War In Italy, 1943-1945: A Brutal Story [Paperback]

Richard Lamb (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 22, 1996

Richard Lamb, one of the few Italian-speaking officers in the British Army during World War II, has relied in part on newly opened Italian archives to present a surprising and unprecedented history of the war in Italy from Mussolini's fall until the final victory. Chronicling an unbroken sequence of Nazi infamies, Lamb reveals how German troops massacred thousands of surrendering Italians in the Aegean islands, deported Italian Jews to Auschwitz, and slaughtered Italian hostages and POWs. Had it not been for Mussolini's frenzied attempts to protect his countrymen, Italy would have been treated even worse than Poland.Lamb answers important and controversial questions, such as why the Allies did not land unopposed in Italy before the Germans poured over the Brenner Pass, and why Pope Pius XII did not take a stronger stand on behalf of Jews and the victims of the Ardeatine massacre. He details Anthony Eden’s opposition to an aid for Italian partisans, and the disastrous order form the War Office that British POWs should stay in their camps. He unfolds the extraordinary stories of the Cossack settlement in the Fruili, the attempted annexation of northern Italy by de Gaulle and Tito, the contributions of the Royalist Army to the Allied cause, the Italian civilians who helped Allied POWs escape, and the German generals who failed to obey Hitler's order to "scorch" all of Northern Italy.War in Italy will long remain the most complete account ever published of one of the most terrible dramas of World War II.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Based in part on newly opened Italian archives, Lamb's review of the final two years of WW II from the Italian viewpoint offers several surprises. Chronicling the atrocities perpetrated by the Nazis against Italian civilians, the persecution of Italian Jews and the widespread slaughter of surrendering Italian soldiers, he also dwells on the attempted annexation of northwest Italy by de Gaulle and of northeast Italy by Tito (Lamb argues that the Yugoslavs treated the Italians more brutally than had the Germans). He documents as well the significant contributions of the Royalist Army to the Allied cause in the final months of the war, showing how the performance of Italian troops in battle earned the confidence of British and American generals alike. In a minor but dramatic passage, Lamb shows how extraordinarily helpful Italian civilians were to escaping Allied POWs, often risking their lives to provide shelter and share sparse rations. The book includes a clarifying analysis of the Salo Republic, the Fascist puppet regime set up under Mussolini by Hitler, and Il duce 's frenzied but unsuccessful efforts to protect his countrymen from Nazi tyranny. Lamb ( Montgomery in Europe ) served with the British Eighth Army in Italy during the period under discussion. Photos.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

This history of the Italian campaign in World War II justifies its subtitle. Thanks to vigorous German defense and less-than-skilled Allied strategy, the campaign went on for two interminable years, during which Italy was ravaged by both sides. The Germans added quite a tally of atrocities against civilians (for which Lamb considers the much-praised field marshal Kesselring fully responsible), and a large part of the Italian resistance effort turned into a civil war between Communist and non-Communist factions. Lamb recounts all of this and more (including papal efforts to hide thousands of Jews), although thematically rather than strictly chronologically, and he speaks with the authority of a veteran of the campaign and a lifelong student of Italian culture. If at times he seems too concerned to present Italy as victim, too much of previous Anglo-American coverage of the war has barely spoken of the Italians at all. Roland Green --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press (March 22, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0306806886
• ISBN-13: 978-0306806889
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #205,497 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Review of "War In Italy 1943-1945: A Brutal Story", January 30, 2001

By 

Cosmo DiNitto (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: War In Italy, 1943-1945: A Brutal Story (Paperback)

Mr. Lamb's effort is both moving and informative, serving to highlight many events in a post-surrender WWII Italy. A notoriously nebulous period, the author's detailed account of the state of this suddenly turbulent European power is tremendous. His research and reporting on the Allies' treatment of this fallen Axis enemy, the mounting strain of German-Italo relations throughout Mussolini's puppet regime, the uncertainty facing Italian armed forces in occupied territories and the relationships between partisans, civilians and the Italian Royal Army is unparalleled. Furthermore, Lamb gives the reader a clear understanding of Fascism's misgivings and failure, portraying a beaten, poweless dictator unable rally a nation under seige. A must read for anyone fascinated with WW II Italy.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Five-star, outstanding history of the politics of Italy in WWII, June 4, 2006

By 

B. F. Mooney "biologist" (Mooresville, NC USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: War In Italy, 1943-1945: A Brutal Story (Paperback)

War in Italy is well-written and excellent book - a good read! It deserves five stars, not biased reviews. This book succeeds in what it set out to do, admirably so. If you want a straight timeline, as one reviewer did, then look for a book written in that fashion. Mr. Lamb writes to inform and educate the reader about a complex situation, with many nuances and turns, and a simple chronological approach is not necessarily the best way to do it. The detailed knowledge exhibited is impressive, and Mr. Lamb fairly handles both the German and Italian aspects - if the former don't come out so well in this enterprise, it is because of the wretched nature of their actions, not Mr. Lamb. Also this is history written by someone who was actually THERE -on site at the time- and who was fluent in the language. Maybe he KNOWS a bit more than some of us looking at this so many years later? The low rating and the reasons given by some reviewers are among the most misleading I have seen on amazon - look at the reviews in the press and academia by the real experts!

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dare to read what you are not taught at school, June 2, 2009

By 

The Sword "The Sword" (Perth, West Australia Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: War In Italy, 1943-1945: A Brutal Story (Paperback)

Richard Lamb has written about a fantastic piece of history that none of born under the Commonwealth will ever hear at school. If you are like me, you would have been indoctrinated with how England won WWI and WWII singlehandedly and saved the world from the fanatical oppression of the emerging fascist regime.

The truth is that Italy is and was at the time of WWII a new and emerging nation. The people struggled under a waning dictator who made the gravest mistake of his life by signing a treaty with the greatest lunatic of the 20th century. At the time Italy had limited resources that were already committed in wars previously fought in Spain and Abyssinia, and were not prepared to back Hitler's dream of dominating Europe. Lamb explains how Mussolini was pushed into a pact with Hitler (the Pact of Steel) and explains Mussolini's true personal dislike for Hitler's policies. One such example is where Mussolini falls out of favour with Hitler when he refuses to persecute the Italian Jewish population.

Lamb's book opens our eyes to what happened on ground zero on Italian territory during WWII. He reveals the true politics of what went on during such turbulent times while daring to dim the limelight on traditional English heroes that we are often taught saved the world by their sword and wit alone. At the end of the day, you have to remember that victory against Germany would not have occurred without the Italian's overthrowing their own dated government.

Specific examples are equally mentioned of Italians' military units victories and defeats while Lamb sheds light on how and why they occurred. After reading, you will find not everything in Italy is as simple as it was we are traditionally taught.

If you dare to learn an impartial and objective view of Italy in WWII then read this book. It deserves 4 stars but I will give it 5 to honour Lamb with his daring courage to shake English and American history and tell Italy's story in an honest and reputable manner.