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Isonzo: The Forgotten Sacrifice of the Great War
This is the first account in English of a much-overlooked, but important, First World War battlefront located in the mountains astride the border between Italy and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Not well known in the West, the battles of Isonzo were nevertheless ferocious, and compiled a record of bloodletting that totaled over 1.75 million for both sides. In sharp contrast to claims that neither the Italian nor the Austrian armies were viable fighting forces, Schindler aims to bring the terrible sacrifices endured by both armies back to their rightful place in the history of 20th century Europe. The Habsburg Empire, he contends, lost the war for military and economic reasons rather than for political or ethnic ones.
Schindler's account includes references to remarkable personalities such as Mussolini; Tito; Hemingway; Rommel, and the great maestro Toscanini. This Alpine war had profound historical consequences that included the creation of the Yugoslav state, the problem of a rump Austrian state looking to Germany for leadership, and the traumatic effects on a generation of young Italian men who swelled the ranks of the fascists. After nearly a century, Isonzo can assume its proper place in the ranks of the tragic Great War clashes, alongside Verdun, the Somme, and Passchendaele.
Schindler's account includes references to remarkable personalities such as Mussolini; Tito; Hemingway; Rommel, and the great maestro Toscanini. This Alpine war had profound historical consequences that included the creation of the Yugoslav state, the problem of a rump Austrian state looking to Germany for leadership, and the traumatic effects on a generation of young Italian men who swelled the ranks of the fascists. After nearly a century, Isonzo can assume its proper place in the ranks of the tragic Great War clashes, alongside Verdun, the Somme, and Passchendaele.
440 pages, Hardcover
First published September 5, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
July 20, 2012
John R. Schindler's outstanding book on the numerous battles fought along the Isonzo River during the Great War is one of the best military history accounts I have read for some time. The Isonzo River ran between the then warring nations of Italy and Austria (Habsburg Empire) and saw some of the bloodiest fighting of World War One. According to the author over 1.75 million men became casualties during the numerous offensives fought along this river and upper valley and should be placed along such names as Verdun, the Somme, and Passchendaele.
After reading his book I fully agree with the author in this regard. Before reading this book I had never really appreciated this campaign in the context of the Great War. I knew of the role of the young German officer, Erwin Rommel, and the Battle of Caporetto. Before now I had never read of the outstanding valour shown by the Italian and Austrian-Hungarian soldiers who fought for four grueling years along this forgotten front line.
I was not aware that Benito Mussolini had fought as an Italian Alpini soldier along this front and that he was a dedicated and brave soldier. I learnt from reading this book that the many ethnic nationals that made up the old Habsburg Empire fought bravely and without compliant for their Emperor regardless of what was happening to the old Empire back home.
The descriptions of the fighting were excellent and the details of the many campaigns and offensives never once got boring. The story was well told and the accounts of the many soldiers and officers involved were well told and insightful. This is an excellent historical account and rightly sub-titled as "The Forgotten Sacrifice of the Great War". The narrative was compelling throughout and I found it hard to put the book away late at night. In just under 350 pages of text we get a fascinating and before now untold account of a terrible conflict.
The author offers a highly interesting chapter on the ramifications of this WW1 campaign on the region after the end of the Great War. He also provides a chapter outlining the battlefield as it is today. There are a number of black and white photographs of the area and numerous maps (which could have been better but were sufficient). I cannot recommend this book highly enough for any World War One reader. Although the price tag may put off some buyers, it actually took me a few months to make the decision to buy this book, it is well worth the expenditure.
After reading his book I fully agree with the author in this regard. Before reading this book I had never really appreciated this campaign in the context of the Great War. I knew of the role of the young German officer, Erwin Rommel, and the Battle of Caporetto. Before now I had never read of the outstanding valour shown by the Italian and Austrian-Hungarian soldiers who fought for four grueling years along this forgotten front line.
I was not aware that Benito Mussolini had fought as an Italian Alpini soldier along this front and that he was a dedicated and brave soldier. I learnt from reading this book that the many ethnic nationals that made up the old Habsburg Empire fought bravely and without compliant for their Emperor regardless of what was happening to the old Empire back home.
