101st Motorized Division "Trieste"

The brigade fought on the Italian front in World War I. On 15 October 1926 the brigade assumed the name of VIII Infantry Brigade with the 61st Infantry Regiment "Sicilia", 62nd Infantry Regiment "Sicilia", and 65th Infantry Regiment "Valtellina". The brigade was the infantry component of the 8th Territorial Division of Piacenza, which also included the 46th Artillery Regiment. In 1934 the division changed its name to 8th Infantry Division "Po". In 1935 the division ceded the 46th Artillery Regiment to the newly raised 1st Motorized Division "Trento" and received the 21st Artillery Regiment as replacement.[1]

On 1 November 1936 the division ceded the 62nd Infantry Regiment to the Trento division. On 6 May 1937 the division received the 66th Infantry Regiment "Valtellina" from the 16th Infantry Division "Fossalta". On 15 May 1937 the division ceded the 61st Infantry Regiment to the Trento division. The division was then motorized and changed its name to 8th Motorized Division "Po". In 1938 the division received the 9th Bersaglieri Regiment. On 2 January 1939 the division changed its number to 101st and on 4 April the division received the name "Trieste". On the same date the 65th and 66th infantry regiments, and the 21st artillery regiment changed their names to "Trieste".[1]

On 10 June 1940 Italy entered World War II and began to invade France.[4] The Trieste and the 133rd Armored Division "Littorio" were sent to the Aosta Valley to exploit a planned breakthrough at the Little St Bernard Pass, which was to be achieved by the 1st Alpine Division "Taurinense" on the left flank and the 2nd Alpine Division "Tridentina" on the right flank, with the Trieste taking the pass itself. After the initial attacks had failed a tank battalion from the Littorio's 33rd Tank Infantry Regiment was sent forward on 24 June 1940, but the Italian tankettes became bogged down in the rugged and snowy terrain. French anti-tank gunners then destroyed a number of Italian tankettes and the battalion withdrew. The same day the Franco-Italian Armistice came into effect and the war ended.[5][1]

In November 1940 the bulk of the division moved to Salerno in Campania, while the division's command and artillery regiment were sent to Albania to shore up the crumbling Italian forces during the Greco-Italian War. The division's command formed the Special Alpine Division with a mix of reinforcements from Italy, while the artillery groups were assigned to other units regiments. On 28 March 1941 the division's units returned to Italy.[1][2]

Second Battle of El Alamein: Trieste starting position on 23 October

Second Battle of El Alamein: Trieste at 10pm on 2 November almost surrounded

In September 1941 the division disembarked in Libya for the Western Desert Campaign. The Trieste was immediately employed in the Siege of Tobruk covering the besieging forces right flank. The division then moved to Bir Hakeim to block British attacks from the southeastern desert.[1]

On 18 November 1941 the British Eighth Army launched Operation Crusader to relieve the siege of Tobruk. By 23 November the Trieste, together with the 55th Infantry Division "Savona", and 132nd Armored Division "Ariete" had knocked out about 200 British tanks, and a similar number of vehicles were disabled or destroyed.[6] On 24 November, General Erwin Rommel ordered the Afrika Korps and Ariete to push east to relieve the Siege of Bardia and the frontier garrisons.[7] The same day Trieste was sent further South to cover the right flank of Rommel's advance. On 6 December the Axis forces received the order to retreat westwards and the Trieste formed the rearguard and fought delaying battles at Bir Bellafaa, Sidi Breghish, Alem Hamza, and Suluq.[1]

After reorganizing at El Agheila the German-Italian Panzer Group Africa counterattacked on 21 January 1942 and drove British forces back to Ain el Gazala. On 26 May 1942 Axis forced commenced the Battle of Gazala. The plan was for the German divisions to outflank the British defenders by marching through the desert to the South of Bir Hakeim, with the two divisions of the Italian XX Army Corps covering the Germans left flank: the Ariete would attack Bir Hakeim, and the Trieste would open a gap in the minefield north of the Bir Hakeim to create a supply route for the German divisions on their drive to the coast. On 29 May the Trieste had broken through British lines and reached Got el Ualeb, while to the division's South the Battle of Bir Hakeim unfolded. On 8-11 June the Trieste participated in the assault on Bir Hakeim, which the French defenders abandoned on 11 June. On 12 June the Trieste took part in the destruction of the British 2nd and 4th Armoured Brigades south of the Knightsbridge position.[8] From 19 June the Trieste participated in the Axis offensive to capture Tobruk, which fell on 21 June. The Trieste then pursued the retreating British forces and clashed with rearguards at Sidi Omar, Mersa Matruh until reaching El Alamein in Egypt.[1][2]

On 1 July 1942 the First Battle of El Alamein began and the Trieste put up a tenacious defence on Ruweisat Ridge on the night of 21-22 July.[9] The division lost two regimental commanders before being partly overcome by British attacks, but the delay of the Allied advance allowed German armored forces to launch a devastating counterattack.[10]

During the Battle of Alam el Halfa the Trieste was in the center of the Axis advance, but stiff British resistance forced General Erwin Rommel to abandon the battle and retreat to the Axis' starting positions. On 23 October 1942 the British commenced the Second Battle of El Alamein and the Trieste initially formed the reserve in the North of the Axis line. On 26 October the Trieste entered the front line. On 2 November British forces broke through the Trieste's line and a 4-5 km gap opened between the battalions of the 65th Infantry Regiment "Trieste". Most of the Trieste was annihilated over the course of the next two days. On 4 November the division's command and most of the 66th Infantry Regiment "Trieste" retreated to Fuka and thus escaped the destruction of Axis forces at El Alamein.[1][2]

The remnants of the German-Italian Panzer Army retreated to El Agheila, where on 26 November 1942 the Trieste's two infantry regiments were reorganized and brought back up to combat strength by accumulating the survivors of other divisions.[2]

• 65th Infantry Regiment "Trieste"[11]
  • I Battalion "Trieste" (4× companies, survivors of the 65th Motorized Infantry Regiment "Trieste", 17th Infantry Division "Pavia", and 27th Infantry Division "Brescia")
  • II Battalion "Bologna" (5× companies, survivors of the 25th Infantry Division "Bologna")
  • III Battalion "Trento" (3× companies, survivors of the 102nd Motorized Division "Trento")
• 66th Infantry Regiment "Trieste"[12]
  • I Battalion (2× companies, survivors of the 66th Motorized Infantry Regiment "Trieste")
  • II Battalion (2× companies, survivors of the 66th Motorized Infantry Regiment "Trieste")
  • III Battalion "Granatieri di Sardegna" (3× companies, survivors of the IV Anti-tank Battalion "Granatieri di Sardegna")

On 11-18 December 1942 the Trieste participated in the Battle of El Agheila, after which Axis forces resumed their retreat towards Tunisia where the Trieste participated in the Tunisian Campaign. In February 1943 the two fusilier battalions of the 66th Motorized Infantry Regiment "Trieste" merged and formed the I Battalion "Trieste", while the "Granatieri di Sardegna" battalion changed its number to II Battalion. The regiment then received the III Battalion "Folgore", which had been formed with the survivors of the 185th Paratroopers Division "Folgore".[12] The division then fought in the Battle of Medenine, the Battle of the Mareth Line, and the Battle of Wadi Akarit, before retreating to the Enfidaville Line. There the division surrendered on 13 May 1943 to allied forces.[2]