The Legend of the Mutilated Victory: Italy, the Great War, and the Paris Peace Conference, 1915-1919

Italy emerged from World War I triumphant but ostracized from the comity of victors, which led to the notion in Italy that a war had been won but a peace lost. The Legend of the Mutilated Victory demonstrates that Italy’s conflict with America over the nature of the peace was a direct outgrowth of Italy’s ongoing quarrels with the Allies, quarrels that formed the basis of the mutilated victory. In a clear and cogently argued narrative, Burgwyn reassesses Sidney Sonnino’s diplomacy as he lead Italy to victory in the imbroglio of the war and domestic political intrigue. He observes the impact of domestic politics and the Supreme Command on Sonnino’s wartime diplomacy, impartially describes Sonnino’s efforts at the Paris Peace Conference, and also points out the failures in Sonnino’s approach. This is the first book in any language to analyze Italian diplomacy from the outbreak of the war to the Paris Peace Conference.