Word: aduwa
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Dates: during 1940-1949
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Forces. Although it is fashionable to belittle Italian soldiering (Aduwa, Caporetto, Guadalajara), Italy has many troops whose valor and ability should not be underrated. As a result of the Spanish War she has thousands of seasoned officers and men. Besides the Piedmontese and Sardinians, her 50,000 Alpini are first-class, easily on a par with their cousins among the French and Bavarian crags. More spotty are the Arditi divisions, supposed to be shock troops picked for bravery from the general run of infantry. Of 1,500,000 soldiers Italy had under arms last week, about 700,000 were believed...
Italy was in. Those emotional little men, those lovers of laughter but not of war-whose forefathers were licked by Louis XII's generals in three weeks, were a mere side dish to Napoleon I, were even overwhelmed by the ignorant Ethiopians at Aduwa in 1896, were the shame of their Allies at Caporetto-shouldered their arms and reluctantly left their dark-haired weeping women...