Italy

The Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 “Sparviero” (Sparrowhawk) was an Italian medium-bomber with three engines, developed in 1934 and employed in service of the Regia Aeronautica during the entire duration of World War II. The “Sparviero” had various uses, being employed as a transport aircraft, a medium bomber and a torpedo bomber. There …

Italian troops pictured in Addis Ababa during the Second Italo-Ethiopian War, image taken in May 1936. The Second Italo-Ethiopian war was a conflict predating World War II, lasting from October 1935 until February 1937. The war started on the 3rd of October 1935, when Italian troops attacked Ethiopia from Eritrea …

Throughout the night of August 15th 1943, the Church of Santa Maria Delle Grazie in Milan, home of Leonardo Da Vinci’s famous “Last Supper” mural painting, was struck by British bombings. The painting was located in the Repository, which suffered the most damage and was left with only a few …

Ponte Santa Trinita, located downstream of Ponte Vecchio in Firenze, Italy, was built between 1567 to 1569 by Florentine architect Bartolomeo Ammannati. The bridge was destroyed by retreating Wehrmacht forces on the night of August 3rd 1944, as the advancing British 8th Army pressured the Germans to leave the city …

Panzer IV Ausf. H tank of the 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler pictured with the Milan Dome in the background during September 1943. German tanks occupied the city of Milan on September 8th, after the Armistice of Cassibile between Italy’s new leadership and the Western Allies became public. …

Italian submarine Cobalto before sinking, showing massive gun-fire damage to its conning tower inflicted by the British destroyer HMS Ithuriel. August 12th, 1942. Operation Pedestal was an attempt by the British Royal Navy to carry supplies, particularly fuel, to Malta. It took place between 3-15 August 1942. The convoys were …

Italian battleships Vittorio Veneto (left, foreground) and Littorio (right, background) firing their main batteries in the Mediterranean during World War Two, sometime between 1940 and 1943. Vittorio Venetto and Littorio were sister battleships, and both saw extensive service during the war – particularly Vittorio Venetto. Both ships were surrendered to …

Brazilian soldiers are greeted by Italian civilians as they arrive in the city of Massarosa, September 1944. Brazil was the only South American country to send troops abroad in World War II. The Brazilian Expeditionary Force consisted of 25.900 men who fought for the Allied Cause in the Mediterranean Theatre. …

Abbey of Monte Cassino, Italy, in ruins after Allied bombings in February 1944, vs 2007. Allied forces wiped the monastery from the face of the Earth believing it was a vantage point for German forces. They were not sure it was, but decided to bomb it anyway in case the …

Benito Mussolini meets Adolf Hitler in Munich, with the Italian leader having traveled to discuss the French armistice request on June 18th, 1940. Although Mussolini intended to gain a hefty share of spoils from the French, Hitler did not want to discuss it. What’s more, the Fuhrer declared that he …