Tom Isitt 🐝 @masaccio60 Twitter profile

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Tom Isitt 🐝

@masaccio60

1 year

I’ve stumbled across a video I’d forgotten I’d shot (similar to the one I’ve shared before, but slightly different). It’s of a WW1 Italian 149mm Ansaldo howitzer, sited at 3300m on a ridge above the Adamello glacier. It’s been up there for 107 years.

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@masaccio60

2 years

Extraordinary scenes on the Italian/Slovenian border near Monfalcone, where brush fires are sweeping across the old WW1 battlefields. Slovenian media are reporting that WW1 UXOs can be heard exploding in the fires, and bomb-disposal teams have been sent to the area. #WW1

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@masaccio60

5 years

Affectionately known as The Hippopotamus, this Italian 15cm WW1 howitzer sits at 11,000ft, above the Adamello glacier. It took 200 men 76 days to get it there #GrandeGuerra #WW1

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@masaccio60

7 months

I was once asked to look up the military records of a distant relative who “never came back from the Great War”, leaving a wife and 3 kids. I discovered he never came back because he deserted after the armistice and absconded with a Belgian barmaid. He was never heard from again.

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@masaccio60

2 years

Went to see All Quiet on the Western Front today. What an incredible film. Genuinely brilliant, utterly gut-wrenching, and everything I hoped “1917” would be, but wasn’t. I feel completely exhausted by it. A must-see, even if you have no interest in WW1.

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@masaccio60

1 year

This will never not blow my mind. An Italian WW1 barrack on a ledge on Croda Rossa at 9300ft (2835m). There’s a 1000ft (300m) sheer drop from there, so sleep-walking is inadvisable. But OMG, the view… #GrandeGuerra

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@masaccio60

1 year

And if you think that’s mad, there are three more on a rock in the middle of the Cevedale glacier.

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Tom Isitt 🐝

@masaccio60

4 months

Imagine if the Tour de France celebrated Lance Armstrong like this…

Giro d'Italia

@giroditalia

4 months

🏴‍☠️ Oropa, where Il Pirata wrote his name in the history of the #GirodItalia ➡️ 🏴‍☠️ Oropa, dove Il Pirata ha scritto il suo nome nella storia del #GirodItalia ➡️

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@masaccio60

2 years

The howitzer named the Hippopotamus always seems to generate interest, so I'll post this again (with apologies to those who've already seen it).

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@masaccio60

2 years

OTD three years ago I climbed up to see a WW1 149mm Ansaldo howitzer, abandoned on a ridge above the Adamello glacier at 11,000ft. It still blows my mind. #FWW #GrandeGuerra

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Tom Isitt 🐝

@masaccio60

10 months

Just in case anyone actually thought the guns fell silent on 11.11.1918…

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@masaccio60

11 months

I think it’s wonderful how many young women are engaging with my thoughtful analyses of the 11th Isonzo. Even though Staycee can’t afford proper clothes, and appears to be suffering from anaphylaxis, she’s still loving my take on Capello’s troop dispositions. Bless.

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@masaccio60

1 year

Battlefield Botany. It’s a thing. In Italy during WW1 around 180 non-native plant species were inadvertently introduced into Südtirol. 64 species survived, and a dozen or so hybridised with indigenous species. The photos are not necessarily invasive species (I know nothing)…

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@masaccio60

1 year

Verdun. If you’re interested in WW1 and haven’t been here, you really should. Just incredible.

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@masaccio60

1 year

The craziest place in WW1: Hill 383 on the middle Isonzo. For 737 days (June 1915 to May 1917) the Italian 2nd Army, II Corps, attempted to wrest this important hill from the Austro-Hungarian 1st Mountain Brigade. The same units fought each other almost continuously for 737 days!

