Analysis: Armistice with Italy
The "Armistice with Italy," formalized on September 3, 1943, marked a pivotal moment during World War II when Italy transitioned from an Axis power to an ally of the Allies. After years of fascist rule under Benito Mussolini, Italy faced significant military setbacks, culminating in Mussolini's ousting in July 1943. His successor, Marshal Pietro Badoglio, sought peace in Europe and negotiated the armistice, which effectively called for the immediate cessation of hostilities by Italian forces. The agreement included provisions for the withdrawal of Italian troops, the release of prisoners, and the strategic use of Italian military resources by the Allies.
This armistice was significant not only as Italy's formal surrender but also as a shift in the broader war dynamics, as it facilitated allied operations against German occupying forces. The context of the armistice was shaped by Italy's earlier alignment with Nazi Germany through the Rome-Berlin Axis, formed in 1936. However, widespread public discontent with the war and Mussolini's leadership led to a rapid change in allegiance once a new government took power. The acceptance of the armistice by Italy set the stage for the Allied liberation of the country and reshaped Italy's role in the conflict.
Analysis: Armistice with Italy
Date: September 3, 1943
Author: Dwight D. Eisenhower
Genre: legislation
Summary Overview
In October 1936, Italy entered a coalition with Germany known as the Rome-Berlin Axis, forming an alliance between the two fascist countries. The leader of the National Fascist Party in Italy, Benito Mussolini, ruled the country from 1922 until 1943 and sought to expand Italian territorial holdings, drawing the country into World War II. By July 1943, as the Allied forces encroached upon Italy, Mussolini had been ousted from his position as prime minister of Italy. His replacement, Marshal Pietro Badoglio, sought peace in Europe. He reached an armistice with the Allies on September 3, 1943. Among its twelve provisions, the armistice called for an immediate end to hostile activities by the Italian armed forces; refusal to cooperate with German troops; and free use by the Allied forces of any strategic locations and equipment. Within a few weeks of the armistice, most of the Italian armed forces had joined the Allies and worked with the Allied troops to expel German occupying forces from Italy.
Defining Moment
Between 1937 and 1945, nearly every country in the Northern Hemisphere fought in World War II. The European war officially began when Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. The Allied forces were led by the United States, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, and China. The Axis powers included most of the smaller Eastern European countries and were led by Germany, Italy, and Japan.
Elected in 1922, Prime Minister Benito Mussolini ruled Italy as a fascist dictator beginning in 1925. While Mussolini did not establish the fascist movement himself, he was a prominent member of the National Fascist Party in its early days and adeptly navigated into a position of power within its ranks. Fascism emerged in Italy following World War I and combined fierce nationalism with aggressive expansionism. Most of all, fascism advocated granting full economic, social, and military power to a dominant race led by a single dictator. These principles directly contradicted the democratic tenets that prevailed across most of Europe following World War I.
In October 1936, Mussolini and German Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler formally initiated their first “treaty of friendship,” forming the Rome-Berlin Axis. Over the next several years, they established additional cooperation treaties on behalf of their nations and with the fellow Axis member country of Japan. These treaties included the Anti-Comintern Pact, which Italy joined in November 1937 to neutralize the perceived threat of communism from the Soviet Union, and the Pact of Steel, signed by Hitler and Mussolini in May 1939 to formalize their alliance with military provisions.
During his time as prime minister, Mussolini gradually shifted the National Fascist Party's politics. Eventually, his association with Hitler and the Nazi Party led to significant policy changes in Italy. For example, early fascism embraced national liberation but rejected extreme imperialism and racism. But by 1937, Mussolini began to introduce racist and anti-Semitic legislation in Italy. These measures and their enforcement were in line with existing Nazi policies and procedures but were not well received by most Italian citizens.
Many Italians did not approve of Mussolini's alliance with Hitler from the beginning. Some disliked the Nazi influence on fascist ideals; others did not support fascism at all. By the time the Allied forces landed on the island of Sicily in July 1943, public support for the war—and for Mussolini in particular—was extremely low. Mussolini was forced out of his position as prime minister on July 25, 1943, and arrested shortly thereafter. His replacement, Marshal Pietro Badoglio, dissolved the National Fascist Party and reached an armistice with the Allies a few weeks later. On September 8, 1943, Italy became the first Axis nation to formally surrender to Allied forces.
Author Biography
The armistice with Italy was drafted by the United States, Great Britain, and the United Nations. At the time, the United Nations consisted of the twenty-six signatory countries to the Declaration by United Nations of January 1, 1942, that pledged to fight against the Axis powers during World War II. These included the United States, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Greece, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, and Yugoslavia, as well as several non-European nations. In 1945, these signatories plus twenty-four additional countries met at the United Nations Conference on International Organization in San Francisco to formally establish the United Nations Charter.
The armistice was presented to the acting Italian government by General Dwight D. Eisenhower, the commander in chief of the Allied forces in Europe, acting by authority of the governments of the United States and Great Britain, and also on behalf of the United Nations. It was formally accepted on September 3, 1943, by Marshal Pietro Badoglio, the head of the Italian government.
Document Analysis
The armistice with Italy establishes the terms of Italy's surrender to the Allied forces. It requires “immediate cessation of all hostile activity” by the Italian armed forces and immediate withdrawal to Italy of all its armed forces participating in the war. Italy must use its “best endeavors” to prevent German access to any facilities or equipment that might be used against the United Nations. Further, Italy must surrender Corsica and any other Italian island or mainland territory to the Allies, for use in any purposes the Allies see fit.
Any Italian prisoners who are citizens of the United Nations must be immediately released to the Allies and not evacuated to Germany under any circumstance. Italian ships and aircraft must be turned over to the Allies, and the Allies must be granted free use of all airfields and naval ports in Italian territory, including those occupied by German forces. The armistice also grants the Allied commander in chief the right to requisition Italian merchant shipping for military use if necessary.
The armistice further requires the Italian government to guarantee that it will employ all of its armed forces to ensure “prompt and exact compliance” with all of its provisions. It grants the Allied commander in chief the right to take any measures necessary to protect the Allies' interest in the war and requires the Italian government to take any actions the Allied commander in chief deems necessary to the military interests of the Allies. Finally, it establishes that the commander in chief of the Allied forces has the “full right to impose measures of disarmament, demobilization, and demilitarization.”
Bibliography and Additional Reading
Atkinson, Rick. The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943–1944. New York:Holt, 2007. Print.
Paxton, Robert O. The Anatomy of Fascism. New York: Random, 2004. Print.
Wilhelm, Maria de Blasio. The Other Italy: The Italian Resistance in World War II. New York: Norton, 1988. Print.