Borghese's division, the Adriatic campaigns, and the end of the Italian Social Republic 1944-45

By late 1944 the Decima MAS had grown far beyond its origins as an elite raiding flotilla. Under the leadership of Prince Junio Valerio Borghese, it became a division-sized force within the Italian Social Republic, attracting thousands of volunteers determined to continue fighting under the Italian flag despite the collapse of the state. This second volume of Massimiliano Afiero's detailed study traces the Decima through its most controversial and violent phase, as Italy descended into civil war and the end of the conflict approached. Afiero explores how Borghese sought to preserve the unit's autonomy within an uneasy alliance with the Germans, even as the Decima became more heavily committed to operations on land. The narrative follows the deployment of its battalions in Liguria, the Veneto, and Venezia Giulia, and their clashes with Allied forces, Yugoslav partisans, and Italian resistance units. These campaigns exposed the Decima to both military hardship and political controversy, as Borghese tried to steer his men away from fratricidal conflict yet was repeatedly drawn into brutal anti-partisan operations. Drawing extensively on archival material and first-hand accounts, the book analyses the growth of the Decima into a divisional structure, its defensive campaigns on Italy's northeastern frontier, and the enduring tensions between collaboration and national pride. Afiero also considers the unit's complex relationship with the German command and the RSI government, which frequently sought to bring Borghese under tighter control. The study concludes with the final months of the war, the Decima's surrender, and the fate of Borghese and his men in the postwar reckoning. Balanced and meticulously researched, this volume completes the first comprehensive English-language history of one of the Second World War's most controversial Italian formations. AUTHOR: Massimiliano Afiero was born in Afragola, Italy, in 1964. An information technology teacher and programmer, he has been interested in military history since his youth. He has published widely and has been involved in the editing and development of several magazines including Volontari, SGM, Ritterkreuz and The European Volunteer, and the Fronti di Guerra series. Since January 2017, he has been Editor-in-Chief of the quarterly magazine The Axis Forces. 140 b/w photos, 800 colour illustrations, 10 b/w maps