The Post-1943 Italian Fascist Forces of WWII

On July 25, 1943, Benito Mussolini was ousted from power and replaced by a new government. The Germans were perfectly aware of the Italian bid to surrender to the Allies and they prepared accordingly. On September 8th, 1943, after a series of last-minute deals, Badoglio announced an armistice with the Allies and promptly fled with the King of Italy to reach the Allied lines, leaving a good majority of Italian soldiers without any firm directive. The Germans promptly occupied Italy in the wake of this coup, and the Italian Army was largely disbanded. On September 12th, 1943, after weeks of frantic research, the German intelligence services managed to locate where Mussolini was being held as a prisoner and launched a covert operation to rescue him. The operation was an amazing success, organized and performed by German Parachutists under the direction of Otto Skorzeny. On September 14th, 1943, a worn-out Duce arrived at Rastenburg where he found several of his hard-line fascist generals waiting. After strong pressure from Hitler, Mussolini grudgingly accepted a new political role as the head of the new Italian Fascist Government, and on September 23rd, 1943, the “Repubblica Sociale Italiana” (RSI) was founded with its capital located at Salo, a small village on the Garda Lake. The new government was a “Republic”, the first Italian Republic since the early 1800s, and “Social”, that is, it introduced very advanced social security and work regulation provisions, such as the participation of workers in the profit of their industries, etc. As a political entity, the RSI was a reasonably efficient machine, albeit in times of great economic and social difficulties, and was able to maintain a surprisingly high level of independence from the Germans in this respect.

ESERCITO NAZIONALE REPUBBLICANO

After the Italian Armistice, the great majority of the Italian army left without orders, was disbanded. Thousands of soldiers were killed by the Germans in attempts to quell any move by the former Axis nation to join the Allies or the partisans, while tens of thousands were disarmed and sent to Germany as prisoners. A few units were able to stand together, while some went over to the Allies such as the garrisons of Sardegna and Corsica, others went over to the Germans. A virtual Civil War broke out within the forces of the defunct Italian military and ex-government between continued support of the Axis cause and joining up with the Allies.

Of the many Italian units that continued to fight alongside the Axis was a company from the 10th Arditi Regiment, the commando unit of the Italian Army. It joined the 2.Fallschirmjäger-Division that was based with them at the Pratica di Mare airport near Roma. They had fought in Russia at Jatomir, Kiev, Novocobiscoia, and Kirovograd, to name a few places, and later in Holland near Eindhoven and Arnhem. They served as the recon unit of the 2.Fallschirmjäger-Division, and did so in German uniforms, but with some of their Italian recon vehicles still on hand.

Another unit was the Blackshirt (Camicie Nere) “M” Assault Legion “Tagliamento”, who were also veterans of the Russian front. They joined the SS-Polizei-Bataillone “Gorice”, (Named from the Polish town where they were trained), and “Vendetta”. They were used as assault troops during the counterattacks on the Anzio Bridgehead in Italy, performing admirably.

The “Esercito Nazionale Repubblicano” (National Republican Army) of the RSI was recruited at first among volunteers coming both from Italy and from the prison camps in Germany. The RSI authorities were amazed by the very high response of volunteers, over 150,000, and it was decided to form four front-line divisions, to be trained in Germany by German instructors. Life in the training camps was miserable, with bare survival meals and incredibly hard physical and tactical training, but the end product was four first-class divisions with very high morale and operational skills, eager to fight against the Allies.

Unfortunately, the Germans did not trust the Italians much by this time, and when the Divisions returned to Italy they were assigned to counter-insurgency and coastal-defense operations. The morale of the soldiers was quickly shattered, and their operational skills diminished. Soon, the desertion rate was very high within these units.

Besides garrison and anti-partisan activity, the RSI army fought on the northeast frontier against the Yugoslavian partisans (who by 1944 were already organized as a regular army), that were advancing against Trieste, Udine, and Venezia in Italy. The only large offensive operation of the RSI Army against the Allies was a regimental-size tactical counterattack on the Apennines in the Winter of 1944 against US troops. The operation was a full success, and the RSI troops proved themselves very skilled and aggressive in this otherwise brief encounter.