The descriptions of the fighting were excellent and the details of the many campaigns and offensives never once got boring. The story was well told and the accounts of the many soldiers and officers involved were well told and insightful. This is an excellent historical account and rightly sub-titled as "The Forgotten Sacrifice of the Great War". The narrative was compelling throughout and I found it hard to put the book away late at night. In just under 350 pages of text we get a fascinating and before now untold account of a terrible conflict.
The author offers a highly interesting chapter on the ramifications of this WW1 campaign on the region after the end of the Great War. He also provides a chapter outlining the battlefield as it is today. There are a number of black and white photographs of the area and numerous maps (which could have been better but were sufficient). I cannot recommend this book highly enough for any World War One reader. Although the price tag may put off some buyers, it actually took me a few months to make the decision to buy this book, it is well worth the expenditure.
January 19, 2014
Excellent narrative account of the endless, grinding battles along the Isonzo River on the Italian Front during the Great War. For far too many people in the US and Great Britain, the Great War is simply (and simplistically) a kind of absurdist "Blackadder Goes Forth" version of the trench warfare in northern France and Belgium. The Eastern Front is given attention only as a vague background for the Russian Revolution, and the Balkan and Italian fronts are almost forgotten. Schindler's "Isonzo: The Forgotten Sacrifice of the Great War" does an excellent job of telling the story of the Isonzo battles and Italy's ruinous participation in the war for an English-speaking audience. Americans have heard of the Italian front--- if they've heard of it at all ---as simply the background for Hemingway's "A Farewell to Arms" and "A Way You'll Never Be", and Schindler reminds readers that the Isonzo campaigns resulted in more than a million and a half casualties on both sides and were major factors in the exhaustion and collapse of the Habsburg Monarchy, the postwar addition of Slovenia to a South Slav state, the Italo-Yugoslav hostility over places like Trieste, and the political crises in Italy that led to Mussolini's rise.
Schindler also looks closely at the two opposing armies and pays attention to the ways in which the Habsburg armies were constructed and how a multi-ethnic army managed to hold itself together under the stresses of the war. His account shows that the Habsburg armies were far more resilient and combative than both their opponents in 1914-18 and later (often British and German) historians believed. He is no less good at showing that, while the Italian government entered the war in what can only be called a spirit of almost criminal frivolity, the Italian army--- poorly armed, poorly supplied, poorly officered, and riddled with deep class and regional enmities ---fought on for three years with the same kind of stubborn determination as its Habsburg opponent.
"Isonzo" is a well-crafted, well-researched, well-written narrative account, and bears reading by anyone who wants to understand the history of Italy and the northwest Balkans in the 20th-century or wants to go beyond the accounts that make the Great War simply all about the trench lines on the Western Front. Highly recommended.
Schindler also looks closely at the two opposing armies and pays attention to the ways in which the Habsburg armies were constructed and how a multi-ethnic army managed to hold itself together under the stresses of the war. His account shows that the Habsburg armies were far more resilient and combative than both their opponents in 1914-18 and later (often British and German) historians believed. He is no less good at showing that, while the Italian government entered the war in what can only be called a spirit of almost criminal frivolity, the Italian army--- poorly armed, poorly supplied, poorly officered, and riddled with deep class and regional enmities ---fought on for three years with the same kind of stubborn determination as its Habsburg opponent.
"Isonzo" is a well-crafted, well-researched, well-written narrative account, and bears reading by anyone who wants to understand the history of Italy and the northwest Balkans in the 20th-century or wants to go beyond the accounts that make the Great War simply all about the trench lines on the Western Front. Highly recommended.
February 4, 2025
Forgot to add this one after keeping it secret to hand to someone else as a gift.
