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| Royal Italian Army | |
|---|---|
| Regio Esercito | |
.svg) War Flag of theRegio Esercito | |
| Active | 1861–1946 |
| Country |  Kingdom of Italy |
| Type | Army |
| Size |
|
| Colors | Green, White and Red |
| Anniversaries | 4 November |
| Engagements | |
| Commanders | |
| King of Italy | |
| Army Chief of Staff | Enrico Cosenz (first) Raffaele Cadorna Jr. (last) |
| Chief of the General Staff | Pietro Badoglio Ugo Cavallero Vittorio Ambrosio Giovanni Messe Claudio Trezzani |
TheRoyal Italian Army (Italian:Regio Esercito,lit. 'Royal Army',RE) was theland force of theKingdom of Italy, established with theproclamation of the Kingdom of Italy. During the 19th century Italy started to unify into one country, and in 1861Manfredo Fanti signed a decree creating theArmy of the Two Sicilies. This newly created army's first task was to defend its territorial gains againstLegitimists in southern Italy, who remained loyal toFrancis II of the Two Sicilies. The Army of the Two Sicilies also waged what many modern historians now consider acivil war againstoutlaws and Bourbonist guerrillas, such as the famousMichelina Di Cesare, and against other Italian states' armies during the continuing wars ofunification. After themonarchy ended in 1946, the army changed its name to become the modernItalian Army (Esercito Italiano).
Within the Royal Italian Army were the elite mountain military corporals, theAlpini. The Alpini, which remain in existence today, are the oldest active mountain infantry in the world. Their original mission was to protect and secure Italy's northern mountain border that aligns withFrance andAustria. This group emerged in World War I when a three-year campaign was fought against theAustro-HungarianKaiserjäger and theGermanAlpenkorps. InWorld War II, the Alpini fought alongsideAxis forces in theEastern Front as well as theBalkans campaign.[2]
TheRegio Esercito dates from theproclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, following theunification of Italy in 1861 after most of thePapal States were seized. On 4 May 1861,Manfredo Fanti signed the creation decree, by which the new army was to replace the previousRoyal Sardinian Army and theArmy of the Two Sicilies.
The first two tasks of the new organization were the repression ofbrigandage insouthern Italy against irregular and hit and run forces (mixed with bands of various criminals), who refused to accept the suppression of theKingdom of Two Sicilies, and theThird War of Italian Independence. On 20 September 1870, the IV Corps capturedRome, which had remained under Papal control up until then.
On 8 February 1885, a corps of fewer than 1,000 soldiers landed atMassaua,Eritrea, starting the creation of anItalian colonial empire. The Italian advance of theFirst Italo-Ethiopian War was halted at theBattle of Adwa by overwhelming Ethiopian forces. The following year, as part of the Italian collaboration with the international pacification program after the revolt against the Turkish domination inCyprus, another corps disembarked atCandia. On 14 July 1900, another expeditionary force was constituted to suppress theBoxer Rebellion inChina in defense of the European protectorates.
On 3 October 1911, Italy invaded Libya as part of theItalo-Turkish War. The war against theOttoman Empire ended with the signing of theFirst Treaty of Lausanne inOuchy, nearLausanne, Switzerland.[3][4]
In the Italian Royal Army, military justice was applied on the based on the 1870 Military Penal Code regulations. This regulation structure was very similar to the 1859 version which was inspired by theRoyal Sardinian Army penal code of 1840 which preceded theAlbertine Statute of 1848. These regulations and factors were determined to be inadequate in the face of direct war violence. In total, 4,028 death sentences were passed in the Royal Italian Army whereas 2,967 were issued absentia where 750 were followed through and completed and 311 were not.[5]
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The Royal Italian Army's first experience withmodern warfare was inWorld War I, from 1915–1918. The war was fought mostly on theItalian Front inNorthern Italy, costing the Italian Army serious casualties, including 246,133 killed, 946,640 wounded, 569,210 captured and 70,656 missing.[6][7]
The Italian 35th Division served on theMacedonian Front as part of theAllied Army of the Orient.[8]
Some Italian divisions were also sent to theWestern Front. In 1918, Italian troops saw intense combat during the German spring offensive.
Italian soldiers also saw action in campaigns against the Ottoman Empire in Africa and the Middle East such as in theSenussi campaign.
Overall, the Royal Italian Army suffered 460,000[9] to 709,000[10][11][12] killed and 947,000 to 1,050,000 wounded during World War I.[13]
During theInterwar period, the army was initially focused onborder security in theAlps and on theItalian-Yugoslav border. It supportedBenito Mussolini'sFascist regime because of its expansionist ideology and reversal of previous governments' defense cuts.[14] In the 1930s, the army participated in thefinal subjugation of Libya, participated in theinvasion of Ethiopia, provided troops and materials for the Corps of Volunteer Troops (Corpo Truppe Volontarie) to fight in theSpanish Civil War, and participated in theItalian invasion of Albania.
TheRegio Esercito (Royal Army) was one of thelargest ground forces in World War II, during which it was one of the pioneers of the use ofparatroopers.[citation needed] Many Italian divisions were reinforced by aMVSNGruppo di Assalto of two battalions due to the small size of the divisions.
In 1943, Italy surrendered and split into theItalian Social Republic, which fielded its own army, theEsercito Nazionale Repubblicano (National Republican Army). On the other side was theEsercito Cobelligerante del Sud (Italian Co-Belligerent Army), the army of the Italian Royalist forces, fighting on the side of theAllies in southern Italy after theAllied armistice with Italy in September 1943.
The Kingdom was ultimately replaced by theItalian Republic in the1946 Italian institutional referendum, and the Royal Army accordingly changed its name to become theEsercito Italiano (Italian Army).