After the May 8th, 1945, with the final and total Axis surrender, RSI Army troops were butchered all over Italy by rampaging bands of self-proclaimed partisans. Their only defense was in the hands of the advancing US units or when they surrendered to the few “legitimate” partisan combat outfits in the region. Many thousands of RSI soldiers were not so lucky.

The main units of the “Esercito Nazionale Repubblicano” were as follows:

1st (later 4th) Apini Division “Monterosa” (Pink Mountain)

Divisional Headquarters
23rd Recce Bn “Fimme Rosse” (red flames)
1st Alpini Regiment “Monterosa”
Alpini Bn “Aosta” (Name of a town, like the other battalions)
Alpini Bn “Intra”
Alpini Bn “Bassano”
Pack-mules supply column
101st AT coy.
2nd Alpini Regiment “Monterosa”
Alpini Bn “Brescia”
Alpini Bn “Morbegno”
Alpini Bn “Tirano”
Pack-mules supply column
102ndt AT coy.
101st Replacements Bn “Ivrea”
1st Alpini Artillery Rgt. “Monterosa”
1st Alpini Arty Bn “Aosta”
2nd Alpini Arty Bn “Bergamo”
3rd Alpini Arty Bn “Verona” (later “Vicenza”)
4th Alpini Arty Bn “Mantova”
1st Lines-of-Communication Engineers Bn
1st Mountain Assault Engineers Bn
1st Transport Bn
1st Medical coy
101st Medical coy
1st Medical transport section
1st Field Butchery coy
1st Field Bakery coy
1st Logistic coy
1st Veterinary coy
1st MP section

2nd Infantry Division “Littorio”

Divisional headquarters
2nd Recce Bn
2nd Heavy AT coy
3rd Infantry Regiment “Littorio”
1st Infantry Bn
2nd Infantry Bn
3rd Infantry Bn
103rd AT coy
4th Alpini Regiment “Littorio”
1st Alpini Bn
2nd Alpini Bn
3rd Alpini Bn “Edolo”
Pack-mules supply column
104th AT coy
102nd Replacements Bn “Littorio”
2nd Artillery Regiment “Littorio”
1st Arty Bn
2nd Arty Bn
3rd Arty Bn
4th Arty Bn
2nd Lines-of-Communication Engineers Bn
2nd Mountain Assault Engineers Bn
2nd Transport Bn
2nd Medical coy
201st Medical coy
2nd Medical transport section
2nd Field Butchery coy
2nd Field Bakery coy
2nd Logistic coy
2nd Veterinary coy
2nd MP section

The “Littorio” Division was sometimes called a “Grenadier” division. This was mainly a morale-bolstering effort, in imitation of the German tendency to give units the title of Grenadier. The Littorio Division was not a Grenadier unit, as in the Italian Army the Grenadiers were, and still are, the Guard units, formed from select (and usually very tall) soldiers. Only one such unit- a single independent Grenadier battalion – was part of the RSI Army(see below).

WW2 Italian Navy – San Marco Regiment

3rd Naval Infantry Division “San Marco” (the Saint-patron of Venice)

Divisional Headquarters
3rd Rece Bn (the former 2nd Bn of the 10th Arditi Regiment)
5th Naval Infantry Regiment “San Marco”
1st Naval Infantry Bn
2nd Naval Infantry Bn
3rd Naval Infantry Bn
6th Naval Infantry Regiment “San Marco”
1st Naval Infantry Bn
2nd Naval Infantry Bn
3rd Naval Infantry Bn
3 x AT coys
53rd Replacements Bn.
3rd Artillery Regiment “San Marco”
1st Arty Bn
2nd Arty Bn
3rd Arty Bn
4th Arty Bn
3rd Lines-of-Communication Engineers Bn
3rd Mountain Assault Engineers Bn
3rd Transport Bn
3rd Medical coy
301st Medical coy
3rd Medical transport section
3rd Field Butchery coy
3rd Field Bakery coy
3rd Logistic coy
3rd Veterinary coy
3rd MP section

This Division was part of the Army, and NOT of the Navy as it is often incorrectly reported.

