Portrait of Luigi Cadorna

Luigi Cadorna

Italian general

Lived
1850–1928
Country
Italy

Updated September 2026

About Luigi Cadorna

Luigi Cadorna, was an Italian general, Marshal of Italy and Count, most famous for being the Chief of Staff of the Italian Army from 1914 until late 1917 during World War I. He commanded the Italian army on the Italian front, a theatre marked by trench warfare and attrition on the Eastern Alps and Isonzo river. Cadorna launched multiple offensives across the Isonzo front during which the Italian army made gains, most notably capturing Gorizia and Bainsizza, but it ultimately suffered a major defeat when German-Austrian forces attacked the Italian troops at Caporetto and forced them to retreat to the Piave river. He was relieved as Chief of Staff and replaced by Armando Diaz.

Biography from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.

Sources: book lists and dates from Wikidata and Open Library, ratings from Open Library readers. Last updated September 2026.