Italian Army 1940–45 (1)
At its peak the Italian Army contributed 2.5 million troops to the Axis war effort.
English-speaking readers tend to think of this army in terms of the North African campaign; but far more Italian troops served in other theatres. They invaded, and later bore the major burden of occupying, the Balkan countries; and Italy sent 250,000 troops to fight on the Russian Front. In this, the first of a three-part study, Philip Jowett covers the European theatre including Russia from 1940 to Italy's armistice with the Allies in 1943.
Many interesting uniforms, a number of them less often found in print, are meticulously illustrated by Stephen Andrew.
Philip Jowett was born in Leeds in 1961 and has been interested in military history for as long as he can remember. His first Osprey book was the ground-breaking Men-at-Arms 306, Chinese Civil War Armies 1911–49, and since then he has published numerous other titles for Osprey including MAA 414, The Russo-Japanese War. He lives in North Lincolnshire, UK.
Stephen Andrew worked as a junior in advertising and design agencies before becoming a self-taught freelance illustrator in 1993. Military history is his passion, and since 1997 he has illustrated Osprey titles including MAA 306 Chinese Civil War Armies 1911-49, and a five-part sequence on the World War II German Army. He lives and works in Glasgow.