2nd Tank Regiment (Italy)

Italian Army tank unit

2nd Tank Regiment

2° Reggimento Carri

Regimental coat of arms

Active| 15 Sept. 1936 - 1 Dec. 1938
20 Oct. 1975 - 1995
Country|  Italy
Branch| Italian Army
Part of| Mechanized Brigade "Gorizia"
Garrison/HQ| San Vito al Tagliamento
Motto(s)| "Sicut Leones"
Anniversaries| 1 October 1927 - Founding of the Armed Tanks Regiment
Decorations|
1x Bronze Medal of Army Valor
Insignia
Tank units gorget patches|

Military unit

The 2nd Tank Regiment (Italian: 2° Reggimento Carri) is an inactive tank regiment of the Italian Army based in San Vito al Tagliamento in Friuli Venezia Giulia. Originally the regiment, like all Italian tank units, was part of the infantry, but on 1 June 1999 it became part of the cavalry. Operationally the regiment was last assigned to the Mechanized Brigade "Gorizia".[1]

## History[edit]

### Interwar years[edit]

The regiment was formed on 15 September 1936 in Montorio Veronese as 2nd Tank Infantry Regiment with four battalions: IV, V, and XI assault tanks battalions and the III Breach Tanks Battalion. The assault tanks battalions fielded L3/35 tankettes, while the breach tanks battalion fielded Fiat 3000 light tanks. The regiment's structure at its foundation was as follows:[2][1]

* 2nd Tank Infantry Regiment, in Verona
* IV Assault Tanks Battalion "Monti", in Bolzano (L3/35 tankettes)
* V Assault Tanks Battalion "Venezian", in Trieste (L3/35 tankettes)
* XI Assault Tanks Battalion "Gregorutti", in Udine (L3/35 tankettes)
* III Breach Tanks Battalion, in Verona (Fiat 3000 light tanks)
* 2nd Tank Training Center, in Verona
* 2nd Tank Materiel Maintenance Workshop, in Verona

The regiment was renamed 32nd Tank Infantry Regiment on 1 December 1938.[2][1]

### Cold War[edit]

On 24 May 1964 the army raised the XXII Tank Battalion "Serenissima" in San Vito al Tagliamento, which on 25 October 1964 entered the newly raised Lagunari Regiment "Serenissima". The battalion's number was chosen to commemorate the XXII Tank Battalion "L", which had operated in Italian Libya in the interwar years and had entered the 33rd Tank Infantry Regiment on 6 November 1939. With the regiment the battalion operated in Dalmatia and Venezia Giulia in 1940, before being sent to North Africa for the Western Desert Campaign.

#### 22nd Tank Battalion "M.O. Piccinini"[edit]

During the 1975 army reform the Lagunari Regiment "Serenissima" was disbanded on 20 October 1975 and its XXII Tank Battalion became the 22nd Tank Battalion "M.O. Piccinini". As the flag of the 2nd Tank Infantry Regiment had passed to the 32nd Tank Regiment, the 22nd Piccinini was granted a new flag and a coat of arms on 12 November 1976 by decree 846 of the President of the Italian Republic Giovanni Leone.[3]

Tank and armored battalions created during the 1975 army reform were all named for officers, soldiers and partisans, who were posthumously awarded Italy's highest military honor the Gold Medal of Military Valor during World War II. The 22nd Tank Battalion's name commemorated IV Tank Battalion "M14/41", 133rd Tank Infantry Regiment Captain Vittorio Piccinini, who was killed in action on 25 October 1942 during the Second Battle of El Alamein.[4] Equipped with Leopard 1A2 main battle tanks the battalion joined the Mechanized Brigade "Gorizia".

For its conduct and work after the 1976 Friuli earthquake the battalion was awarded a Bronze Medal of Army Valor, which was affixed to the battalion's flag and added to the battalion's coat of arms.[5]

In 1992 the battalion was elevated to regiment without changing size or organization, but already in 1995 the regiment was disbanded and its flag transferred to the Shrine of the Flags in the Vittoriano in Rome.

