomously dissolved their units, and started negotiations with the Germans for an uneventful handover. Even the civilian leadership of the major cities carried out the instructions of the chief of police, Carmine Senise, mostly aimed at avoiding riots, and thus collaborated with the German authorities. Under such circumstances, Rommel carried out his task with speed and efficiency, while many Italian units quickly disintegrated and offered little resistance; Army Group B strictly carried out the orders about the internment of Italian troops, and by 20 September, 183,300 of the 13,000 officers and 402,000 soldiers captured had already been sent to Germany. German units in
Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...
quickly neutralized the Italian units; in
Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...
(where General
Enrico Adami Rossi Enrico Adami Rossi (11 January 1880 – 12 July 1963) was an Italian general during World War II. Biography He participated in the First World War with the rank of cavalry major; serving at the Supreme Command, he distinguished himself in ...
refused to arm the civilians – on 18 August, he had ordered his men to fire on the crowd during a popular demonstration – and immediately initiated negotiations) and
Novara Novara (, Novarese: ) is the capital city of the province of Novara in the Piedmont region in northwest Italy, to the west of Milan. With 101,916 inhabitants (on 1 January 2021), it is the second most populous city in Piedmont after Turin. It i ...
(where General Casentino surrendered his entire command) the high commands did not attempt any resistance, immediately handed over their weapons and surrendered with their disintegrating units; Adami Rossi surrendered as soon as German armored units entered Turin (he later joined the Italian Social Republic). In
Liguria Liguria (; lij, Ligûria ; french: Ligurie) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is ...
, by 11 September the German troops of the 87th Corps (76th and 94th Infantry Division) and the 51st Corps (65th and 305th Infantry Division) occupied all positions, while the XVI Italian Army Corps ( 105th Infantry Division "Rovigo" and 6th Alpine Division "Alpi Graie") dissolved; German units also entered the naval base of
La Spezia La Spezia (, or , ; in the local Spezzino dialect) is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy. La Spezia is the second largest cit ...
, but the Italian fleet had already sailed, while ships unable to sail had been scuttled or sabotaged. In
Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...
, General Vittorio Ruggero, commander of the garrison, bought time for 48 hours and then reached an agreement with a German colonel of the 1st SS Panzer Division "Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler"; Ruggero dissolved without a fight the 5th Infantry Division "Cosseria", which was being re-formed after the heavy losses suffered in
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
, and already on the following day the Waffen-SS units broke the agreement, occupied Milan and arrested Ruggero, who was sent to POW camps in Germany along with his soldiers. After a brief resistance, the garrison of
Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city municipality in the region and the second largest in nor ...
and its commander, General Guglielmo Orengo, were disarmed and deported by the German forces. Despite the Alpine Wall fortifications, Italian units quickly disintegrated also in
Trentino Trentino ( lld, Trentin), officially the Autonomous Province of Trento, is an autonomous province of Italy, in the country's far north. The Trentino and South Tyrol constitute the region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, an autonomous region ...
-
South Tyrol it, Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano – Alto Adige lld, Provinzia Autonoma de Balsan/Bulsan – Südtirol , settlement_type = Autonomous province , image_skyline = , image_alt ...
: by 9 September, the two alpine divisions of XXV Army Italian Corps of General Alessandro Gloria (
2nd Alpine Division "Tridentina" The 2nd Alpine Division "Tridentina" ( it, 2ª Divisione alpina "Tridentina") was a Division (military), division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II, which specialized in mountain warfare. The Alpini that formed the divisions are a hig ...
and
4th Alpine Division "Cuneense" The 4th Alpine Division "Cuneense" ( it, 4ª Divisione alpina "Cuneense") was a Division (military), division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II, which specialized in mountain warfare. The headquarters of the division was in the city of ...
), both under re-constitution after their destruction on the Eastern Front) were immediately attacked and disarmed by the 44th German Infantry Division, which was already deployed south of
Brenner Pass The Brenner Pass (german: link=no, Brennerpass , shortly ; it, Passo del Brennero ) is a mountain pass through the Alps which forms the border between Italy and Austria. It is one of the principal passes of the Eastern Alpine range and has ...
, and by the "Doelha" Brigade; only in
Rovereto Rovereto (; "wood of sessile oaks"; locally: ''Roveredo'') is a city and ''comune'' in Trentino in northern Italy, located in the Vallagarina valley of the Adige River. History Rovereto was an ancient fortress town standing at the frontier b ...
did some units resist until the morning of 10 September, before surrendering. In Emilia, the 2nd SS-Panzerkorps of General Paul Hausser occupied the territory and destroyed the weak Italian units in the area without difficulty: the 24th Panzer Division and "Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler" quickly entered
Modena Modena (, , ; egl, label= Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and '' comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. A town, and seat o ...
and
Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different na ...
; the
3rd Cavalry Division "Principe Amedeo Duca d'Aosta" The 3rd Cavalry Division " Principe Amedeo Duca d'Aosta" ( it, 3ª Divisione celere "Principe Amedeo Duca d'Aosta") was a Cavalry or "Celere" (Fast) division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The division was formed in 1934, and dur ...
, which was being re-formed after the losses suffered in Russia, was disarmed, and the soldiers taken prisoner. The 71st German Infantry Division encountered more difficulty in occupying
Friuli Friuli ( fur, Friûl, sl, Furlanija, german: Friaul) is an area of Northeast Italy with its own particular cultural and historical identity containing 1,000,000 Friulians. It comprises the major part of the autonomous region Friuli Venezia Giuli ...
and the
Julian March Venezia Giulia, traditionally called Julian March (Serbo-Croatian, Slovene: ''Julijska krajina'') or Julian Venetia ( it, Venezia Giulia; vec, Venesia Julia; fur, Vignesie Julie; german: Julisch Venetien) is an area of southeastern Europe wh ...
; whereas the
3rd Alpine Division "Julia" The 3rd Alpine Division "Julia" ( it, 3ª Divisione alpina "Julia") was a Division (military), division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II, which specialized in mountain warfare. The Alpini that formed the divisions are a highly decora ...
and the
2nd Infantry Division "Sforzesca" The 2nd Infantry Division "Sforzesca" ( it, 2ª Divisione di fanteria "Sforzesca") was a infantry Division (military), division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Sforzesca was classified as a mountain infantry division, which mean ...
, both being re-formed after their destruction in Russia, were soon disarmed, the
52nd Infantry Division "Torino" The 52nd Infantry Division "Torino" ( it, 52ª Divisione di fanteria "Torino") was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Torino was named after the city of Turin ( it, Torino) and classified as an auto-transport ...
put up resistance in
Gorizia Gorizia (; sl, Gorica , colloquially 'old Gorizia' to distinguish it from Nova Gorica; fur, label= Standard Friulian, Gurize, fur, label= Southeastern Friulian, Guriza; vec, label= Bisiacco, Gorisia; german: Görz ; obsolete English ''Gori ...
, where workers formed the first partisan groups. Meanwhile, Slovene partisan formations invaded part of this region, where they often inflicted bloody reprisals against the Italian civilian population. Only towards the end of the month, the 71st German Infantry Division, assisted by Italian collaborationist soldiers of the Italian Social Republic, regained control of the situation, repelled the Yugoslav partisans and occupied all the territory. In
Trieste Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into pr ...
, General Alberto Ferrero, after fruitless talks with anti-fascist representatives, started negotiations with the Germans and then abandoned the city, and 90,000 Italian soldiers in the area, abandoned without orders, surrendered without a fight. In central Italy north of Rome, the 5th Italian Army of General Mario Caracciolo di Feroleto, headquartered in
Orte Orte is a town, '' comune'', former Catholic bishopric and Latin titular see in the province of Viterbo, in the central Italian region of Lazio, located about north of Rome and about east of Viterbo. Geography Orte is situated in the Tiber va ...
, was dissolved on 11 September, and its soldiers were disarmed and interned; the 3rd Infantry Division "Ravenna", headquartered in
Grosseto Grosseto () is a city and ''comune'' in the central Italian region of Tuscany, the capital of the Province of Grosseto. The city lies from the Tyrrhenian Sea, in the Maremma, at the centre of an alluvial plain on the Ombrone river. It is the ...
, and the coastal formations of the northern
Tyrrhenian Sea The Tyrrhenian Sea (; it, Mar Tirreno , french: Mer Tyrrhénienne , sc, Mare Tirrenu, co, Mari Tirrenu, scn, Mari Tirrenu, nap, Mare Tirreno) is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy. It is named for the Tyrrhenian pe ...
disintegrated, and German units entered the cities;
Livorno Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 158,493 residents in December 2017. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn (pronou ...
was captured on 10 September. In
Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico ...
, General
Armellini Chiappi Armellini Chiappi (Rome, 2 December 1879 – Wöllstein, 4 November 1944) was an Italian general during World War II. He was in command of the territorial defense of Florence for most of the war. Biography He was born in Rome on December ...
immediately allowed the Germans to enter the city; Colonel Chiari in
Arezzo Arezzo ( , , ) , also ; ett, 𐌀𐌓𐌉𐌕𐌉𐌌, Aritim. is a city and '' comune'' in Italy and the capital of the province of the same name located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about southeast of Florence at an elevation of above sea lev ...
and Colonel Laurei in
Massa Massa may refer to: Places *Massa, Tuscany, the administrative seat of the Italian province of Massa-Carrara. *Massa (river), river in Switzerland * Massa (Tanzanian ward), administrative ward in the Mpwapwa district of the Dodoma Region of Ta ...
gave up their forces without attempting any resistance. Italian units and civilian volunteers in Piombino repelled a German landing attempt between 10 and 11 September, killing or capturing some hundreds of German soldiers, but on 12 September the Italian superior commands surrendered the town to the Germans. Army Group B completed its task by 19 September, occupying all of central and northern Italy, disarming and capturing a great part of the Italian troops and sizable booty, that included 236 armored fighting vehicles, 1,138
field gun A field gun is a field artillery piece. Originally the term referred to smaller guns that could accompany a field army on the march, that when in combat could be moved about the battlefield in response to changing circumstances ( field artill ...
s, 536
anti-tank gun An anti-tank gun is a form of artillery designed to destroy tanks and other armored fighting vehicles, normally from a static defensive position. The development of specialized anti-tank munitions and anti-tank guns was prompted by the appearance ...
s, 797
anti-aircraft gun Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based ...
s, 5,926
machine gun A machine gun is a fully automatic, rifled autoloading firearm designed for sustained direct fire with rifle cartridges. Other automatic firearms such as automatic shotguns and automatic rifles (including assault rifles and battle rifles ...
s and 386,000 rifles. Along with 13,000 officers and 402,000 Italian soldiers, 43,000 Allied prisoners, previously held by the Italians, were also captured. Rommel organized a quick transfer to Germany of the captured Italian soldiers, which were sent through the Brenner Pass, partly by train, partly on foot.


