By spring 1915, initial hopes for a swift conflict had dissolved, revealing the grim reality of the First World War. This video explores the "gigantic meat grinder" that the war had become, particularly focusing on the conditions of the western front and the brutal trench warfare. We also touch upon Italy's position and potential involvement in the great war. This is EP 2 of our second series on WW1, the first episode is here: https://youtu.be/pTZ-hKmAgnc Join this channel to get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUYK0BJZF3yNb2fw1EdAXUQ/join Watch our first series on WW1 here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEbAHi3fZpuGWPL93I6cQlS-VOFmRJjrD Lloyds. 250 years on and still backing the nation's aspirations. Twitter: @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Social channels: https://www.instagram.com/theresthistory/ https://www.tiktok.com/@theresthistory https://x.com/TheRestHistory https://bsky.app/profile/theresthistory.bsky.social https://www.threads.com/@theresthistory 0:00 Italy’s road to war 1:10 Lloyds 2:42 The bloodiest campaign of the First World War? 4:34 Why Italy stayed out of the war at first 6:36 Italy’s “unfinished” northern frontier 9:20 Italy’s strange alliance with Austria 12:21 King Victor Emmanuel III and Italy’s weak politics 15:51 Italy secretly considers switching sides 18:54 The Allies promise Italy an empire 21:36 Why the Italian people didn’t want war 22:41 Gabriele D’Annunzio: Italy’s nationalist celebrity 27:41 Mussolini enters the story 29:32 Rome erupts as war fever takes hold 33:05 D’Annunzio’s terrifying far-right speeches 35:57 Italy votes for war 37:01 The Times 38:14 Italy declares war on Austria-Hungary 40:20 General Cadorna’s disastrous battle plan 43:00 The brutal landscape of the Isonzo Front 46:07 Cadorna sacks his own generals 48:33 General Boroević prepares the Austrian defence 50:20 The First Battle of the Isonzo 53:05 Cadorna tries the same attack again 54:16 The horrors of the Italian trenches 57:18 Austrians help Italians collect their dead 59:13 The Third Battle of the Isonzo 1:00:00 The freezing Fourth Battle 1:01:00 Disease, filth, and collapse in the trenches 1:02:16 The Polenta Brigade is destroyed 1:03:00 Caporetto and Italy’s near-disaster 1:04:00 The “mutilated victory” and the rise of fascism 1:05:31 Next time: the Lusitania Video Editors: Jack Meek, Harry Swan + Adam Thornton Social Producer: Harry Balden Producers: Tabby Syrett & Aaliyah Akude Senior Producer: Callum Hill Executive Producer: Dom Johnson Creative Director of animation: Michael Sherdyts Lead Animator / Production Lead: Kate Korolko Lead Illustrator: Vadym Berkutenko Illustrator: Viktoria Lafazan Map Animator: Mike Dunakovskiy 3D Artist / Blender Animator: Vishal Chief Digital Officer: Sam Oakley