Page 98 - The Secret War in the Italian front in WWI (1915-1918)

THE SECRET WAR ON THE ITALIAN FRONT IN WWI (1915 – 1918)

On the other hand, the Intelligence Service tasks were broadened, including some new objectives
such as: “to foster the patriotic and martial spirit of the civilian populations” and “to protect the
morale of the troops and of the inhabitants around operations” .
42
The responsibilities of the Intelligence Service also concerned: the collection of militaries, economic
and political news from foreign countries; military police and the spirit of troops; censorship
on correspondence; counterpropaganda and support to propaganda; counterintelligence; border
surveillance; relationships with the intelligence services of allied armies; management of the
Opera Mutilati di Guerra (Foundation assisting personnel wounded during the war).
In February 1918, the Intelligence Service management moved to the Supreme Command premises
in Abano, leaving in Rome the territorial Headquarters of the Staff Corps which interacted with
the military attachés and the military missions abroad and maintained various offices including
Section R .
43
In the course of 1918, two new auxiliary divisions of the Service were created, i.e., T (Turin) and
G (Genoa), following the extension of the war zone to include some Piedmont and Lombardy
provinces, for reasons of public order. Section M expanded its functions including an informer
and saboteur school, a correspondence centre for Italian prisoners of war, and a surveillance body
for the northern frontier.

5.5 PROPAGANDA ON BOTH SIDES

ausTrIan aTTeMPTs To creaTe a second russIa In ITaly

Starting from 1916, the Austrian-Hungarian Intelligence Service used Italian prisoners of war and
deserters sent back to Italy with the mission of persuading former brothers in arms to desert. For
instance, in 3 Army trenches: “Italian deserters came again near our forward lines to convince
rd
others to desert. This, of course, could only happen with our enemy’s support and advice. […]
We believe that an organized system uses deserters and prisoners also to collect military data” .
44
The questioning of two Yugoslav deserting officers previously involved in the enemy intelligence
service provided information regarding the secret preparations carried out in Austria and Germany
to release in Russia and Italy prisoners of war indoctrinated with socialist and anarchist ideas, for
inciting revolutions in their countries of origin. Their witness reads:

Seeing that it could not win the war with weapons, Austria considered it appropriate to exploit
the revolutionary spirit of the Russian and later Italian states. The first step was taken in early
1916 by detaining all prisoners with socialist and anarchist ideas in the same place. […]
There are two defeatism schools, one in Vienna and the other in Budapest. After attending the
school, some of these individuals, depending on their ability, came to the Isonzo front and in
Tyrol on the Austrian lines, approaching the Italian outposts at night with Austrian patrols.
They would start talking with their compatriots, which often led to desertion among the Italian

42 Supreme Headquarters, Circular letter no.11797, 30 June 1918, Norme generali per il Servizio Informazioni sul nemico
presso le truppe operanti (General Regulations for the Enemy-oriented Intelligence Service within I.T.O.) - AUSSME, Series
F-1, env.296.
43 Alessandro Gionfrida, L’ordinamento del Comando Supremo del Regio Esercito nella Prima guerra mondiale, Bollettino
dell’archivio dell’Ufficio Storico, no. 25-26, gennaio - dicembre 2013.
44 3 Army Headquarters - Second Intelligence Section, Circular letter no. 2357-RI of 19 March 1916, Disertori italiani che
rd
rientrano (Italian Deserters Returning to their Country of Origin), AUSSME, Series M-7.

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