Third Battle of the Isonzo

Third Battle of the Isonzo
	Part of the Italian Front ; (World War I)
	; Eleven Battles of the Isonzo; June 1915 – September 1917
Date	18 October – 4 November 1915
Location	Soča river, western Slovenia
Result	Austro-Hungarian victory; Failed Italian offensive
Belligerents
Kingdom of Italy	Austria-Hungary
Commanders and leaders
Luigi Cadorna (Chief of Staff of the Italian Army) ; Pietro Frugoni (Commander of Second Army) ; Emanuele Filiberto di Savoia (Commander of Third Army)	Archduke Friedrich (Supreme Commander of the Austro-Hungarian Army) ; Franz Conrad von Hötzendorf (Chief of the General Staff) ; Archduke Eugen of Austria-Teschen (Commander of Southwest Front) ; Svetozar Boroević von Bojna (Commander of Fifth Army)
Strength
338 battalions; 130 cavalry squadrons; 1,250 artillery pieces	137 + 47 battalions; 604 artillery pieces.
Casualties and losses
67,008:; 10,733 killed; 44,290 wounded; 11,985 missing or captured	41,847:; 8,228 killed; 26,418 wounded; 7,201 missing or captured

Last updated November 18, 2023

The Third Battle of the Isonzo was fought from 18 October through 4 November 1915 between the armies of Italy and Austria-Hungary.

Background

The first move was made in Italy, on the eastern sector; because this was their third attack that year, it was named as the Third Battle of the Isonzo (as the previous two were named the First and Second Battles of the Isonzo).^[2]

After roughly two and a half months of reprieve to recuperate from the casualties incurred from frontal assaults from the First and Second Battle of the Isonzo, Luigi Cadorna, Italian commander-in-chief, understood that artillery played a fundamental role on the front and brought the total number to 1,250 pieces. As well as improving artillery, the Italian Army was also issued Adrian Helmets, which proved useful in some situations but overall ineffective.^[3]

The main objectives were to take the Austro-Hungarian bridgeheads at Bovec (Plezzo in Italian), Tolmin, and (if possible) the town of Gorizia. Cadorna's tactic, of deploying his forces evenly along the entire Soča (Isonzo), proved indecisive, and the Austro-Hungarians took advantage of this by concentrating their firepower in certain areas. Specifically, the two objectives of the attack were Mount Sabotino and Mount San Michele.^[2]

Location

This took place on the Austro-Hungarian side of the border between Austria-Hungary and Italy. The battle is named for the river that it was fought on (the Isonzo river), as well as the previous battles and the many that would eventually follow. Unfortunately for the Italians, it was not a prime location for attack maneuvers, since it had mountainous terrain on both sides. It also had frequently flooded banks. However, it was chosen because the Austro-Hungarian side had control of most of the other areas in the Isonzo region.^[2]

Battle

Due to extensive artillery barrages, the Italians were able to advance to Plave (Plava in Italian) near Kanal ob Soči, beneath the southern end of the Banjšice Plateau (Bainsizza), and on Mount San Michele on the Karst Plateau in an attempt to outflank those forces defending Gorizia. The plateau near San Michele was the scene of heavy attacks and counterattacks involving the Italian Third Army and Austro-Hungarian reinforcements from the Eastern and Balkan fronts under the command of Svetozar Boroević; both sides suffered heavy casualties.

Thanks to the low profile held by Boroević's forces, the Austro-Hungarians were able to hold their positions despite heavy casualties, which were dwarfed by those of the Italian Army. This battle proved Boroević's tactical brilliance despite the limited scope of the front.

