Battle of Mount Ortigara

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Part of the Italian Front
(First World War)

Date	June 10 – June 25, 1917
Location	Southern Trentino, present-day Italy
Result	Austro-Hungarian victory

Combatants

Italy

Austria-Hungary

Commanders

Luigi Cadorna

Arz von Straussenberg

Strength

300,000
1,600 guns

100,000
500 guns

Casualties

23,000 dead or wounded

9,000 dead or wounded

Italian Front
1st Isonzo – 2nd Isonzo – 3rd Isonzo – 4th Isonzo – 5th Isonzo – Asiago – 6th Isonzo – 7th Isonzo – 8th Isonzo – 9th Isonzo – 10th Isonzo – Ortigara – 11th Isonzo – Caporetto – Piave River – Vittorio Veneto

The Battle of Mount Ortigara was fought from June 10 to June 25, 1917 between the Italian and Austro-Hungarian armies for possession of Mount Ortigara, in the Asiago Plateau.

The Italians decided to launch an offensive because the Strafexpedition of the previous year had improved the Austrian defensive positions, whence the Italian armies of Cadore, Carnia and the Isonzo could be threatened.

The battle was prepared with considerable means (300,000 men with 1,600 artillery guns) concentrated on a short segment of the front just a few kilometers long. However, although the Italians enjoyed a 3-to-1 numeric superiority in both men and guns, as they faced 100,000 Austro-Hungarians with 500 guns, the attack still presented several problems:

The Austrian positions were very strong.
The arc formed by the opposing lines was such as to favor the Austrian artillery.
The Italian lines were overcrowded, which made it difficult to maneuver.
The Austrians expected the offensive, so there was no surprise.

The attack began on June 10, and after fierce and bloody fightings the Italian 52nd Alpine Division managed to capture the top of Mount Ortigara.

The Austro-Hungarian command promptly sent many and trained reinforcements. On June 25, the 11 Italian battalions guarding the summit were attacked by Austrian shock troops which retook it, the strenuous Italian resistance notwithstanding.

The 52nd Division alone suffered about half the Italian casualties. General Ettore Mambretti, commander of the Sixth Army, was considered responsible for the costly failure and removed from command.