The Flash of the Dagger and the Thunder of the Grenade: A Comparative Study of Italian Arditi Units and German Sturmtrupps Formations in World War I

This thesis offers an account of the German Sturmtrupps and the Italian Arditi units of the Great War. The German answer to the issue of attrition encompassed the establishment of a new kind of assault unit, the Sturmtrupps. In turn, this outfit was crucial in the development and implementation of a new offensive doctrine that enabled the German military organization to overcome the impasse of the trenches. Similar units, the Arditi, appeared in the ranks of the Royal Italian Army as the solution to the same problem. Over time the Sturmtrupps received a significant amount of attention by the military historians investigating the doctrinal innovation process carried out by the German military institutions during the First World War. In contrast, very little has been written about the Arditi outside the scope of Italian military literature. This thesis aims at addressing this gap, not by simply providing a detailed account of the Arditi, but rather through a comprehensive comparative analysis of the German and Italian shock troops of World War I. In this way, it is possible to depict the Italian assault formations in the framework of standards already set by their German equivalent in military history.