Second Italo-Ethiopian War order of battle: Italy

The Italian order of battle for the Second Italo-Ethiopian War on 8 October 1935.^[1] The Ethiopian order of battle is listed separately.

Comando Supremo Africa Orientale

Commander: General Emilio De Bono to November 1935, Field Marshal Pietro Badoglio November 1935 – June 1936

• 7th Artillery Group (77/28 field guns)
• Granatieri di Sardegna Battalion (coming from Italy)
• Alpini Battalion (coming from Italy)
• Guardia di Finanza Battalion (coming from Italy)
• 3 Assault Battalions (still in Italy)
• 7th Artillery Group (Obice da 149/13 howitzer) (coming from Italy)
• Engineer Unit Comando Supremo Africa Orientale
• Bombardment, Reconnaissance, and Fighter Aviation Command A. O. – Gen. Mario Ajmone Cat
  • 3rd Air Brigade – Brig.Gen. Ferruccio Ranza Eritrea (145 aircraft)
    • HQ Flight (4 × Caproni Ca.101 light bomber/transport aircraft)
    • Reconnaissance Squadron (un-numbered):
      • 34th Reconnaissance Flight (8 × Romeo Ro.1 reconnaissance and ground attack aircraft) attached to Eritrean Corps
      • 38th Reconnaissance Flight (10 × Ro.1)
      • 41st Reconnaissance Flight (10 × Ro.1)
      • 103rd Reconnaissance Flight (9 × IMAM Ro.37)
      • 116th Reconnaissance Flight (10 × Ro.1)
      • 118th Reconnaissance Flight (10 × Ro.1) attached to II Army Corps
      • 131st Reconnaissance Flight (10 × Ro.1)
      • Libyan Reconnaissance Flight (11 × Ro.1) attached to I Army Corps
    • 106th Fighter Flight (7 × CR.20)
    • 4th Bombers Squadron – Brig.Gen. Attilio Matricardi
      • 14th Bomber Flight "Hic Sunt Leones" – (10 × Caproni Ca.101 D/2)
      • 15th Bomber Flight "La Disperata" – (10 × Ca.101 D/2)
    • 27th Bomber Squadron
      • 17th Bomber Flight (5 × Caproni Ca.111 light bombers)
      • 18th Bomber Flight (5 × Ca.111)
    • Hydroplanes Detachments (4 × Marinens Flyvebaatfabrikk M.F.4 floatplane and 2 × CANT 25 flying boat fighter)
    • 7th Bomber Wing detached to Somalia with 38 aircraft – Brig.Gen. Ferruccio Ranza (see below)

