Battle of Caporetto
On 24 October 1917, a combined Austro-German force — including German divisions freed by Russia's collapse and using infiltration tactics, gas, and short hurricane bombardments — broke through the Italian lines at Caporetto (Kobarid) on the upper Isonzo, producing one of the most catastrophic routs of the war. The Italian Second Army disintegrated; in three weeks Italy lost some 300,000 prisoners, 350,000 stragglers and deserters, half its artillery, and all the territory won in eleven Isonzo battles, retreating over 100 kilometres to the Piave River. The disaster ended General Cadorna's brutal command — he had blamed the defeat on his own soldiers' 'cowardice' even as it unfolded — and brought General Armando Diaz to lead a reformed, better-treated army. Britain and France rushed divisions to Italy and established the Supreme War Council at Rapallo, a first step toward unified Allied command. Caporetto became an enduring Italian byword for national humiliation — and the crucible from which the resistance on the Piave and final victory emerged.
- Year: 1917 CE
- Category: Military