4th (later 1st) Bersaglieri Division “Italia”

Divisional Headquarters
2nd Recce Bn.
7th Bersaglieri Regiment “Italia”
1st Bersaglieri Bn
2nd Bersaglieri Bn
3rd Bersaglieri Bn
107th AT coy
8th Cacciatori degli Appenninini (“Appennines Hunters”) Regiment “Italia”
1st Cacciatori Bn
2nd Cacciatori Bn
3rd Cacciatori Bn
108th AT coy
4th Recce Bn
4th haevy AT coy
104th Replacements Bn “Italia”
4th Artillery Regiment “Italia”
1st Arty Bn
2nd Arty Bn
3rd Arty Bn
4th Arty Bn
4th Lines-of-Comunication Engineers Bn
4th Mountain Assault Engineers Bn
4th Transport Bn
4th Medical coy
401st Medical coy
4th Medical transport section
4th Field Butchery coy
4th Field Bakery coy
4th Logistic coy
4th Veterinary coy
4th MP section

Independent Units:

  • Comando Controguerriglia (counter-guerrilla command)
    1 x Cavalry Coy.
    1 x 155mm artillerybattery
  • Centro Addestramento Reparti Speciali (Special units training center)
    1st Grenadiers Bn
    2nd Alpini Bn “Cadore”
    2nd GNR Bn (GNR = RepublicanNational Guard)
    3rd GNR Bn
    Dismounted cavalry coy
  • Raggruppamento Anti Partigiani (anti-partisans task force)
    1st Bn
    2nd Bn
    3rd Bn
  • Reggimento Volontari Fiumani “Tagliamento” (a river, volunteers came from Fiume near Yugolsavia)
    1st Bn
    2nd Bn
    3rd Bn
    1st Blackshirts Bn
  • Reggimento Bersaglieri Volontari
    15th Coastal Defence Bn
    1st Bersaglieri Bn”Mussolini”
    2nd Bersaglieri Bn”Mameli”
    3rd Bersaglieri Bn
    101st Replacements Bn
  • Unita’ legionarie Italiane
    Officers Bn
    “Von Dibio” Group (3 Bns)
    Brigata d’Assalto Italiana
    1st Mot. Infantry Regiment (2Bns)
    2nd Mot.Infantry Regiment (2Bns)
    4 x Arty Bns

Coastal Defense units:

  • 1st Bersaglieri Bn
  • 2nd Bersglieri Bn
  • 3rd Bersglieri Bn
  • 7th Infantry Bn
  • 8th Infantry Bn
  • 9th Infantry Bn
  • 10th Mountain Bn
  • 11th Bersaglieri Bn
  • 12th Infantry Bn
  • 13th Infantry Bn
  • 14th Blackshirts Bn
  • 16th Infantry Bn
  • 17th Infantry Bn
  • 1st Coastal Arty Bn (10 batteries)
  • 3rd Coastal Arty Bn (8 batteries)
  • 5th Coastal Arty Bn (4 batteries)
  • 9th Coastal Arty Bn (12 batteries)
  • 13th Coastal Arty Bn (8 batteries)
  • 15th Coastal Arty Bn (2 batteries)
  • 17th Coastal Arty Bn (3 batteries)

Field Fortification Construction Engineers:

  • 116th Bn
  • 122nd Bn
  • 123rd Bn
  • 124th Bn
  • 125th Bn
  • 126th Bn
  • 132nd Bn
  • 134th Bn
  • 138th Bn
  • 140th Bn
  • 142nd Bn
  • 143rd Bn
  • 145th Bn
  • 146th Bn

Elements of other 18 partially disbanded Bns were grouped in a Centro Raccolta Complementi Genio, and another 7 Bns were under re-construction (the 113th,115th, 117th, 135th, 119th, 151st, 130th)

Field Engineers:

  • 6 Bns (numbered from 1st to 6th)

Armour:

  • 1st independent Cavalry coy (armored cars)
  • “M” armored Bn
  • 3rd Armored Bn/31st Rgt

In Germany:

