Book excerpt: Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Pages: 42. Chapters: Macchi C.200, Military history of Italy during World War II, Fiat CR.42, Fiat G.50, Reggiane Re.2000, Fiat CR.32, Caproni Ca.165, IMAM Ro.41, Caproni Ca.335, IMAM Ro.57, IMAM Ro.58, Caproni CH.1, Caproni Ca.114, IMAM Ro.51, Caproni Vizzola F.5, IMAM Ro.44, Fiat CR.30, Breda Ba.27, SIAI S.67, Macchi M.71, Aeronautica Umbra Trojani AUT.18. Excerpt: During World War II (1939-1945), the Kingdom of Italy had a varied and tumultuous military history. Defeated in Greece, France, East Africa and North Africa, the Italian invasion of British Somaliland was one of the only successful Italian campaigns of World War II accomplished without German support. However, whilst the Italian forces were widely viewed by the victorious nations as weak, historians believe this was largely due to circumstances such as poor equipment, weak war economy, lack of morale and ineffective political leadership, rather than inherent inferiority of troops. In addition to the official Italian Army which fought under Benito Mussolini, many Italians in 1943-45 fought for the Allied cause in the Italian Co-Belligerent Army (which at its height numbered more than 50,000 men) and the Italian Resistance Movement. World War II started when Nazi Germany invaded Poland on 1 September 1939, but Italy remained neutral for the following ten months even though it was one of the Axis powers. Mussolini's Under-Secretary for War Production, Carlo Favagrossa, had estimated that Italy could not possibly be prepared for such a war until at least October 1942. This had been made clear during Italo-German negotiations for the Pact of Steel whereby it was stipulated that neither signatory was to make war without the other earlier than 1943. Although considered a major power, the Italian industrial sector was relatively weak compared to other European major powers....