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(More customer reviews)The naval war in the Mediterranean is often overshadowed by the land war waged by the Italo-German forces in North Africa, and Hitler's relentless effort to conquer Russia. As a result, little attention has been given to exploring the dynamics which determined the dismal outcome for Italian naval forces in the Middle Sea and that of the Axis powers on the whole. In his book "The Italian Navy in World War II," James Sadkovich attempts to transform the negative perception attached to the performance of the Italian Navy by revealing the difficulties under which that service operated.
The "Italian Navy in World War II" represents a technical approach to understanding the RMI's inherent limitations in WW II. Sadkovich details the material and technological disadvantages faced by the Italian Navy; as well as Hitler's failure to see the RMI's surface fleet as nothing more than escort vessels for supply ships bound to North Africa. Well researched, and supported by myriad tables and statistics, his argument follows the chronology of naval battles in the Mediterranean and offers a provocative rendition.
Sadkovich explores Mussolini's lack of vision, Italy's weak industrial capabilities, the effect of losing the "battle for radar" and the devastating result of German neglect that manifested chiefly in the RMI's perpetual lack of fuel. Due attention is also given to the exceptional performance of the officers and crew of the RMI, as well as the success of Italy's smaller "insidious" craft.
Revisionist histories often suffer from a lack of substance and they frequently represent an opinion rather than an approach. Sadkovich's technical method, however, lends immense credibility to his thesis and thus constitutes a palatable revisionist history.
An excellent companion to Sadkovich's work can be found in that of Italian torpedo boat commander Marc Antonio Bragadin. Less conditional than Sadkovich's work, Bragadin's text is a primary source which offers personal ! insight and places a large share of the RMI's failure within the Italian armed forces itself.
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This revisionist history convincingly argues that the Regia Marina Italiana (the Royal Italian Navy) has been neglected and maligned in assessments of its contributions to the Axis effort in World War II. After all, Italy was the major Axis player in the Mediterranean, and it was the Italian navy and air force, with only sporadic help from their German ally, that stymied the British navy and air force for most of the thirty-nine months that Italy was a belligerent. It was the Royal Italian Navy that provided the many convoys that kept the Axis war effort in Africa alive by repeatedly braving attack by aircraft, submarine, and surface vessels. If doomed by its own technical weaknesses and Ultra (the top-secret British decoding device), the Italian navy still fought a tenacious and gallant war; and if it did not win that war, it avoided defeat for thirty-nine, long, frustrating months.
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