ITALY DURING THE FIRST WORLD WAR The Home Front

Alone among European powers, Italy declared its neutrality and waited nearly a year before taking the field. The country entered the war torn by profound social and political rivalries, against the wishes of most of the population and the parliamentary majority. In the Italian case, war was largely expected in May 1915, but there was no trace of a “union sacrée.” The mobilization of Italian society, industry, and culture for total war, in the face of widespread indifference to the country’s war aims, was an enormous challenge for the liberal state. The war shaped Italian society in a very profound way: the Great War was the first great collective experience for the Italians. The repression of dissent took precedence over consensus-building initiatives. Food shortages and economic restrictions led to a significant worsening of the living conditions of the most disadvantaged social classes. The army extended the police control over an important portion of the national territory; parliame...