1st Infantry Regiment "San Giusto"

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1st Infantry Regiment "San Giusto"
1° Reggimento Fanteria "San Giusto"
Regimental coat of arms
Active1624 - 1798
1814 - 12 Sept. 1943
1 Oct. 1975 - 31 March 2008
Country Italy
BranchItalian Army
Garrison/HQTrieste
Nickname(s)"Cravatte Rosse"
Motto(s)"Fedele Sempre"
Anniversaries30 October 1918 - Battle of Conca di Alano
Decorations
1x Military Order of Italy
2x Silver Medals of Military Valor
1x Bronze Medal of Military Valor[1]
Insignia
Regimental gorget patches

The 1st Infantry Regiment "San Giusto" (Italian: 1° Reggimento Fanteria "San Giusto") is an inactive unit of the Italian Army last based in Trieste. Founded in 1624 as Regiment "Fleury" the regiment is part of the Italian army's infantry arm.

History

The 1st Infantry Regiment "San Giusto" is the oldest regiment of the Italian Army, dating back to 1624 when the Marquis Trivier de Fleury established the Regiment "Fleury" with French troops for service in the army of

Charles Emmanuel IV of Sardinia to abdicate the throne in favor of the Piedmontese Republic
.

The regiment was reformed in early 1800 as Regiment "Savoia" to fight against the French in the War of the Second Coalition, but after the Austrian defeat on 14 June 1800 at the Battle of Marengo the regiment was disbanded again.

With the defeat of Napoleon at the

Battle of San Martino. After the Second Italian War of Independence the Second French Empire annexed Savoy on 14 June 1860 and therefore the brigade was renamed on the same day as "Brigade of the King" (Italian: Brigata del Re).[2]

In 1866 the regiment fought in the Third Italian War of Independence.

World War I

The brigade fought on the Italian front in World War I and the 1st Infantry Regiment "Re" earned its second Silver Medal of Military Valor.

World War II

Main article: 13th Infantry Division "Re"

The 1st Infantry Regiment "Re" and its sister regiment the 2nd Infantry Regiment "Re" were the infantry component of the 13th Infantry Division "Re". The division served in occupied Yugoslavia until it was ordered to return to Italy on 28 August 1943.[3][4]

When the Armistice of Cassibile was announced on 8 September 1943 the division's command had arrived with the following units in Monterotondo near Rome:[5]

  • I Battalion/ 1st Infantry Regiment "Re"
  • III Battalion/ 1st Infantry Regiment "Re"
  • III Battalion/ 2nd Infantry Regiment "Re"
  • I Group/ 23rd Artillery Regiment "Re"

The rest of the division was still in Florence and Trieste. The 12th Infantry Division "Sassari" detached its II Group/ 34th Artillery Regiment "Sassari" and XII Self-propelled Anti-tank Battalion to the Re, which participated in the defense of Rome against the invading Germans. On 10 September the defenders of Rome surrendered and the Re and its regiments were dissolved by the Germans on 12 September 1943.

Cold War

Main article: Trieste Troops Command

With the

1975 army reform the Italian Army abolished the regimental level and battalions came under direct command of the brigades and regional commands. Therefore, on 1 October 1975, the 151st Infantry Regiment "Sassari" of the Trieste Troops Command was disbanded and the regiment's I Battalion was reformed as 1st Motorized Infantry Battalion "San Giusto". The battalion was assigned the flag and traditions of the 1st Infantry Regiment "Re". As Italy had become a Republic the unit's name was changed from "Re" to "Justus of Trieste" the patron saint of the city of Trieste.[6][7]

With the 1986 reform the Trieste Troops Command was disbanded on 1 October 1986 and the 1st Motorized Infantry Battalion "San Giusto" was transferred to the

5th Army Corps
. On 22 September 1992 the battalion was elevated to 1st Regiment "San Giusto".

On 31 March 2008 the 1st Regiment "San Giusto" was disbanded and its flag transferred to the Shrine of the Flags in the

Vittoriano
in Rome.

Timeline of the regiment's name

During its existence the regiment was named:[7]

  • 1624-1631 Regiment "Fleury"
  • 1631-1640 Regiment "Marolles"
  • 1640-1664 French Regiment "of His Royal Highness"
  • 1664-1798 Regiment of Savoy "of His Royal Highness"
  • 1814-1815 Regiment "di Savoia"
  • 1815-1831 Brigade "Savoia"
  • 1831-1839 1st Regiment (Brigade "Savoia")
  • 1839-1860 1st Infantry Regiment (Brigade "Savoia")
  • 1860-1871 1st Infantry Regiment (Brigade "Re")
  • 1871-1981 1st Infantry Regiment "Re"
  • 1881-1926 1st Infantry Regiment (Brigade "Re")
  • 1926-1943 1st Infantry Regiment "Re"
  • 1975-1991 1st Motorized Infantry Battalion "San Giusto"
  • 1991-1992 1st Battalion "San Giusto" (Recruits Training)
  • 1992-2008 1st Regiment "San Giusto" (Recruits Training)

Trivia

The regiment is the only unit of the Italian infantry arm, which due to its royal lineage, uses red ties instead of the army's standard khaki colored tie, which led to the regiment's nickname "Red Ties" (Italian: Cravatte Rosse).

References

  1. ^ "Le Feste dei Reparti - Ottobre". Italian Army. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  2. ^ Voghera, Enrico (1909). Annuario militare del regno d'Italia - Volume I. Rome. p. 372.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  3. ^ "1° Reggimento di fanteria "Re"". Regio Esercito. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
  4. ^ "2° Reggimento di fanteria "Re"". Regio Esercito. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
  5. ^ Bollettino dell'Archivio dell'Ufficio Storico N.II-3 e 4 2002. Rome: Ministero della Difesa - Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito - Ufficio Storico. 2002. p. 231. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  6. ^ F. dell'Uomo, R. Puletti (1998). L'Esercito Italiano verso il 2000 - Vol. Primo - Tomo I. Rome: SME - Ufficio Storico. p. 235.
  7. ^ a b "1° Reggimento "San Giusto" - La Storia". Italian Army. Archived from the original on 2008-02-07. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
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