The 5th Infantry Regiment "Aosta" is the oldest infantry regiment in active service in the Italian Army.
History
The origins of the 5th Infantry Regiment "Aosta" date back to 1690 in the Savoyard state.[1]
Savoyard state
On 20 February 1690, the Fusiliers Regiment of His Royal Highness was established by Duke Victor Amadeus II. The Regiment was recruited and led by Colonel Giuseppe Filiberto Costa, Count of Trinità, as Ordnance Infantry Regiment to provide escort and protection to the artillery. The Regiment was based in Vercelli.[4]
In December 1798 the Regiment "Aosta", together with the regiments "Savoia" and "Lombardia", formed the 1st Line Half Brigade, which was disbanded with its regiments in May 1799 due to Revolutionary France occupying Piedmont and forcing Charles Emmanuel IV of Sardinia to abdicate the throne in favor of the Piedmontese Republic.[1]
With the defeat of Napoleon at the Battle of Leipzig and the restoration of the Kingdom of Sardinia in 1814 the regiment was reformed. On 1 November 1815 it was renamed Brigade "Aosta".[1] On 25 October 1831 the brigade split to form the 1st and 2nd infantry regiments under the brigade's command. On 4 May 1839 the two regiments were re-numbered as 5th and 6th infantry regiments.[5]
On 15 October 1871, the brigade command was disbanded and the regiment was renamed 5th Infantry Regiment "Aosta". The new denomination lasted until 1881, when the regiment was renamed 5th Regiment (Brigade "Aosta"), due to the reintroduction of brigades in the Royal Italian Army.[6]
At the outbreak of World War I, the Brigade "Aosta" formed, together with the Brigade "Verona" and the 22nd Field Artillery Regiment, the 23rd Division. At the time the 5th Infantry Regiment consisted of three battalions, each of which fielded four fusilier companies and one machine gun section.[6] In 1915 the Brigade "Aosta" had its headquarter in the city of Gemona.[7]
On 3 July 1915, the 5th Regiment was sent to Sella Nevea and Raccolana Valley, to support the troops of the 4th Army Corps that attacked the Austrian stronghold of Plezzo.[7]
In early March 1916, the 5th and 6th Regiment "Aosta" assembled in Conca di Plezzo, before being deployed on the right bank of Isonzo river and on the slopes of Mount Kukla. A few days after the end of the Fifth Battle of the Isonzo, on 19 March 1916, the Austrians, preceded by a destructive bombardment, attacked by surprise and managed to overcome the Italian defenses at the bottom of the valley. In the evening, the 8th and 9th companies of the 5th Regiment counterattacked and reestablished the Italian lines.[7]
During the Sixth Battle of the Isonzo (6-17 August 1916), the 5th Regiment was deployed with two battalions around Zagora and with one battalion on the Carso. Particularly intense was the battle around Zagora, where the Italian troops attacked the Monte Santo, defended by the 62nd Austrian Division. From November 1916 until the end of the year, the fusiliers of the Brigade "Aosta" remained entrenched between Pecinka and Dosso Faiti.[7]
In April 1917, the Brigade "Aosta" was transferred to Asiago as reserve for the 20th Army Corps. In July the brigade arrived at the front and was deployed between Strigno and Cima della Caldiera, in front of Mount Ortigara.[7]
Following the Battle of Caporetto, the brigade retreated to the Col della Berretta. On 26 November 1917, the Austro-German offensive breached the Italian lines, but the II Battalion of the 5th Regiment counterattacked and held the line until reinforcements arrived. The II Battalion was annihilated in the action.[7] After the First Battle of Monte Grappa, the Brigade "Aosta" was sent to the rear to rest and reorganize.[7]
In 1918, after having sustained 1,223 casualties in six days of fighting on the Montello the brigade was sent to rest in the Brenta Valley. On 24 October 1918, the 5th Regiment attacked Mount Valderoa and succeeded in also seizing the Solaroli and Spinoncia mountains on 31 October 1918.[7]