  • 5 x “smoke cover” Bns in defense of the Baltic ports
  • 92nd Blackshirt Bn at Vienna

In France:

  • militia Volunteers unit
  • Italian Security Bn AOK
  • 6th Heavy Arty Bn

In Greece:

  • 2nd Bn, Arty Rgt “Piemonte”
  • 8th MG Bn
  • Elements of the 7th Infantry Rgt
  • 24th Blackshirts Legion “Carroccio” (1 inf + 1 arty Bns)

In Croatia:

  • 49th Blackshirts Legion “Marche”

In Montenegro:

  • 72nd Blackshirts Legion (3rd + 72nd Bns)
  • 86th Blackshirts Legion (86th + 94th Bns)
  • 81st, 82nd, 40th, 49th, 33rd, 111st, 114th ind. Blackshirts Bns

In Russia:

  • 834th Field Hospital

Others:

  • 44 x independent garrison coys
  • 6th Arditi Ufficiali unit (Shock troops – officers)
  • 221st “Italiani all’Estero” legion (volunteers returned to Italy from abroad)
  • 6th Artillery bn (3 batteries)
  • “Moschettieri delle Alpi” Bn
  • “Volontari di Sardegna” Bn
  • 1st Assault Engineers Bn “Forli”

MARINA NAZIONALE REPUBBLICANA

The bulk of the Italian Fleet attempted to “go south” and join the Allies, according to the orders given by the High Command (the surrender of the fleet was one of the Armistice conditions). Actually, it is not very clear what Admiral Bergamini, the Fleet Commander, was trying to do. He ordered the fleet to move from La Spezia to the Bocche di Bonifacio, the strait between Sardinia and Corsica, and that was absolutely not the correct direction for Malta. Admiral Bergamini was deeply shocked by the order to surrender the fleet, and there is some thought that he was moving toward Spain to have the fleet interned and put under the custody of a neutral power, in this case, Spain, until the end of the war. As Bergamini was killed in the sinking of the battleship Roma by the Germans, the real goal of the Admiral may never be known.

A few battered cruisers, destroyers, and submarines remained in the ports, often sabotaged by their crews, and were taken over by the Germans, but they were never returned to the Republican Navy in operational conditions. A great number of smaller Torpedo Boats, patrol craft, and other various auxiliary vessels and merchant craft were also taken over by the Germans after the Italian surrender.

The bulk of the Republican Navy was the “Divisione Decima”, a huge organization born from the 10th MAS Flotilla, the very successful underwater raiding unit of the Italian Navy prior to the 1943 surrender. The morning after the Armistice, Prince Junio Valerio Borghese, a highly decorated and dashing submarine commander and commander of the 10th MAS Flotilla commandos started gathering all the naval personnel he could find in La Spezia inside the 10th MAS barracks. He then went to the local German command offering the services of his troops. The Germans were quite puzzled, but they accepted. In the following weeks, Borghese traveled all over Italy, recruiting hundreds of soldiers, until the 10th MAS was of divisional strength. When the Italian Social Republic was formed, at attempt was made to disband the Decima (Decima = Tenth), but Borghese refused, threatening to shoot at sight anyone who dared come close to the Decima barracks. Thereafter, an arrangement was arrived at and the Decima officially became part of the Marina Nazionale Repubblicana (National Republican Navy). It remained out of the central command structure of the RSI – and out of the command structure of the Germans too. It was a truly independent force, fighting with the same reckless, devil-may-care attitude of a Renaissance”Condottiere” (commander of a “Condotta”, i.e. = a mercenary unit)! The Decima fought as a ground unit against the US and British forces at the Anzio bridgehead, and then in North-East Italy against Italian and Yugoslavian communist partisans.

