British Troops in Italy

[Voltigeur]

© IWM (Q 25818)
General Frederick Lambart (10th Earl of Cavan) C-in-C of the British Troops in Italy,decorating a man of the 1/4th Royal Berkshire Regiment, 48th Division, Granezza, September 1918.




The Italians entered the war on the Allied side, declaring war on Austria, in May 1915. Commonwealth forces were at the Italian front between November 1917 and November 1918.

In March 1918, XIV Corps (the 7th, 23rd and 48th Divisions) relieved Italian troops on the front line between Asiago and Canove, the front being held by two divisions with one division in reserve on the plain. The French held the line to the left, with the Italians to the right.

The front was comparatively quiet until the Austrians attacked in force from Grappa to Canove in the Battle of Asiago (15-16 June 1918). The Allied line was penetrated to a depth of about 1,000 metres on 15 June but the lost ground was retaken the next day and the line re-established. Between June and September, frequent successful raids were made on the Austrian trenches.

In October, the 7th and 23rd Divisions were sent to the Treviso area of the River Piave front. The 48th Division, which remained in the mountains as part of the Italian Sixth Army, played an important part in the Battle of Vittorio Veneto (24 October-4 November 1918) in which the Austrians were finally defeated.