Italian Armoured & Reconnaissance Cars 1911–45
With few tanks being developed, the Italians relied on the development of more mobile armoured cars like the Ansaldo Lancia 1 Z during World War I.
But post-war, the army did not consider armoured cars suitable for reconnaissance duties in Alpine battlegrounds. The experience of the Spanish Civil War would provide the much needed last push for the Italians to develop modern armoured cars. The result were the famous AB 41-43 models, which fought against the British in North Africa and Marshall Tito’s forces in Yugoslavia, along with other vehicles such as the AS 36 light armoured car.
Featuring detailed colour plates and contemporary photographs, this book examines the development of the Italian armoured car in the two world wars and the inter-war years, from the deserts of North Africa to the slopes of the Alps.
Colonel Dr Filippo Cappellano is the chief of the Italian Army Historical Branch (Ufficio Storico SME). A renowned military historian, he is the author of several books, essays and articles on the history of the Italian Army and particularly in the field of 20th century weapons, organization and tactics. He has collaborated with the leading Italian defence industries and universities, and for Osprey he has written Italian Light Tanks 1919–45 and Italian Medium Tanks 1939–45.
Pier Paolo Battistelli earned his PhD in Military History at the University of Padua. A scholar of German and Italian politics and strategy throughout World War II, he is active in Italy and abroad writing titles and essays on military history subjects. A contributor to the Italian Army Historical Office, he is currently revising his PhD thesis for publication: The War of the Axis: German and Italian Military Partnership in World War Two, 1939-1943. He lives in Foligno, Italy.