At peak strength the Divisione Fanteria di Marina “Decima” was organized as follows :

1st Combat Group

  • Fusiliers Bn “Barbarigo” (an ancient Venetian admiral – Anzio veterans)
  • Fusiliers Bn “Lupo” (wolf) (*)
  • Bn “Nuotatori-Paracadutisti” (2 coys of Assault Swimmers and 3 of Parachutists)
  • Artillery Bn “Colleoni” (a Renaissance Condottiere) (*)
  • 1st Coy, Engineer Bn “Freccia” (arrow)

2nd Combat Group

  • Fusiliers Bn “Fulmine” (lightning – previously called “Maestrale” SW wind) (*)
  • Fusiliers Bn “Sagittario” (archer) (*)
  • Mountain Assault Engineer Bn ” Valanga” (avalanche)
  • Recruits Bn “Castagnacci” (from the name of the first Decima KIA)
  • Artillery Bn “Da Giussano” (another Condottiere)(*)
  • Mountain Artillery Bn “San Giorgio” (the saint-patron of Genova)
  • Engineer Bn “Freccia” (2nd and 3rd coy)

Independent units:

  • Fusiliers Bn “Risoluti”
  • Fusiliers Bn “Giobbe” (10th MAS Flottilla hero KIAin a raid on Malta – previously “Ardimento” – courage)
  • Fusiliers Bn “Longobardo” (hero of the Italian Submarine forces)
  • Fusiliers Bn “Pegaso” (pegasus) (*)
  • Fusiliers Bn “San Giusto” (the saint-patron of Trieste)
  • Fusiliers Bn “Scire’ ” (the submarine of Borghese)
  • Fusiliers Bn “Serenissima” (the nickname of Venice)
  • Fusiliers Bn “Vega” (a star) (*)
  • Fusiliers Coy “Adriatica”
  • Fusiliers Coy “D’Annunzio” (famous poet and WWI hero)
  • Fusiliers Coy “Sauro” (a WWI naval hero)
  • “Operativa” Coy (no details about that)
  • Fusiliers Coy “Mai Morti” (“never dead”)
  • Women Auxiliary Service

The translation of the names of the Bns is a literal one. Several of them, indicated by an (*) were the names of ships of the Italian Royal Navy, whose crews formed the “core” of each Bn.

Naval Units:

  • “Comandante Todaro” Raiding Crafts School (both surface and underwater)
  • Underwater Diver School
  • Underwater Operations Group
  • “Gamma” Group (assault swimmers)
  • “Comandante Moccagatta” Surface Crafts Units.

Both Commander Todaro and Commander Moccagatta were heroes of the 10th MAS Flottilla, both of them KIA).

Besides the almost-independent “Decima” units, the Marina da Guerra Nazionale Repubblicana also had the following units:

  • Minesweepers Flottilla at Venice.
  • Submarine base at Bordeaux, France, defended by “Divisione Atlantica Fucilieri di Marina” (3 Naval Fusiliers Coys + 1 Arty Bty)
  • An Anti-submarine Flottilla with some light sub-chasers.
  • Midget submarine Flottilla “Longobardo” with 22 boats.
  • Others various minor naval units…

AERONAUTICA NAZIONALE REPUBBLICANA

Contrary to the behavior of the Navy, the Air Force went almost entirely North, except for a few training and bomber units. This is not surprising, considering that the former Italian Regia Aeronautica was the most Fascist of the Italian armed forces (Much like the Luftwaffe in the German Wehrmacht). The core of the Republican Air Force was its fighter units that operated against Allied heavy bombers. At first Italian aircraft were used, such as the MC205 and the outstanding G55 and Re2005, but these were later largely replaced with German-made Bf109s. At the end of the war a small group of Italian pilots was located in Germany ready to begin training on the Me163 and Me262, but the war ended before they started the actual training. The Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana was organized as follows:

