Royal Italian Army

The Royal Italian Army (Italian: Regio Esercito, "Royal Army") was the army of the Kingdom of Italy from the unification of Italy in 1861 to the birth of the Italian Republic in 1946. In World War II the Royal Army fought first as part of the Axis (1939-43) and then as part of the Allies (1943-5). After the monarchy ended, the army changed its name to become the Italian Army (Esercito Italiano).

History

Origins

The Regio Esercito dates from the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy following the unification of Italy in 1861 after the Papal States were seized. The creation decree by which the new army replaced the previous Army of the Kingdom of Sardinia (Armata Sarda) and the Army of the Two Sicilies was signed by Manfredo Fanti on 4 May 1861.

The first task of the new organization were the repression of brigandage in southern Italy (against irregular/guerrilla forces, mixed with bands of true criminals, which did not accept the suppression of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies) and the Third War of Italian Independence. On 20 September 1870, the IV Corps captured Rome, which had remained under Papal States till then.

Royal Italian Army during World War II

This article is about the Italian Royal Army (Regio Esercito) which participated in World War II.

The Italian Royal Army was reformed in 1861 and lasted until 1946. The Royal Army started with the unification of Italy (Risorgimento) and the formation of the Kingdom of Italy (Regno d'Italia). It ended with the dissolution of the monarchy. The Royal Army was preceded by the individual armies of the various independent Italian states and was followed by the Italian Army (Esercito Italiano) of the Italian Republic (Repubblica Italiana).

Organization

The Italian Army of World War II was a "Royal" army. The nominal Commander-in-Chief of the Italian Royal Army was His Majesty King Vittorio Emanuele III. As Commander-in-Chief of all Italian armed forces, Vittorio Emanuele also commanded the Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica) and the Royal Navy (Regia Marina). However, in reality, most of the King's military responsibilities were assumed by the Italian Prime Minister Benito Mussolini.

Italian Army

The Italian Army (Italian: Esercito Italiano; EI) is the land defence force of the Italian Armed Forces of the Italian Republic. The army's history dates back to the unification of Italy in the 1850s and 1860s. The army fought in colonial engagements in China, Libya (1911–1912), northern Italy against the Austro-Hungarian Empire during World War I, Abyssinia before World War II, and in World War II in Albania, Greece, north Africa, Russia 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 Presidential Palace. The army is an all-volunteer force of active-duty personnel, numbering 102,995 personnel in 2014 and therefore being the second largest army of the European Union and the fourth among NATO nations.