The Italian Spring Offensive in Greece (Operazione Primavera), March 9, 1941

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The Italian Spring Offensive, also known as Operazione Primavera (Operation Spring), was an offensive operation during the Greco-Italian War, which lasted from March 9 to March 16, 1941. It was the final Italian attempt to defeat the Greek forces, which had already advanced deep into Italian-controlled Albania. The attack was personally overseen by Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, but the operation ended in complete failure within a week.

On October 28, 1940, Fascist Italy declared war on Greece. The Italian 9th and 11th Armies invaded northwestern Greece from Albania but were soon repelled, prompting a Greek counteroffensive deep into Albanian territory. By February 1941, intense preparations began to reinforce the Italian front line. By the end of the month, the 15 Italian divisions fighting in Albania had been reinforced with an additional ten divisions. To boost morale, Mussolini ordered that the units be accompanied by the most aggressive Fascist officials, as well as ministers and high-ranking government officials.

The operation was to be personally directed and observed by Mussolini, who arrived in Tirana on March 2, 1941. The Italian radio station announced that Mussolini himself would lead the attack. The offensive began on March 9 under the command of General Carlo Geloso, starting with an intense bombardment of Greek positions by Italian artillery and aircraft.

Eleven Italian divisions, supported by the 131st Armored Division Centauro, launched the attack. In the main sector, defended by the Greek 1st Division, over 100,000 artillery shells were fired along a 6-kilometer front. Despite repeated assaults and heavy bombardment, the 1st Division’s positions held firm on March 9–10. The attack focused on the Greek 1st, 2nd, 5th, 11th, 15th, and 17th Divisions and was accompanied by successive infantry assaults in the area between the Osum and Aous (Vjosa) rivers, with Mount Trebeshina being a key point of contention.

On March 14, Italian General Ugo Cavallero, realizing that the attacks had failed, advised Mussolini to call off the operation. Fierce battles took place at Hill 731, which the Italians attacked at least 18 times, with continuous assaults preceded by intense artillery bombardments. The fighting continued until March 24, with no success. The Greek forces maintained an active defense, which included counterattacks and the effective use of the favorable terrain. Crucial factors in the Greek success were the survival of their artillery and the high morale of the Greek soldiers.

Mussolini himself admitted that the result of the Italian offensive was "zero." Italian casualties exceeded 11,800 killed and wounded, while Greek losses amounted to 1,243 dead, 4,016 wounded, and 42 missing. After the failure of the Italian offensive, the Germans could no longer expect meaningful support from their Italian allies, as Greek forces were just 16 kilometers from the strategic port of Vlorë.
Although the attack failed, it further weakened the Greek army, which had been fighting continuously for six months against a numerically superior enemy, with significant British material support. Following the successful Greek defense, the Greek army had only one month’s worth of heavy artillery supplies left and insufficient resources to replenish its reserves. Urgent requests were sent to the British allies for millions of artillery shells and tens of millions of rounds of ammunition, but resupply proved impossible for the British.

Hitler was not going to allow his ally, Fascist Italy, to be defeated in its war against Greece and had already issued orders for German military intervention (Operation Marita) as early as December 1940. Following the German intervention and Greece’s rapid defeat in April 1941, Hitler later acknowledged that the Italian offensive, despite its failure, had aided the Germans by significantly depleting Greek military strength.