1917 24th September
Battle of Caporetto
Victory enables the German March offensive on the Western Front. Bombards Caporetto & crosses the River Isonzo. 300,000 Italians are taken prisoner
First World War · permanent subject timeline
Battle of Caporetto
The Austro-German breakthrough against Italy in October 1917. This page combines historical context with 16 matching records drawn directly from the World History Database World War I battle archive.
Historical context
Battle of Caporetto: overview and significance
What happened?
Austro-Hungarian and German forces attacked the Italian front near Caporetto on 24 October 1917. Infiltration tactics, gas and concentrated attacks helped produce a deep breakthrough and a large Italian retreat.
Why was it important?
The defeat forced the Italian army back to the Piave and led to major command and organizational changes. Allied troops were transferred to Italy, while General Luigi Cadorna was replaced as chief of staff.
World History Database records
Battle of Caporetto timeline
The records below are selected from the 572-record World War I battles archive and rendered as static HTML in chronological order.
1917
1917 24th September
Battle of Caporetto
Bombards Caporetto & crosses the River Isonzo
1917 24th October
Battle of Caporetto
Austro-Hungarian forces, reinforced by German units, were able to break into the Italian front line and rout the Italian army, which had practically no mobile reserves.
1917 24th October
Battle of Caporetto
The Austro-German 14th Army, under General der Infanterie Otto von Below, achieved a significant victory against the Italian Army at the Battle of Caporetto.
1917 24th October
Battle of Caporetto
The Battle was a demonstration of the effectiveness of the use of stormtroopers and the infiltration tactics developed in part by Oskar von Hutier.
1917 24th October
Battle of Caporetto
The Germans under von Bulow break through Italian lines at Isonzo & head for Caporetto
1917 24th October
Battle of Caporetto
The Germans under von Bulow break through west of Isonzo & head for Caporetto
1917 24th October
Battle of Caporetto
The use of poison gas by the Germans played a key role in the collapse of the Italian Second Army. The Battle was a demonstration of the effectiveness of the use of stormtroopers and the infiltration tactics developed in part by Oskar von Hutier
1917 24th October
Battle of Caporetto
Erwin Rommel, who, as a junior officer, won the Pour le Merite for his exploits in the battle
1917 25th October
Battle of Caporetto
The Germann Army captures Caporetto
1917 26th October
Battle of Caporetto
The Germann Army captures Caporetto
1917 October
Battle of Caporetto
Made adviser to the Italian Government after the Italian disaster at Caporetto
1917 3rd November
Battle of Caporetto
The Italians are forced back as far as the River Piave
1917 3rd November
Battle of Caporetto
Austro-Hungarian and German forces advanced more than 100 km (62 mi) in the direction of Venice, but they were not able to cross the Piave River
1917 3rd November
Battle of Caporetto
Luigi Cadorna was forced to resign after the defeat. Italian losses were enormous, 11,000 were killed, 20,000 wounded and 265,000 taken prisoner, morale was so low among the Italian troops, mainly due to Cadornas harsh disciplinary regime, that most of these surrendered willingly.
1917 3rd November
Battle of Caporetto
The Piave serves as a natural barrier where the Italians could establish a new defensive line, held during the subsequent Battle of the Piave River and served as springboard for the Battle of Vittorio Veneto, where the Austro-Hungarian are defeated.
Editorial provenance
Sources and editorial review
Compiled and edited by World History Database.
Historical context is editorial material; the chronology is generated from World History Database First World War records.
Last reviewed: September 2026.
Imperial War Museums · Commonwealth War Graves Commission · Australian War Memorial
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