Disintegration of Italian forces abroad


France

The 4th Italian Army of General Mario Vercellino, consisting of the 5th Alpine Division "Pusteria", the 2nd Cavalry Division "Emanuele Filiberto Testa di Ferro" and the 48th Infantry Division "Taro", was on its way from
Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bo ...
to Italy when news of the armistice came; panic immediately spread among the troops, and rumors about the aggressiveness and brutality of the German troops caused demoralization and disintegration of the units towards the border. The army, dispersed between France, Piedmont and Liguria, disintegrated between 9 and 11 September, under the pressure of the converging German forces of Field Marshals
Gerd von Rundstedt Karl Rudolf Gerd von Rundstedt (12 December 1875 – 24 February 1953) was a German field marshal in the '' Heer'' (Army) of Nazi Germany during World War II. Born into a Prussian family with a long military tradition, Rundstedt entered th ...
(from Provence) and Erwin Rommel (from Italy). Taking advantage of the disintegration of the Italian units, the German troops swiftly captured all positions: the 356th and 715th Infantry Division entered
Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...
and reached the Var river, while the Panzergrenadier Division ''Feldherrnhalle'' occupied the riviera till
Menton Menton (; , written ''Menton'' in classical norm or ''Mentan'' in Mistralian norm; it, Mentone ) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region on the French Riviera, close to the Italian border. Me ...
. Mont Cenis pass, held by Italian units, was attacked in a pincer movement by German units from France (units of the 157th and 715th Infantry Division) and Piedmont (units of the ''Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler'', coming from Turin); the Italian garrison defended the pass for some time, then surrendered after blowing up part of the Fréjus Rail Tunnel. Most soldiers of the 4th Army dispersed and tried to reach their homes; some others decided to remain with the Germans, whereas sizeable groups chose to oppose the occupation and went into the mountains, where they joined groups of anti-fascist civilians and thus formed the first partisan groups in Piedmont. On 12 September, General Vercellino formally dissolved his Army, while General Operti secured the Army treasure, part of which would later be used to fund the resistance.