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@masaccio60

2 years

Karl (16) and Leopold (17) Koller were privates in the Schützen Volunteer Regiment during WW1. In the battle of Spera (Valsugana, 24.5.16) Karl was seriously wounded, and Leopold was killed, in hand-to-hand combat with experienced Italian troops. Look at them…they were just kids

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@masaccio60

1 year

This Italian WW1 position at Passo Paradiso (Tonale sector) may have been safe from attack and weather, but they were still living in a puddle at 8400ft. It’s bloody freezing in there, even in July. #GrandeGuerra #ErsterWeltkrieg

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@masaccio60

2 years

Not sure if this will work terribly well on Twitter, but it’s a short video I took while cycling one-handed through the Galleria Cannoniera del Monte Brestovec, a WW1 Italian artillery gallery on the Carso. The noise of eight 149mm guns firing in here must of been horrendous.

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@masaccio60

1 year

Goodness, we’ve been joined by quite a few new followers. Welcome to WW1 as you’ve never seen it before! Here you’ll mostly find stuff about WW1 on the Italian front, a bit of motorbike/bicycle stuff, and an occasional photo of my dog. Questions and dialogue very much encouraged.

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@masaccio60

5 years

Every bit as extraordinary as I expected. There are no words for how (and why) the Italians got this 15cm howitzer to 11,500ft #GrandeGuerra #WW1

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@masaccio60

2 years

More than 20 unused WW1 Italian 305mm gas shells were recovered from the River Soča/Isonzo in 1999. Each one still contained 44kg of phosgene gas. Too risky to move, a specialist Slovenian team made them safe on the river bank. Genuinely scary stuff. #GrandeGuerra #Isonzo #FWW

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@masaccio60

2 months

In September 1917 Italian troops dug a 150m rock tunnel through no-man’s land to Forcella V and broke into a cave occupied by the Austrians. For several days they fought back and forth through these tunnels and caves with machine guns, grenades and flamethrowers. Unimaginable.

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@masaccio60

1 year

And these were the guys it was aimed at.

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Tom Isitt 🐝

@masaccio60

2 months

An amazing photograph taken by an Italian soldier at Forcella V in 1917, showing enemy soldiers 150m away on Q3153. It was not unknown for opposing troops to photograph each other, swap greetings, or trade insults.

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@masaccio60

2 years

For those wondering about the Kras/Carso, it’s a much-neglected battlefield where >200,000 Italians and Austro-Hungarians were killed in fighting between May 1915 and October 1917.

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@masaccio60

5 years

The WW1 front line on the Tofana was completely mad. The Italians occupied a ledge beneath an overhang, with the Austrians 100m above them. The Austrians lowered men on ropes to lob grenades at the Italians, who were tunnelling beneath them #GrandeGuerra #WW1 #dolomiti

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@masaccio60

9 months

I’m delighted to announce that Helion & Co will be publishing High Wire, my book about WW1 on the Italian Front. It will be something very different, both in terms of content and presentation, and publication is scheduled for the Spring of 2025. You’re going to love it!

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@masaccio60

1 year

Another soldier from WW1 has been recovered from the ice, this time from Vedretta di Lares glacier in the Adamello sector. It will be interesting to see if they can ID him. #GuerraBianca

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@masaccio60

1 year

In these tunnels during WW1 men fought each other with machine guns, clubs, hand grenades, and flamethrowers. They were fighting for control of Forcella V, a key position at 10,000ft on Monte Marmolada, in September 1917. Imagine a grenade exploding in here, or a flamethrower…

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@masaccio60

10 months

Every year I become less and less inclined to wear a poppy. I still donate to the RBL, but the poppy becomes meaningless if it’s used merely to display the wearer’s patriotic and nationalistic credentials. I hate this shit.

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@masaccio60

10 months

Recently the bodies of 30 Italian WW1 soldiers were discovered at Vertojba near Gorizia. They were buried in their 3rd line trench by Austrian soldiers, probably after Caporetto. After the war they were supposed to have been moved to the Oslavia ossuary, but mysteriously weren’t.

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@masaccio60

5 months

In April 1916 a rope of three Alpini soldiers climbed to Forcella Alta (red X) where the lead climber came face-to-face with an Austrian sentry. Both screamed and involuntarily jumped back, which caused all 3 Alpini to fall 50m onto a snowy ledge (orange X). They all survived.

