Battle of Caporetto Chaotic and Scarred Town

When Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary on 23 May 1915, it did so fuelled by optimistic visions of territorial conquest. It hoped to seize the largely Italian-speaking regions around Trento and Trieste at the country's north-east border. Nationalist rhetoric held that acquisition of these areas – along with parts of Dalmatia ­­– would complete the process of unification which had taken place in the second half of the 19th century. ‘Italians want a greater Italy, by conquest not by purchase, not shamefully but through blood and glory', proclaimed the firebrand poet Gabriele D'Annunzio.