The regiment also fought in Ravnilaz, on the Carso, in Doberdò, Cima Debeli, on the Col Moschin and Cà d'Anna, on the Montello, and in Vittorio Veneto.[1]
Between 24 and 28 October 1918 the brigade conquered the summit of Monte Valderoa and held it against repeated Austrian counterattacks. For this last engagement of the war the brigade's two regiments were awarded their second Gold Medal of Military Valor.[8][9]
Inter-bellum years
Interwar years
In November 1926 the Brigade "Aosta" assumed the name of XXVIII Infantry Brigade and received the 85th Infantry Regiment "Verona". The brigade was the infantry component of the 28th Territorial Division of Palermo, which also included the 22nd Artillery Regiment.[4][10][11]
In 1935-36 the 5th Infantry Regiment "Aosta" provided 458 personnel (4 Officers and 454 troops) for the Second Italo-Ethiopian War.[1][4]
On 15 April 1939 the XXVIII Infantry Brigade was dissolved and the two "Aosta" infantry regiments came under direct command of the division, which changed its name to 28th Infantry Division "Aosta".[4]
Italy formed "binary" divisions before the outbreak of World War II and the regiment together with its sister regiment formed the infantry component of the 28th Infantry Division "Aosta", which also included the 22nd Artillery Regiment.[1] The 28th Infantry Division "Aosta" was part of the XII Army Corps, in turn directly dependent on the Army Group "Sud".[4]
After Italy's entry into World War II the 28th Infantry Division "Aosta" remained in Sicily and was tasked with coastal and airport defence in the Western half of the island and the Pelagie islands
After the Allied landings at Syracuse on 9 July 1943 the division's positions were considered untenable and it retreated to the centre of the island to link up with the 26th Infantry Division "Assietta". On 1–6 August 1943 the Aosta was badly mauled by US Army troops during the Battle of Troina in the North of the island.[12] The remnants of the division retreated to Messina, from where they were evacuated to Trento in Northern Italy between 9 and 12 August 1943. The division was officially declared lost on 18 August 1943. The remnants of the division in Trento were disbanded by invading German forces after the announcement of the Armistice of Cassibile on 8 September 1943.[4]
On 20 September 1944 the Italian Co-Belligerent Army formed in Sicily the III and IV internal security brigades with the regiments of the disbanded 47th Infantry Division "Bari". On 14 October 1944 the two brigades entered the newly activated Internal Security Division "Aosta", which was tasked with public duties, demining and airfield protection tasks until the end of the war.[4][1]
On 15 August 1946 the Internal Security Division "Aosta" was reorganized as Infantry Brigade "Aosta" and on 1 September 1946, the 5th Regiment received its traditional name of 5th Infantry Regiment "Aosta".[1]
The structure of the regiment was similar to its wartime structure:[6]
Command and Command Platoon (later expanded to company)
3× fusilier battalions
Mortar Company
Support Weapons Company
On 31 December 1947, the regiment ceded its III Battalion to contribute to the reestablishment of the 17th Infantry Regiment "Acqui".[6]
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 5th Infantry Regiment "Aosta" was disbanded. On the same day the regiment's three infantry battalions were reformed as:
I Infantry Battalion, in Messina reformed as 5th Motorized Infantry Battalion "Col della Beretta". The battalion was assigned the flag and traditions of the 5th Infantry Regiment "Aosta".[1][13][14][15]
In 1991 the 5th Motorized Infantry Battalion "Col della Beretta" was reorganized as a mechanized battalion. On 31 August 1992 the battalion was elevated to 5th Mechanized Infantry Regiment "Aosta" without changing size or composition.[1]
Organization
As of 2023 the 5th Infantry Regiment "Aosta" consists of:
^The Battle of Sicily: How the Allies Lost Their Chance for Total Victory, Samuel W. Mitcham, Friedrich Von Stauffenberg, p. 263, Stackpole Books, 10/06/2007
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