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@masaccio60

5 months

Publishers, don’t do this. Particularly don’t do this when the most important parts are in the middle 😡

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@masaccio60

2 years

One final piece of high-altitude WW1 military madness…the Austrians and Italians occupied positions on top of the Köenigspitze (3851m) either side of the summit, accessed by tunnels dug through the ice. The Austrian WW1 barrack up there has recently reappeared from the ice. #WW1

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@masaccio60

2 months

I know I go on about it, but the Eisstadt still blows my mind. Dug by the Austrians inside the Marmolada glacier in 1917, it had barracks for 175 men, a hospital, kitchens, mess facilities, officers club, storage for munitions/fuel, telephone exchange, generators, and toilets. 🤯

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@masaccio60

9 months

My home-made atlas of the WW1 Italian Front is back from the printers and looking mighty fine (maybe not in this shaky lo-res vid). It probably won’t look so fine once I’ve scrawled annotations all over it, but…

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@masaccio60

2 months

Roads to nowhere…built during WW1 to supply troops at the front lines, there are still many in the mountains that go from a long-vanished depot to long-abandoned front lines.

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@masaccio60

1 year

The up side of global warming: the rapidly-melting Marmolada glacier in the Dolomites will give up some fascinating WW1 artefacts, and maybe a few of the men who disappeared there 107 years ago. There are at least 30 Italian soldiers up there somewhere…

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@masaccio60

2 years

More WW1 trenches, these ones on the Carso near Monfalcone, and Sei Busi. The sheer quantity of these remains is mind-boggling. #GrandeGuerra #Carso #Isonso

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@masaccio60

2 years

The old front line from September 1917, Hudi Log sector. It looks like it was dug yesterday, not 106 years ago. #GrandeGuerra #Carso #Kras #Isonzo

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@masaccio60

4 years

British holidaymakers heading home from Verbier 🙄

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@masaccio60

5 years

Some video from the Pal Piccolo WW1 battlefield #GrandeGuerra

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@masaccio60

11 months

That you can see an almost untouched WW1 battlefield on Google maps (SW of Korita na Krasu) is quite extraordinary. These trenches date from the 11th Isonzo (August 1917). The circular enclosures are abandoned cultivated dolines. A very unworldly landscape. #Isonzo

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@masaccio60

3 years

Interesting WW1 via ferrata fact: the Austrian access to their positions on Tofane di Rozes (Dolomites) involved a flight of more than 270 iron pegs hammered into near vertical rock. Apparently some new arrivals in this sector had to be “encouraged” up at the point of a bayonet.

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@masaccio60

4 months

Italian military engineering 👊 During WW1 they built terrifying bridges, roofed a 5km mountain road, and dug some incredible rock tunnels. And the Italian for sappers is zappatori, which I like.

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@masaccio60

4 months

The 48th Bersaglieri battalion was ordered to attack along this valley in Nov 1915, through a metre of snow, against intact wire & machine guns, in temps of -24°C. They fought in the open for 12 hrs, & lost 510 men, inc 318 from frostbite, with 100% officer casualties. Appalling.

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@masaccio60

2 months

Two more “ghost roads” that were heavily used in WW1 on the Italian Front. The old Passo Fedaia used to supply the Italian front line near Lago di Fedaia, and the old Stelvio road used by the Italian troops in the Ortler sector.

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@masaccio60

6 months

The 12 battles of the Isonzo can be very confusing, so I’ve renamed them to make them easier to understand (it was a long train journey, I was bored). You’re welcome.

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@masaccio60

11 months

Reading about the disparity in firepower is one thing, seeing it graphically displayed on a map is far more shocking (Italians in red, Austrians in blue). And still Capello couldn’t break through.

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@masaccio60

3 years

A seriously hard day in the Dolomites, but so much WW1 stuff to explore. Snowshoeing is great, but 8 hours, 5500 calories, and 31,000 steps has left me in pieces. More of the same tomorrow 😟

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@masaccio60

1 month

Another forgotten WW1 battlefield on the Italian Front…Rattendorfer Alm in the Carnic alps. The Scotti-Kapelle was originally built by Austrian soldiers, and there’s still a lot of rusty war stuff still up there.

