War Through Italian Eyes: Fighting for Mussolini, 1940-1943

Description

"There is a popular notion that the Italian armed forces of the Second World War were an inferior fighting force. Despite the vast numbers taken prisoner, detailed studies of the experiences of these soldiers remain relatively uncommon and the value of this group to furthering our understanding of the Italian experience of war under Fascism is also rarely acknowledged. The existence in the National Archives of hundreds of pages of transcripts of covert British surveillance of Italian POWs has made it possible to engage with their experiences and opinions in much greater depth. The euphemistically termed 'Special Reports' present historians with a unique insight into how all levels of Italian soldiery viewed Fascist Italy's experience of war, 1940-1943. This book examines reactions to Italian political leadership, the progress of the war, as well as Italian soldiers' 'everyday' views on sex, war, the enemy, death, food, their allies, bravery, race, and killing. These fascinating documents reveal the complexity of the outlook of these men, which persistent - and influential - national stereotypes and historiographical trends fail to acknowledge"-- Cover Half Title Series Page Title Page Copyright Page Contents Acknowledgements Introduction Historiography - CSDIC (UK) Historiography - Italian stereotypes Historiography - the 'Italian War' Notes 1. CSDIC (UK) and the protocols Introduction Exact numbers Presentation and format Gathering information A history of CSDIC (UK) Notes 2. Reading the sources Introduction Limitations Language and translation issues Discussion of the POW experience How did the British view and utilise the CSDIC (UK) sources? Notes 3. Friends and foes Introduction Gli Americani L'inglese Il Franchese I russi I tedeschi Conclusion Notes 4. Occupation, war crimes and antisemitism Introduction Occupation - Greece and the Balkans On Jews and antisemitism Occupation - Bordeaux Bordeaux: Encounters with the French Germans in Bordeaux Conclusion Notes 5. Warriors of land, sea and air Introduction Combat on land and in the air The war at sea On equipment and supplies On leadership at the front Case Study in leadership: captain salvatore todaro The home front Conclusion Notes 6. Attitudes towards Italian political leadership Introduction Historiography - Popular support for Fascism The Fascists On Fascism Propaganda The monarchy Benito Mussolini Positivo e Negativo Finito Mussolini: The fall of the Duce Conclusion Notes 7. Winning and losing the war Introduction Victory Defeat Sicily - The nail in the coffin Conclusion Notes Conclusion: A hopeful future? Notes Bibliography Archives The National Archives (TNA). Center for the Study of Intelligence, CIA. Published primary sources Memoirs, diaries and autobiographies Edited collections and works Novels and works of fiction Newspaper and magazine articles Unpublished secondary sources Published secondary sources Websites Films Index