Giovanni Messe

Giovanni Messe (December 10, 1883 - December 19, 1968) was an Italian soldier, politician and quite possibly the most distinguished Italian Field Marshal. Image File history File linksMetadata Giovanni_Messe. ... December 10 is the 344th day (345th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1883 (MDCCCLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... December 19 is the 353rd day of the year (354th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... Note: This article is about the military usage of the word marshal. For other usages, see the end of this article. ...

Early life and career

Born on December 10, 1883 near the city of Brindisi, Giovanni Messe pursued a military career in 1901. He saw action in the Italian conquest of Libya and in the First World War. Durign this conflict, he gave an important contribution to the creation and training of the "Arditi" (the Courageous), special infantry units. Emerging considerably decorated from these conflicts, he became aide-de-camp to King Victor Emmanuel III, holding this post from 1923 to 1927. From this date until 1935, Messe commanded a unit of Bersaglieri and held the rank of Colonel. December 10 is the 344th day (345th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1883 (MDCCCLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Categories: Italy-related stubs | Towns in Puglia ... 1901 (MCMI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ... Victor Emmanuel III of Italy , Vittorio Emanuele III in Italian (11 November 1869 – 28 December 1947), was King of Italy (29 July 1900 – 9 May 1946), claimed Emperor of Ethiopia (1936 - 1943) and King of Albania (1939 - 1943). ... 1923 (MCMXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1927 (MCMXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Bersaglieri are a corps of the Italian army created by General Alessandro Lamarmora in 1836. ... Colonel (IPA: or ) is a military rank of a commissioned officer, with the corresponding ranks existing in nearly every country in the world. ...

In September 1935, Messe assumed command of a motorised brigade in Verona, with the rank of Brigadier General. Following a successful period of service with this unit in the Second Italo-Abyssinian War, Messe was promoted to rank of Major General and he became commander of an Italian armoured division. 1935 (MCMXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Brigade is a term from military science which refers to military echelon under a division, above a regiment where that exists as such, nowadays often a group of several battalions (typically two to four), and directly attached supporting units (normally including at least an artillery battery and additional logistic support). ... A Brigadier General, or one-star general, is the lowest rank of general officer in the United States and some other countries, ranking just above Colonel and just below Major General. ... Combatants Italy Ethiopia Commanders Strength 800,000 (only ~330,000 mobilized) 100,000 (some ill-equipped) Casualties 15,000 16,000 {{{notes}}} The Second Italo-Abyssinian War, also called the Rape of Ethiopia, lasted seven months in 1935-1936. ... Insignia of a United States Air Force Major General German Generalmajor Insignia Major General is a military rank used in many countries. ...

The Second World War

On April 1939, following the annexation of Albania, he was appointed to serve under Albania's governor, General Ubaldo Soddu. Messe commanded a corps during the Greco-Italian War of 1940-41 and achieved some success against Greek forces commanded by Alexandros Papagos. Before winter had even set in however, the Italian forces were forced onto the defensive, as Greek forces launched a counterattack and moved into parts of Italian controlled Albania. In April 1941, with the help of the German Wehrmacht, the campaign ended in an Axis victory. 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... A corps (a word that immigrated from the French language, pronounced IPA: , but originating in the Latin corpus, corporis meaning body; plural same as singular) is either a large military unit or formation, an administrative grouping of troops within an army with a common function (such as artillery or signals... The Greco-Italian War was a conflict between Italy and Greece from October 28, 1940 to April 6, 1941. ... Alexander Papagos (in Greek:Αλέξανδρος Παπάγος, Alexandros Papagos). ... For the movie, see 1941 (film) 1941 (MCMXLI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1941 calendar). ... German cavalry and motorized units entering Poland from East Prussia during the Polish Campaign of 1939 Wehrmacht (Defence force) was the name of the armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Messe's experience of armoured warfare might, in other circumstances, have seen him commanding Italian forces alongside Rommel in North Africa, but instead he was chosen to be the commander of CSIR, Italian expeditionary force that took part in Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union. At the start of Operation Barbarossa, the number of Italian troops in the Eastern theatre numbered around 60,000, by July 1942 the number had grown to 200,000. Although the troops fought well, after the German defeat at Stalingrad the campaign in Soviet Union turned against the Axis powers. Italian forces had been severely mauled during Operation Uranus (the successful Soviet attempt to encircle the German Sixth Army, entrenched at Stalingrad) while trying hold back the Soviet forces. It has been suggested that Mechanized warfare be merged into this article or section. ...  Northern Africa (UN subregion)  geographic, including above North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent. ... The Italian war in the Soviet Union started on 14 July 1941, when, despite Hitlers lack of enthusiasm, Mussolini joined Operation Barbarossa by ordering the preparation of a military contingent, destined to the Russian front. ... Combatants Axis Powers Soviet Union Commanders Supreme commander: Adolf Hitler Supreme commander: Josef Stalin Strength ~ 3. ... 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1942 calendar). ... Combatants Axis Powers Soviet Union Commanders Friedrich Paulus Erich von Manstein Hermann Hoth Georgy Zhukov Vasily Chuikov Aleksandr Vasilevsky Strength German Sixth Army German Fourth Panzer Army Romanian Third Army Romanian Fourth Army Hungarian Second Army Italian Eighth Army 500,000 Germans Unknown number Reinforcements Unknown number Axis-allies Stalingrad... The eastern front at the time of Operation Uranus. ...

