Italian Civil War
On the night between 24 and the 25th of July 1943, the Grand Council of Fascism approved a motion of no confidence against Benito Mussolini. Dino Grandi had promoted this motion to end the prime minister's leadership. King Victor Emmanuel III arrested Mussolini the next day and replaced him with Marshal Pietro Badoglio. The news of Mussolini's resignation sparked immediate jubilation among many Italians who hoped the war would end quickly. Demonstrations erupted across the country, destroying goods and property belonging to the National Fascist Party. People removed and damaged symbols linked to fascism, but these hopes vanished within days.
Badoglio announced that Italy would continue the war alongside Germany despite the change in government. This declaration triggered Operation Achse, a German plan to occupy Italy immediately. By the 8th of September 1943, the Allies imposed an armistice on Italy, which was publicly announced via radio by Marshal Badoglio. The sudden disclosure left hundreds of thousands of Italian soldiers without orders or clear direction. Many surrendered to German forces and were deported to concentration camps as military internees. Over 800,000 Italian soldiers were captured after the 25th of July, with about 186,000 choosing to collaborate with the Germans.
The collapse created a power vacuum where individuals and gangs took control of local areas. In Sardinia, the XII battalion of the Nembo division mutinied to follow German troops, killing Lieutenant Colonel Alberto Bechi Luserna. Five days later, ordinary marshal Pierino Vascelli was killed by an unknown person who had not joined the mutineers but displayed fascist feelings. These early clashes marked one of the first episodes of civil war on Italian soil.
Hours after the radio announcement of the armistice on the 8th of September 1943, representatives from several anti-fascist organizations converged in Rome. Mauro Scoccimarro and Giorgio Amendola represented the Italian Communist Party while Alcide De Gasperi spoke for Christian Democracy. Ugo La Malfa and Sergio Fenoaltea came from the Action Party, and Pietro Nenni along with Giuseppe Romita arrived from the Italian Socialist Party. Ivanoe Bonomi and Meuccio Ruini represented the Labour Democratic Party, and Alessandro Casati stood for the Italian Liberal Party. They formed the first Committee of National Liberation with Bonomi taking over its presidency.
In late November 1943, the Communists established task forces called Distaccamenti d'assalto Garibaldi. Luigi Longo led these units under the political direction of Pietro Secchia and Giancarlo Pajetta as Chief of Staff. The first operational order dated the 25th of November instructed partisans to attack officers, soldiers, and material deposits of Hitler's armed forces. It also ordered attacks against people, places, and properties belonging to fascists who collaborated with occupying Germans. These groups operated independently if individual elements were arrested or betrayed.
The Gruppi di Azione Patriottica, known simply as GAP, established small cells whose main purpose was unleashing urban terror through bomb attacks. A public announcement from the PCI in September 1943 stated that their mission delivered justice to Nazi tyranny. Women participated mainly by procuring supplies, clothing, and medicines while distributing anti-fascist propaganda. Some women actively joined the conflict as combatants. By June 1944, partisan armed forces numbered only 9,000 men and women before the mass draft.
When the Italian Resistance movement began, Mussolini's Italian Social Republic started assembling an army from remnants of the previous Regio Esercito and Regia Marina corps. This force included fascist volunteers and drafted personnel organized into four regular divisions. The 1ª Divisione Bersaglieri Italia served as light infantry while the 2ª Divisione Granatieri Littorio functioned as grenadiers. The 3ª Divisione fanteria di marina San Marco acted as marines and the 4ª Divisione Alpina Monterosa provided mountain troops. Various irregular formations existed alongside these units including the fascist militia Guardia Nazionale Repubblicana.
In August 1944, Legislative Decree n. 469 brought the GNR under control of the regular army. Marshal Rodolfo Graziani commanded the National Republican Army with deputies Mischi and Montagna coordinating repression efforts. Sources indicate that fascist forces numbered no more than 558,000 despite claims of 780,000 men and women. Partisans and their active supporters reached 82,000 in June 1944. The Republican Police Corps formed in 1944 under Lieutenant-General Renato Ricci included Blackshirts, members of the Italian Africa Police serving in Rome, and Carabinieri.
The chain of command ensured that armed forces remained nominally unitary and apolitical under the supreme command rather than the Republican Fascist Party. Field Marshall Albert Kesselring estimated that from June to August 1944 alone, Italian partisans inflicted a minimum of 20,000 casualties on German forces. Kesselring's intelligence officer supplied higher figures suggesting between 30,000 and 35,000 casualties during those three months.
Among the first special units to form was the gang led by federals Guido Bardi and Guglielmo Pollastrini in Rome. Their crude and vulgar methods scandalized even the Germans who occupied Italy. Subsequently, the Banda Koch became very active in Rome and contributed to dismantling the structure of the Action Party in the capital. Pietro Koch led this band initially connected with Bardi and Pollastrini before moving under protection of General Kurt Mälzer, military commander of the square.