Northern Front – Eritrea

• I Army Corps – Ruggiero Santini^[2]
  • 4th CC.NN. Division "3 Gennaio" (still in Italy) – Gen. Alessandro Traditi
    • 101st CC.NN. Legion, 104th CC.NN. Legion, 215th CC.NN. Legion
  • 5th Alpine Division "Pusteria" – Gen. Luigi Negri Cesi
    • 7th Alpini Regiment, 11th Alpini Regiment, 5th Alpine Artillery Regiment
  • 26th Infantry Division "Assietta" – Gen. Enrico Riccardi
    • 38th Infantry Regiment "Ravenna", 63rd Infantry Regiment "Cagliari", 25th Artillery Regiment
  • 30th Infantry Division "Sabauda" – Gen. Italo Gariboldi^[2]
    • 3rd Bersaglieri Regiment, 46th Infantry Regiment "Reggio", 60th Infantry Regiment "Calabria", 16th Artillery Regiment
  • X Indigenes Battalion (Eritrean Ascari)
  • XV Indigenes Battalion (Eritrean Ascari)
  • Banda dello Scimezana (native troop)
  • 5th Cavalry Squadrons Group
  • 3rd Motorized Artillery Group (77 mm/28)
  • 5th Motorized Artillery Group (105/28 cannons)
  • Artillery Command of positions of Agame
  • I Army Corps Engineer Unit
  • Libyan Reconnaissance Flight (11 × Ro.1)
• II Army Corps – Pietro Maravigna
  • 3rd CC.NN. Division "21 Aprile" – Gen. Giacomo Appiotti
    • 230th CC.NN. Legion, 252nd CC.NN. Legion, 263rd CC.NN. Legion
  • 19th Infantry Division "Gavinana" – Gen. Nino Salvatore Villa Santa
    • 70th Infantry Regiment "Ancona", 83rd Infantry Regiment "Venezia", 84th Infantry Regiment "Venezia", 19th Artillery Regiment
  • 24th Infantry Division "Gran Sasso" – Gen. Adalberto Principe (Adi Ugri-Quala zone)
    • 13th Infantry Regiment "Pinerolo", 14th Infantry Regiment "Pinerolo", 225th Infantry Regiment "Arezzo", 18th Artillery Regiment
  • Gruppo Bande Altopiano (native troop)
  • 10th Cavalry Squadrons Group
  • Artillery Group Command (100 mm/17)
  • Artillery Command of positions in western Tigre (Eritrean Ascari)
  • 2nd Corps Engineer Unit
  • 118th Reconnaissance Flight (10 × Ro.1) (Libyan)
• Eritrean Corps – Alessandro Pirzio Biroli
  • 1st Eritrean Division – Gen. Salvatore di Pietro
  • 2nd Eritrean Division – Gen. Achille Vaccarisi
  • 1st Eritrean CC.NN. Battalion Group – Filippo Diamanti
    • 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Italian East African CC.NN. Infantry Battalions
    • East African CC.NN. MMG Company
  • Banda dell'Hassamò (Irregular troop)
  • 6th Cavalry Squadrons Group
  • Native Cavalry Squadron Group (Eritrean Ascari troop)
  • 2nd Motorized Artillery Group 77 mm/28
  • 3rd Motorized Artillery Group 100 mm/17 gun
  • 4th Fast Tanks Squadrons Group
  • Artillery Command of positions in eastern Tigre
  • Eritrean Corps Engineer Unit
  • 34th Reconnaissance Flight (8 × Ro.1)(Libyan)
• Western Lowlands Zone – Brig.Gen. Amedeo Couture
  • XXVII Indigenes Battalion (Eritrean Ascari)
  • XXVIII Indigenes Battalion (Eritrean Ascari)
  • Irregulars Foot Bands Group
  • "Celere" (fast) Group
  • Eritrea Fast Tanks Squadron
• Eastern Lowlands Zone – Brig.Gen. Oreste Mariotti
  • XXIV Indigenes Battalion (Eritrean Ascari)
  • XXVI Indigenes Battalion (Eritrean Ascari)
  • Libyan Battalion
  • Massaua Irregulars Band
  • Northern Dankalia Irregulars Band
  • Southern Dankalia Irregulars Band
  • 7th Artillery Battery (120L25)
  • 37th Artillery Battery (77L28 – pack camels)

Sent to the front in February 1936

• III Army Corps – Lt.Gen. Ettore Bastico
  • 27th Infantry Division "Sila" – Gen. Francesco Bertini
    • 16th Infantry Regiment "Savona", 19th Infantry Regiment "Brescia", 20th Infantry Regiment "Brescia", 12th Artillery Regiment
  • 1st CC.NN. Division "23 Marzo" – Gen. Filiberto Ludovico from Eritrean Corps^[2]
    • 135th CC.NN. Legion, 192nd CC.NN. Legion, 202nd CC.NN. Legion

