Royal italian army

World War I

On the Italian front of World War I, the Royal Army of Italy, together with the troops of its allied states ( English , French , American ), fought against the troops of Austria-Hungary and Germany . The fighting on the Italian front lasted from May 1915 to November 1918 .

The Italian theater of operations extended throughout the Austro-Italian border, from Trentino to the Adriatic . Despite the fact that Italy was a member of the Triple Alliance , from the beginning of the war it remained neutral , and in 1915 , after much hesitation, entered the World War on the side of the Entente . The main factor in the entry of Italy into the war on the side of the Entente was the desire to carry out significant territorial changes at the expense of Austria-Hungary . After entering the war, the Italian command planned to carry out a powerful offensive deep into Austria and capture a number of important cities, but soon the fighting in the Italian theater of operations became positional, similar to the fighting on the Western Front .

In 1915, the offensive initiative was on the side of Italy, but the Italian command was unable to conduct a successful offensive. In 1916, the Austro-Hungarian army defeated the Italian army at the Battle of Trentino, despite this, the Italians, with the help of allies, were able to stop the advance of the enemy. In the summer of 1917, the Italian army carried out a number of successful military operations, but in the fall suffered a crushing defeat at the Battle of Caporetto and retreated 70-110 km deep into Italy. Throughout 1918, the Royal Italian Army was recovering from the defeat at Caporetto and in the fall of 1918 was able to go on the offensive, defeating the semi-decomposed Austrian army. November 3, 1918 the fighting on the Italian front ended.

World War II

By the beginning of World War II, the Kingdom of Italy had a generally strong, combat-ready army. Traditionally, the most powerful and largest form of the country's armed forces was the Royal Navy , which included battleships such as the Conte di Cavour and Andrea Doria , almost three dozen cruisers of various types, destroyers , destroyers , torpedo boats , large and small submarines , etc. The most successful and elite units of the Italian navy were submarine saboteurs of the 10th assault fleet, led by the "black prince" Yunio Valerio Borghese .

The air forces of the Kingdom of Italy, formed at the very beginning of the 20th century, before the Second World War managed to take part in many military conflicts, such as: The Italo-Turkish War , The First World War , The Italo-Ethiopian War 1935-1936 , The Civil War in Of Spain .

The air forces were equipped with all modern types of aircraft manufactured by Italian companies at that time, including:

• fighters Fiat CR.32 , Fiat CR.42 Falco , Fiat G.50 Freccia ;
• bombers Breda Ba.65 , Breda Ba.88 Lince , Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 Sparviero ;
• transport aircraft Savoia-Marchetti SM.74 ;
• Seaplane Savoia-Marchetti S.55 , CANT Z.506 Airone , Fiat RS.14 , etc.

Until the end of the 1930s, Italian armored forces were represented mainly by domestic armored vehicles, wedges, obsolete light tanks such as the Fiat 3000 and two heavy tanks Fiat 2000 , created at the end of the First World War. On the eve of World War II, new types of armored vehicles were adopted: light tanks L6 / 40 , medium (according to the Italian classification) M11 / 39 , armored vehicles AB40 / 41 . In general, the crude structures required further improvement, and the first battles in Greece and Africa required the creation of new types of armored vehicles and artillery, anti-tank self - propelled guns , assault guns, and armored personnel carriers.

Artillery was represented by a significant number of guns created during the First World War, as well as a number of guns created in the interwar period.

Before the entry into World War II, Italian industry itself provided the army with weapons. After the surrender of France , Italy got a certain amount of French military equipment: tanks, planes, small arms.

The Royal Italian Army reached its maximum number in World War II at the beginning of 1943 - 8 million soldiers and officers.

The highest military rank in the Royal Italian Army was considered the First Marshal of the Empire . This title was equivalent to the title of Generalissimo . It was introduced in 1938 and was available only to two people: Duce Mussolini and King Victor Emanuel III . The title of Marshal of Italy , introduced in 1924 , was awarded only 13 Italian military. Then came the lower senior officer ranks of army generals, corps, division and brigade generals.

Military ranks in black shirts divisions (MVSN) differed from general army ones. For example, there were a centurion (captain), consul (colonel), as well as the first honorary corporal, the title of which only Mussolini had.

World War I

Since 1908, a field uniform of gray-green color was introduced in the Italian army. The cap was the headdress, the cockade on which indicated the rank of soldier. The top officers on the cockade depicted an eagle with the coat of arms of the Savoy dynasty crowned with a royal crown. Until 1915-16, helmets in the Italian army, as in other armies, participated in the First World War . Only soldiers of the Arditi shock units were equipped with special helmets and other metal shields. Since 1916, the army began to be equipped with French Hadrian helmets , the production of which, soon, under the name Elemetto M16, was deployed in Italy itself. The frontal part of the helmet was marked with black symbols indicating belonging to the military branch.

World War II

In 1931, major changes were made to the Italian uniform. So the officers received instead of a cap, new hats: a classic cap and a boost (a special kind of cap). Now, only the generals and high command of the army had a “Savoy eagle” on their cockade caps. A certain pattern (the so-called Greek) was embroidered on the edge of the cap, depending on the rank. Alpine units (Alpini) had their own headgear, a typical alpine hunting hat with brim in the front and with a feather on the side. For troops in North and East Africa, a special colonial cloth helmet was used as a headgear. Buttonholes of Italian soldiers and officers had a different color and even a combination of colors. Each division had its own corporate color. As before, the buttonhole was decorated with a military symbol - a five-pointed star. The soldiers of the fascist militia divisions ( MVSN ) had black eyelets in the form of a flame and were decorated not with a star, but with fascist symbols, lictor fascia. However, unlike the Wehrmacht , on the uniforms of soldiers and officers of which Nazi symbols were present, the Italian royal soldiers did not have fascist symbols, only the senior officers of the Savoy eagle on their cockade held a lictor fascia in their paws. In the Italian army, one of the first in the world in the officer’s tunic was introduced a classic men's tie. In 1939, a tunic with a lap belt was introduced for infantry. The lower ranks were worn by breeches with windings or woolen golf socks and ankle boots. Representatives of the armored and automobile troops had a special tank helmet, created earlier on the basis of an aviator helmet, blue overalls, officers also had a leather jacket and leggings.

In the early 1930s, Italians began to look for a replacement for the obsolete Adriana helmet. In 1931, the M31 steel helmet was developed, but he did not arrange the military and the batch of such helmets was sold to the Greek army. In 1933, the M33 helmet was developed, which since 1937 became the main one in the Italian army. As in the case of the helmet "Adrian" on the front of the helmet M33 signs were affixed to the military branches. Elite units of the army, such as the Carabinieri (military police) and bersaliers, had special differences in uniform. Bersaliers on any headgear (except for caps and boots) on the right side was a sultan of black capercaillie feathers. It was a symbol of the bersalers. Carabinieri wore a special hat in the form of a two -cornered hat called "Lucerne." The insignia on the uniform was located in the form of special stripes on the sleeves, as well as on the busts on the left side.

Like many other armies of the Hitler coalition , the Italian was not adapted to combat in the cold season. The Italians did not have a winter uniform, which had a very negative effect, especially in the Battle of Stalingrad in the conditions of the Russian frost. Urgently warm clothes were ordered in Romania, however, they did not have time to deliver them to customers. As a result, there was a large percentage of losses due to frostbite. For warming, everything that could warm up was used, even women's downy shawls and felt boots taken from local residents.

Numerous native troops of the Italian colonies in Africa, consisting of local residents had their own characteristics in uniform. As a headdress, national turbans , tarbuses, fez and other things could act here. Many tribes were not accustomed to European shoes, and they weren’t enough, so they fought habitually for themselves, barefoot.

The Royal Italian Army had a serious subordination between the rank and file and officers, especially since the latter included many representatives of the Italian aristocracy and even the Royal House of Savoy, such as the vice-king of Italian East Africa Amadeus of Savoy, the Duke of Aosta or the heir to the Italian throne, Umberto II .

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  Pietro Badoglio in full dress of Marshal Italy.

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  Vittorio Ambrosio in full dress uniform.

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  Giovanni Messe in a field general's uniform and with a bust on his head.

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  Italian officers talk with German. Right officer of the Italian Alpine shooters.

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  Bersalier in the " Russian Campaign " (1942-43).

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  Dubat is a Somali soldier of the Italian colonial army .