Balkans

Italian forces in the
Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
(
Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, and ...
,
Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see names in other languages) is one of the four historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of the Adriatic Sea, str ...
,
Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = " Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capi ...
,
Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and Pars pro toto#Geography, often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of Southern Europe, south and southeast Euro ...
,
Herzegovina Herzegovina ( or ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Hercegovina, separator=" / ", Херцеговина, ) is the southern and smaller of two main geographical region of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being Bosnia. It has never had strictly defined geogra ...
,
Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = ...
,
Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and share ...
and
Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wi ...
) amounted to over 30 divisions and 500,000 soldiers, who had been engaged for two years in waging counter- guerrilla operations against Yugoslav and Greek partisans. Italian forces in the area consisted of the 2nd Italian Army (General
Mario Robotti Mario Robotti (25 November 1882–1955) was a general in the Royal Italian Army who commanded the XI Corps during the World War II Axis invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941. He then became military commander in the province of Ljubljana, the Ita ...
) in Slovenia and Dalmatia, of the 9th Italian Army (General
Lorenzo Dalmazzo Lorenzo "Renzo" Dalmazzo was an Italian lieutenant general and corps and army commander during World War II. Military career On 3 June 1918, he received the Knight's Military Order of Italy (5th Class). He served in the colony of Italian Somali ...
), stationed in Albania and under the control of Army Group East of General Ezio Rosi (which also included the troops in Bosnia and Montenegro), and of the 11th Italian Army (General
Carlo Vecchiarelli Carlo Vecchiarelli (10 January 1884 – 13 December 1948) was an Italian general. He was a veteran combatant of the First World War. Between the two world wars he held the positions of Military Attaché at the Italian Embassy in Prague, Honora ...
) in Greece, the latter under Army Group E of General
Alexander Löhr Alexander Löhr (20 May 1885 – 26 February 1947) was an Austrian Air Force commander during the 1930s and, after the annexation of Austria, he was a Luftwaffe commander. Löhr served in the Luftwaffe during World War II, rising to commander o ...
. Italian troops in the area were exhausted after years of wearing anti-partisan operations, characterized by brutalities, reprisals and repression, and were isolated in a hostile territory, mixed with numerous German divisions (over 20 divisions of Army Group F of Field Marshal Von Weichs, and of Army Group E of General Löhr) and Croat collaborationist units whom, on 9 September, immediately severed all ties with Italy and joined Germany in the fight against the former ally. Without any land connection, and with confusing and vague orders, units quickly disintegrated and many soldiers were disarmed, captured and deported to Germany. However, Italian soldiers in this area fought with more determination than the units left in Italy, suffering heavy casualties and harsh reprisals by the German units. Some units managed to escape capture and joined Yugoslav or Greek partisan formations, subsequently fighting alongside them; the population was often friendly towards the soldiers, and helped them. German forces, less numerous but more mobile, determined and well-led, and enjoying complete
air supremacy Aerial supremacy (also air superiority) is the degree to which a side in a conflict holds control of air power over opposing forces. There are levels of control of the air in aerial warfare. Control of the air is the aerial equivalent of comm ...
, quickly prevailed, brutally crushing Italian resistance, often summarily executing Italian officers, and occupying all the Balkan region; 393,000 Italian soldiers were captured and deported, about 29,000 joined the Germans, 20,000 joined Partisan formations, and 57,000 dispersed or hid and tried to survive. The V Italian Army Corps, XI Italian Army Corps, and XVIII Italian Army Corps which formed the 2nd Italian Army, stationed in Slovenia, Croatia and Dalmatia, were attacked by two Croat and three German divisions; General
Gastone Gambara Gastone Gambara (10 November 1890 – 27 February 1962) was an Italian General who participated in World War I and World War II. He excelled during the Italian intervention in favor of the nationalists in the Spanish Civil War. During World War ...
, commander of the XI Italian Army Corps, started negotiations in
Fiume Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Prim ...
and then abandoned his troops on 14 September, leaving them to be captured; Pola also fell without resistance. On 11 September the divisions stationed in Dalmatia were ordered to avoid any resistance in the hope of a peaceful repatriation, but the subordinate units refused, and started fighting against the Germans. The 14th Infantry Division "Isonzo",
22nd Infantry Division "Cacciatori delle Alpi" The 22nd Infantry Division "Cacciatori delle Alpi" ( it, 22ª Divisione di fanteria "Cacciatori delle Alpi" English: Hunters of the Alps) was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The division was based in Perugi ...
and 153rd Infantry Division "Macerata" were dissolved, whereas the 57th Infantry Division "Lombardia" and the 154th Infantry Division "Murge" resisted in
Susak Susak ( it, Sansego; German and French: ''Sansig'') is a small island on the northern Adriatic coast of Croatia. The name ''Sansego'' comes from the Greek word ''Sansegus'' meaning oregano which grows in abundance on the island. A small perc ...
and
Karlovac Karlovac () is a city in central Croatia. According to the 2011 census, its population was 55,705. Karlovac is the administrative centre of Karlovac County. The city is located on the Zagreb-Rijeka highway and railway line, south-west of Zagre ...
; the 158th Infantry Division "Zara" surrendered on 10 September and its commanders were deported, while in
Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, entertai ...
the 15th Infantry Division "Bergamo" made an agreement with Yugoslav partisans and defended the town till 27 September against the
7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division Prinz Eugen The 7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division "Prinz Eugen" (), initially named the SS-Volunteer Division ''Prinz Eugen'' (''SS-Freiwilligen-Division "Prinz Eugen"''), was a mountain infantry division of the Waffen-SS, an armed branch of the German Naz ...
, sent from
Mostar , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = Mostar (collage image).jpg , image_caption = From top, left to right: A panoramic view of the heritage town site and the Neretva river from Lučki Bridge, Koski Mehmed Pasha ...
; after surrender, three Italian generals ( Alfonso Cigala Fulgosi, Salvatore Pelligra and Angelo Policardi) and 46 officers were executed. The
1st Cavalry Division "Eugenio di Savoia" The 1st Cavalry Division " Eugenio di Savoia" ( it, 1ª Divisione celere "Eugenio di Savoia") was a cavalry or "Celere" (Fast) division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The division was mobilized in 1940 and took part in the Inva ...
, stationed in Dalmatia, was dispersed. Italian forces in
Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and share ...
consisted of the six divisions of the 9th Italian Army (General Dalmazzo); the headquarters of Army Group East (General Rosi) was in
Tirana Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...
