The Sandman
Banned
What if the Italians, aided by the Central Powers offering them tidbits like Tunisia, Nice, Savoy, and Corsica, honored their treaty obligations and joined the Central Powers? How might this have changed the war?
Dave Bender said:The WWI Italian army was rather poor. It is my understanding that they did not win a single major battle against Austria-Hungary. So I would not expect too much from them. My guess is that they advance a couple of miles into the French alps and go no further. The French - Italian front line remains more or less static for the next 4 years.
However the situation for Austria-Hungary improves a bit. Without the diversion of troops to the Italian front, the Russian 1916 Brusilov offensive will not be as successful. The Russian penetration is smaller. The German - Austrian counter offensive is larger. The end result is that Russia is knocked out of the war a few months earlier. If this change causes Romania not to join the allies then Russia's defeat will come sooner still.
Unlike her army, Italy's navy is quite capable. A joint Italy - Austria fleet will make life rough for the allied navies in the Med. Britain will be required to reinforce her Med fleet, or she will lose the ability to transport goods via the Med and Suez canal. Rather then attacking Galipoli, Britain may invade Sicily in an effort to contain the Italian and Austro-Hungarian fleets.