I liked this book. The Italian Front of the First World War is generally not very well-known aside from having some media references and video games based on it ("Isonzo" from Blackmill Games is pretty good). John Schindler provides a good account of the conflict and the groups involved. Although the narratives of the battles do get pretty specific ("the XXth Regiment was wiped out while attacking Mount Somewherevillo on the 17th during the 7th Battle of Isonzo" kind of deal), he does not fail to detail the wider political situation of the Italian Kingdom and Austro-Hungarian Empire that shaped events at the front. Also quite hilarious are the occasional accounts of Mr. Mussolini's time at the front, the socialist agitator turned sergeant who ends the war with several pieces of shrapnel lodged in his back. Overall, a good read.
I liked this book. The Italian Front of the First World War is generally not very well-known aside from having some media references and video games based on it ("Isonzo" from Blackmill Games is pretty good). John Schindler provides a good account of the conflict and the groups involved. Although the narratives of the battles do get pretty specific ("the XXth Regiment was wiped out while attacking Mount Somewherevillo on the 17th during the 7th Battle of Isonzo" kind of deal), he does not fail to detail the wider political situation of the Italian Kingdom and Austro-Hungarian Empire that shaped events at the front. Also quite hilarious are the occasional accounts of Mr. Mussolini's time at the front, the socialist agitator turned sergeant who ends the war with several pieces of shrapnel lodged in his back. Overall, a good read.
June 19, 2024
In my heart it's 3.5 stars, as there is so much military battle exposition here that I almost went cross-eyed trying to digest it all. But that aside, this may be the definitive account of Italy's WWI campaigning...and very much a forgotten corner of the war. For the sheer amount of scholarship...and the sheer bloody debacle presented here...this book is worth rounding up to 4 stars.
September 30, 2015
A detailed account of the twelve campaigns on the Isonzo, this book is somewhat slow moving in places. I did gain a great deal of knowledge and respect for the soldiers of the Austro-Hungarian Empire who successfully defended this rugged terrain until 1918. Their Italian counterparts also served valiantly under questionable leadership. I appreciated the material on the battlefields today, and the maps although they were slightly primitive in nature.
August 2, 2012
This is a detailed, straightforward, cleanly delivered account of a much-overlooked WWI theater. Far from a minor sideshow, the Isonzo Front ruthlessly swallowed up millions of lives on both the Italian and Austrian sides. The casualty figures start to look like pinball scores after a few chapters. What a waste. War is truly hell.
All the major battles are covered in meticulous detail and the strategies of the opposing generals (reckless and uninformed tactics in the case of Cadorna) are coolly and critically evaluated. Readers will enjoy the ample anecdotes of the Front's more recognizable personalities, including Rommel, Mussolini, Toscanini, and Hemingway.
My husband and I just returned from three weeks of hiking throughout this area. Although we learned much during our journey, Schindler's book greatly enriched and deepened my understanding of the numerous sights we encountered, included kavernen, trenches, cemeteries, memorials, chapels, and ossuaries. I highly recommend reading it before traveling to western Slovenia. The author includes a very helpful closing chapter on places to visit.
As usual with history books, I found the maps to be wanting. The detail is there, but the maps have been reduced so much that the tiny labels are often unreadable. My kingdom for a decent map!
Also, the illustrations were all contemporary photographs, probably taken by the author; I would really have enjoyed some historical images of the military leaders and battle sites.
(PS - I was rooting for the Hapsburgs all the way. I always love an underdog. No one likes a bully.)
All the major battles are covered in meticulous detail and the strategies of the opposing generals (reckless and uninformed tactics in the case of Cadorna) are coolly and critically evaluated. Readers will enjoy the ample anecdotes of the Front's more recognizable personalities, including Rommel, Mussolini, Toscanini, and Hemingway.
My husband and I just returned from three weeks of hiking throughout this area. Although we learned much during our journey, Schindler's book greatly enriched and deepened my understanding of the numerous sights we encountered, included kavernen, trenches, cemeteries, memorials, chapels, and ossuaries. I highly recommend reading it before traveling to western Slovenia. The author includes a very helpful closing chapter on places to visit.
As usual with history books, I found the maps to be wanting. The detail is there, but the maps have been reduced so much that the tiny labels are often unreadable. My kingdom for a decent map!
