Hitler's Raid to Save Mussolini by Greg Annussek

Author:Greg Annussek [Annussek, Greg]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Da Capo Press
Published: 2011-01-01T05:00:00+00:00

The following day, Roatta made a report to the king and Badoglio in which he stressed the distrustful atmosphere of the Bologna conference. 41 He was particularly struck by the fact that the Nazis had surrounded Federzoni’s villa with soldiers of the SS.42 Badoglio cautioned everyone present that it was crucial to handle their allies with kid gloves for the time being.43 Provocations on their part, he said, might cause the Germans to descend on Rome and arrest them all.44

The Nazis were no happier. Jodl had captured the mood in a short message he cabled to Germany in the early afternoon of August15.45 “Italian intentions are no clearer than before,” he reported, and added, “[O]ur reasons for suspicion are still as valid as ever.”46

A few days later, on August 19, Admiral Doenitz summarized Hitler’s view: “Situation Italy: The Fuehrer’s attitude remains generally unchanged. The conference of Rommel and Jodl with Roatta . . . took place in an atmosphere completely void of cordiality. There is still no evidence of Italian treason, only certain indications lend themselves to such an interpretation. Therefore we are carrying on as before and pouring Rommel’s Army Group into Italy according to plan and without Italian interference. The safety of our forces and our supply lines is ruthlessly assured but without giving the Italians an excuse for an open break.”*47

The bickering at Bologna merely reinforced Hitler’s belief that Badoglio was dead set on betrayal. And it was this conviction, in turn, that helped to shape his strategy for defending Italy in case of an Allied invasion. This strategy was based on the notion that he could not hold on to all of Italy without the active support of the Italian military, which he now expected to join the enemy camp.48

“Without the Italian Army we cannot defend the entire peninsula,” Hitler had said during a military conference back on July 17. “In that case we would have to withdraw to a relatively short line.”49 Under the circumstances, his primary goal was to defend the northern enclave, where much of Italy’s agriculture and 80 percent of its industry were located.50 If necessary, Hitler was prepared to retreat all the way back to the area around Florence, well over a hundred miles north of Rome.

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