The 185th Paratroopers Reconnaissance Target Acquisition Regiment "Folgore" (, abbreviated as: 185° RAO) is an Italian Army special forces unit. The regiment is part of the Italian Army's infantry arm's Paracadutisti speciality and assigned to the Army Special Forces Command. The regiment was formed in 1941 as 1st Paratroopers Regiment and assigned, in September 1941, to the Paratroopers Division. The division was intended to parachute onto Malta during the planned invasion of Malta. In July 1942, the invasion of Malta was postponed indefinitely and the Paratroopers Division was ordered to deploy to North Africa as reinforcement for the German-Italian Panzer Army Africa. Consequently, the division, which would operate as an infantry formation in North Africa, was renamed on 27 July 1942 185th Infantry Division "Folgore". On the same day, the 1st Paratroopers Regiment was renamed 185th Infantry Regiment "Folgore". When the division moved to North Africa the regiment remained in Italy and in September 1942, the regiment left the division. On 1 November 1942, the regiment joined the 184th Infantry Division "Nembo" and was renamed 185th Infantry Regiment "Nembo". In May 1943, the 184th Infantry Division "Nembo" was ordered to deploy to the island Sardinia and once again the regiment did not accompany the division, but was instead sent to Apulia and then to Sicily.
In July 1943, the regiment fought against the Allied invasion of Sicily. After the announcement of the Armistice of Cassibile on 8 September 1943 the regiment split, with the III Paratroopers Battalion joining the German side and the XI Paratroopers Battalion and 9th Company of the III Paratroopers Battalion joining the allied side. In January 1944, the regiment was disbanded and its personnel used to form to the CLXXXV Paratroopers Battalion "Nembo", while the 9th Company, which had operated as an autonomous unit on the allied side since September 1943, was renamed 1st Reconnaissance Squadron "Folgore". Both units fought on the allied side in the Italian campaign. In September 1944, the CLXXXV Paratroopers Battalion "Nembo" was disbanded and its personnel assigned to the Paratroopers Regiment "Nembo" of the Combat Group "Folgore". In July 1945, the 1st Reconnaissance Squadron "Folgore" was disbanded.
In 1963, regiment was reformed as 1st Paratroopers Regiment and consisted of two battalions. In 1975, the regiment was disbanded and its two battalions became autonomous units. As part of the same reform the Paratroopers Recruits Training Battalion was renamed 3rd Paratroopers Battalion "Poggio Rusco" and assigned the flag and traditions of the 185th Infantry Regiment "Folgore". In 1998, the battalion was disbanded and the flag of the 185th Infantry Regiment "Folgore" transferred to the Shrine of the Flags in the Vittoriano in Rome for safekeeping. In 2013, the regiment's flag and traditions were assigned to the 185th Paratroopers Reconnaissance Target Acquisition Regiment "Folgore", which until then had been assigned the flag and traditions of the 185th Artillery Regiment "Folgore". The regiment's anniversary falls on 20 April 1945, the day the paratroopers of the 1st Reconnaissance Squadron "Folgore", departed the United States Army Air Forces airfield at Rosignano for Operation Herring.
History Formation On 1 July 1940, the Royal Italian Air Force's Paratroopers School in Tarquinia formed the I Paratroopers Battalion for the Royal Italian Army. In the following days, the Paratroopers School formed the II Paratroopers Battalion, and then the III Paratroopers Battalion, which consisted of personnel drawn from the Carabinieri troops. After their formation the three battalions began with their parachute training. On 15 July 1940, the I Paratroopers Battalion ceded its number for reason of precedence to the III Paratroopers Battalion, which on the same day was redesignated I Carabinieri Paratroopers Battalion. On the same day the I Paratroopers Battalion was renumbered as II Paratroopers Battalion, while the II Paratroopers Battalion was renumbered as III Paratroopers Battalion.
On 1 April 1941, the Royal Italian Army formed the 1st Paratroopers Regiment in Viterbo. The new regiment consisted of a command, the I Carabinieri Paratroopers Battalion, the II Paratroopers Battalion, the III Paratroopers Battalion, a support weapons company, and a depot. In June 1941, the I Carabinieri Paratroopers Battalion left the regiment and moved to Libya. As a replacement, the regiment received the newly formed IV Paratroopers Battalion. On 1 July 1941, the regiment replaced the Support Weapons Company with the 1st Cannons Company, which was equipped with 47/32 mod. 35 anti-tank guns.
World War II Battle of Greece On 30 April 1941, the last day of the Battle of Greece, three Savoia-Marchetti SM.82 transport planes left Galatina Air Base with 75 paratroopers of the II Paratroopers Battalion. In the early hours of the afternoon, the paratroopers conducted the first Italian airborne assault near Argostoli on the Greek island of Cephalonia. The Greek troops on the island surrendered without bloodshed on the same day. The next day the paratroopers commandeered some boats and proceeded to occupy the islands of Zakynthos and Ithaca.