  • Air Force Headquarters
  • Torpedo-Bombers Command
  • Fighter Command
  • Transport Command
  • Anti-Air Artillery Command
  • Air Force Academy (courses “Zodiaco” and “Aquila 2nd”)
  • Fighter Training Flight
  • 5 x recruits Bns
  • 9 x anti-parachutists Bns
  • Reggimento Arditi Paracadutisti “Folgore”
    1st Parachutist Bn “Folgore”(lightning)
    2nd Parachutist Bn “Nembo”(storm-cloud)
    3rd Parachutist Bn “Azzurro”(BrightBlue)
  • 1st Fighter Squadron
    1st Flight “Larismont” (an Airforce hero, as per the other flights’ names)
    2nd Flight “Guido Bobba”
    3rd Flight “Dante Ocarso”
  • 2nd Fighter Squadron
    1st Flight “GigiCaneppelle”
    2nd Flight “NicolaMagaldi”
    3rd Flight “GianniGraffer”
  • 3rd Fighter Squadron
  • 101st Indipendent Fighter Squadron
  • Independent Fighter Flight “Montefusco”
  • Training Flight “Francesco Baracca”
  • Torpedo-bomber Squadron “Faggioni & Buscaglia”
  • Air Transport Squadron “Terracciano”
  • Air Transport Squadron “Trabucchi”
  • Air Liason Flight
  • 1st Bomber Flight “Ettore Muti”
  • Gliders Flight

Even if officially entitled with the names of Airforce heroes, each fighter flight was usually called by its nickname, based on the flight’s insignia, as follows. The 1st Squadron’s flights had the following: 1/1″Asso di Bastoni” (cludgel ace – from the traditional Italian playing cards, that have different symbols from the “international” ones), 2/1 “VespaIncacchiata” (pissed-off wasp), 3/1 “Incocca, tende, scaglia” (“Notch, Pull, Loose”, the three actions to launch an arrow from a bow). The 2nd Squadron’s flights had the following: 1/2 “Gigi tre Osei” (Gigi with three birds. The ace Gigi Caneppelle was a pre-war Top Grade glider pilot -entitled to wear a blue badge with three white birds. But “bird” is also the Italian slang for penis…), 2/2 “Diavoli Rossi” (red devils), 3/2″Gamba di Ferro” (iron leg, the nickname of Cpt.Botto, one of the most charismatic WWII Italian fighter pilots).

NATIONAL GUARD (GUARDA NAZIONALE REPUBBLICANA)

The Guardia Nazionale Repubblicana was formed as a militarized police force, grouping the former Carabinieri (military police), state police, Polizia Africa Italiana (colonial police), frontier guards, and blackshirts units, and was later included in the Armed Forces of the RSI. The GNR was used mainly in an anti-partisan role, a role that was largely a “dirty war” of reciprocal war crimes that do not give credit to any of the contendants.

The “field units” of the GNR were as follows:

  • Territorial defense militia:
    “Isonzo” Rgt
    “D’Annunzio” Rgt
    “Istria” Rgt
    “Tagliamento” Rgt
  • 1st “M” Assault legion “Tagliamento”
  • Special Bn “Trieste”
  • “M” Armoured Bn “Leonessa”
  • Parachutist Bn “Mazzarini”
  • Assault cyclist Bn “Roma”
  • Assault cyclist Bn “Venezia Giulia”
  • Grenadiers Bn “Ruggine”
  • Independent Bns:
    “Bologna”
    “Ferrara”
    “Firenze”
    “Marche”
    “Perugia”
    “Romagna”
    “IX Settembre”
  • 115th “M” Assault Bn “Montebello”
  • 24th “M” Assault Bn
  • 29th “M” Assault Bn
  • Legione “M” “Guardia del Duce” (Mussolini bodyguard)
  • Assault Bn “Pontida”
  • Assault Bn “Fiamme Bianche” (formed by boys of the party youth organizations)

In the Balkans :

  • 4 legions and 8 independent Bns

The prefix “M” to some units was an honorary title for elite units, allowed to wear a special collar-pin reproducing the “M” of Mussolini’s signature.

BRIGATE NERE

These units were a type of volunteer militia organized by the Republican Fascist Party. They were mostly older die-hard fascists of the 1920’s revolution, with the addition of some fanatic youngsters. They were organized in over 50 “Brigades” (actually weak bn’s – reinforced companies in strength), and used in anti-partisan and garrison duties. With the passing of time, most units grew more and more desperate and were guilty of some of the worst atrocities in the anti-partisan war in the region. They were not actually part of the RSI “Forze Armate” (armed forces) but were considered as a kind of “auxiliary” formation.

All the Black Brigades were entitled to the memory of Fascist heroes, and, for the territorial outfits, the name of their recruitment province is given.