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@masaccio60

6 months

Italian trenches and Austrian shell holes at Monte Fior on the Altopiano dei Sette Comuni. They date from the Austrian Strafexpedition offensive of May/June 1916.

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@masaccio60

1 year

Am preparing to pitch my new book to publishers. This is pretty much the sum total of modern English language books about WW1 in Italy, so there’s definitely room for one more.

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@masaccio60

11 months

Good news everyone, I’ve planned your summer holiday for you next year…walking the Carnic Alps WW1 front line. Stunning scenery, fascinating history, beautiful botany, solitude and head-space. Walk around 9 miles a day, sleep at mountain rifugios, and eat hearty mountain food…

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@masaccio60

1 year

Some advice to any of my followers who might go to watch the Tour de France: Don’t run, don’t touch, don’t flap your flag in front of riders, don’t shout in riders’ faces, don’t light flares, your flag-on-a-stick is still a stick, don’t get within 2m of riders, don’t be a dick!

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@masaccio60

1 month

My first time over the Vršič pass, the vital Austro-Hungarian supply route to the Bovec basin built by Russian PoWs. Said Hi to Kugy on my way up. There’s still a lot of crumbling WW1 infrastructure up there.

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@masaccio60

2 months

The Italian attack route up to Q3153 on the Marmolada (2000ft drop if you slip), equipped by the 7th Alpini in late October 1917. Despite being ordered back to the Piave they stayed and captured Q3153, just to prove they could. Then 24hrs later abandoned it and withdrew south.

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@masaccio60

4 years

Can I just say that although some parts of Twitter are a stinking midden of hate and stupidity, I find my little bubble of cyclists, motorcyclists, climbers, and history enthusiasts to be a constant source of interest, enjoyment and reassurance. Thank you all 🙏

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@masaccio60

11 months

Sometimes it’s hard to get a sense of scale on the Dolomite WW1 battlefields. The red arrow in photo 1 points to the Cavernette, the entrance to which is in photo 2. This was HQ of Italian operations on Croda Rossa, at the base of a huge tower of crumbling limestone…

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@masaccio60

5 years

Standing by an Austro-Hungarian position and trenches in the Carnic Alps above the Oberstansersee at around 9000ft. In winter, sentry duty only lasted 15 minutes because of the extreme cold #GrandeGuerra #WW1

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@masaccio60

1 year

@Barefoot_Bert Munitions were usually transported by dog teams.

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@masaccio60

3 years

Went to pay my respects to the gunners. Beautiful morning.

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@masaccio60

1 month

Some of the Italian WW1 stuff in Val Dogna, Montasio sector (north-east corner of the Italian front). This was a quiet sector, so there’s still an incredible amount to look at up here.

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@masaccio60

2 years

Angry German man, upset that his inconsiderate parking didn’t deter me from shoehorning the Skoda into the last remaining parking spot 😂

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@masaccio60

3 years

Looking at drone photos of Italian positions on Monte Paterno. There’s a WW1 shelter dug into the rock, the remains of wooden ladders and bridges, and what looks to be a stack of cylindrical objects, partially covered by a rock-fall. Artillery shells? Magnums of Chianti? Curious.

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@masaccio60

3 years

If there’s a more beautiful WW1 battlefield than Monte Piana in the Dolomites, I’d like to see it. #GrandeGuerra #WW1 #FWW

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@masaccio60

7 months

I went to Dresden in 1990 and in some places it felt like the bombing was quite recent. A very strange place.

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@masaccio60

2 months

The Italian WW1 military village at Filone dei Mot, near Monte Scorluzzo, south-west of the Passo dello Stelvio. And a smaller position nearby. That was a very good day on the bike.

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@masaccio60

4 years

35 years ago today I was at Wembley for one of the most memorable experiences of my life.

