Mels, Pierluigi Romeo di Colloredo Guerra Chimica in Etiopia, 1935-1936

An examination of the use of gas by the Kingdom of Italy during the Italo-Ethiopian conflict of 1935-1936 encounters two opposing obstacles: total denial on the part of right-wing historiography and uncritical exaggeration on the part of the progressive historiography that prevails today, which, on the contrary, attributes to the use of gas a decisive importance for the outcome of the conflict as well as a political character.

Chemical weapons - mustard gas and phosgene - were used on both the northern and southern fronts, in a total of 132 C-barrage (C for chemical) actions, accounting for 2.7 per cent of the Regia Aeronautica's war effort, and once with artillery during the Battle of Amba Aradam, firing arsenic shells. However, the use of gas was not destructive and decisive for the war, as is often claimed today, for technical and environmental reasons, which are analysed in this paper. This study proposes an analysis that is as objective as possible, based on archival documents and historical diaries of the air units, as well as an analysis of post-war historiography that places them in the context of the Italo-Ethiopian conflict and the tactical doctrine of the early post-war period, beyond partisan interpretations.