. Left without clear orders, Italian commanders showed indecision and insufficient fighting spirit; on the contrary, German forces (Superior Command "Kroatien" with two Jäger divisions, and one mountain division, and part of the 1st Panzer Division) acted swiftly and with great aggressiveness. In the morning of 11 September, the command of Army Group East was surrounded and General Rosi was immediately captured along with his officers, while General Dalmazzo did not react to the German attacks, did not issue any order of resistance and started negotiations with the Germans, hastening the disintegration of his forces. The 11th Infantry Division "Brennero" (whose commander, General Princivalle, kept an ambivalent behavior), 38th Infantry Division "Puglie", 49th Infantry Division "Parma" and 53rd Infantry Division "Arezzo" handed over their weapons and were dissolved (most men of the Brennero Division however managed to return to Italy by sea, while a considerable part of the men of the Arezzo Division escaped and joined the partisans), while the 41st Infantry Division "Firenze" (General Arnaldo Azzi) and the 151st Infantry Division "Perugia" (General Ernesto Chiminello) tried to resist. The Firenze Division faced the Germans in battle but was defeated near Kruja, after which the Division was dissolved and its men joined the partisan formations; the Perugia Division retreated to
Porto Edda Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...
after a fighting retreat and some of its men managed to embark on ships headed for Italy, but most of the division, weakened by the exhausting march through the Albanian mountains and the continuous attacks, was surrounded and surrendered on 22 September, after which General Chiminello and 130 officers were executed. Some survivors joined the partisans, forming the
Antonio Gramsci Battalion The Antonio Gramsci Battalion was formed on 9 November 1943 from captured Italian soldiers who wished to continue the war by resisting Nazi German forces in Albania. In the beginning its forces amounted to 137 men who chose their own leaders: Terz ...
. Over 15,000 dispersed Italian soldiers were sheltered by the population; the 21st German Mountain Corps established its headquarters in Tirana already on 10 September. Overall, about 90,000 Italian soldiers were captured in Albania, whereas a further 45,000 evaded capture and dispersed around the country; some of them were sheltered by the population in exchange for their labour, while many others succumbed to cold and starvation (British documents estimated mortality among Italian soldiers in Albania at about one hundred deaths per day in the winter of 1943-1944). In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the 18th Infantry Division "Messina" resisted for four days, while the 32nd Infantry Division "Marche" tried to defend
Dubrovnik Dubrovnik (), historically known as Ragusa (; see notes on naming), is a city on the Adriatic Sea in the region of Dalmatia, in the southeastern semi-exclave of Croatia. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterranea ...
, but the German forces crushed its resistance; the commander of the Division, General Giuseppe Amico, was captured by the Germans during a parley and released to convince his men to surrender, but he instead rallied them against the Germans. Recaptured later, he was executed. In Montenegro, the 23rd Infantry Division "Ferrara" disintegrated, while the 155th Infantry Division "Emilia" defended the
Bay of Kotor The Bay of Kotor ( Montenegrin and Serbian: , Italian: ), also known as the Boka, is a winding bay of the Adriatic Sea in southwestern Montenegro and the region of Montenegro concentrated around the bay. It is also the southernmost part of the hi ...
till 16 September, then it had to surrender; the soldiers of the 19th Infantry Division "Venezia" and of the 1st Alpine Division "Taurinense" joined Tito's partisans and formed the
Partisan Division "Garibaldi" Partisan may refer to: Military * Partisan (weapon), a pole weapon * Partisan (military), paramilitary forces engaged behind the front line Films * ''Partisan'' (film), a 2015 Australian film * '' Hell River'', a 1974 Yugoslavian film also kno ...
, which kept fighting against the Germans, despite some violent "incomprehensions" with the Yugoslavs, till March 1945. In mainland
Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wi ...
, as elsewhere, uncertainty and ambivalent behavior of the Italian superior officers favored a rapid German success; Italian forces in this region, consisting of the 11th Italian Army with headquarters in
Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates a ...
, were subordinate to Army Group E of General Löhr, whom had numerically inferior but more efficient units (three Jäger divisions, part of the 1st Panzer Division and a Luftwaffe field division). General Carlo Vecchierelli, commander of the 11th Army, issued at first an order dictating that no initiatives were to be taken against the Germans, and on 9 September, believing the German assurances of safe-conducts to return to Italy, he ordered his troops to avoid any resistance and hand over the weapons to the Germans, without fighting. The consequence was the disintegration of most of the units: the 29th Infantry Division "Piemonte", 36th Infantry Division "Forlì", 37th Infantry Division "Modena", 56th Infantry Division "Casale" and 59th Infantry Division "Cagliari" were easily disarmed and their soldiers were captured and sent to Germany. The 24th Infantry Division "Pinerolo", stationed in
Thessalia Thessaly ( el, Θεσσαλία, translit=Thessalía, ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thess ...
, rejected Vecchiarelli's orders; General Adolfo Infante, after fighting in
Larissa Larissa (; el, Λάρισα, , ) is the capital and largest city of the Thessaly region in Greece. It is the fifth-most populous city in Greece with a population of 144,651 according to the 2011 census. It is also capital of the Larissa regiona ...
, retreated to the
Pindus The Pindus (also Pindos or Pindhos; el, Πίνδος, Píndos; sq, Pindet; rup, Pindu) is a mountain range located in Northern Greece and Southern Albania. It is roughly 160 km (100 miles) long, with a maximum elevation of 2,637 metres ...
massif, where he tried to obtain collaboration of the
ELAS The Greek People's Liberation Army ( el, Ελληνικός Λαϊκός Απελευθερωτικός Στρατός (ΕΛΑΣ), ''Ellinikós Laïkós Apeleftherotikós Stratós'' (ELAS) was the military arm of the left-wing National Liberat ...
partisans. At first the Greek partisans agreed, but then they attacked the cavalry Regiment "Lancieri di Aosta" to capture its weapons; Infante left for Italy, and his men were dispersed among the local population under the guidance of EAM/ELAS in order to be fed and survive the winter. After being ordered to disarm his unit or transfer it to German command,
Angelico Carta Angelico (Angelo) Carta (born 1886 in Riola Sardo) was an Italian military officer, best known for his actions during the Axis occupation of Crete in World War II. Biography Carta was an artillery officer and became commander of the 51st In ...
the commander of the 51st Infantry Division "Siena" stationed in east
Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, ...
, decided to side against the Italian Social Republic. He contacted the
Special Operations Executive The Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a secret British World War II organisation. It was officially formed on 22 July 1940 under Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton, from the amalgamation of three existing secret organisations. Its p ...
(SOE) through the division's counter-intelligence officer, arranging that he and members of his staff sympathetic to the Allied cause be smuggled to Egypt along with the defense plans for the east of the island. After abandoning his car north-east of Neapoli as a diversion, Carta and his comrades set foot for south-west. Evading German patrols and observation planes he embarked a Motor Torpedo Boat at Soutsouro reaching
Mersa Matruh Mersa Matruh ( ar, مرسى مطروح, translit=Marsā Maṭrūḥ, ), also transliterated as ''Marsa Matruh'', is a port in Egypt and the capital of Matrouh Governorate. It is located west of Alexandria and east of Sallum on the main highway ...
the next afternoon, on 23 September 1943.


Ionian Islands and the Dodecanese

German commands believed that it would be of great importance to retain control of the Ionian Islands and the
Dodecanese The Dodecanese (, ; el, Δωδεκάνησα, ''Dodekánisa'' , ) are a group of 15 larger plus 150 smaller Greek islands in the southeastern Aegean Sea and Eastern Mediterranean, off the coast of Turkey's Anatolia, of which 26 are inhabited ...
, garrisoned by Italian troops, as they were believed to be of great strategic importance as a peripheral naval and air base and a defensive stronghold against possible Allied attacks on the Balkan front. Therefore, German forces launched a series of operations aimed at capturing the most important of these islands, with a sizable concentration of land and air forces. These operations caused some bloody battles against the Italian garrisons (who tried to resist, relying on their numerical superiority, geographical isolation and in some cases Allied assistance) and atrocities after surrender. The Allies, despite insistence from
Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...
who supported a powerful Allied intervention in these islands to support the Italian garrisons and to secure valuable naval and air bases (which would turn useful for attacks on the southern Balkan front of " Fortress Europe"), only sent weak contingents with scarce air support, and were thus unable to change the course of the events, which progressively turned in favor of the Wehrmacht. In
Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, ...
, the 51st Infantry Division "Siena" and LI Special Brigade "Lecce" were immediately neutralized and disarmed by the German forces in the island (the "Kreta" fortress brigade and the
22nd Air Landing Division The 22nd Infantry Division was a specialized German infantry division in World War II. Its primary method of transportation was gliders. The division played a significant role in the development of modern day air assault operations. History Cr ...
, a veteran of the
German invasion of the Netherlands The German invasion of the Netherlands ( nl, Duitse aanval op Nederland), otherwise known as the Battle of the Netherlands ( nl, Slag om Nederland), was a military campaign part of Case Yellow (german: Fall Gelb), the Nazi German invasion of t ...
and of the
Siege of Sebastopol A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict characteri ...
); part of the Italian soldiers joined the Germans, whereas most of them were imprisoned and transferred to mainland Greece by sea, but at least 4,700 of them drowned in the sinking by Allied air and submarine attacks of two of the ships that were carrying them ( ''Sinfra'' and ''Petrella'').
Rhodes Rhodes (; el, Ρόδος , translit=Ródos ) is the largest and the historical capital of the Dodecanese islands of Greece. Administratively, the island forms a separate municipality within the Rhodes regional unit, which is part of the S ...
also quickly fell to the Germans; Italian forces there (the 50th Infantry Division "Regina" and part of the 6th Infantry Division "Cuneo", with 34,000 men), enjoyed numerical superiority over the German forces of General Kleeman (7,000 men of the "Rhodos" Division), but after an inconclusive battle the Italian commander, Admiral Inigo Campioni, surrendered when the Germans threatened to launch heavy bombings against the town of Rhodes.
Karpathos Karpathos ( el, Κάρπαθος, ), also Carpathos, is the second largest of the Greek Dodecanese islands, in the southeastern Aegean Sea. Together with the neighboring smaller Saria Island it forms the municipality of Karpathos, which is part of ...
was occupied by German forces on 13 September, after Campioni had ordered the island garrison to surrender. Over 6,500 Italian soldiers of the Rhodes garrison died after surrender, most of them in the sinking of the steamers ''Oria'' and ''Donizetti'' that were carrying them to mainland Greece; Campioni was later executed by Fascist authorities for having defended the island. British units landed in
Leros Leros ( el, Λέρος) is a Greek island and municipality in the Dodecanese in the southern Aegean Sea. It lies (171 nautical miles) from Athens's port of Piraeus, from which it can be reached by an 9-hour ferry ride or by a 45-minute flig ...
and
Kos Kos or Cos (; el, Κως ) is a Greek island, part of the Dodecanese island chain in the southeastern Aegean Sea. Kos is the third largest island of the Dodecanese by area, after Rhodes and Karpathos; it has a population of 36,986 (2021 census), ...
, where they joined the Italian garrisons in contrasting the German invasion (carried out by the 22nd Air Landing Division), but mediocre coordination, better German efficiency and German air supremacy led to a German victory and the capture of both islands. Kos fell on 4 October, with 2,500 Italian and 600 British soldiers taken prisoners; 96 Italian officers, including the garrison commander (Colonel Felice Leggio), were
executed Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...
. Leros, defended by its 7,600-strong Italian garrison reinforced by 4,500 British soldiers, resisted for much longer; after weeks of continuous bombing, on 12 November 2,700 German soldiers landed or were parachuted in different points of the island and, despite numerical inferiority, they prevailed by 16 September, forcing both Italians and British to surrender. The Italian commander, Rear Admiral Luigi Mascherpa, was later executed by RSI authorities, like Campioni. The most tragic events took place in the Ionian Islands, namely
Corfu Corfu (, ) or Kerkyra ( el, Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, , ; ; la, Corcyra.) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the margin of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The isl ...
and
Cephalonia Kefalonia or Cephalonia ( el, Κεφαλονιά), formerly also known as Kefallinia or Kephallenia (), is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece and the 6th largest island in Greece after Crete, Euboea, Lesbos, Rhodes and Chios. It ...
, which the German command considered to be of utmost importance for defense of the Balkan coast against possible Allied landings. The Italian garrison on Cephalonia, consisting in the
33rd Infantry Division "Acqui" The 33rd Infantry Division "Acqui" ( it, 33ª Divisione di fanteria "Acqui") was an infantry Division (military), division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Acqui was classified as a mountain infantry division, which meant that ...
with 11,500 men under General Antonio Gandin, at first did not take any initiative against the much smaller German garrison (2,000 mountain troops under Lieutenant Colonel Hans Barge), and waited for clear orders. On 11 September, the Germans presented an ultimatum which ordered the Italians to surrender; Gandin at first decided to hand over the weapons, but after signs of protest and unrest among his men, he decided to resist. On 13 September, after receiving clear orders from the superior commands in Brindisi, Gandin rejected the ultimatum and attacked the German landing craft attempting to reach the island. On 15 September, the Germans intervened in force, landing five battalions of mountain troops of the 1st Mountain Division of General Hubert Lanz, supported by
self-propelled gun Self-propelled artillery (also called locomotive artillery) is artillery equipped with its own propulsion system to move toward its firing position. Within the terminology are the self-propelled gun, self-propelled howitzer, self-propelled ...
s. The Germans repelled the Italian attack and then, after fierce fighting, went on the offensive on 21 September and forced the Italians to surrender at 11:00 on 22 September. After the surrender, the Germans began a bloody reprisal; General Gandin, about 400 officers and 4,000 to 5,000 men of the Acqui Division were executed. 1,300 men had previously been killed in the battle, and another 1,350 subsequently perished in the sinking of ships that were carrying them to mainland Greece. In Corfu the 4,500-strong Italian garrison easily overpowered and captured the 500-strong German garrison; the German prisoners were transferred by sea to Italy (and their presence in Italian hands is probably the reason that prevented the Germans from committing another full-scale massacre like in Cephalonia), while the garrison was reinforced by 3,500 more men. Between 24 and 25 September, however, more German forces, with Luftwaffe support, landed in the island, and on 26 September the Italians, after losing some hundreds of men and running out of ammunition, surrendered. The Italian commander, Colonel Luigi Lusignani, was executed along with 28 of his officers; 1,302 Italian prisoners perished in the sinking of the motor ship ''Mario Roselli'' which was to transfer them to the mainland.