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@masaccio60

6 years

Trenches on Lagazuoi at 8000ft. I’m at a complete loss for words about the WW1 stuff up here. How? Why? It’s absolutely beyond comprehension #LaGrandeGuerra #WW1

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@masaccio60

1 year

I’ve done tunnels, I’ve done roads, I’ve done cable cars. But I haven’t done bridges. So, Bridges of the Italian Front: One of two suspension bridges built by Italian engineers on the Castellaccio-Lagoscuro ridge during WW1, and its modern replacement in the same place…

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@masaccio60

4 years

"A howling wilderness of stones as sharp as knives." The Carso battlefield, on the lower Isonzo, was truly hellish, and the armies were locked in battle here for 28 months. Imagine the effect of an HE round landing amongst this. At least 200,000 men died here. #WW1 #GrandeGuerra

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@masaccio60

13 days

One of my particular interests is WW1 battlefield tourism between the wars. On the Italian front it was a strange and often macabre experience, undertaken for a variety of reasons, with rusty weapons and human bones scattered around even in the 1930s when these photos were taken.

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@masaccio60

2 years

More from Sabotino. The ridge line is riddled with caverns, galleries and tunnels built by the Austrians and then repurposed by the Italians after they captured it in August 1916 (6th Isonzo). The reconstructions give a good idea of how difficult it was to supply troops up here.

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@masaccio60

5 months

An under-appreciated aspect of fighting WW1 in the Dolomites…the rock is really horrible to climb on, very crumbly and unstable. Ledges are covered in loose stones, holds are fragile, and rock-falls are common. That’s on top of all the shooting, grenades, artillery, etc.

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@masaccio60

2 years

Currently writing about the Honvéd, Hungarian troops of the Austro-Hungarian army, who had an enviable reputation as solid, reliable fighters. The 20th Honvéd Division fought continuously on the Carso, suffering 83% casualties from Aug-Oct 1916 before being relieved. Staggering.

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@masaccio60

6 years

So that’s that. I’ve ridden my bike along the Italian/Austro-Hungarian Front of WW1, from the Adriatic to the Stelvio, and it has been a sensational experience. Thank you all for your interest and input, it has been a great help and encouragement. More to follow in due course...

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@masaccio60

11 months

An impressive (terrifying) WW1 light railway, built by Russian PoWs to supply Austrian troops on the middle Isonzo. How the hell did they build that?

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@masaccio60

1 year

Wooden footbridges spanning crevasses in the Marmolada glacier. During WW1 Austrian engineers dug around 6 miles (10km) of tunnels through the moving ice to protect troops from shelling, gunfire, the weather, and avalanches. Hundreds of men lived for weeks in barracks down here…

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@masaccio60

4 years

Then and now. Almost the same position, Austro-Hungarian soldiers on the Lagazuoi, with the Tofana and Castelletto behind. #WW1 #GrandeGuerra

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@masaccio60

5 years

Hiked up the Col di Lana (known as the Mountain of Blood) today. The Italians made 90 attempts to dislodge the Austrians, and eventually exploded a mine under the summit that blasted 10,000 tons of rock off the mountain and left a huge crater #GrandeGuerra #WW1 #Dolomites

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@masaccio60

9 months

Me: Doctor, I think I’ve probably cracked a rib falling off my bike. Doctor: Have you cracked a rib before? Me: Yes. Doctor: Does this feel the same? Me: Yes. Doctor: You’ve probably cracked a rib. Happy Christmas. The doctor, btw, is my eldest son 🙄

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@masaccio60

2 years

For those of us accustomed to the CWGC way of doing things, the Austro-Hungarian cemeteries on the Carso can seem bleak and unloved. More than 6000 men were buried here (Gorjansko). Most of the name plates have been stolen, and the mass graves feel devastating #GrandeGuerra

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@masaccio60

10 months

So much hatred and anger around this weekend, so much stupidity. So I’m sharing a photo of my Happy Place, the place I go in my head when it all gets a bit much. It’s Val Genova in the Italian Alps, and I’ll be there for the rest of the day.

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@masaccio60

4 months

#OTD in 1919 a mad sporting event took place on the WW1 battlefields of the Western Front. The Circuit des Champs de Bataille bike race went across Flanders, the Somme, the Marne, Champagne, Verdun and the Vosges, in appalling weather and on shattered roads. #cycling #buymybook

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@masaccio60

6 years

OTD in 1916 the Battle of Verdun began, a 303 day struggle that cost the lives of more than 300,000 men. This is the astonishing memorial to the French 69th Division on the small but blood-soaked hill of Mort Homme #WW1 #Verdun #MortHomme

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@masaccio60

7 months

As someone who was the victim of an unprovoked assault by a driver, I find this kind of hate-mongering really dangerous. @RowanPelling should reflect on her part in making our roads a more toxic and frightening place. But she won’t, because culture wars = income for her.

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@masaccio60

2 years

Up at 3000m today, exploring Italian WW1 positions on Cima Presena (1st pic looking east to the Presanella, 3rd pic Italian front line positions). Still a lot of rusty wire and WW1 junk up here…

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@masaccio60

2 months

Been exploring the Ledro sector of the Italian front today. These are various positions around the Valle di Concei, north-east of Lake Garda - Bezzecca and Rocca di Trat. This is a sector where little happened after initial battles in the autumn of 1915. It’s very remote.

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@masaccio60

10 months

We’ve had WW1 ladders, now we have Top Italian Front Ledges: Monte Mesolina (2642m, Marmolada sector) Cengia Lipella (2725m, Tofane di Rozes). Cengia Torrioni (2835m, Croda Rossa). Cengia Castellaccio (3020m, Presena sector). Many soldiers fell from these ledges, a few survived…

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@masaccio60

5 years

It’s the 101st anniversary of the ceasefire on the Italian Front today. For the Italians it turned out to be a “mutilated victory”, for the Austro-Hungarians it turned out to be the collapse of their empire. #GrandeGuerra #FWW #WW1

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@masaccio60

5 years

The Costabella sector of WW1 in Italy is astonishing. We hiked and climbed along the ridge from the Austrian positions to the Italian ones, visiting dozens of tunnels, trenches and gun emplacements. There is an amazing amount of remains still up there. #WW1 #GrandeGuerra

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@masaccio60

11 months

I was going to do a Top 10 Ladders of the Italian Front listicle, but that’s too ridiculous even by my standards. They were quite important, though, so here are four of my favourites #FavouriteLadders

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Tom Isitt 🐝

@masaccio60

2 years

Back in the Dolomites for a trip up Monte Piana (2324m, 7675ft). Beneath the snow are WW1 caverns and many kilometres of tunnels and trenches dug into solid rock. Temps dropped to -30C (-22F) in winter, and it’s said that more men froze to death than were killed by the enemy.

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Tom Isitt 🐝

@masaccio60

3 years

The old Bosniak cemetery on the Melette massif, where 208 men were buried. The 2nd Bosniak regiment (the most decorated regiment in the Austro-Hungarian army) fought with incredible bravery here against the Sassari Brigade (the most highly decorated unit in the Italian army).

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Tom Isitt 🐝

@masaccio60

5 years

In July 1915 a handful of Austro-Hungarian troops, led by Sepp Innerkofler, climbed Monte Paterno in the dark to dislodge the Italian Alpini troops on the summit. Innerkofler and an Alpino called Pietro de Luca fought hand-to-hand at 9000ft and Innerkofler was hurled to his death

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Tom Isitt 🐝

@masaccio60

1 year

I’m talking about WW1 on the Italian Front at the East London branch of the @TheWFA on Thursday evening, if anyone fancies coming along.

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Tom Isitt 🐝

@masaccio60

7 months

Look what I found on Google Earth! A WW1 hut has appeared out of the ice at 3400m (11,100ft) on the Trafoier Eiswand (Ortles sector). I suspect it could be the “Osservatorio” on the Eiswand Schulter. If one of my Italian followers could go up and take a look, I’d be grateful 😉

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Tom Isitt 🐝

@masaccio60

4 months

I’ve seen a few wartime photos of the Italian Front, but few convey the desolate bleakness and biting cold of high altitude fighting quite as well as these two (Cristallo group, Dolomites). Makes me shiver just looking at them.

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Tom Isitt 🐝

@masaccio60

4 months

Another day, another mad attack to write about. In Oct 1915 two battalions of Alpini attacked the Castelletto, uphill, in 4ft of snow, against machine guns. When they got to the wire men tried to use garden shears (no wire cutters available) to cut their way through. Many died.

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