On 1 September 1941, the 2nd Paratroopers Regiment was formed in Viterbo with the V, VI, and VII paratroopers battalions. On the same day, the new regiment joined, together with the 1st Paratroopers Regiment, the newly formed Paratroopers Division in Tarquinia. The division was one of the Royal Italian Army units assigned to the planned invasion of Malta and after its formation the division began with the training for the invasion. At the time the 1st Paratroopers regiment consisted of the following units:
1st Paratroopers Regiment Command Company II Paratroopers Battalion 4th, 5th, and 6th Company III Paratroopers Battalion 7th, 8th, and 9th Company IV Paratroopers Battalion 10th, 11th, and 12th Company 1st Cannons Company (47/32 mod. 35 anti-tank guns)
On 10 March 1942, the Artillery Regiment for Paratroopers Division was formed and assigned to the Paratroopers Division, and five days later, on 15 March 1942, the 3rd Paratroopers Regiment was formed and assigned to the division. In July 1942, after the First Battle of El Alamein, the invasion of Malta was postponed indefinitely and the Royal Italian Army's General Staff decided to send the Paratroopers Division to North Africa to reinforce the depleted German-Italian Panzer Army Africa at El Alamein in Egypt. As the Paratroopers Division would operate in North Africa as an infantry formation, the division was renamed on 27 July 1942 185th Infantry Division "Folgore". On the same day, the 1st Paratroopers Regiment was renamed 185th Infantry Regiment "Folgore", while the 2nd Paratroopers Regiment was renamed 186th Infantry Regiment "Folgore", the 3rd Paratroopers Regiment 187th Infantry Regiment "Folgore", and the Artillery Regiment for Paratroopers Division 185th Artillery Regiment "Folgore". However, when the division deployed to North Africa, the 185th Infantry Regiment "Folgore" remained in Italy. On 15 September 1942, the 185th Infantry Regiment "Folgore" left the "Folgore" division and, on the same day, ceded its II and IV paratroopers battalions to the 187th Infantry Regiment "Folgore". As replacement the regiment received the XI Paratroopers Battalion, which was still in the process of being formed.
On 1 November 1942, the regiment was renamed 185th Infantry Regiment "Nembo" and assigned, together with the 184th Infantry Regiment "Nembo", to the newly formed 184th Infantry Division "Nembo". At this time the regiment also included the X/bis Paratroopers Battalion, which had been formed after the X Paratroopers Battalion had to be disbanded due to the losses the battalion had suffered in Operation Braganza at El Alamein. After joining the "Nembo" division the 185th Infantry Regiment "Nembo" consisted of the following units:
185th Infantry Regiment "Nembo" Command Company III Paratroopers Battalion 7th, 8th, and 9th Company X/bis Paratroopers Battalion 28th, 29th, and 30th Company XI Paratroopers Battalion 31st, 32nd, and 33rd Company 185th Cannons Company (47/32 mod. 35 anti-tank guns)
On 1 February 1943, the 183rd Infantry Regiment "Nembo" was formed. The new regiment consisted of the VIII/bis, XV, and XVI paratroopers battalions. The VIII/bis Paratroopers Battalion had been formed as a replacement for the VIII Paratroopers Battalion, which, in May 1942, had been redesignated as VIII Paratroopers Sappers Battalion and, in November 1942, been destroyed in the Second Battle of El Alamein. In March 1943, the regiment's III Paratroopers Battalion was deployed to the Julian March to fight Yugoslav partisan formations. In April 1943, the III Paratroopers Battalion was joined by the XI Paratroopers Battalion and the two battalions formed a Grouping under the command of the regiment's deputy commander. The grouping operated in the area of Črni Vrh, Vipava, Zadlog, Postojna and Ajdovščina until June 1943. In May 1943, the 184th Infantry Division "Nembo" was ordered to deploy to Sardinia and the 183rd Infantry Regiment "Nembo" exchanged its not yet fully trained VIII/bis Paratroopers Battalion with the X/bis Paratroopers Battalion of the 185th Infantry Regiment "Nembo".
Invasion of Sicily In July, the 185th Infantry Regiment "Nembo", which at the time consisted of the III, VIII/bis, and XI paratroopers battalions, and III Paratroopers Artillery Group of the 184th Artillery Regiment "Nembo" were sent to Apulia in southern Italy to guard Royal Italian Air Force airfields on the Salento peninsula. On 10 July 1943, Allied forces landed in Sicily and the regiment and artillery group were shipped to Sicily to reinforce the Axis's line of defence in the island's northeastern corner. On 3 August 1943, the regiment took up its positions on the northern slopes of the Peloritani mountains between Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto and Castroreale. However, the American Seventh Army's advance was unstoppable and the regiment was forced to fall back to Messina. Allied airpower forced the regiment to abandon all its vehicles and materiel and retreat by foot over the mountains. After reaching Messian the regiment was evacuated on 16 August 1943 to Reggio Calabria.
Invasion of Italy In Calabria the 185th Infantry Regiment was assigned to the 211th Coastal Division, which was tasked with the coastal defense of the southernmost tip of Calabria. The regiment, which formed the division's reserve, had its headquarters and the III Paratroopers Artillery Group in Cittanova, while the XI Paratroopers Battalion was at Santa Cristina d'Aspromonte, the III Paratroopers Battalion at Melia, and VIII/bis Paratroopers Battalion at Melito di Porto Salvo.