Also, the illustrations were all contemporary photographs, probably taken by the author; I would really have enjoyed some historical images of the military leaders and battle sites.
(PS - I was rooting for the Hapsburgs all the way. I always love an underdog. No one likes a bully.)
March 13, 2021
I am of two minds about this book.
On the one hand, I found the author's style to be a bit irritating, particularly his repetitive descriptions of the qualities of various fighting units ("tough", "crack") and also his overuse of superlatives in describing each of the 12 battles of the Isonzo.
On the other hand, this book gives the reader a thorough orientation of the geography of Italy's war against Austria. I have read other books on the Italian front in World War I, but it is only with "Isonzo" that I got a real feel for the various focal points of this front. The maps of the Isonzo valley at the end of the book were particularly effective in giving the reader a good mental picture of this theatre.
Schindler is very sympathetic to the Austrians, and points out that Austria-Hungary's non-German minorities stayed loyal to the Empire almost until the end. Austria only gave up the fight when it was physically unable to continue, due to lack of food, transport, and ammunition. I second other reviewers on this board in their opinion that this may be the finest English-language book on the Italian front in print.
On the one hand, I found the author's style to be a bit irritating, particularly his repetitive descriptions of the qualities of various fighting units ("tough", "crack") and also his overuse of superlatives in describing each of the 12 battles of the Isonzo.
On the other hand, this book gives the reader a thorough orientation of the geography of Italy's war against Austria. I have read other books on the Italian front in World War I, but it is only with "Isonzo" that I got a real feel for the various focal points of this front. The maps of the Isonzo valley at the end of the book were particularly effective in giving the reader a good mental picture of this theatre.
Schindler is very sympathetic to the Austrians, and points out that Austria-Hungary's non-German minorities stayed loyal to the Empire almost until the end. Austria only gave up the fight when it was physically unable to continue, due to lack of food, transport, and ammunition. I second other reviewers on this board in their opinion that this may be the finest English-language book on the Italian front in print.
May 10, 2020
Schindler does an excellent job providing a narrative for the conflict on the Isonzo. Only pertinent details are included from the other fronts of WWI, the battles are incredibly well researched, and painstaking effort was made to convey the human cost on both sides. Schindler, however, has a bias towards the Habsburg leadership. Praise of individual junior officers and their actions are disproportionately Austrian, while there is only scorn for the Italian Comando Supremo. The bias is blatant in the epilogue, where Schindler follows notably fewer Italian subjects into the post-war years. Despite the favoritism, this book is an enjoyable read.
September 1, 2016
I didn't know much detail about the Austro-Italian front except that the two sides fought multiple battles in and around the Isonzo River with high casualties and not much result. What made this book interesting was the in depth coverage of why Italy got into WW I and how the politicians and generals persisted in the fruitless assaults for Italy's "honor". Coupled with MacMillan's "1919 - The Paris Peace Conference", the whole history of Italy during the second decade of the Twentieth Century innot one to be especially proud of. I recoomend this book for WW I buffs interested in learning more about fronts other than in France
September 6, 2016
As books about WWI go, this was terrific! So much information about what was to the major scheme of things, a "small battle" although it was not small in losses, or in effort. I have read many more voluminous books on WWI and wanted one to focus on this series of battles, and this fit the bill. It was thorough, full of little tidbits on the various players, and satisfying. The one problem was that the pictures were poor quality and it was tough to use them to get a real feel for the battlefield. Because that area is so beautiful today, I would have liked to have seen as many pictures, maybe then and now, as could have been mustered. Alas...
December 21, 2016
the author covered the topic with very good details. the book covers pre-war situation in Italy and explains why Italy went to war on Austria which was an ally along with German Empire. you will be shocked when you find out how many people was murdered by the irresponsible military officers and politicians. strongly recommended for ww1 enthusiasts especially who want to learn about Italy-Austria front between 1915 and 1918.
December 15, 2008
Good review of the Italian Front in WWI.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews