Europe 2007 Part 52 Kobarid - Caporetto - Karfreit

http://www.ceepackaging.com
http://www.pbn.com.pl
http://www.youtube.com/alanheath

Life seems to be very slow and easy in Kobarid. There is a wonderful, lazy feel about this mountain village on a Friday Spring morning.
However Kobarid is Caporetto in Italian, the largest mountain battle ever. Unfortunately I did not visit the museum which I now regret but I am sure I will be back before long to see it. I know that are some military buffs who come to my site to see what battlefields look like. Here you can see what this battlefield looked like but you are going to be disappointed with the explanation and I apologise. But you will not be disappointed by the wonderful views and will be in awe at the achievements of the Italian and Austrian soldiers who fought along this river from 1915 - 1918.

The Battle of Caporetto (also known as the Twelfth Battle of the Isonzo or the Battle of Karfreit as it was known by the Central Powers; Slovene: Bitka pri Kobaridu), took place from 24 October to 19 November 1917, near the town of Kobarid. The battle was named after the Italian name of the town of Kobarid (known as Karfreit in German).

Austro-Hungarian forces, reinforced by German units, were able to break into the Italian front line and rout the Italian army, which had practically no mobile reserves. The battle was a demonstration of the effectiveness of the use of stormtroopers and the infiltration tactics developed in part by Oskar von Hutier. The use of poison gas by the Germans played a key role in the collapse of the Italian Second Army.

The German offensive began at approximately 02:00 on 24 October 1917. Due to the inclement weather that morning, particularly the mist, the Italians were caught by complete surprise. The battle opened with a German artillery barrage, poison gas, and smoke, and was followed by an all-out assault against the Italian lines. The defensive line of the Italian Second Army was breached almost immediately. The German forces made extensive use of flamethrowers and hand grenades as a part of their infiltration tactics, and were able to tear gaping holes in the Italian line. By the end of the first night, von Below's men had advanced a remarkable 25 km.. German and Austro-Hungarian attacks from either side of von Below's central column were less effective, however. The Italian Army had been able to repel the majority of these attacks, but the success of von Below's central thrust threw the entire Italian Army into disarray. Forces had to be moved along the Italian front in an attempt to stem von Below's breakout, but this only weakened other points along the line and invited further attacks. The entire Italian position on the Tagliamento River was now under threat.

Realizing his forces were ill-prepared for this attack and were being routed, Capello requested permission to withdraw back to the Tagliamento. He was overruled by Cadorna, however, who believed that the Italian force could regroup and hold out against the attackers. Finally, on 30 October, Cadorna ordered the majority of the Italian force to retreat to the other side of the river. It took the Italians four full days to cross the river, and by this time the German and Austro-Hungarian armies were on their heels. By 2 November, a German division had established a bridgehead on the Tagliamento. About this time, however, the rapid success of the attack caught up with them. The German and Austro-Hungarian supply lines were stretched to breaking point, and as a result, they were not able to launch another concerted attack. Cadorna took advantage of this to retreat further, and by 10 November had established a position on the Piave River.

My channel on you tube : http://www.youtube.com/alanheath is one of the most prolific from Poland, although unfortunately not the most visited. I have produced a number of films, most in English but also in Polish, French, Italian and Spanish. My big interest in life is travel and history but I have also placed films on other subjects

There are a number of films here on the packaging industry. This is because I am the publisher of Central and Eastern European Packaging -- http://www.ceepackaging.com - the international platform for the packaging industry in this region.

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• Slovenia
• Slovenija
• Kobarid
• Caporetto
• Koveć
• Kovec
• mountain
• battle
• 1917
• WW1
• world
• war
• Austria
• Italy
• Isonzo
• Soca
• rafting

[TheEurozhongguo]

Thanks for your replies. Your videos are always very interesting. Are you still in Warsaw? I might possibly be passing by Warsaw in late May or June. I might be able to call by for a chat, if you are there, or are elsewhere in Poland.

[alanheath]

@TheEurozhongguo I am in London now but I will be in Warsaw after 20 May 2010 and for part of June as well!

[TheEurozhongguo]

I was in Slovenia in 1990 when it was still part of Yugoslavia when you couldn't easily tell what Yusgoslave Republic you were in. However, I do remember that Slovenes and Croatians could often speak excellent Italian and passable German and little or no English in those days. However, when I visited Belgrade, they chose to speak to me in French. When the rest of Europe is taking down borders, the Balkans seem to be erecting them.

[alanheath]

@TheEurozhongguo I remember being in a restaurant in Belgrade in 1986 and the only language we could make ourselves understood in was French! Great times with the Inter rail ticket!

[Packard3spdOD]

The visit to the museum was prompted by the sobering realization that the Soca River that I had gone kayaking on was one of the fronts in WWI, evidence of which is readily seen in the escarpments above the river while kayaking, and that conservative estimates are that three hundred thousand people died on that ~100mi long front.

[alanheath]

I have been to quite a few battlefields (as you can see on this channel) but none are as spectacular as the Isonzo front! Wonderful scenery!

[tinoino]

conosco queste zone.. ;o) !!

[JJogurt]

Austro-Hugarians won most of the battles on soška fronta.But it didn't help them much becuase they lost the war anyway.

[Packard3spdOD]

Thanks for posting these cool videos of a countryside that I greatly enjoyed a couple yrs ago! The military museum at Kobarid is highly recommended; give yourself two hrs minimum for that. I only got one due to tight schedules of people I was with.

[alanheath]

Anche io. Ma vorrei la conoscere megliore!!

[urssulas]

i was extragerating but its true that on family of 4 people there is mostly 2 to 4 cars