Italy Fights Untill the End (April 1945)

What if Mussolini is never deposed in a coup (let's say the conspirators go the way of Stauffenburg via July Plot in '44) and Benito ends up dragging Italy along right up until the bitter end where Allied troops find a partially burned bodu buried hastily outside of a bunker in Rome.

How does this effect the post-war situation?
Could Italy balkanize?
 
Who gets there first in your scenario?

Austria probably gets Südtirol in this scenario at any rate. The Allies were considering giving it to them in OTL, and that's even with them ducking out earlier. Renner would be able to make a much stronger case for the return of Tirol in this timeline.
 

trurle

Banned
Balkanization of Italy is unlikely. Not enough linguistic and cultural differences to sustain the division, foreign occupation zones or not. Even if split between Soviet North Italia and British/US South Italia, the countries are likely to merge eventually, in the manner of West and East Germany. Compared to Germany, merger process will be rough though. South Italy has a long history of separatism (with resistance Mafia groups in many cased degenerated outright to criminals, but not wiped out). Therefore, economic contrast between WAllied South and Soviet North will be not starking (due endemic corruption on South). The question is how far north the US/British vs Soviet meet line will be. I suspect somewhere in the hills before Alps proper.
 

TFSmith121

Banned
Do the Allies not invade Italy in 1943?

What if Mussolini is never deposed in a coup (let's say the conspirators go the way of Stauffenburg via July Plot in '44) and Benito ends up dragging Italy along right up until the bitter end where Allied troops find a partially burned bodu buried hastily outside of a bunker in Rome.

How does this effect the post-war situation?
Could Italy balkanize?

Do the Allies not invade Italy in 1943?

Best,
 

TFSmith121

Banned
The Fascists themselves deposed Mussolini

Allies invade as per OTL but meet much fiercer resistance, similar to slog in the on the German-Soviet Front.

Ends with Mussolini dying as the allies storm Rome in 45'

The fascists themselves deposed Mussolini; why does that change?

Best,
 
Italy did fight until the "End". Both the Salo Republic under Mussolinis leadership, and the Royalist government under Badoglio deployed a army, with regiments that fought.
 
The loss of support for war of the general population was the core reason for deposing Mussolini. He and some hard core fascists were still talking about victory, but the bulk of the party as well as the general population thought the war long past lost.

OTL the loss of Sicilly triggered the coup. The underlying cause was economic collapse. Germany could not carry its allies & Italy suffered as badly as any. I can't say famine would have started in the winter of 1943-44, but rationing was clearly inadequate. Raw materials for industry, leather for shoes, grain were increasingly short. If the Italian soldiers are ASBd into Japanese fanaticism they still lack the wherewithal to fight on. Fuel was one of the largest problems and constricted naval operations as easy as 1940. By late 1942 the navy could barely fight for lack of fuel. Like Japan Italy was having to convert where it could from modern petroleum fuels back to coal. Coal from the German control was still available in something approaching adequate levels. Everything else, such as aluminum for aircraft was declining in quantity.
 
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