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9. Italian Fronta. Strategic Considerations
Strategic ConsiderationsNowhere has terrain exerted a more decisive influence on strategy than on the Austro-Italian front. Unfortunately for the Italians, this influence was for them predominantly adverse. The frontier, 484 miles in length, was divided into three distinct sectors: the Trentino (part of the South Tirol) on the west, the Dolomites and the Carnic Alps in the center, and the line of the Isonzo River on the east. The Trentino, which then belonged to Austria, formed a deep wedge into northern Italy. It was a rough, mountainous area which the Austrians had converted into a veritable fortress. Any major advance in the Trentino would have to be made up the Adige Valley, where it could easily be stopped in the fortified Trento (Trent) defile area or at the Brenner Pass farther north. Even if successful, such an advance would lead to no strategic objective of consequence. The Trentino pointed straight to the heart of northern Italy, and an Austrian offensive there would threaten to cut off Italian troops at the Carnic and Isonzo fronts. The area was detached from Austria proper, however, and it was served by only one railroad, which could not supply forces of the size necessary to ensure success. Furthermore, an excellent rail net enabled the Italians to shift troops rapidly from other fronts to counter an offensive in the Trentino. The Carnic Alps in the central sector were forbidding. Mountain passes suitable only for Alpine troops were often situated at altitudes of over 6,500 feet. A breakthrough here might lead to the cutting of the rail line from Austria proper to the Trentino, but the great number of Italian Alpine troops needed for such a venture was not available, and the operational season in the mountains was only of a few months' duration. The only area in which a decision could be reached by
either side was the Isonzo front, and from the Italian point of view
this front was less formidable than the others only by comparison. The
Austrians controlled all the crossings of the Isonzo and the dominating
mountains and high areas to the east, and any Italian attempt to cross
the river was therefore subject to withering artillery and infantry
fire. As one analyst described the Italian dilemma, "the river
could not be crossed until the mountains had been seized, and the mountains
could not be seized until the river had been crossed." The principal
features of the Isonzo front were the strongly fortified Gorizia (Gorz)
area in the center, the rugged Bainsizza (Bansizza) Plateau to the north,
and the rocky, barren Carso (Karst; Kras) Plateau to the south, with
its precipitous slopes rising as high as 900 feet above the sea, and
dominated by two towering mountains, Monte San Michele and the Hermada.
In short, fighting by the Italians along the frontier would be consistently
uphill and against strong defenses.
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