List of Italian divisions in World War II

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This is a list of the World War II divisions of the Royal Italian Army of the Kingdom of Italy .

Contents

Alpine Divisions

Armored Divisions

Blackshirt Divisions

Cavalry Divisions

Coastal Divisions

Colonial Divisions

Libyan

Somalian

Infantry Divisions

Air-transportable

Auto-transportable

Auto-transportable North-African Type

Infantry

Mountain

Occupation

Marching

Motorized Divisions

Paratrooper Divisions

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Italian Army</span> Land warfare branch of Italys military forces

The Italian Army is the land force branch of the Italian Armed Forces. The army's history dates back to the Italian unification in the 1850s and 1860s. The army fought in colonial engagements in China, Libya, Northern Italy against the Austro-Hungarian Empire during World War I, Abyssinia before World War II and in World War II in Albania, Balkans, North Africa, the Soviet Union, and Italy itself. During the Cold War, the army prepared itself to defend against a Warsaw Pact invasion from the east. Since the end of the Cold War, the army has seen extensive peacekeeping service and combat in Afghanistan and Iraq. Its best-known combat vehicles are the Dardo infantry fighting vehicle, the Centauro tank destroyer and the Ariete tank and among its aircraft the Mangusta attack helicopter, recently deployed in UN missions. The headquarters of the Army General Staff are located in Rome opposite the Quirinal Palace, where the president of Italy resides. The army is an all-volunteer force of active-duty personnel.

The Italian order of battle for the Second Italo-Ethiopian War on 8 October 1935. The Ethiopian order of battle is listed separately.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1st Alpine Division "Taurinense"</span> Military unit

The 1st Alpine Division "Taurinense" was a division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II, which specialized in mountain warfare. The Alpini that formed the division are a highly decorated and elite mountain corps of the Italian Army consisting of both infantry and artillery units. Today, the traditions and name of the 1st Alpine Division "Taurinense" are carried on by the Alpine Brigade "Taurinense". The headquarters of the division was in the city of Turin and the majority of its soldiers were drafted from the surrounding Province of Turin — therefore the division was named "Taurinense" for the Roman name of the city of Turin Augusta Taurinorum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">5th Infantry Division "Cosseria"</span> Military unit

The 5th Infantry Division "Cosseria" was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Cosseria was named for the Battle of Cosseria fought in 1796 during the War of the First Coalition. The division recruited primarily in Liguria and its infantry regiments were based in Ventimiglia (89th) and Genoa (90th), while the artillery regiment was based in Albenga.

On March 1, 1984 the Italian Institute for Disarmament, Development and Peace (Istituto di ricerche per il disarmo, lo sviluppo e la pace in Rome published the entire Italian Army order of battle down to company level – this was justified by the radical party as one of its core demands was total disarmament of Europe, even though the data which was published was top secret. The Radical Party dissolved in 1989 and the IRDISP followed suit in 1990. But Radio Radicale has survived, and the OrBat can still be found today on the homepage of the radio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mechanized Brigade "Granatieri di Sardegna"</span> Military unit

The Mechanized Brigade "Granatieri di Sardegna" is a mechanized infantry brigade of the Italian Army, based in Rome and central Italy. The brigade fields one of the oldest regiments of the Army and is one of the guard regiments of the President of Italy. The name of the unit dates back to the Kingdom of Sardinia and not the eponymous Mediterranean island of Sardinia. The brigade is part of the Division "Acqui".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">9th Infantry Division "Pasubio"</span> Military unit

The 9th Infantry Division Pasubio was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Pasubio was classified as an auto-transportable division, meaning it had some motorized transport, but not enough to move the entire division at once. The division was formed as an infantry division in 1934, reorganized as auto-transportable division in 1939 and mobilized in August 1940. It was named for the battles on Pasubio during World War I. Its 79th Infantry Regiment and 8th Artillery Regiment were made up of men from Verona, while the ranks of the 80th Regiment were filled with men from Mantua. Its I CC.NN. Battalion "Sabauda" was made up of Blackshirt volunteers from Turin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">16th Infantry Division "Pistoia"</span> Military unit

The 16th Infantry Division "Pistoia" was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The division was named after the city of Pistoia and initially an infantry division, but reorganized to a fully motorized division in 1941. Consequently on 10 October 1941 the division was renamed 16th Motorized Division "Pistoia". The Pistoia had its recruiting area in the central Emilia-Romagna and its headquarters in Bologna. Its two infantry regiments were based in Bologna (35th) and Modena (36th), with the division's artillery regiment based in Bologna.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2nd Infantry Division "Sforzesca"</span> WW2 Royal Italian Army formation

The 2nd Infantry Division "Sforzesca" was a infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Sforzesca was classified as a mountain infantry division, which meant that the division's artillery was moved by pack mules instead of the horse-drawn carriages of line infantry divisions. Italy's real mountain warfare divisions were the six alpine divisions manned by Alpini mountain troops. The Division, with the exception of the 53rd Infantry Regiment based in Biella, was based in Novara and recruited its troops primarily from northern Piedmont. The division was named for the Battle of Sforzesca fought during the First Italian War of Independence in 1849.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">36th Infantry Division "Forlì"</span> Military unit

The 36th Infantry Division "Forlì" was a infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Forlì was classified as a mountain infantry division, which meant that the division's artillery was moved by pack mules instead of the horse-drawn carriages of line infantry divisions. Italy's real mountain warfare divisions were the six alpine divisions manned by Alpini mountain troops. The division was formed on 31 March 1939 and named for the city of Forlì. The division was based in Saluzzo and most of its troops were drafted in the surrounding Langhe region in southern Piedmont. The division's two infantry regiments were based in Alba (43rd) and Saluzzo (44th), with the division's artillery regiment also based in Saluzzo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">3rd Infantry Division "Ravenna"</span> WW2 formation of the Royal Italian Army

The 3rd Infantry Division "Ravenna" was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Ravenna was classified as a mountain infantry division, which meant that the division's artillery was moved by pack mules instead of the horse-drawn carriages of line infantry divisions. Italy's real mountain warfare divisions were the six alpine divisions manned by Alpini mountain troops. The Ravenna was named for the ancient city of Ravenna and based in the city of Alessandria. Its two infantry regiments were based in Alessandria (37th) and Alba (38th), respectively Alessandria and Tortona from 1939, with the division's artillery regiment also based in Alessandria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">21st Infantry Division "Granatieri di Sardegna"</span> Military unit

The 21st Infantry Division "Granatieri di Sardegna" was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The division's name translates as "Grenadiers of Sardinia", referring to the Kingdom of Sardinia ruled by the Italian Royal House of Savoy before the unification of Italy as Kingdom of Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">28th Infantry Division "Aosta"</span> Military unit

The 28th Infantry Division "Aosta" was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Aosta was formed for the first time in 1831 and named for the city of Aosta. The division fought in the Allied invasion of Sicily and its remnants were evacuated to Northern Italy, where the division's remnants were disbanded after the Armistice of Cassibile.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">40th Infantry Division "Cacciatori d'Africa"</span> Military unit

The 40th Infantry Division "Cacciatori d’Africa" was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Cacciatori d’Africa was formed on 27 July 1940 from troops and reservists stationed in Italian East Africa. The Cacciatori d’Africa, together with the 65th Infantry Division "Granatieri di Savoia" were outside the regular Royal Italian Army chain of command, and subordinated directly to Prince Amedeo, Duke of Aosta, the Viceroy of Italian East Africa. The division dissolved on 15 May 1941 after being decimated during the East African campaign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">58th Infantry Division "Legnano"</span> Military unit

The 58th Infantry Division "Legnano" was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Legnano's predecessor division was formed on 8 February 1934 in Milan and named for the medieval Battle of Legnano. On 24 May 1939 the division split to form the 6th Infantry Division "Cuneo" and the 58th Infantry Division "Legnano". After the announcement of the Armistice of Cassibile the Legnano resisted the invading German forces. The division's staff and 67th Infantry Regiment "Legnano" were used to form the first unit of the Italian Co-belligerent Army, which fought on the allied side in the Italian campaign. On 17 February 1944 the division's last units joined other commands and the division was officially dissolved.

The following is a hierarchical outline for the Italian Army at the end of the Cold War. It is intended to convey the connections and relationships between units and formations.

With the 1975 reforms the Italian Army abolished the regimental level and replaced it with brigades made up of multiple arms. During the reform the army disbanded 48 regimental commands and reduced its force by 87 battalions. A further ten regimental commands were used to raise ten new brigade commands. Ten training centers, which for traditional reasons had carried the names of regiments, were also disbanded. The reduction in units also allowed to mechanize most of the remaining units in Northern Italy and Italy's defense strategy changed from a hold-at-all-costs territorial defense to one of mobile warfare.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Italian Army gorget patches</span>

Italian Army gorget patches are worn by all army personnel on the collars of the shirts and jackets of their service uniforms and formal uniforms. The gorget patches identify the arm, corps, or speciality within an arm or corps a soldier belongs to. Generals wear golden stars instead of a gorget patches, while army recruits wear silver stars until they are assigned to a unit after basic training. Originally made from colored cloth, respectively embroidered cloth for Granatieri, Carabinieri and general staff members, gorget patches have been made since 1973 from enamelled metal.

The 8th Marching Division was a short-lived division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. In the Italian military the term "Marching" refers to temporary units based in Italy to manage replacements for the operational units at the front.

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