June 1940: the Italian Army and the Battle of the Alps

This article focuses on the 'Battle of the Alps' of June 1940, which pitted the Italian Regio Esercito against the French Armee des Alpes. Fearing that an early capitulation of France to the German invasion that had begun in May would prevent Italy from sharing the spoils of victory, Mussolini ordered an offensive against France on 15 June 1940. Despite the battle raging in the north, the French Army successfully repelled the attacking force and the Italian assault petered out after a few days, with no significant victories and few territorial gains. Aside from the difficulties of crossing the Alpine mountain range, a geographical feature the French had strongly fortified, the Italian campaign was hindered by poor strategy, ineffective tactics, an outdated military doctrine that failed to acknowledge the importance of combined arms warfare, and appallingly inadequate materiel owing to the erosion of the Italian military industrial base in the 1930s. In fact, the Battle of the Alps set the tone for the overall disappointing military campaign of the Regio Esercito in the Second World War, as the Italian army never fully recovered from its dismal start. Nous nous concentrons, dans cet article, sur la <> de juin 1940, qui opposa la Regio Esercito italienne a l'Armee francaise des Alpes. Craignant qu 'une capitulation anticipee de la France devant l'invasion allemande, qui avait deja commence en mai, emiecherait l'Italie d'avoir une part aux butins de guerre, Mussolini ordonna une attaque contre la France le 15 juin 1940. En depit des combats qui faisaient rage plus au nord, l'armee francaise reussit a repousser l'ennemi et l'assaut italien tourna court apres quelques jours n 'ayant remporte aucune victoire importante et recu que peu de gains territoriaux. A part des difficultes encourues a travers la chaine de montagnes des Alpes, un element geographique que la France avait solidement fortifie, la campagne d'ltalie fut entravee par une strategie mediocre, des tactiques inefficaces, une doctrine militaire perimee qui negligea de reconnaitre l'importance des forces alliees armees et du materiel epouvantablement inadequat a cause de la degradation de la base industrielle militaire de l'Italle dans les annees 30. En fait, la Bataille des Alpes fut un presage pour la campagne militaire decevante en tout point du Regio Esercito durant la seconde guerre mondiale, car l'armee italienne ne se ferait jamais de son depart lamentable.
Since the end of the Second World War, military scholars around the globe have scrutinized the performance of the various armies that fought in that deadly conflict. Not much however [...]