The Guardia alla Frontiera (GaF) (transl. "border guard"), was an Regio Esercito border guard created in 1937 who defended the 1,851 km of northern Italian frontiers with the "Vallo Alpino Occidentale" (487 km with France), "Vallo Alpino Settentrionale" (724 km with Switzerland and 420 km with Austria) and "Vallo Alpino Orientale" (220 km with Yugoslavia).

In 1940, the GaF had 21,000 military personnel, deployed in eight commands, 27 sectors, and seven regiments of artillery. It manned 1,000 fortifications, 6,000 machine guns, 1,000 mortars, 100 Cannone da 47/32 M35, and another thousand other medium and small-caliber cannons (75/27 and 149/35).

By 10 June 1940 (Italy's entry into the war) the GaF (not counting colonies in Libya and Albania) contained 23 sectors, 50,000 men, 28 battalions "Vallo Alpino", and 22 battalions of fascist militia.

Organization

Each command of the army of GaF could be divided into "sectors" (27 areas of coverage, from I to XXVII, along the border; sectors XVIII, XIX and XX were never realized), which could be broken down into subsectors and so on for ever smaller units. Each command in the field had two or more subsectors which controlled the fortifications. These works were manned by infantry, artillery, engineers, etc. Despite the GaF being predominantly static it also received five light tank (carristi) companies, equipped with Fiat 3000 tanks that over time, due to their age and lack of spare parts, ended largely abandoned in Sector armories or buried to use the turrets as a fort.

The Guardia alla Frontiera disappeared after 1943, but nominally was active until 1953.Detailed information on "Guardia alla Frontiera" (in Italian)

The sectors in 1943 were mostly focused on covering Northern Italy, thus leading to the creation of the coverage sectors of , for the and the . However, as the war went on new sectors were created along the borders of Italian colonies, and occupied territories by Italy, such as Albania, Libya and Tunisia.

In Italy Vallo alpino occidentale Army Corps Sector Sector HQ Subsectors Subsector HQ Area responsible XV - Genoa I Bassa Roja Bordighera 1/a Destra Roja Ventimiglia Ligurian Sea - Testa dell'Alpe 1/b Sinistra Roja Dolceacqua V Media Roja Taggia 5/a Muratone Pigna Testa dell'Alpe - Balcone di Marta 5/b Marta Molini di Triora II - Alessandria II Alta Roja - Gessi Cuneo 2/a Alta Roja Tende Balcone di Marta - Ponte Negri 2/b Gessi Valdieri III Stura Vinadio 3/a Collalunga - San Salvatore Vinadio Ponte Negri - Passo di Vanclava 3/b Alta Stura Sambuco IV Maira - Po Saluzzo 4/a Maira Prazzo Passo di Vanclava - Monte Granero 4/b Varaita Casteldelfino 4/c Po Crissolo I - Turin VI Pellice - Germanasca Pinerolo 6/a Pellice Torre Pellice Monte Granero - Col d'Abries 6/b Germanasca Perrero VII Monginevro Cesana 7/a Cesana Bousson Col d'Abreis - Passo Desertes 7/b Val ChisoneCesana VIII Bardonecchia Bardonecchia 8/a Colomion Bardonecchia Passo Desertes - Monte Niblé 8/b Melmise Bardonecchia IX Moncenisio Susa 9/a Clapier Susa Monte Niblè - Rocciamelone 9/b Moncenisio Mont CenisAutonomous Subsector Levanna Lanzo Torinese Rocciamelone - Cima Galisia X Baltea Aosta 10/a Nivolet - Valgrisenza ValgrisenzaCima Galisia - Monte Rosa 10/b Piccolo S.Bernardo - SeigneSan Desiderio Terme 10/c Gran S.Bernardo San Remigio

Three artillery regiments supported the sectors of the Vallo alpino occidentale: 7th Guardia alla Frontiera Artillery Regiment, in Cuneo 8th Guardia alla Frontiera Artillery Regiment, in Venaria Reale 11th Guardia alla Frontiera Artillery Regiment, in Savona

Vallo alpino settentrionale Army Corps Sector Sector HQ Subsectors Subsector HQ Area responsible III - Milan XI Laghi Varese 11/a Val d'Ossola Domodossola Monte Rosa - Pizzo Martello 11/b Verbano-Lario Como XII Valtellina Sondrio 12/a Morbegno Chiavenna Pizzo Martello - Cima Garibaldi 12/b Bormio Madonna di Tirano IV - Bolzano XIII Venosta Merano 13/a Resia Mals Cima Garibaldi - Cima Libera 13/b Passiria Merano XIV Isarco Brixen 14/a Brennero Gossensaß Cima Libera - Pizzo di Alpre 14/b Vipiteno Sterzing XV Pusteria Bruneck 15/a Drava Innichen Pizzo di Alpre - Sella Frugnoni 15/b Rienza Welsberg XIV - Treviso XVI Cadore - Carnia Tolmezzo 16/a Cadore Santo Stefano di Cadore Sella Frugnoni - Sella Valdolce 16/b Val Degano Forni Avoltri 16/c Val But Paluzza 16/d Val Chiarsò Paularo XVII Tarvisio Pontebba 17/a Pontebba Pontebba Sella Valdolce - Monte Termine 17/b Ugovizza Ugovizza 17/c Silizza Tarvisio 17/d Val Romana Fusine Valromana

One artillery regiment and one autonomous artillery group supported the sectors of the Vallo alpino settentrionale: 6th Guardia alla Frontiera Artillery Regiment, in Bolzano Guardia alla Frontiera Autonomous Artillery Group, in Sondrio

Vallo alpino orientale Army Corps Sector Sector HQ Subsectors Subsector HQ Area responsible XI - Udine XXI Alto Isonzo Tolmin 21/a Trenta Monte Termine - Passo di Piedicolle 21/b Polubino 21/c Podbrdo XXII Idria Idrija 22/a Cerkno Passo di Piedicolle - Zolla-Selva di Piro-Cauzze 22/b Idrija 22/c Črni Vrh XXIII Postumia Postojna 23/a Vipava Zolla-Selva di Piro-Cauzze - Monte Grosso 23/b Postojna V - Trieste XXV Timavo Pivka 25/a Timavo Pivka Monte Grosso - Testa d'Orso 25/b Nevoso Knežak XXVI Carnaro Ilirska Bistrica 26/a Trestenico Ilirska Bistrica Testa d'Orso - Volosca 26/b Bresa Klana 26/c Mattuglie Matulji XXVII Fiume Rijeka Borgo Marina - Monte Calvario ZaraAnche se non ufficialmente previsti settori GaF nel territorio di Zara, un provvedimento del governo del 1939 considera le truppe stanziate a Zara quali appartenenti alla GaF.M. Ascoli, SME, Roma 2003 La Guardia alla Frontiera, p. 301. Zadar Province of Zara - Dalmatia

Three artillery regiments supported the sectors of the Vallo alpino orientale: 9th Guardia alla Frontiera Artillery Regiment, in Gorizia 10th Guardia alla Frontiera Artillery Regiment, in Trieste 12th Guardia alla Frontiera Artillery Regiment, in Osoppo

In Albania

Command Sector Sector HQ Subsectors Subsector HQ 26° - Tirana XLI Scutari Shkodër 41/a Miloti Pilana 41/b Bojana Oblika 41/c Kopliku Koplik Coastal Subsector San Giovanni di Medua Shëngjin Coastal Subsector Durazzo Durrës XLII Scutari Shkodër 42/a 42/b XLIII Kossovo Kukës 43/a Kukës 43/b XLIV Laghi Piskupat 44/a Piskupat 44/b XLV Librazhd Librazhd 45/a Fieri Fier 45/b Ciamuria Librazhd

One artillery regiment supported the 26th Command in Albania: 13th Guardia alla Frontiera Artillery Regiment, in Tirana

In Libya Libyan-Tunisian border

Command Sector Sector HQ Subsectors Subsector HQ 20° - Tripoli XXVIII Zuara Zuwarah 28/a Sidi Milad 28/b Regdalin 28/c Sidi abd es Samad XXIX Nalut Nalut 29/a Ain el Ghezaia 29/b Ras el Reab Autonomous Subsector Uadi Hammar Uadi Hammar Tripoli Military Garrison XXXIII Tripoli Ovest Tripoli 33/a Sidi Bilal 33/b C. Lupini 33/c C. Sottocasa XXXIV Tripoli Est Tripoli 34/a Bir ben Milad 34/b Al-Khums XXXV Tripoli Sud Tripoli 35/a Castel Benito 35/b Bir Langar 35/c Suani ben Adem XXXVI Tripoli Sud Est Tripoli 36/a 36/b

One artillery regiment supported the units arrayed on the Libyan-Tunisian border: 14th Guardia alla Frontiera Artillery Regiment, in Tripoli

Libyan-Egyptian border Command Sector Sector HQ Subsectors Subsector HQ 31° - Bardia XXX Bardia Bardia 30/a Sud Fort Capuzzo 30/b Centro Jaghbub 30/c Nord Ponticelli Tobruk Military Garrison XXXI Ras el Meduar Tobruk 31/a 31/b XXXII Sidi Daud Tobruk 32/a 32/b

Libyan Sahara G.a.F. Command Sector Sector HQ Libyan Sahara Troops Command - Kufra Gadames Ghadames Serdeles Ghat Cufra Kufra

Notes

See also Alpine Wall