The lull in action lasted barely two weeks at which time the Italian offensive started anew.^[4]^[5]

The Italians made some progress before they were eventually forced back by the Austro-Hungarians. Although the second Italian army had possession of Mt. Sabotino for a brief period of time, they were countered by the Austro-Hungarians'. The Third Army was able to approach Mt. San Michele, but were met with machine gun fire when attempting to sneak around the flank that was guarding Gorizia.^[6]^[7] The Austro-Hungarians did not lose as many men during this, but proportionally, each side suffered similar losses.^[6]

Criticism of Luigi Cadorna

Luigi Cadorna was a well-known man throughout Italy for his achievements and background; however, because of the failures the Italians suffered during World War I, Luigi Cadorna received quite a bit of negative feedback. His poor leadership skills led to many deserters during, and after the Battles of the Isonzo.^[8] He assumed that the morale of Italian soldiers would win the battles at the end of the day. It was not until this Third Battle that he actually considered the sizes of troops and the amount of gunpower they possessed.^[8]

Because he concentrated his attacks in very small areas, the Austro-Hungarians were able to do the same exact thing; therefore there was literally no advantage besides the fact that Cadorna had brought a few more troops in. However, because of the terrain and the area of the attack, the larger numbers also did not do the Italians much good.^[7]

Aftermath

Cadorna decided to attack again a week later, starting the Fourth Battle of the Isonzo. However, it was not until the Sixth that the Italians would gain any ground and establish a presence at Gorizia.^[2]

Related Research Articles

The Battle of Caporetto was a battle on the Italian front of World War I.

Svetozar Boroević von Bojna was an Austro-Hungarian field marshal who was described as one of the finest defensive strategists of the First World War. He commanded Austro-Hungarian forces in the Isonzo front, for which he was nicknamed the "Lion of Isonzo".

The Second Battle of the Piave River, fought between 15 and 23 June 1918, was a decisive victory for the Italian Army against the Austro-Hungarian Empire during World War I. Though the battle proved to be a decisive blow to the Austro-Hungarian Empire and by extension the Central Powers, its full significance was not initially appreciated in Italy. Yet Erich Ludendorff, on hearing the news, is reported to have said he 'had the sensation of defeat for the first time'. It would later become clear that the battle was in fact the beginning of the end of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Marshal of Italy Luigi Cadorna, was an Italian general, Marshal of Italy and Count, most famous for being the Chief of Staff of the Italian Army from 1914 until 1917 during World War I. During this period he acquired a reputation for rigid discipline and the harsh treatment of his troops. Cadorna achieved successes at the battles of Asiago and Gorizia but, following a major defeat at the Battle of Caporetto in late 1917, he was relieved as Chief of Staff.

The Sixth Battle of the Isonzo, better known as the Battle of Gorizia, was the most successful Italian offensive along the Soča (Isonzo) River during World War I.

The First Battle of the Isonzo was fought between the armies of Italy and Austria-Hungary on the northeastern Italian Front in World War I, between 23 June and 7 July 1915.

The Second Battle of the Isonzo was fought between the armies of the Kingdom of Italy and of Austria-Hungary in the Italian Front in World War I, between 18 July and 3 August 1915.

The Battle of Doberdò took place in August 1916, fought by the Kingdom of Italy and Austria-Hungary. The Austro-Hungarian army was primarily made up of regiments filled with Hungarians and Slovenians. The battle was a part of the Sixth Battle of the Isonzo, and occurred in a strategic area: the most western edge of the Karst Plateau. The Italians had already conquered the lowland area surrounding Monfalcone and Ronchi, and attempted to push over the Karst Plateau to seize control of the major road that linked the city of Trieste, with its important port, to Gorizia. After fierce combat, and sustaining heavy casualties, the Italian forces secured victory, forcing the Austro-Hungarian forces to retreat, and capturing Gorizia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Luigi Capello</span> Italian general

Luigi Capello was an Italian general, distinguished in both the Italo-Turkish War (1911–12) and World War I.

The Eleventh Battle of the Isonzo was a World War I battle fought by the Italian and Austro-Hungarian Armies on the Italian Front between 18 August and 12 September 1917.

Although a member of the Triple Alliance, Italy did not join the Central Powers – Germany and Austria-Hungary – when the war started with Austria-Hungary's declaration of war on Serbia on 28 July 1914. In fact, the two Central Powers had taken the offensive while the Triple Alliance was supposed to be a defensive alliance. Moreover the Triple Alliance recognized that both Italy and Austria-Hungary were interested in the Balkans and required both to consult each other before changing the status quo and to provide compensation for whatever advantage in that area: Austria-Hungary did consult Germany but not Italy before issuing the ultimatum to Serbia, and refused any compensation before the end of the war.

