57th Infantry Division "Lombardia"

After the Second Italian War of Independence the Austrian Empire had to cede the Lombardy region of the Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia to the Kingdom of Sardinia. After taking control of the region the government of Sardinian ordered the Royal Sardinian Army on 29 August 1859 to raise five infantry brigades and one grenadier brigade in Lombardy. Subsequently on 1 November 1859 the Brigade "Granatieri di Lombardia" was activated with the newly raised 3rd and 4th grenadier regiments. On 5 March 1871 the brigade was assigned to the infantry and renamed Brigade "Lombardia". On the same date brigade's two regiments were renamed 73rd Infantry Regiment and 74th Infantry Regiment.[4]

World War II

Coat of Arms of the 74th Infantry Regiment "Lombardia", 1939

By 10 June 1940, Lombardia was entrenched on Italy's eastern border in the mountains around Ilirska Bistrica, with headquarters in Pula. In 1941 the Lombardia took part in the Invasion of Yugoslavia as part of the V Army Corps, starting combat on 8 April 1941. On 11 April 1941 it broke opposing Yugoslavian forces and crossed the border at the Sora river valley. On 12 April 1941, the Lombardia captured Podkilavac, Grobnik (near Čavle and Jelenje. By 13 April 1941 it had reached Krasica and Škrljevo, at which point the Yugoslavian army ceased to offer resistance. On 15 April 1941, garrisons in coastal towns of Novi Vinodolski, Ledenice, Crikvenica, and as far south as Žuta Lokva were established. The Lombardia division participated in the anti-partisan Operation Uzice on the Serbian-Croatian border from 9 October 1941 to 9 November 1941. By 1942, garrisons were in Gerovo, Delnice, Ogulin and other places. It also took part in the Battle of the Neretva in early 1943. Partisan activity had grown in frequency and scale, and by September 1943 partisans routinely performed battalion-sized attacks on Italian checkpoints and railways. After the Armistice of Cassibile on 8 September 1943, the Lombardia division was disbanded by the Germans.[5]

• 57th Infantry Division "Lombardia"
  • 73rd Infantry Regiment "Lombardia"
    • Command Company
    • 3x Fusilier battalions
    • Support Weapons Company (65/17 infantry support guns)
    • Mortar Company (81mm Mod. 35 mortars)
  • 74th Infantry Regiment "Lombardia"
    • Command Company
    • 3x Fusilier battalions
    • Support Weapons Company (65/17 infantry support guns)
    • Mortar Company (81mm Mod. 35 mortars)
  • 57th Artillery Regiment "Lombardia"
    • Command Unit
    • I Group (100/17 howitzers)
    • II Group (75/27 field guns)
    • III Group (75/27 field guns)
    • 357th Anti-aircraft Battery (20/65 Mod. 35 anti-aircraft guns)
    • Ammunition and Supply Unit
  • LVII Mortar Battalion (81mm Mod. 35 mortars)
  • 57th Anti-tank Company (47/32 anti-tank guns)
  • 37th Engineer Company
  • 57th Telegraph and Radio Operators Company
  • 57th Medical Section
    • 134th Field Hospital
    • 135th Field Hospital
  • 40th Supply Section
  • 40th Bakers Section
  • Carabinieri Section
  • 135th Field Post Office

Attached:[3]

• 137th CC.NN. Legion "Monte Majella"
  • XXXIII CC.NN. Battalion
  • LXXXI CC.NN. Battalion
  • 137th CC.NN. Machine Gun Company

The division's commanding officers were:[2][3]

• Generale di Divisione Giovanni Esposito
• Generale di Divisione Vittorio Zatti
• Generale di Brigata Pietro Scipione (1941-43)

The names of 14 men attached to the division can be found in the Central Registry of War Criminals and Security Suspects (CROWCASS) set up by the Anglo-American Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force in 1945. The names can be found at: Central Registry of War Criminals and Security Suspects from the Kingdom of Italy.

• Paoletti, Ciro (2008). A Military History of Italy. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-275-98505-9.