West European Studies

The performance of the Italian military in the Second World War has been rated poor. The fighting was poor and they surrendered readily. However, there are incidences where they demonstrated bravery and succeeded. The Italian soldiers in the Second World War have been labeled as cowards due to their failure to takeover Greece which was a weak nation and their poor fighting in Africa. The Italian military performed poorly due to lack of advanced weapons, good leaders and enthusiasm to attain Mussolinis objectives in the war.

When war started in Europe, the Italian military was not ready for war. Despite this, Mussolini anxiously wanted to involve Italy in the continental affairs and therefore forced the unprepared Italy into war to satisfy his ego. The economic abilities of Italy were limited and therefore could not acquire the much needed military equipment. The Italian military entered war with weapons that could have been useful only in the First World War. They were not equipped with modern tanks and used vehicles which were lightly armored and poor arms. By the time the military acquired advanced equipment, it was too late. Although the Italian air force seemed strong on paper, it was not well equipped with proper equipments. They had many bi plane aircrafts and few and poorly designed modern fighters.

The Italian military was also commanded by incompetent generals who were appointed by Mussolini because of their loyalties and not qualification. Moreover, there were no experienced military men to lead the Italian military. The military was commanded by men from loyal families, some of whom had no military experience and in many cases threw the military into battles they knew they cannot win. The navy which has very few ships was further weakened by the conformist ideas of its admiralty. This is supported by the fact that the Italian forces fought better when they were put under or fought together with the German troops. They actively participated in Russia invasion where they demonstrated their strength despite the harsh weather and the large number of Russian troops. The Italian Alpini for example proved their bravery in the Russia invasion. The attempt to invade Greece in Albania was a disaster to the Italian army where they were unable to defeat the weak Greek forces. However, when the German generals took over the command, the Italian forces fought well than when they were commanded by Italian generals.

Another factor that led to the poor performance of the Italian military in the Second World War was lack of enthusiasm. Italy was not interested in the war and its entrance into war was met with despair. Mussolini and his close fascist allies were the only ones who were interested in the war. The troops did not trust their generals and did not have a strong desire to battle for their country. When they fought against the Greeks, the Italians did not have passion while the Greek troops were ready to die for their country.

In conclusion, the Italian military performed poorly in the Second World War because they did not have the willingness and desire to fight, they were not well equipped and their leadership was poor. The troops were therefore not cowards but these factors led to their inferior performance.