The War Office, the Army Authorities in Italy and Morale
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C:\Documents and Settings\lprodor\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\OLK8\Copyright - thesis (2).doc 020 8992 www.blisset Christine Ann Bielecki British Infantry Morale during the Italian Campaign, 1943-1945 University College London Ph.D. History 2006 UMI Number: U591850 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Dissertation Publishing UMI U591850 Published by ProQuest LLC 2013. Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 2 ABSTRACT The Second World War Italian campaign has long been overshadowed by the Normandy landings. Yet it was the longest campaign in Europe in which British forces were involved, and the first to be crowned with success. Much has been written about the strategic and tactical aspects of the Allies’ Mediterranean policy, and the Italian campaign within that context, but little attention has been paid to the soldiers who executed that policy. It was principally an infantry and artillery war: the topography of Italy mitigated against any larger-scale use of armour. This thesis examines the morale, the willingness to fight, of the British front-line soldier, the infantryman, and the factors which influenced his morale during the 22 months of the campaign, and it looks at the army’s response to fluctuations in morale, both at institutional and battalion levels. Morale is never constant; it varies across time, across units and the individuals who make up the units, and there is ample evidence to suggest that morale in Italy, in the winter of 1944-1945, was seriously degraded. But the evidence also indicates that as high as the desertion figures were, absenteeism was not in the main the result of men’s unwillingness to fight, a symptom of cowardice and self-interest. On the contrary, many deserters were men who had fought too hard, for too long, as the result of a series of political and military decisions over which they had no control, but whose morale was robust enough, in the end, to accomplished their goal. ***** 3 CONTENTS Maps/Illustrations .................................................................................. 4 Abbreviations ......................................................................................... 5 Glossary of Operational Code Names ................................................... 9 Introduction ............................................................................................ 11 Chapter I - Sickness................................................................................ 50 Chapter II - Casualties............................................................................ 99 Chapter III - The Manpower Crisis....................................................... 134 Chapter IV - Deserters and Absentees ................................................... 174 Chapter V - Formal Discipline................................................................ 219 Chapter VI - Informal Discipline: Officers, Other Ranks, Self-Help And Morale ................................................................................. 246 Chapter VII - The War Office, the Army Authorities in Italy and Morale ................................................................................. 292 Conclusion ............................................................................................. 339 Appendix I - Description of a Prophylactic Ablution Centre ............. 358 Appendix II - Comparison of Absentees: Infantry and Total British Army, July 1943-May 1945 ................................. 362 Appendix III - Comparison of Deserters: Infantry and Total British Army, July 1943-May 1945 ................................ 367 Appendix IV - Chart of Infantry Desertion: July 1943-May 1945 ..... 372 Bibliography ......................................................................................... 374 MAPS/ILLUSTRATIONS/POEMS Map of Italy with German Lines of Defence .............................................. 10 Cartoon - What Will Your Wife Say? ....................................................... 62 Poster - Claptrap.......................................................................................... 69 Cartoon - Jaundice ...................................................................................... 76 Competition - White Horse Building Society .......................................... 117 Cartoon - What, Go Home on Leave in an English Winter? ................... 169 Poem - Sunny Italy ..................................................................................... 183 P o em -If!! .................................................................................................. 205 Cartoon - Pain In Your Abdomen Be Blowed .......................................... 287 Quiz: Hullo Joe, wa’d ‘ya know? .............................................................. 288 Standard Text Telegrams ........................................................................... 302 Cartoon - Which D-Day Do They Mean? ............................................... 310 Song Lyrics - The D-Day Dodgers ........................................................... 311 Cartoon - Duffle C oat ................................................................................ 327 Cartoon - Don’t think we’ll have much of a leave here ............................ 332 ABBREVIATIONS AAI Allied Armies in Italy A/Adjt Assistant Adjutant ADAG (P) Assistant Deputy Adjutant General (Personnel) ADMS Assistant Director of Medical Services ADS Advance Dressing Station AFHQ Allied Forces Headquarters AKS Army Kinema Corps BAN British Army Newspaper Unit Bde Brigade BEF British Expeditionary Force Bn Battalion BNAF British North African Force CAB* Cabinet Papers CAO Chief Administrative Officer CCS Casualty Clearing Station CGS Chief of the General Staff C-in-C Commander in Chief CIGS Chief of the Imperial General Staff CMAC** Contemporary Medical Archives Collection CMF Central Mediterranean Force CO Commanding Officer CMP Corps of Military Police Coy Company CPA Central Pool of Artistes CRU Corps Reinforcement Unit CSM Company Sergeant Major CVWW Council of Voluntary War Work DAG Deputy Adjutant General DCM Distinguished Conduct Medal DDMS Deputy Director of Medical Services Det Detachment DF Defensive Fire DMT Director of Military Training Div Division EFI Expeditionary Forces Institute ENSA Entertainments National Service Association E.T. Packs Early Treatment Packs FDS Field Dressing Station Fd. Amb Reid Ambulance FGCM Reid General Court Martial GHQ General Headquarters GOC General Officer Commanding GRO General Routine Order IRTD Infantry Replacement Training Depot IWM Imperial War Museum JAG Judge Advocate General LIAP Leave in Addition to Python L ofC Lines of Communication LSI Landing Ship Infantry MC Military Cross MEF Middle East Force MM Military Medal NA National Archives NCO Non-Commissioned Officer LHCMA Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives MBU Mobile Bath Unit MI Room Medical Inspection Room MO/RMO Medical Officer/Regimental Medical Officer NAAFI Navy, Army & Air Force Institutes NYD Not Yet Diagnosed Offr Officer OR Other Rank ORQM Orderly Room Quartermaster PA Centre Prophylactic Ablution Centre PS/p.s. Penal Servitude RA Royal Artillery RAMC Royal Army Medical Corps RAOC Royal Army Ordnance