Italian fleet

The clauses of the armistice specifically demanded the surrender of the Italian fleet, as the 'elimination' of the battleships of the Italian Royal Navy would allow a reduction of the Allied naval forces in the Mediterranean. Like their colleagues of the Army, the commanders of the Italian Navy also showed indecision and a lack of capability; the Chief of Staff, Admiral
Raffaele de Courten Raffaele de Courten (Milan, 23 September 1888 – Frascati, 23 August 1978) was an Italian admiral. He was the last Chief of Staff of the Regia Marina. Life Raffaele de Courten was born in Milan in 1888. He joined the Naval Academy of Leghorn ...
, who had been forewarned of the armistice, remained undecided till the evening of 8 September whether he should comply and surrender the fleet, or order it to be scuttled. Moreover, till the evening of 8 September De Courten did not inform Admiral Carlo Bergamini, the commander of the Italian main battleship force based in
La Spezia La Spezia (, or , ; in the local Spezzino dialect) is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy. La Spezia is the second largest cit ...
, about the armistice. Only at that point did he order a bewildered Bergamini to sail with his ship, heading for
La Maddalena La Maddalena (Gallurese: ''Madalena'' or ''La Madalena'', sc, Sa Madalena) is a town and '' comune'' located on the islands of the Maddalena archipelago in the province of Sassari, northern Sardinia, Italy. The main town of the same name is lo ...
. Immediately thereafter, De Courten joined Badoglio and the king in their escape towards Brindisi, and he thus abandoned his command, leaving behind in Rome his deputy chief of staff, Admiral
Luigi Sansonetti Luigi Sansonetti (22 February 1888 – 7 November 1959) was an Italian admiral during World War II. Early life and career Luigi Sansonetti was born in Rome in 1888, and entered the Livorno Naval Academy in 1905; he graduated as an ensign in ...
. The latter, despite his precarious situation, kept radio contact with the ships at sea till 12 September, when De Courten assumed command again. Bergamini, after a meeting to convince his reluctant officers of the need to abide by the orders, sailed from
La Spezia La Spezia (, or , ; in the local Spezzino dialect) is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy. La Spezia is the second largest cit ...
only at 03:00 on 9 September; the consequence was that the Italian fleet was spotted in daylight and attacked at 14:00 by German aircraft which, employing new
Fritz X Fritz X was the most common name for a German guided anti-ship glide bomb used during World War II. ''Fritz X'' was the world's first precision guided weapon deployed in combat and the first to sink a ship in combat. ''Fritz X'' was a nickname us ...
guided bombs, sank Bergamini's flagship ''Roma''. Bergamini perished along 1,393 of his men. ''Roma'''s sister ship ''Italia'' was damaged. After the sinking the rest of the fleet, now under Admiral Romeo Oliva, headed for Malta. A few destroyers and torpedo boats were left behind to pick up ''Roma'''s survivors, and afterwards reached the
Balearic Islands The Balearic Islands ( es, Islas Baleares ; or ca, Illes Balears ) are an archipelago in the Balearic Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago is an autonomous community and a province of Spain; its capital is ...
, where they were interned by the Spanish authorities; two of them, ''Pegaso'' and , were scuttled near Mahon by their commanders, who did not want them interned or handed over to the Allies. The bulk of the fleet (including the battleships ''Italia'' and ''Vittorio Veneto'' and five light cruisers) reached Malta on 10 September; a smaller force from Taranto, including the battleships ''Duilio'' and ''Andrea Doria'' and three light cruisers, under Admiral Alberto Da Zara, had already been transferred there. A number of other Italian ships, mostly torpedo boats, corvettes and submarines (a large group had gathered in Portoferraio under the command of Admiral Amedeo Nomis di Pollone and then sailed to American-controlled
Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The city is noted for its ...
on 12 September before moving on to Malta), also flocked to Malta during the following days; the last Italian battleship, ''Giulio Cesare'', arrived there on 13 September. While most of the operational ships of the Italian Navy managed to reach Allied-controlled ports, some were sunk on their way by German ships and aircraft; among them the destroyers ''Quintino Sella'', ''Ugolino Vivaldi'' and ''Antonio Da Noli'', the torpedo boats ''T 6'' and ''T 8'', the corvette ''Berenice'', the submarine (sunk by Allied aircraft in unclear circumstances), the gunboat ''Aurora'', the auxiliary cruiser ''Piero Foscari'', the munition transport ''Buffoluto'', the repair ship ''Quarnaro'' and the minelayer ''Pelagosa'', as well as several motor torpedo boats, submarine chasers and smaller craft. Among the casualties was Rear Admiral Federico Martinengo, commander of the Italian anti-submarine forces, killed in action onboard submarine chaser ''VAS 234'' during a skirmish with German R boats. In the
Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...
, the Italian flotilla of five CB-class midget submarines was seized by Romanian naval authorities, and despite strong German protest, the Romanian naval commander, Rear Admiral
Horia Macellariu Horia Macellariu (10 May 1894, Craiova – 11 July 1989, Bucharest) was a Romanian rear admiral, commander of the Royal Romanian Navy's Black Sea Fleet during the Second World War. Early life Horia Ion Pompiliu Macellariu was born in Craiova on 2 ...
, stood his ground and the five midget submarines remained a new addition to the Royal Romanian Navy. A different fate was met by Italian warships in Crete and Greece, where German forces were prevailing; only the torpedo boat managed to escape, while two destroyers and four torpedo boats were captured. Moreover, the torpedo boat was captured in Pola, the torpedo boat ''T 7'' was captured in Gruž, the torpedo boat was captured in Durres (a sistership, , was also captured, but her crew later overpowered the German guards and reached an Italian-controlled port) and the submarines and were captured in Bonifacio. The submarines ''Ametista'' and ''Serpente'' were scuttled by their commanders off
Ancona Ancona (, also , ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region in central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region. The city is located northeast of Rome, on the Adriatic ...
. The armistice also meant the loss of all ships that were undergoing repair or maintenance work, or suffered from mechanical breakdown, or were unable to put to sea; these included the battleship ''Cavour'', the heavy cruisers ''Gorizia'' and ''Bolzano'', the light cruiser ''Taranto'', eight destroyers, thirteen torpedo boats, eight corvettes and twenty submarines. Most of them were scuttled or sabotaged, the rest were captured. German forces also captured a number of ships under construction; among them the incomplete aircraft carrier ''Aquila'' and several
Capitani Romani-class cruiser The Capitani Romani class was a class of light cruisers acting as flotilla leaders for the (Italian Navy). They were built to outrun and outgun the large new French destroyers of the and classes. Twelve hulls were ordered in late 1939, but on ...
s, Ariete-class torpedo boats,
Gabbiano-class corvette The ''Gabbiano''-class corvettes were a group of 59 vessels built for the ''Regia Marina'' of Italy for service during the Second World War. They were built to a war-time design and intended for anti-submarine and escort duties. Design The ''Ga ...
s,
Flutto-class submarine The ''Flutto'' class were a large Ship class, class of submarines built for the Italian Royal Navy (''Regia Marina'') during the Second World War. The ''Flutto''s were a development of the Italian 600 Series submarines, 600 Series of medium-siz ...
s and R-class transport submarines. Many Ariete-class and Gabbiano-class ships were completed by the Germans and entered service with the
Kriegsmarine The (, ) was the navy of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official branches, along with the a ...
. The majority of the officers and men of the Italian Navy were heavily disappointed by the order to surrender to the Allies; discipline was maintained, although there were some instances of insubordination, mutiny and attempts to prevent from surrendering some ships. The most notable episodes were the above-mentioned scuttling of the torpedo boats ''Pegaso'' and ''Impetuoso'', the arrest of Rear Admiral Giovanni Galati, who insisted on scuttling the ships, and the mutiny of part of the crew of the battleship ''Giulio Cesare'', who imprisoned its commander and planned to scuttle the ship, but was eventually persuaded to comply with the orders. Most of what remained of the Italian merchant fleet was captured by the German forces in Italian harbors.


