The Great Italian Breakout
The Most Audacious Escapes of the Second World War
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Icon Books
Published:21st May '26
Should be back in stock very soon
In 1943, there were more than 60 prisoner of war camps throughout Mussolini's Italy. Behind barbed wire and under the guards' dark gaze were captive Allied soldiers. After the Italian Armistice thousands escaped as guards deserted their posts, but when German forces swept down the peninsula to regain control they were left stranded in enemy territory.
The Great Italian Breakout tells the remarkable stories of those men scattered across the Italian countryside, whose experiences have been all but forgotten. The luckiest made it to the safety of the Swiss frontier, the Vatican or the Allied Lines, some had a more arduous journey to France or Yugoslavia, and a handful escaped to Spain by boat. The unfortunate died in their quest for freedom, and many chose to stay and join the partisans, fighting a dangerous guerilla war against the German occupiers.
Rome was finally liberated by the Allies on 4 June 1944. Two days later, D-Day unfolded. This extraordinary period in the Second World War faded from memory and these remarkable tales of Allied soldiers' survival against all odds in an unfamiliar, hostile landscape remain largely unknown. Using original archival research and interviews with the families of those involved, this book reveals the compelling stories of those on the run and celebrates men who, during the Second World War, took a road less travelled.
Farrington shines a light on an aspect of the Second World War that has undeservedly been left to gather dust. The end result is as fascinating as it is engaging and highly recommended. * Jonathan Trigg, author of D-Day Through German Eyes *
A fine narrative presenting vivid personal stories against the backdrop of a fractured Italy. We experience a wide range of characters - from a conscientious objector who had served with the SAS to the gay novelist son of a Hull tram driver - as they encounter the compassionate and the wicked. They are helped and hindered, nurtured and executed, as their lives are opened up and closed down. This is an exciting book, set in a time of extremes, showcasing the best and worst that humanity has to offer. * Joshua Levine, bestselling author of Dunkirk *
Karen Farrington tells some extraordinary stories of adventure and heroism as tens of thousands of Allied PoWs left their prison camps after the Italian surrender. Some of them escaped out of Italy. Many of them survived living amongst the local population. A few were recaptured. Equally heroic and not forgotten in Farrington's account is the incredible courage of hundreds of Italian families who harboured, fed and supported the escapees despite risk of terrible punishments by the German occupiers. Gripping and well written. * Taylor Downing, Historian and Broadcaster *
A gripping, deeply humane account of courage, endurance and the quiet heroism that flickered across Italy in its darkest hours. * Iain MacGregor, author of The Hiroshima Men *
After the Italian armistice, prisoners of war escaped their camps and set off across the occupied countryside with no maps and barely a word of Italian. Karen Farrington brings this remarkable chapter of the Second World War vividly to life, with an eye for detail that makes these escape stories impossible to forget. * Dr David Tuch, author of The Wireless Operator *
ISBN: 9781837733736
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: unknown
288 pages