Territorial Black Brigades:

  • 1st Territorial Black Brigade “Ather Cappelli” – Torino
  • 2nd “Attilio Prato” – Alessandria
  • 3rd “Emilio Picot” – Aosta
  • 4th “Luigi Viale” – Asti
  • 5th “Carlo Lidonnici” – Cuneo
  • 6th “Augusto Cristina” – Novara
  • 7th “Bruno Ponzecchi” – Torino
  • 8th “Aldo Resega” – Milano
  • 9th “Giuseppe Cortesi” – Bergamo
  • 10th “Enrico Tognu’ ” – Brescia
  • 11th “Cesare Rodini” – Como
  • 12th “Augusto Felisari” – Cremona
  • 13th “Marcello Turchetti” – Mantova
  • 14th “Alberto Alfieri” – Pavia
  • 15th “Sergio Gatti” – Sondrio
  • 16th “Dante Gervasini” – Varese
  • 17th “Bartolomeo Azara” – Venezia
  • 18th “Luigi Begon” – Padova
  • 19th “Romolo Gori” – Rovigo
  • 20th “Francesco Cappellini” – Treviso
  • 21st “Stefano Rizzardi” – Verona
  • 22nd “Antonio Faggion” – Vicenza
  • 23rd “Eugenio Facchini” – Bologna
  • 24th “Igino Ghisellini” – Ferrara
  • 25th “Arturo Capanni” – Forli’
  • 26th “Mirko Pistoni” – Modena
  • 27th “Virginio Gavazzoli” – Parma
  • 28th “Pippo Astorri” – Piacenza
  • 29th “Ettore Muti” – Ravenna
  • 30th “Umberto Rossi” – Reggio Emilia
  • 31st “Silvio Parodi” – Genova
  • 32nd “Antonio Padoan” – Imperia
  • 33rd “Tullio Bertoni” – La Spezia
  • 34th “Giovanni Briatore” – Savona
  • 35th “Don Emilio Spinelli” – Arezzo
  • 36th “Benito Mussolini” – Lucca
  • 37th “Emilio Tanzi” – Pisa
  • 38th “Ruy Blas Biagi” – Pistoia
  • 39th “??” – Siena
  • 40th “Vittorio Ricciarelli” – Apuania (later become a Mobile Black Brigade – see below)
  • 41st “Raffaele Manganiello”” – Firenze

Mobile Black Brigades Group:

  • 1st Mobile Black Brigade “Vittorio Ricciarelli” (later renamed 1st Mobile Arditi Black Brigade “I.Barattini”)
  • 2nd “Danilo Mercuri”
  • 3rd “Attilio Pappalardo”
  • 4th “Achille Corrao” (previously “Ministerial Black Brigade “Meattini”- see below)
  • 5th “Emilio Quagliata”
  • 6th “Dalmazia” (the Italian province on the Yugoslavian Adriatic Coast)
  • 7th “Tevere” (The river of Rome)
  • 2nd Mobile Arditi Black Brigade – Milano.

Independent Black Brigades:

  • Operational Black Brigade “Giuseppe Garibaldi” (not strictly a”fascist” hero!) – Morbegno
  • Ministerial Black Brigade “Meattini” – Brescia
  • Black Brigade “Giovanni Gentile” – Cremona
  • Black Brigade “Tulio Cividino” – Trieste
  • Women Black Brigade “Norma Cosseto” – Trieste
  • Black Brigade of the Youth Action Groups
  • Black Brigade Operational Group-Lombardy “Butti”
  • Black Brigade Indeendent Coy “Fascisti 1” – Rhodes Island – Greece

POLIZIA REPUBBLICANA

The Republican Police activated a few “field units”, used in the anti-partisan war, as follows:

  • Independent Mobile Legion “Ettore Muti” – Milano
  • 1st Mobile Assaut Unit “ISPA” (Special Anti-Partisan PoliceInspectorate) – Brescia
  • 2nd Mobile Assaut Unit “ISPA” – Torino
  • 6 x Police Bns (located at Padova, pavia, Roma, Treviso, Gorizia andVenezia)
  • Police Arditi Legion “Pietro Caruso) – Milano