Italian air force

The Royal Italian Air Force was also taken completely by surprise by the armistice, and also in this case the high commands showed improvidence and ineptitude; the Chief of Staff, General Renato Sandalli, did not inform his subordinates till 5 September, then, in the night of 8 September, he ceded command to General Giuseppe Santoro and fled to Brindisi without issuing the executive orders of the planned directive ("Memorandum No. 1"). The Italian
air base An air base (sometimes referred to as a military air base, military airfield, military airport, air station, naval air station, air force station, or air force base) is an aerodrome used as a military base by a military force for the operation ...
s did not receive any clear order and thus the air force was not employed against the German invaders, whom instead took the initiative and swiftly captured the main air bases in northern Italy, where most of the remaining aircraft were based. Only on 11 September Santoro ordered all units to take off to reach Allied-controlled air bases, while the commander of the Rome air bases, General Ilari, started negotiations and handed over bases and planes to the Germans. Out of about 800 operational aircraft, only 246 managed to reach Allied-controlled territory, while two-thirds of the planes fell in German hands, and 43 were shot down by
Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German '' Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the '' Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabt ...
planes while flying south. Some fighter units decided to stay with the Axis and formed the core of the National Republican Air Force.


Aftermath

Already on 10 September, the OKW command issued a first communiqué announcing the annihilation of the Italian military apparatus. While many Italian units would fight on for days or weeks in the Greek islands and the Balkans and would retain control of Corsica, Sardinia, Apulia and Calabria, the major units of the Italian Army effectively dissolved in a space of days from widespread desertions. With the success of "Achse" and its secondary operations, the Wehrmacht achieved an important strategic success by securing the most important strategic positions in the Mediterranean theatre and overcoming great operative difficulties; it also captured large quantities of weapons, equipment and resources that turned useful in integrating the depleting resources of Germany. Over 20,000 Italian soldiers were killed in battle and nearly 800,000 were captured; over 13,000 of them drowned in the sinking of several ships that were carrying them from Aegean islands to the Greek mainland, and the others were not recognized
prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of ...
status and were instead classified as " Italian Military Internees" and exploited for forced labour in Germany's war industry. Up to 50,000 of them died in German captivity. The Allies, whose objectives in the Mediterranean were rather limited (to push Italy out of the war and to keep part of the German forces engaged) and whose strategic planning presented heavy conflicts between British and Americans, were not able to exploit the Italian collapse and limited themselves to advancing up the Italian peninsula during a less than two years campaign, which required much land and air forces and resources. Also, the Germans, however, had to divert a considerable number of mobile and skilled units to Italy and the Balkans, troops that would have been more useful on the main Eastern and Western fronts, but that allowed them to keep war away from the southern regions of Germany, to protect rich industrial regions of high importance in weapons production and to achieve political and propaganda objective of creating an Italian fascist government, formally still allied to the Third Reich. The sudden and complete collapse of the Italian state and war machine was mainly caused by the mistakes made by the political and military leadership, the unrealism of their initiatives, misunderstanding about the real consistence and objectives of the Allies by the decision of the Italian leadership to surrender to the Allies, but not to fight the Germans. The lack of clear orders to the subordinate commands, the importance given to the personal safety of the leadership and its institutional continuity, even to the detriment of the capability of resistance of the armed forces, led to the disintegration of the units, abandoned without a leader to the German attacks and reprisals despite some instances of valour and fighting spirit.


