Italian prisoners of war in World War I

Italian prisoners after the Battle of Caporetto

Around 600,000 Italian soldiers were taken prisoner during the First World War, about half in the aftermath of Caporetto. Roughly one Italian soldier in seven was captured, a significantly higher number than in other armies on the Western Front.[1][2] About 100,000 Italian prisoners of war never returned home, having succumbed to hardship, hunger, cold and disease (mainly tuberculosis).[3][4]: 126  Uniquely among the Allied powers, Italy refused to assist its prisoners, and even hindered efforts by soldiers’ families to send them food.[4]: 130–31  As a result, the death rate for Italian prisoners was nine times worse than that of Austro-Hungarian prisoners in Italy.[5]: 6 

  1. ^ Gorgolini, Luca. "Prisoners of War (Italy)". International Encyclopedia of the First World War. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
  2. ^ Caredda, Giorgio (1994). "Soldati e prigionieri italiani nella prima guerra mondiale". Studi Storici. 35 (1): 251–254. JSTOR 20565610. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  3. ^ "Il trattamento dei prigionieri di guerra". itinerariagrandeguerra.it. Itinerari Della Grande Guerra. Retrieved 8 October 2020.
  4. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Gib was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference WW was invoked but never defined (see the help page).