At the end of January 1943, he was appointed as the new commander of Rommel’s Panzer Army Africa, which was now re-named 1st Italo-German Panzer Army (in recognition of the fact that it consisted of one German and three Italian corps). Though Messe was to replace Rommel, he diplomatically deferred to the German, and the two co-existed in what was theoretically the same command until mid-March, when Rommel finally departed Africa for good. Under the supposed command of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, Messe fought a defensive campaign against the advancing American and British forces. Rommel had already left Africa, because of health reasons, but its departure was kept secret for explicit order of Hitler, so that they could maintain the moral of the troops and the respectful fear of the enemies intact. General Messe commanded so the whole Axis forces in Tunisia (1st Italian Army, DAK and 5th German Army). The defensive victory achieved by Messe at Mareth and the continuos tactical delaying of the Allied offensive could not prevent the inevitable defeat of the Axis in North Africa. On May 13, 1943, after the collapse of the 5th. German Army, the fall of Tunis and the surrounding of the 1st Italian Army, still holding the line at Enfidaville, formally surrendered the remnants of Army Group Afrika to the Allies. On May 12th, one day before the surrender, Messe was promoted to the rank of Field Marshal. Erwin Johannes Eugen Rommel ( ) (November 15, 1891 – October 14, 1944) was one of the most distinguished German Field Marshals of World War II and one of the greatest military leaders of all time. ... For other uses, see Africa (disambiguation). ... May 13 is the 133rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (134th in leap years). ... 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1943 calendar). ... When spelt with a capital A, Allies usually denotes the countries supporting the Triple Entente who fought together against the Central Powers in World War I and against the Axis Powers in World War II. For more information, see the related articles: Allies of World War I and Allies of...

As (like many Italian officers) a loyal supporter of the Royalist cause, Messe soon found himself re-employed, when after the Italian capitulation in September 1943, he became Chief of Staff of the Royal Italian Army (those units loyal to King Victor Emmanuel, many of which were reconstituted from Italian POWs and armed by the Allies). He served in this post with distinction until the war's end and then retired from the military in 1945 after 44 years of distinguished service. Geneva Convention definition A prisoner of war (POW) is a soldier, sailor, airman, or marine who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. ...

Life after the army

His later life was not uneventful. Following the conclusion of the war, he wrote a book about of his experiences during his retirement, entitled Come finì la guerra in Africa. La "Prima Armata" italiana in Tunisia. His military popularity remained with him in civilian life and from 1953 to 1955, Messe was a democratically elected representative in the Italian Senate. He was also President of the Italian Veterans Association, a post which he held until his death. 1953 (MCMLIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link is to a full 1953 calendar). ... 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Giovanni Messe died on December 19, 1968, at the age of eighty-five. A competent and humane commander, he was popular with those who served under him and was respected by those who fought against him. December 19 is the 353rd day of the year (354th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ...