TheArmy of the Po (ItalianArmata del Po), numbered theSixth Army (6a Armata), was afield army of theRoyal Italian Army (Regio Esercito) duringWorld War II (1939–45).
When it was initially formed on 10 November 1938 under the command of GeneralEttore Bastico, it comprised threecorps:
This formation was the brainchild of GeneralAlberto Pariani, then Chief of the General Staff, who desired to combine armoured and motorised divisions into a potent force based in thePo Valley and ready to move towards any of Italy's land borders at a moment's notice. By December 1938, Bastico had drawn up plans for concentrating the force aroundTarvisio in the event of war with Austria or on a line fromUdine toTrieste in the event of war with Yugoslavia.[2]
In 1939, sixBlackshirt battalions took part in the field manoeuvres of the Army of the Po.[3] In the first half of 1940 theCentauro division was moved toAlbania, where it took part in theItalian invasion of Greece later that year.[1] During theItalian invasion of France (10–25 June 1940), the Army of the Po (minus theCentauro) was held in reserve.[4]
In February 1941, the headquarters of the Army of the Po (Sixth Army) was transferred to southern Italy. On 1 March, the Armoured Corps became theXVII Corps and deployed to Albania as an infantry command. All three of the former corps of the Sixth Army took part in theinvasion of Yugoslavia in April. In July 1943, the headquarters of the Sixth Army took charge of thedefence of Sicily. The 6th Army suffered heavy losses against the Allies in July–August 1943 and withdrew to northern Italy for reorganization. It capitulated to the Germans upon the surrender of Italy in September 1943.[1]