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c Parri, Maurizio (2009). Tracce di Cingolo - Storia dei Carristi 1917-2009. Rome. p. 53.`{{cite book}}`: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
2. ^ a b "2° Reggimento Carri". Museo Storico dell'Arma di Cavalleria. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
3. ^ "Decreto del Presidente della Repubblica 12 novembre 1976, n. 846". Quirinale - Presidenza della Repubblica. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
4. ^ "Piccinini Vittorio". Quirinale - Presidenza della Repubblica. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
5. ^ "22° Battaglione Carri "M.O. Piccinini"". Quirinale - Presidenza della Repubblica. Retrieved 8 December 2019.

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Italian Army

Four-star rank (OF 9)|

Chief of the Army General Staff

Three-star rank (OF 8)|

* COMFOTER COE
* COMFOP Nord
* COMFOP Sud
* COMFOTER Support
* COMTA
* NRDC-ITA
* COMLOG
* COMFORDOT

Two-star rank (OF 7)|

| Divisions|

* "Acqui"
* "Tridentina"
* "Vittorio Veneto"

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Other|

* Army Aviation Command
* Army Simulation and Validation Center
* Army Training Command and Application School
* Engineer Command

One-star rank (OF 6)|

| Brigades|

* "Aosta"
* "Ariete"
* "Folgore"
* "Friuli"
* "Garibaldi"
* "Granatieri di Sardegna"
* "Julia"
* "Pinerolo"
* "Pozzuolo del Friuli"
* "Sassari"
* "Taurinense"
* Army Aviation Support
* NRDC-ITA Support
* Tactical Intelligence

|

Commands|

* Army Special Forces
* Artillery
* Anti-aircraft Artillery
* Signal
* Logistic Support

Other|

* Military Academy
* Army NCO School
* Infantry School
* Cavalry School
* Administrative School
* Medical and Veterinary School
* Alpine Training Center
* Army Aviation Training Center

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Italian Army cavalry units

Dragoons|

| Active|

Regiment "Nizza Cavalleria" (1st), Regiment "Piemonte Cavalleria" (2nd), Regiment "Savoia Cavalleria" (3rd), Regiment "Genova Cavalleria" (4th)

|

Lancers|

| Active|

Regiment "Lancieri di Novara" (5th), Regiment "Lancieri di Aosta" (6th), Regiment "Lancieri di Montebello" (8th)

|

Inactive|

Regiment "Lancieri di Milano" (7th), Regiment "Lancieri di Firenze" (9th), Regiment "Lancieri Vittorio Emanuele II" (10th)

Chevau-légers|

| Active|

Regiment "Cavalleggeri di Lodi" (15th), Regiment "Cavalleggeri Guide" (19th), Command and Tactical Supports Unit "Cavalleggeri di Treviso" (28th)

|

Inactive|

Regiment "Cavalleggeri di Saluzzo" (12th), Regiment "Cavalleggeri di Monferrato" (13th), Regiment "Cavalleggeri di Alessandria" (14th), Regiment "Cavalleggeri di Lucca" (16th)

Tankers|

| Active|

1st Armored Regiment, 4th Tank Regiment, 7th Tank Command and Tactical Supports Unit "M.O. Di Dio" 32nd Tank Regiment, 132nd Tank Regiment

|

Inactive|

2nd Tank Regiment, 3rd Armored Infantry Regiment, 31st Tank Regiment, 33rd Tank Regiment, 63rd Tank Regiment, 131st Tank Regiment, 133rd Tank Regiment, 4th Tank Battalion "M.O. Passalacqua", 5th Tank Battalion "M.O. Chiamenti", 11th Tank Battalion "M.O. Calzecchi", 13th Tank Battalion "M.O. Pascucci", 19th Armored Battalion "M.O. Tumiati", 20th Tank Battalion "M.O. Pentimalli", 60th Tank Battalion "M.O. Locatelli", 62nd Armored Battalion "M.O. Jero"
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