The Italian Army in Russia (; ARMIR) was a combined force the size of a field army unit of the Regio Esercito (Royal Italian Army) which fought on the Eastern Front during World War II between July 1942 and April 1943. The ARMIR was also known as the 8th Italian Army and initially had 235,000 soldiers. The bulk of this force was destroyed by the Soviet Red Army at the Battle of Stalingrad, after which Mussolini withdrew the remnants from Russia to the West.
Formation
The three divisions of the Italian Expeditionary Corps in Russia (Corpo di spedizione italiano in Russia, or CSIR), sent to the eastern front in July 1941, were very successful, taking a number of towns and cities and creating a favourable impression on their German allies.
In July 1942, when Italian dictator Benito Mussolini decided to scale up the Italian effort in the Soviet Union, the existing CSIR was expanded to become the ARMIR. Unlike the "mobile" CSIR which it replaced, the ARMIR was primarily an infantry army. A good portion of the ARMIR was made up of mountain troops (Alpini), which were ill-suited to the vast, flat expanses of southern Russia.
Like the CSIR, the ARMIR included an Aviation Command (Comando Aereo) with a limited number of fighters, bombers, and transport aircraft. This command was part of the Regia Aeronautica (lit. "Royal Air Force") and was also known as the Corpo Aereo Spedizione in Russia ("Air Expeditionary Corps in Russia"), under the command of General Enrico Pezzi. The ARMIR was subordinated to German Army Group B (Heeresgruppe B) commanded by General Maximilian von Weichs. In February 1943, after its near destruction during the Battle of Stalingrad, Mussolini disbanded what was left of the Italian 8th Army and the surviving Italian troops were unceremoniously brought home from Russia.
Composition
Mussolini sent seven fresh divisions to Russia for a total of ten divisions. Four infantry divisions were sent: the 2nd Infantry Division "Sforzesca", the 3rd Infantry Division "Ravenna", the 5th Infantry Division "Cosseria", and the 156th Infantry Division "Vicenza". In addition to the infantry divisions, three alpine divisions made up of Alpini were sent: the 2nd Alpine Division "Tridentina", the 3rd Alpine Division "Julia", and the 4th Alpine Division "Cuneense". These divisions were added to the 3rd Cavalry Division "Principe Amedeo Duca d'Aosta", 9th Infantry Division "Pasubio", and 52nd Infantry Division "Torino", which were already in Russia as part of the CSIR.
The 8th Italian Army was organized into three corps: II Army Corps (Giovanni Zanghieri), 2nd Infantry Division "Sforzesca" (Carlo Pellegrini), 3rd Infantry Division "Ravenna" (Francesco Du Pont), 5th Infantry Division "Cosseria" (Enrico Gazzale) XXXV Army Corps (Giovanni Messe - replaced 1942.11.01 by Francesco Zingales), 3rd Cavalry Division "Principe Amedeo Duca d'Aosta" (Ettore de Blasio), 9th Infantry Division "Pasubio" (Guido Boselli), 52nd Infantry Division "Torino" (Roberto Lerici), Alpine Army Corps (Gabriele Nasci). 2nd Alpine Division "Tridentina" (Luigi Reverberi), 3rd Alpine Division "Julia" (Umberto Ricagno - POW), 4th Alpine Division "Cuneense" (Emilio Battisti - POW) Under direct command of the 8th Army 156th Infantry Division "Vicenza" (Etelvoldo Pascolini - POW), primarily utilized behind the front on "lines of communications" duties, security and anti-partisan and to act as a reserve. In addition to the ten divisions, the 8th Italian Army included 298th German Division 62nd German division (later being sent to Stalingrad), Croatian Light Transport Brigade,Led by Lieutenant colonel Egon Žitnik, the Croatian Brigade was composed of about 1,215 volunteers (1,100 soldiers, 70 NCO's and 45 Officers), divided into 3 Infantry Companies, 1 Machine-Gun Company, 1 (81mm) Mortar Company and 1 (65mm) Artillery Battery. three legions of Italian Blackshirt volunteers (Camicie Nere, or CC.NN.).
By November 1942, the 8th Italian Army had a total of 235,000 men in twelve divisions, including a Croatian volunteer Legion and three Legions of Camicie Nere (Blackshirt fascist volunteers). It was equipped with 2,657 light and 1,742 heavy machine guns, 250 light and 600 heavy artillery pieces, 52 anti-aircraft guns, 874 light mortars (45mm) and 423 heavy mortars (81mm), 278 Italian 47/32 and 54 German 7.5 cm Pak 97/38 anti-tank guns, 25,000 pack animals, 16,700 vehicles and 4,770 motorcycles.USSME, Le operazioni del C.S.I.R. e dell'ARMIR dal Giugno 1941 all'Ottobre 1942. Rome: USSME. 1947. p. 187; Giusti, Maria Teresa. La campagna di Russia, 1941–1943. Bologna: Il Mulino. 2016. p. 139.
