Why did the Italians become so bad at war post Rome?

[SWFL_Native]

The idea of what Rome was faded far before the empire did. I’d suggest a few issues led to the watering down of their military prowess:

Rome was no longer Roman it’s original founding families dead and full of immigrants from all over looking to make a buck with little allegiance to the nation itself

Soldiers became mercenaries hired out to whomever would pay. The professional standing army was comprised of those who could not make a better buck elsewhere.

Christianity... the early Christian influence on a Rome made them marshmallow soft. They lost the razor sharp edge that was there during the republic times of Trajan.

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by majoun

The Italians did well in Albania and Greece during WW2 as well.

You sure? The Greeks actually pushed the Italians out and started retaking parts of Albania. Then the Germans came....

[Hulsker 1856]

Originally Posted by Majoun

The Italians did well in Albania and Greece during WW2 as well.

Originally Posted by Vlajos

You sure? The Greeks actually pushed the Italians out and started retaking parts of Albania. Then the Germans came....

It's true that Italy made short work of Albania. But then, they absolutely should have - Italy's population in 1939 was over 40 million, while there were barely a million Albanians. And Italy was a far, far more advanced nation. 90% of the Albanian population was rural. There were no banks, no railroad tracks, no universities. To say that Albania was still in the 19th century would be charitable. Albania-v-Italy circa 1939 was about as 'fair a fight' as Panama-v-United States circa 1989. Winning was nothing to brag about.

And Greece? Yeah, that was pretty pathetic. It presaged a similarly pathetic invasion of France after Germany already had the Third Republic on the ropes.