Formed in January 1936

• IV Army Corps – Gen. Ezio Babbini
  • 5th Infantry Division "Cosseria" – Gen. Pietro Pintor
    • 41st Infantry Regiment "Modena", 42nd Infantry Regiment "Modena", 29th Artillery Regiment
  • 2nd CC.NN. Division "28 Ottobre" – Gen. Umberto Somma
    • 114th CC.NN. Legion, 116th CC.NN. Legion, 180th CC.NN. Legion
  • 5th CC.NN. Division "1 Febbraio" (still in Italy) – Gen. Attilio Teruzzi
    • 107th CC.NN. Legion, 128th CC.NN. Legion, 142nd CC.NN. Legion

Organized in March 1936

• Celere Column A.O. (Eritrea), Lt.Gen. Achille Starace
  • 82nd CC.NN. Battalion "Mussolini"/6th CC.NN. Battalions Group, motorised
  • 8th Artillery Group (77 mm/28, motorised)
  • Included truck-transported machine-guns, armoured cars, altogether 3,000 men and 500 motor vehicles.

Southern Front – Somaliland

• Graziani Column – General Rodolfo Graziani
  • 29th Infantry Division "Peloritana" – Gen. Giuseppe Pavone
    • 3rd Infantry Regiment "Piemonte", 4th Infantry Regiment "Piemonte", 75th Infantry Regiment "Napoli", 24th Artillery Regiment
  • Libyan Division (Libyan Colonial troops) – Guglielmo Nasi
  • 6th CC.NN. Division "Tevere" (still in Italy) – Enrico Boscardi
    • 219th CC.NN. Legion, 220th CC.NN. Legion, 221st CC.NN. Legion, 321st CC.NN. Legion
  • I Machine Gunners Squadrons Group "Genova" and II Machine Gunners Squadrons Group "Genova" (formed by the Regiment "Genova Cavalleria")
  • III Machine Gunners Squadrons Group "Aosta" and IV Machine Gunners Squadrons Group "Aosta" (formed by the Regiment "Lancieri di Aosta")
  • 6x Battalions, Royal Colonial Troop Corps (Arab-Somali Colonial troops)
  • Camel Mounted Artillery
  • 6x Dubat Bands (Companies of Somali Irregulars)
  • Ogaden border region command – Colonel Luigi Frusci
    • 9 L3 tanks, 20 Armoured cars
    • 6 Royal Colonial Troop Corps Battalions (Arabo-Somali Colonial troops)
    • 6 Dubat Bands (Companies of Somali Irregulars)
    • 150 trucks
  • Sultan Olol Dinke Column (Feudal Army) – Olol Dinke, Sultan of Sciavelli
    • 1000 Dubat (mounted Somali warriors of the Ajuran clan)
• 7th Bomber Wing – Brig.Gen. Ferruccio Ranza (38 aircraft)
  • 25th Bomber Squadron:
    • 8th Bomber Flight (10 × Ca.101 bis)
    • 9th Bomber Flight (10 × Ca.101 bis)
  • Reconnaissance Flight (10 × Ro.1)
  • 107th Fighter Flight (8 × CR.20)

Libya

Forces were deployed in Libya to threaten the Suez Canal should the British close it to Italian traffic. These units were considered to have taken part in the campaign.

• 18th Infantry Division "Metauro"
  • 93rd Infantry Regiment "Messina", 157th Infantry Regiment "Liguria", 2nd Artillery Regiment
• 126th Infantry Division "Assietta II"
  • 61st Infantry Regiment "Sicilia", 81st Infantry Regiment "Torino", 25th Artillery Regiment
• Motorized Division "Trento"
  • 115th Infantry Regiment "Treviso", 116th Infantry Regiment "Treviso", 46th Artillery Regiment
• 7th CC.NN. Division "Cirene"
  • 190th CC.NN. Legion, 196th CC.NN. Legion, 198th CC.NN. Legion, 241st CC.NN. Legion, 271st CC.NN. Legion, 267th CC.NN. Legion, 352nd CC.NN. Legion, 7th Motorized Artillery Regiment

See also

• Second Italo-Ethiopian War
• List of Second Italo-Ethiopian War weapons of Italy
• Ethiopian order of battle in the Second Italo-Ethiopian War