The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1918-11-09
Ia" great battle y.

Italy into the war. She came at a
critical moment. Already the Battle
of the Dunajec had opened that ter
rible cycle of Russian disasters,
which were to lead to the fall Of the
Romanoffs and the extinction of Rus
STA as a nation. Despite the high
hopes of the allies, founded on an
imperfect realization OF essential
facts, Italy was not able to take the
road to Vienna in her first campaign
She flung her troops against the fixed
positions Of the Austrians,- prepared
in the full light of the lessons of the
contemporary war of positions, and
they failed to break through.
In 1916 Italy had to undergo
blow almost as heavy and quite as
dangerous as that borne by the
drive toward the Venetian Plain
from Trent came within. an ace Of
success-was hailed within sight of
the plain Afterward Italy took the
offensive and captured Gorilla, but
again her offensive was checked, she
lacked the material, her allies were
committed to their own compaigns,
were still lacking in the recources
needed to expel the Germans from
France. Despite it's brilliant OPEN
ing, Italy's effort in 1916 ended in
no great progress.
1t was worse last year, when Italy,
after magnificent effort and colossal
sacrifice, had mounted the Biansiz-
"a Plateau, was blasting a passage
toward Laibach. Then Germany
came to the aid of Austria, using
the troops freed by Russian COL
l. n&11 laA
disaster of Caporetto marked the be-
ginning OF a series of German VIC
tories which led them almost with
in range of Paris in July of the
present year At the time Caporet-
to seemed an ineXplicable disaster
It was-due mainly to the collapse of
the home front. The Italian people
were temporarily yielding under the
strain of three years of war, with
victory still postponed. They felt
themselves neglected, abandoned by
their greater allies. Every sort of
poison worked to the disarray of an
italian army, which at the moment
of victory seemed suddenly to melt
away in supreme disaster.
Yet, looking backward at Caporet-
| to, it seems less ineXplicable in the
light Of later military events. The
| tactics employed there were success
full a few months later against the
British and brought about the wreck
| of Coughs Fifth British Army. They
were successful against the French
! two months later at the Chemin des
Danes and produced the most COM
plete French defeat of the whole
war. 1t was not until the opening
phase of the Second Marine that
| Gouraud's defence broke this new
German method.
| After Caporetto Italy suddenly
rallied at the Piave, aided by British
and French armies. The moment
| of supreme peril passed. The Italian
army was reorganized and the home
front restored. Italy entered the
campaign of 1913 united, and in this
campaign she contributed the first
shining triumph. Her victory at the
Piave in June was the first in the
/ long series, which has not yet end
ed, but has brought about the sur
render of Turkey, Bulgaria and
! Austria. The Second Piaye was the
| foundation of Foch's later strategy
for it definitely assured him that
Austria. as an offensive force was
out of the war.
Yet, even in victory Italy was still
| too weak to push an offensive. She
was outnumbered ond outgunned,
she was outmunitioned and before
/ the multiple lines Of enemy in
| trenchments her armies were stin
| inmobilized. From June to late
october Italy held seventy Austrian
| divisions on her front, but this was
the extent of her possible contribu-
ton, aside from the successful CO.
operation Of her troops with those
OF her allies in the Balkans. But
in holding these seventy divisions
/ she deprived Germany Of the essen
ltial reinforcement needed in the
| West in the critical days of the
Ludendorff offensive in july and OF
Ibis defensive thereafter.
Finally, in laie October. on the
4 Caporetto anniversary Italy again
steps out; northward she breaks tht
mountain barrier between the