PIAVE 6t37 



PIAVE: THE THREE BATTLES OF 1917-18 



Robert Machray, Writer on Foreign Affairs 



Here are described three important battles between the Italians, with 

 whom were the British, and the A ustro-Germans. See the articles 

 Caporetto ; Isonzo ; Vittorio Veneto ; Cavan ; Diaz ; Plumer 



The battles of the Piave were 

 three battles fought between the 

 Austrians and the Italians in 

 Nov., 1917, June, 1918, and Oct.- 

 Nov., 1918. The Italians were 

 aided by the British and the 

 Austrians by the Germans. 



FIEST BATTLE, Nov. 12-16, 

 1917. After the disaster at 

 Caporetto in Oct., 1917, the 

 Italians retreated to the Piave 

 and were in position on its west 

 side on Nov. 10. The Lower Piave, 

 from Nervesa to the sea, a length 

 of about 25 m., formed a fair 

 defensive front, as it was flanked 

 on the north by the Montello and 

 on the south by the sea marshes, 

 but from above the Montello to 

 its sources in the Dolomites the 

 river, whether in its middle or 

 upper course, presented no great 

 natural obstacle to an enemy. 

 On Nov. 12 the Austro-Germans 

 crossed the Lower Piave at Zenson, 

 but the Italians immediately 

 counter-attacked, and pinned them 

 up against the bank. Next day the 

 enemy tried to force a passage at 

 Quero and Fener, on the Middle 

 Piave, and at San Dona and 

 Intestadura, on the Lower, but 

 was repulsed. An attempt to get 

 across by the island of Grave di 

 Papadopoli also failed, but the 

 Italians were unable to drive in 

 the bridgehead which the Austrians 

 had made at Zenson. 



On Nov. 16 the Austrians 

 attacked the river line with large 

 forces, but the defence stood firm ; 

 they crossed above the railway 

 bridge E. of Treviso in several 

 places, but the Italians threw them 

 back, with a loss of 1,500 in pri- 

 soners alone, an equal number be- 

 ing killed. In this area the Italian 

 third army defeated o. - held up all 

 the efforts of the enemy, who here 

 had two armies, to pierce the line 

 of the Piave. The Austrians de- 

 sisted in their attempts, and trans- 

 ferred the front of attack to the 

 N. areas, nor was there much 

 change on the Lower Piave till 

 they lost the Zenson bridgehead 

 in Jan., 1918. 



SECOND BATTLE. In the Austrian 

 offensive of mid-June, 1918, the 

 main weight of the attack was 

 felt on the line of the Piave from 

 below the Montello to the sea. 

 The first effort of the Austrians 

 at forcing the river front was made 

 early on June 15 at that part of 

 the Piave, about 5 m. S. of 

 Nervesa, where the island of 

 Grave di Papadopoli lies almost 



midstream, some hours before 

 their other attempts to cross 

 higher up or lower dowji. There 

 had been a heavy bombardment 

 of the Italian trenches with gas- 

 shells on the previous day ; and 

 the crossing was made before 

 dawn under cover of a smoke 

 barrage The Austrians had hardly 

 gained a foothold on the W. bank 

 of the river when they were strongly 

 counter-attacked by the Italians, 

 who drove most of them back to the 

 island. Other attempts were made 

 from Grave di Papadopoli, some 

 of which gained a footing again 

 on the W. bank, but all failed in the 

 end. A short distance farther down 

 the Austrians forced a passage 

 between Candelu and Fagare, and 

 once more at the Zenson bend. 

 They brought up large forces, but 

 so strenuous was the Italian 

 resistance that on June 18 they 

 had advanced only a mile from 

 the river towards San Biagio, and 

 on June 19 they were driven back 

 to the positions they had taken 

 on the first day. 



The Fiave in Flood 

 Still lower down the river the 

 Austrians forced a crossing be- 

 tween Fossalta and Musile, opposite 

 S. Dona di Piave, and progressed 

 some little way along the railway 

 that runs to Mestre, S. of Treviso 

 and N.W. of Venice. South, in the 

 region of the marshes below 

 Musile, they pushed on as far as 

 the Fossetta Canal. The struggle 

 in this region fluctuated, the Aus- 

 trians losing ground on the whole. 



PIAVE 



Then on June 19 the Piave 

 poured down in flood, and the 

 Austrians held on to the W. bank 

 with difficulty. On June 21-22 the 

 floods fell, and during the night 

 of June 22 the Austrians were able 

 to withdraw to the E. bank, losing 

 heavily. The great offensive had ' 

 issued in failure on the Piave as 

 elsewhere. During the next fort- 

 night the Italians improved their 

 line in the S. by retaking the Capo 

 Sile bridgehead, which had been 

 lost earlier, and other positions, 

 between the Old and the New Piave. 

 (See The Battle of the Piave, 

 June 15-23, 1918, issued by the 

 Supreme Command of the Royal 

 Italian Army, Eng. trans. M. 

 Prichard-Agnetti, 1921.) 



THIRD BATTLE. At the close 

 of the struggle on the Piave in 

 June, 1918, the Italians were 

 solidly lined up on the W. bank 

 of the river, and the Austrians lay 

 on the E. side, with a forward 

 position in the island of Grave di 

 Papadopoli. 



The attack was begun by the 

 tenth Italian army, which con- 

 sisted of the 14th British corps, 

 under Lt.-Gen Sir J. M. Babing- 

 ton, and the ilth Italian corps, 

 including the 332nd American 

 regiment, under Gen. Paolini, the 

 whole being commanded by Lord 

 Cavan. The British corps was com- 

 posed of the 7th division, under 

 Major-Gen. T. H. Shoubridge, and 

 the 23rd division, under Major- 

 Gen. H. F. Thuillier. During 

 the night of Oct. 23-24 British 

 troops crossed the main channel 

 of the Piave, surprised the Aus- 

 trian garrison on the island, and 

 captured the N. half of it, the S. 

 half being taken two nights after- 

 wards by British and Italian forces. 



Piave. Map ol the battlefield showing the area recovered in the battle oi 

 Oct.-Nov., 1918 