The Fourth Battle of the Isonzo was fought between the armies of Kingdom of Italy and those of Austria-Hungary on the Italian Front in World War I, between 10 November and 2 December 1915.

The Fifth Battle of the Isonzo was fought from March 9–15, 1916 between the armies of the Kingdom of Italy and those of Austria-Hungary. The Italians had decided to launch another offensive on the Soča (Isonzo) River.

The Seventh Battle of the Isonzo was fought from September 14–17, 1916 between the armies of the Kingdom of Italy and those of Austria-Hungary. It followed the Italian successes during the Trentino Offensive and the Sixth Battle of the Isonzo in the spring of 1916.

The Eighth Battle of the Isonzo was fought October 10–12, 1916 between Italy and Austria-Hungary.

The Ninth Battle of the Isonzo was an Italian offensive against Austria-Hungary in the course World War I. Including a triumvirate of battles launched after the Italians' successful seizure of Gorizia in August 1916 to extend their bridgehead to the left of the town, it ended in further failure for the Italian Chief of Staff Luigi Cadorna.

The Tenth Battle of the Isonzo was an Italian offensive against Austria-Hungary during World War I.

The Battles of the Isonzo were a series of twelve battles between the Austro-Hungarian and Italian armies in World War I mostly on the territory of present-day Slovenia, and the remainder in Italy along the Isonzo River on the eastern sector of the Italian Front between June 1915 and November 1917.

Events from the year 1917 in Italy.

The Austro-Hungarian Fifth Army was an Austro-Hungarian field army that fought during World War I.

References

1 2 Schindler, John R. (2001). Isonzo: The Forgotten Sacrifice of the Great War. Praeger Publishers. p. 103/104.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
1 2 3 4 "Third Battle of the Isonzo". HISTORY. Retrieved 2019-01-26.
↑ "Third battle of the Isonzo, 18 October-3 November 1915". www.historyofwar.org. Retrieved 2019-01-26.
↑ FirstWorldWar.Com: The Battles of the Isonzo, 1915-17
↑ WorldWar1.com: Isonzo 1915
1 2 "Third battle of the Isonzo, 18 October-3 November 1915". www.historyofwar.org. Retrieved 2019-01-26.
1 2 Knighton, Andrew (2018-06-29). "The First Four Battles of the Isonzo: Italy Enters World War One". WAR HISTORY ONLINE. Retrieved 2019-01-26.
1 2 "Isonzo, Battles of | International Encyclopedia of the First World War (WW1)". encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net. Retrieved 2019-01-26.

External links

Battlefield Maps: Italian Front
11 battles at the Isonzo
The Walks of Peace in the Soča Region Foundation. The Foundation preserves, restores and presents the historical and cultural heritage of the First World War in the area of the Isonzo Front for the study, tourist and educational purposes.
The Kobarid Museum (in English) Archived 2007-11-19 at the Wayback Machine
Društvo Soška Fronta (in Slovenian)
Pro Hereditate - extensive site (in En/It/Sl)

45°51′24″N13°24′01″E / 45.85667°N 13.40028°E / 45.85667; 13.40028

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[FoSac-1] 1 2 Schindler, John R. (2001). Isonzo: The Forgotten Sacrifice of the Great War. Praeger Publishers. p. 103/104.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

[:05-2] 1 2 3 4 "Third Battle of the Isonzo". HISTORY. Retrieved 2019-01-26.

[:1-3] "Third battle of the Isonzo, 18 October-3 November 1915". www.historyofwar.org. Retrieved 2019-01-26.

[4] FirstWorldWar.Com: The Battles of the Isonzo, 1915-17

[5] WorldWar1.com: Isonzo 1915

[:12-6] 1 2 "Third battle of the Isonzo, 18 October-3 November 1915". www.historyofwar.org. Retrieved 2019-01-26.

[:22-7] 1 2 Knighton, Andrew (2018-06-29). "The First Four Battles of the Isonzo: Italy Enters World War One". WAR HISTORY ONLINE. Retrieved 2019-01-26.

[:3-8] 1 2 "Isonzo, Battles of | International Encyclopedia of the First World War (WW1)". encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net. Retrieved 2019-01-26.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]