Numbers

According to German accounts, the Italian forces disarmed totaled 1,006,370. Broken down by region, they were: * 415,682 in northern Italy * 102,340 in southern Italy * 8,722 in France * 164,986 in Yugoslavia * 265,000 in mainland Greece and the Aegean islands The disarmament of such a large army resulted in the confiscation of large numbers of weapons and military-related equipment: * 1,285,871 rifles * 39,007 machine guns * 13,906 MAB 38 submachine guns * 8,736 mortars * 2,754 field guns * 5,568 other artillery pieces * 16,631 vehicles * 977 armored vehicles Only 197,000 Italian soldiers continued the war alongside the Germans. Some 94,000, mostly
fascists Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy and the ...
, chose this option right away. The rest, some 103,000 men, chose during their detention to support the
Italian Social Republic The Italian Social Republic ( it, Repubblica Sociale Italiana, ; RSI), known as the National Republican State of Italy ( it, Stato Nazionale Repubblicano d'Italia, SNRI) prior to December 1943 but more popularly known as the Republic of Salò ...
to escape the harsh circumstances in the German labor camps. Between 600,000 and 650,000 remained in German labor camps, where between 37,000 and 50,000 of them perished. Between 20,000 and 30,000 Italian soldiers had been killed during the fighting in September 1943, and 13,000 more had perished in the sinking of POW ships in the Aegean. Oflag 64/Z in Schokken,
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
became the camp where most Italian
general officer A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...
s captured by German troops during Operation Achse were gathered. By November 1943, the Italian military internee population of Oflag 64/Z included three
army general Army general is the highest ranked general officer in many countries that use the French Revolutionary System.  In countries that adopt the general officer four rank system, it is rank of general commanding an army in the field, but in coun ...
s, twenty-two
army corps general An army corps general or corps general is a rank held by a General officer who commands an army corps. The rank originates from the French (Revolutionary) System, and is used by a number of countries. Normally, the rank is above the divisional ge ...
s, forty-six division generals, eighty-four
brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointe ...
s, one fleet admiral, four vice admirals, two
rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star " admiral" rank. It is often rega ...
s, one air fleet general, two air division generals, three air brigade generals, and a general of the MVSN. Among the most prominent Italian generals held in Oflag 64/Z were
Italo Gariboldi Italo Gariboldi (20 April 1879 – 3 February 1970) was an Italian senior officer in the Royal Army (''Regio Esercito'') before and during World War II. He was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross by German dictator Adolf Hitler for hi ...
(former commander of the Eighth Army),
Ezio Rosi Ezio Rosi (Vicenza, 19 March 1881 – Bologna, 5 January 1963) was an Italian general during World War II. He commanded the Sixth Army from 1941 to 1943, and after a brief period as Army Chief of Staff, he assumed command of Army Group East ...
(former commander of Army Group East), Carlo Geloso (former commander of Italian occupation forces in Greece),
Carlo Vecchiarelli Carlo Vecchiarelli (10 January 1884 – 13 December 1948) was an Italian general. He was a veteran combatant of the First World War. Between the two world wars he held the positions of Military Attaché at the Italian Embassy in Prague, Honora ...
(former commander of the 9th Army),
Lorenzo Dalmazzo Lorenzo "Renzo" Dalmazzo was an Italian lieutenant general and corps and army commander during World War II. Military career On 3 June 1918, he received the Knight's Military Order of Italy (5th Class). He served in the colony of Italian Somali ...
(former commander of the 11th Army) and
Sebastiano Visconti Prasca Sebastiano Visconti Prasca (23 January 1883, Rome – 25 February 1961) was an Italian general. He led the initial offensive of the Greco-Italian War, but was relieved of his command after two weeks for incompetence and substituted with General Ub ...
(notable for having commanded the Italian invasion force in the early stages of the
Greco-Italian War The Greco-Italian War (Greek language, Greek: Ελληνοϊταλικός Πόλεμος, ''Ellinoïtalikós Pólemos''), also called the Italo-Greek War, Italian Campaign in Greece, and the War of '40 in Greece, took place between the kingdom ...
). Considered "traitors" due to their refusal to swear allegiance to the
Italian Social Republic The Italian Social Republic ( it, Repubblica Sociale Italiana, ; RSI), known as the National Republican State of Italy ( it, Stato Nazionale Repubblicano d'Italia, SNRI) prior to December 1943 but more popularly known as the Republic of Salò ...
, the generals were mistreated and underfed; five of them ( Alberto de Agazio, Umberto di Giorgio, Davide Dusmet,
Armellini Chiappi Armellini Chiappi (Rome, 2 December 1879 – Wöllstein, 4 November 1944) was an Italian general during World War II. He was in command of the territorial defense of Florence for most of the war. Biography He was born in Rome on December ...
and
Rodolfo Torresan Rodolfo Torresan (Padua, 1 November 1887 – Wöllstein, 22 November 1944) was an Italian general during World War II. He was head of the Services Office at the General Staff of the Royal Italian Army for most of the war. Biography He was b ...
) died during captivity at the camp, whereas Admirals Inigo Campioni and Luigi Mascherpa were handed over to RSI authorities, tried and executed for having opposed the German takeover in the Dodecanese. About a dozen generals eventually accepted to join the Italian Social Republic and were repatriated, whereas a group of others, who had not formally joined but were seen as more favourable to the German cause, were transferred to
Vittel Vittel (; archaic ) is a commune in the Vosges department in Grand Est in northeastern France. Mineral water is bottled and sold here by Nestlé Waters France, under the '' Vittel'' brand. History In 1854, after visiting the baths at nearby ...
internment camp, where they enjoyed better treatment. Another group, considered as particularly anti-German, was transferred to
Stalag XX-A Stalag XX-A was a German World War II prisoner-of-war camp located in Toruń in German-occupied Poland. It was not a single camp and contained as many as 20,000 men at its peak. The main camp was located in seven forts of the 19th-century Toruń ...
in
Toruń )'' , image_skyline = , image_caption = , image_flag = POL Toruń flag.svg , image_shield = POL Toruń COA.svg , nickname = City of Angels, Gingerbread city, Copernicus Town , pushpin_map = Kuyavian-Pom ...
, where they received a harsher treatment. Most remained in Schokken till late January 1945, when they were transferred westwards with a forced march through the snow; during the march, six generals (
Carlo Spatocco Carlo Spatocco (31 May 1883 – 28 January 1945) was an Italian general during World War II. Biography Spatocco was born in Chieti on May 31, 1883, the son of Francesco Spatocco, and after enlisting in the Royal Italian Army he participate ...
, Alberto Trionfi, Alessandro Vaccaneo, Ugo Ferrero, Emanuele Balbo Bertone, and Giuseppe Andreoli) were shot by the SS for being unable to keep pace with the other prisoners. Another two, Francesco Antonio Arena and Alberto Briganti, managed to escape and hid in a Polish farm, but were found by Soviet soldiers and shot after being mistaken for German collaborators, with Arena dying and Briganti miraculously surviving. The other generals were liberated by the advancing
Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian language, Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist R ...
a few days later and repatriated in the autumn of 1945.


References


Sources

*Elena Aga Rossi, ''Una nazione allo sbando. 8 settembre 1943'', Bologna, il Mulino, 2003, . *Roberto Battaglia, ''Storia della Resistenza italiana'', Torino, Einaudi, 1964, ISBN non esistente. *Eddy Bauer, ''Storia controversa della seconda guerra mondiale'', vol. V, Novara, De Agostini, 1971, ISBN non esistente. *Giorgio Bocca, ''Storia dell'Italia partigiana'', Milano, Mondadori, 1995, . *Frederick William Deakin, ''La brutale amicizia. Mussolini, Hitler e la caduta del fascismo italiano'', Torino, Einaudi, 1990, . *Renzo De Felice, ''Mussolini l'alleato. Crisi e agonia del regime'', Torino, Einaudi, 1996, . *Renzo De Felice, ''Mussolini l'alleato. La guerra civile'', Torino, Einaudi, 1997, . *Carlo D'Este, ''1943, lo sbarco in Sicilia'', Milano, Mondadori, 1990, . *Helmuth Heiber, ''I verbali di Hitler'', Gorizia, LEG, 2009, . *David Irving, ''La guerra di Hitler'', Roma, Settimo Sigillo, 2001, ISBN. *Ian Kershaw, ''Hitler. 1936-1945'', Milano, Bompiani, 2001, . *Lutz Klinkhammer, ''L'occupazione tedesca in Italia 1943-1945'', Torino, Bollati Boringhieri, 2007, . *Erich Kuby, 1943, ''Il tradimento tedesco'', Milano, BUR, 1996, . * * *Eric Morris, ''La guerra inutile'', Milano, Longanesi & C., 1993, . *Gianni Oliva, ''I vinti e i liberati. 8 settembre 1943-25 aprile 1945 : storia di due anni'', Milano, Mondadori, 1994, . *Marco Patricelli, ''Settembre 1943. I giorni della vergogna'', Bari, Editori Laterza, 2009, . *Arrigo Petacco, ''La nostra guerra 1940-1945'', Milano, Mondadori (edizione per "Il Giornale"), 1995. *Marco Picone Chiodo, ''In nome della resa. L'Italia nella seconda guerra mondiale (1940-1945)'', Milano, Mursia, 1990, . *Giorgio Rochat, ''Le guerre italiane 1935-1943'', Torino, Einaudi, 2005, . *William L. Shirer, ''Storia del Terzo Reich'', Torino, Einaudi, 1990, . *Roberto Zedda, ''Oristano il Ponte Mannu 1943'', Oristano, E.P. d'O., 2012. {{DEFAULTSORT:Achse, Operation 1943 in Italy Battles of World War II involving Italy Mediterranean theatre of World War II Military history of Italy during World War II Military operations of World War II involving Germany Naval battles of World War II involving Romania September 1943 events World War II operations and battles of the Italian Campaign Invasions by Germany