en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cedric_Howell
1 correction found
German and Austrian forces initiated the Battle of the Piave River
The June 1918 Battle of the Piave was launched by Austro-Hungarian forces, not by a combined German-Austrian attack.
Full reasoning
This sentence is describing the Second Battle of the Piave River, which began on 15 June 1918. Authoritative histories of that battle identify it as an Austro-Hungarian offensive.
The International Encyclopedia of the First World War explains that, for the second battle, Vienna concentrated its reserves in Italy and that the attack plan dispersed Austro-Hungarian forces. It specifically describes the main offensive on 15 June 1918 as being opened by the Austrians and then details the fighting in terms of Austrian forces crossing the river and retreating afterward.
A second history of the battle likewise states that it was the last Austrian offensive on the Italian front and notes that German troops had been withdrawn to the Western Front before the battle. So while German troops had supported earlier fighting on the Italian front in late 1917, the June 1918 Piave offensive being discussed here was not initiated by "German and Austrian forces" together.
So the article appears to conflate the earlier 1917 Piave/Caporetto fighting, where German support was present, with the distinct June 1918 Piave battle that Howell witnessed.
2 sources
- Piave, Battles of
For the Second Battle, 'Vienna concentrated all of its reserves in Italy' and 'the final plan resulted in a two-pronged attack which dispersed the Austro-Hungarian forces.' It adds that 'the main offensive began two days later' and that 'the Austrians' launched the attack on 15 June 1918.
- Battle of the Piave, 15-23 June 1918
This page describes the battle as the 'Last Austrian offensive on the Italian front' and says 'German troops had been withdrawn to the Western Front' before the attacks launched on 15 June 1918.