After the fall of Rome, Koch moved to Milan and became trusted man of Interior Minister Guido Buffarini Guidi. He continued repressive actions participating in internal struggles between various powers and police forces of the Republic. The Banda Carità operated in Tuscany and Veneto as a Special Services Department within the 92nd Black Shirt Legion. It became infamous for violent repression including the 1944 Piazza Tasso massacre in Florence. In Milan, the Ettore Muti Action Squad operated under orders from former army corporal Francesco Colombo.
On the 10th of August 1944, Muti's Squadrists together with National Republican Guard soldiers perpetrated the Piazzale Loreto massacre in Milan. Fifteen anti-fascist detainees were killed in retaliation for an assault against a German truck. Following the massacre, mayor Piero Parini resigned attempting to strengthen cohesion among moderate forces undermined by harsh German repression. These special units often adopted brutal methods during counter-insurgency operations and frequently included common criminals.
The collapse of central authority caused individuals and gangs dedicated to banditry to take control throughout the country. Criminal activity surged favored by the murky political climate with adherence to either faction or belligerent power depending on circumstances. In many areas of the Italian Social Republic, authorities could not cope with spread of banditry due to crisis in territory control. Numerous carabinieri had been interned because of their monarchical loyalty while incomplete replacement occurred with soldiers of the Republican National Guard.
Partisan guerrillas needed self-financing so robberies of banks, company coffers, and wealthy owners became almost necessity. All formations ended up resorting to abuses, impositions, robberies, and indiscriminate violence especially Garibaldi groups. The uncertainty of demarcation line between partisan and banditry seriously damaged image of Resistance among population. Nuto Revelli wrote about how partisan commands adopted rigorous measures to suppress crime including death sentences for those guilty of robbery and theft.
A mirror image existed where Germans and fascists committed uncontrollable abuses despite stigmatization by central power. Crazed splinters of both sides behaved like bandits. Among Germans, departments formed by ost elements such as Tartars, White Russians, and Cossacks committed violence and rape frequently requiring counter-terrorism by military authorities of Italian Social Republic. The phenomenon of bandit Salvatore Giuliano emerged in Sicily where debate continues regarding his criminal or political role.
In early 1945, SS-Obergruppenführer Karl Wolff made contact with allied secret agents in Switzerland realizing that war was lost. He ordered several releases of captured partisans including Ferruccio Parri then imposed cessation of anti-partisan operations on troops under him except for self-defense. This order was reiterated on the 26th of April following the insurrection. On the 9th of April 1945, Allies launched final offensive on Gothic Line while PCI sent letter to Communist partisan commands readying them for insurrection.
On the 19th of April, entire National Liberation Committee for Northern Italy agreed on insurrection. Mussolini abandoned Gargnano and went to Milan hoping to make contact with anti-fascists of National Liberation Committee and foreign agents through negotiations involving curia of Cardinal Alfredo Ildefonso Schuster. The last days of Italian Social Republic became convulsive with overlapping contradictory orders while some elements collapsed completely.
Clashes between fascist National Republican Army and Italian Co-belligerent Army remained rare throughout conflict. Most fighting occurred between Italian fascists and Italian partisans who were mostly politically organized in National Liberation Committee. Armed clashes continued until surrender at Caserta on the 2nd of May 1945 ending civil war lasting from around the 8th of September 1943.
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Common questions
When did the Italian Civil War start and end?
The Italian Civil War started on the 8th of September 1943 following the public announcement of the armistice by Marshal Badoglio. The conflict ended with the surrender at Caserta on the 2nd of May 1945.
Who led the Grand Council of Fascism motion against Mussolini in July 1943?
Dino Grandi promoted the motion of no confidence that was approved by the Grand Council of Fascism on the night between the 24th and the 25th of July 1943. King Victor Emmanuel III arrested Benito Mussolini the next day to replace him with Marshal Pietro Badoglio.
What were the main partisan groups fighting during the Italian Civil War?
Major partisan organizations included the Distaccamenti d'assalto Garibaldi led by Luigi Longo and the Gruppi di Azione Patriottica known as GAP. These units operated under the political direction of the Committee of National Liberation which included representatives from the Communist Party, Christian Democracy, Action Party, Socialist Party, Labour Democratic Party, and Liberal Party.
How many soldiers did fascist forces have compared to partisans in June 1944?
Sources indicate that fascist forces numbered no more than 558,000 men despite claims of 780,000. Partisan armed forces reached 82,000 active members in June 1944 before a mass draft increased their numbers.
Who commanded the National Republican Army during the conflict?
Marshal Rodolfo Graziani commanded the National Republican Army while deputies Mischi and Montagna coordinated repression efforts. The Republican Police Corps formed in 1944 was led by Lieutenant-General Renato Ricci and included Blackshirts and Carabinieri.