3/11/1918 Austria-Hungary’s army messes up its own capitulation #1918Live

At the Villa Giusti outside Padua an Austro-Hungarian delegation has been presented with armistice terms by the Italians. The terms are non-negotiable; if they are not accepted the Italians will just press on and invade Austria. With Austria-Hungary disintegrating and the army unable to mount any resistance, the Austro-Hungarians have no choice but to agree to the Italian terms. Austria-Hungary is now obliged to release all Italian prisoners, hand over half its artillery pieces and retreat out of the territory coveted by the Italians. They must also expel all German military personnel.

The armistice is meant to come into effect in 24 hours hence but the Austro-Hungarian commanders manage to make a mess of the armistice’s implementation. They tell their own troops that the armistice has taken effect immediately, ordering them to cease all resistance. But this just means that as the Italians press forward they find themselves capturing a…