Because of its heavy commitments in North Africa, the armoured component of the ARMIR was tiny. The LXVII Armored Bersaglieri Battalion included two companies of L6/40 light tanks (armed with a turret-mounted 20 mm Breda Model 35 gun), numbering about 60 tanks. The XIII Self-propelled Anti-tank Group "Cavalleggeri di Alessandria" had two squadrons of 19 Semovente da 47/32 assault guns. For anti-tank defence, the ARMIR had been allocated 278 guns of the 47/32 type (Cannone da 47/32 M35). Both the L6/40 light tanks and the 47 mm anti-tank guns were out of date compared to what the Soviets had available to them in late 1942 and early 1943. As far as heavy artillery was concerned, however, the ARMIR received preferential treatment over Italian forces in North Africa. It boasted, for instance, the only existing battery of 210/22 howitzers (Obice da 210/22), 36 of the 51 available 149/40 guns (Cannone da 149/40 modello 35), and all 36 modern 75/32 field guns in existence at the time. The 75/18 and 75/32 howitzers balanced the limited suitability of the 47/32 guns to some degree.The II Corps' artillery received all available 75/32 before being sent to Russia. See Finazzer, Enrico and Riccio, Ralph A. Italian Artillery of WWII. Mushroom Model Publications. 2015. p. 26. The 36 75/32 howitzers of the 201st Motorised Artillery Regiment (Celere), proved particularly effective in the anti-tank role.
As was the complaint of General Messe with the CSIR, the ARMIR was short of adequate winter equipment.
The Aviation Command of the ARMIR had a total of roughly 100 aircraft. The ARMIR had the following aircraft available to it: Macchi C.200 "Arrow" (Saetta) fighter, Macchi C.202 "Lightning" (Folgore) fighter, Caproni Ca.311 light reconnaissance-bomber, and Fiat Br.20 "Stork" (Cicogna) twin-engined bomber.
Commander
Italian General Italo Gariboldi took command of the newly formed ARMIR, instead of General Giovanni Messe. As commander of the CSIR, Messe had opposed an enlargement of the Italian contingent in Russia until it could be properly equipped. Rather than a numerical reinforcement of Italian troops in Russia, Messe asked for a rise in heavy artillery supply, motor vehicles, tanks and antitank weapons. As a result, he was overruled by Mussolini and the CSIR was expanded without his further input.
Just prior to commanding the ARMIR, Gariboldi was the Governor-General of Italian Libya. He was criticized after the war for being too submissive to the Germans in North Africa. Messe remained commander of the 3 initial divisions of the CSIR, which was renamed XXXV Army Corps, but was subordinate to Gariboldi. He was replaced by Francesco Zingales in November 1942.
Air Brigade General Enrico Pezzi was appointed commander of the air force component of the Italian Army in Russia, distinguishing himself in operations on the Eastern Front, for which he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Military Order of Savoy and his fifth and last Silver Medal for Military Valor by the Italian authorities, as well as the Cross of Merit of the Order of the German Eagle 1st Class with Swords, the Iron Cross First Class and the Iron Cross Second Class.Ufficio Storico dell'Aeronautica Militare, I Reparti dell'Aeronautica Militare Italiana, pp. 138–140Franco Pagliano, Storia di diecimila aeroplani, pp. 68–290
Main operations
On 12 July, two weeks after Case Blue began, the XXXV Army Corps (ex CSIR), along with two German corps, began an offensive designed to take the important coal-mining basin of Krasnyi Luch (southeast of Kharkiv) with a rapid enveloping manoeuvre. After a week of heavy fighting in which all three Italian divisions took part the Krasnyi Luch basin, one of the richest coal deposits in the U.S.S.R., was in Axis hands.
As the Italians moved forward to the Don river pursuing the withdrawing Soviet 63rd Army, the highly-mobile riflemen (Bersaglieri) of the motorized 3rd Cavalry Division were diverted to help the Germans eliminate the Soviet bridgehead at Serafimovič on the Don river. From 30 July to 13 August, the Italians fought off a heavy Soviet attack, took the town, swept the woods and swamps around it, and fought off infiltrations and counter-attacks, destroying an enemy armoured brigade, knocking out 35 Soviet tanks and taking 1,600 prisoners. The 75/32 battery proved very effective at short range and destroyed twelve tanks. The battle cost the division 2,989 dead and wounded and the division was withdrawn from the front line to rest and regroup.
On 13 August, the Italian 8th Army reached its assigned sector on the Don on the left flank of the 6th Army's XVII Corps. The Italians had to defend a 270-kilometre front along the right bank of the Don.
On 20 August 1942, the first battle in defence of the Don began. The Russians succeeded in making progress on the front of the XVII German Army Corps drawn up on the right of the Italian XXXV, which also was attacked in force and threatened on its flank and in its rear by the partial yielding of the German Forces.
Italian forces were fighting on a wide front (30 km for the XXXV Army Corps), but succeeded in holding the enemy who was superior, both numerically and in combat means.
On 22 August, Giovanni Messe's XXXV Army Corps received as reinforcements the 3rd Cavalry Division, the Cervino Mountain Battalion and the remnant (a little more than 400 men) of the German 129th Infantry Regiment. The reinforcement of the entire broad front with the few available units meant their attenuation, robbing them of their efficiency. Messe decided to counterattack, choosing his directions of attack and concentrating in those places all the forces available to him. The counterattack began favourably and important positions were retaken.
The Charge of the Savoia Cavalleria at Izbushensky was a clash between the Italian cavalry Regiment "Savoia Cavalleria" (3rd) and the Soviet 812th Rifle Regiment (304th Rifle Division) that took place on 24 August 1942, near the hamlet (khutor) of Izbushensky (Избушенский), close to the junction between the Don and Khopyor rivers. Though a minor skirmish in the theatre of operation of the Eastern Front, the Izbushensky charge had great propaganda resonance in Italy and it is still remembered as one of the last significant cavalry charges in history.
The counterattack executed by the Italians forced the Russians to halt operations, but when they had received reinforcements, the Soviets resumed the offensive, continuing it until 26 September. On that day the weather conditions permitted intervention by Italian and German Air Forces which dropped large caliber bombs in the midst of Russian concentrations, forcing the Soviets to halt their operations.