Italy
Aeronautica Macchi C.200 Saetta Series in Combat
Macchi MC 200 Saetta While the Fw 190A served as a worthy complement to the Me 109F in the Luftwaffe’s fighter arsenal, Italy’s Regia Aeronautica was in desperate need of a new fighter just to restore parity with such British counterparts as the Hawker Hurricane and Supermarine Spitfire. The most numerous Italian fighter in 1939 had been the Fiat CR.42…
Most Recent
MTM: the Italian Navy’s Explosive Motorboat I
The true pioneers of manned EMBs, as distinct from remote-controlled craft, were the men of the Royal Italian Navy. Some accounts of Italian operations suggest that the country’s interest in EMBs also began with a World War I craft, the Grillo (“Cricket”). In fact, the Grillo was called a barchino…
MTM: the Italian Navy’s Explosive Motorboat II
Date: 26 July 1941 Place: Grand Harbour, Valletta, Malta Attack by: Italian MTM boats and Maiali torpedoes Target: Allied warships and transports at anchor The MTM pilots who had made the hazardous and successful attack at Suda Bay had all survived, but the last major operation in which MTMs were…
The Battle of Garigliano
Second Italian War In the aftermath of the First Italian War, Cordoba overhauled the Spanish army. He reorganised his infantry by replacing the bulk of his swordand-buckler foot soldiers with pikemen and arquebusiers. His pike and shot troops were taught to manoeuvre over rough ground, resist cavalry attacks, and deliver…
The Expedition of the Thousand
In March 1860, exile Rosolino Pilo exhorted Giuseppe Garibaldi to take charge of an expedition to liberate Southern Italy from Bourbon rule. At first, Garibaldi was against it, but eventually agreed. By May 1860, Garibaldi had collected 1,089 volunteers for his expedition to Sicily. Giuseppe Garibaldi, who had learnt revolutionary…
War of the Mantuan Succession
The French were active in Italy. In combination with Savoy, they tried to seize Spain’s ally Genoa in 1625, only to be driven back by the Spaniards. Two years later, the end of the direct male line of the Gonzaga family produced a contested succession for the Duchies of Mantua…
Total Colonial Warfare: Ethiopia I
Like no other Italian city, Rome symbolized the Fascist experience. The past was evoked by a huge monument with the inscription “Mussolini Dux” near the sports center Foro Italico, and by a series of architectural reminders in the form of bombastic buildings, large avenues, and spacious squares, which formed an…