The Savage Storm
The Battle for Italy 1943
James Holland
Atlantic Monthly Press, New York, 2023, 624 pages
Book Review published on: June 21, 2024
Historian James Holland follows up his book on the Sicilian campaign with a history concentrating on the opening months of the Italian campaign. In The Savage Storm: The Battle for Italy 1943, Holland argues that the war in Italy began with high hopes and promises of success but quickly deteriorated into a protracted drain on resources and a war of attrition. Holland believes that only by studying and understanding the opening months of the campaign can anyone understand why this occurred and subsequently why the Allies continued to fight in Italy for the rest of the war. In this regard, The Savage Storm achieves Holland’s goal.
When the Allies invaded Italy in September 1943, Holland argues they did so for many good strategic reasons. Envisioned “as a short, limited campaign for some quick but rich rewards,” it “turned into exactly the long-drawn-out and bloody brutal battle that” senior leaders “had feared but had none the less sanctioned” (474–475). The invasion of Europe was months away and the Allies had a conundrum. They saw in Italy a campaign where they could employ the large number of troops currently sitting idle, they could knock Italy out of the war, siphon off some German forces, and capture airfields to assist with the strategic bombing campaign. However, the enemy, terrain, weather and most importantly resources prevented the Allies from quickly attaining their goals and soon they found themselves outnumbered against a determined enemy. The campaign devolved into a war of attrition where, to the detriment of the Italian civilians, artillery fire was increasingly used to overcome the infantry shortage. Through extensive use of first-person accounts, Holland chronicles the decline in enthusiasm and optimism present at the start of the campaign and the sobering realization that the goals and promises would not be met, yet the fighting continued.
Holland writes in a way that connects the reader to the events. He seamlessly intertwines first-person accounts of the land, sea and air battles from the German, Italian, American, and British perspective. He uses these first-person accounts to illustrate the tactical and strategic events unfolding in the campaign. This is the strength of the book as his approach introduces us to characters like Wing Commander Hugh Dundas who had been fighting since 1939 and the age of twenty-three was now a wing commander and exhausted in his fourth year of battle. Characters such as Dundas provide the reader a rich perspective as the book describes what is occurring in the campaign. Holland does not shy away from providing a critical analysis of the facts; for example, while discussing the Italian leadership prior to Italy’s surrender, he states, “They were morally bankrupt and simply incapable of offering the resolute and determined leadership that was needed” (107). Holland also writes that contrary to popular opinion, the senior Allied commanders, Harold Alexander, Bernard Montgomery, and Mark Clark did remarkably well and in fact he argues the blame lays higher with hastily conceived plans and lack of full commitment.
By the end of 1943 the Allies realized that as the preparation for the Normandy campaign drained their resources, they were left with the reality of attacking a superior German army defending in terrain that favored the defense and although they adjusted their goals, they continued to attack with leaders believing it was better to take more casualties now to suffer fewer casualties later.
The Savage Storm is extensively researched and will be a welcome addition to anyone interested in World War II. I highly recommend it to those readers interested in World War II; the experience of combat and leadership for its many lessons applicable to today.
Book Review written by: Robert J. Rielly, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas