The "''San Marco''" Marine Brigade ( Italian: ''Brigata Marina "San Marco"'') is an amphibious formation of the

Italian Navy "Fatherland and Honour" , patron = , colors = , colors_label = , march = ( is the return of soldiers to their barrack, or sailors to their ship after a ...

, has been brigade since 2013 but the amphibious corps existed since 1915, reorganizing the Navy Landing Force. It has its command in

Brindisi Brindisi ( , ) ; la, Brundisium; grc, Βρεντέσιον, translit=Brentésion; cms, Brunda), group=pron is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Histo ...

. They are the

marines Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refl ...

of the Italian Navy. It is a joint formation, framed within the amphibious projection force, whose commander is the same admiral who serves as commander of the San Marco Brigade.

History

The formation was previously the San Marco Battalion and later became the San Marco Regiment in the 1990s. A joint Italian-Spanish landing force (''SILF'' - ''Spanish Italian Landing Force'') was established on 23 November 1996, in order to operate in international combat theaters on behalf of

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two N ...

. The SILF was structured in the form of an amphibious brigade, consisting of two manoeuvre units, one being "''San Marco''" Regiment, of marine infantry, artillery, anti-armour and air defense weapons, reconnaissance and demolition, engineers, helicopters and air support, IFVs and assault vehicles. Marò San Marco

On 1 October 1999, the Landing Force of the Navy was created, under the command of a

Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star " admiral" rank. It is often rega ...

, stationed in Brindisi Naval Base and formed in two regiments: the "San Marco" Regiment and the "Carlotto" Regiment, both controlled by a

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

, and the Landing Craft Group, commanded by a

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

. The Landing Force was renamed from 1 March 2013 as "''San Marco''" Marine Brigade, still being based in Brindisi, but consisting of three regiments, totalling about 3,800 marines. It is commanded by an

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet ...

, reporting directly to the Commander in Chief of the Italian Navy Fleet Command (CINCNAV).

Organization

Vladimir Putin with Sergio Mattarella (2015-06-14)

The brigade is organized as follows:

San Marco Marine Brigade

The San Marco Marine Brigade and the Navy's 3rd Naval Division form together with the

Italian Army "The safeguard of the republic shall be the supreme law" , colors = , colors_labels = , march = ''Parata d'Eroi'' ("Heroes's parade") by Francesco Pellegrino, ''4 Maggio'' (May 4) ...

's Cavalry Brigade "Pozzuolo del Friuli" the Italian military's National Sea Projection Capability (''Forza di proiezione dal mare''). * San Marco Marine Brigade (Brigata Marina San Marco - COMFORSBARC), in Brindisi ** Brigade Headquarters (Quartier Generale della Brigata Marina San Marco - QUARTGEN Brigata Marina San Marco), in Brindisi ** Amphibious Integration Centre (Centro Integrazione Anfibia), in Brindisi ** Command Support Battalion (Battaglione Supporto al Comando), in Brindisi *** C4 Company *** Technical Support Company ** Training Battalion ''"

Caorle Caorle (; vec, Càorle) is a coastal town in the Metropolitan City of Venice, Veneto, northern Italy, located between the estuaries of the Livenza and Lemene rivers. It is situated on the Adriatic Sea between two other tourist towns, Eraclea an ...

"'' (Battaglione Scuole "Caorle"), in Brindisi *** Formation Company *** Training, Instruction, Specialization Company *** Pedagne Team, manages the Pedagne Islands training area ** Navy Landing Craft Group (Gruppo mezzi da sbarco della Marina Militare), in Brindisi - mans the

landing craft Landing craft are small and medium seagoing watercraft, such as boats and barges, used to convey a landing force (infantry and vehicles) from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. The term excludes landing ships, which are larger. ...

of the amphibious ships and manages the ship-to-beach traffic *** Propulsion and Vessels Section *** Maritime Section *** Beach Organization Section *** Landing Craft Team, with 9x LCM62-class

Landing Craft Mechanized The landing craft mechanized (LCM) is a landing craft designed for carrying vehicles. They came to prominence during the Second World War when they were used to land troops or tanks during Allied amphibious assaults. Variants There was no ...

, 4x LCM23-class Landing Craft Mechanized *** Boat Team, with 20x MTP96-class Landing Craft Vehicle Personnel

1st San Marco Regiment

* 1st San Marco Regiment (1° Reggimento San Marco), in Brindisi - amphibious landing force ** Command Unit (Reparto Comando) *** Command Company with an Air Support Element team *** Signal Company *** Paratroopers Swimmers Company **** 2x Reconnaissance platoons, 2x SALT platoons ( Supporting Arms Liaison Team) *** EOD/ IEDD Engineer Platoon *** FHT Platoon (Field

HUMINT Human intelligence (abbreviated HUMINT and pronounced as ''hyoo-mint'') is intelligence gathered by means of interpersonal contact, as opposed to the more technical intelligence gathering disciplines such as signals intelligence (SIGINT), imager ...

Team) ** 1st Assault Battalion ''"

Grado Grado may refer to: People * Cristina Grado (1939–2016), Italian film actress * Jonathan Grado (born 1991), American entrepreneur and photographer * Francesco De Grado ( fl. 1694–1730), Italian engraver * Gaetano Grado, Italian mafioso * ...

"'' (1° Battaglione Assalto "Grado") *** 1st Assault Company "Bafile" **** 3x Assault platoons, 1x support weapons platoon *** 2nd Assault Company "Tobruk" **** 3x Assault platoons, 1x support weapons platoon *** Support Weapons Company **** 1x Command support platoon, 1x AAV7-A1 platoon with

amphibious assault vehicle The Assault Amphibious Vehicle (AAV)—official designation AAVP-7A1 (formerly known as Landing Vehicle, Tracked, Personnel-7 abbr. LVTP-7)—is a fully tracked amphibious landing vehicle manufactured by U.S. Combat Systems (previously by Unit ...

s (will be replaced with Amphibious Combat Vehicles) ** 2nd Assault Battalion ''" Venezia"'' (2° Battaglione Assalto "Venezia") *** 3rd Assault Company "An Nassiriya" **** 3x Assault platoons, 1x support weapons platoon *** 4th Assault Company "Monfalcone" **** 3x Assault platoons, 1x support weapons platoon *** Support Weapons Company **** 1x Command support platoon, 1x AAV7-A1 platoon with

s (will be replaced with Amphibious Combat Vehicles) ** 3rd Combat Logistic Support Battalion ''"Golametto"'' (3° Battaglione Supporto Logistico al Combattimento "Golametto") *** Command Support Platoon *** Logistic Company *** Tactical Transport Company *** Medical Company

2nd San Marco Regiment

* 2nd San Marco Regiment (2° Reggimento San Marco), in Brindisi - maritime interdiction operations and embarked naval protection teams ** Mobility Team ** Naval Operations Battalion (Battaglione Operazioni Navali), in Brindisi *** 2x Naval operations companies, each with 10x ship teams ** Interdiction and Protection Battalion (Battaglione Interdizione e Protezione), in Brindisi *** Force Protection Company, with 10x teams *** Port Protection Company, with 10x teams

3rd San Marco Regiment

* 3rd San Marco Regiment (3° Reggimento San Marco), in Taranto - installations defense service (Servizio difesa installazioni - SDI) ** 1st Honor Guard Company, in Taranto ** National Emergencies Company (Naval civil protection), in Taranto ** K9 Unit, in Taranto ** SDI Battalion North (Battaglione SDI Nord), in La Spezia *** Command Support Team *** Telecommunications Team *** SDI Company Liguria, in La Spezia **** 3x SDI platoons: in La Spezia (Military Harbour), Luni (Navy Helicopter Station), and

Ancona Ancona (, also , ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region in central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region. The city is located northeast of Rome, on the Adriatic ...

(Ammunition Depot Poggio) *** SDI Company Sardinia, in

La Maddalena La Maddalena (Gallurese: ''Madalena'' or ''La Madalena'', sc, Sa Madalena) is a town and '' comune'' located on the islands of the Maddalena archipelago in the province of Sassari, northern Sardinia, Italy. The main town of the same name is lo ...

**** 3x SDI platoons: at La Maddalena (Non-commissioned Officers School), Santo Stefano (Ammunition Depot), and

Tavolara Tavolara is a small island off the northeast coast of Sardinia, Italy. The island is a limestone massif long and wide, with steep cliffs except at its ends. Its highest point, Monte Cannone, is above sea level. A cove and beach can be foun ...

(NATO

Very Low Frequency Very low frequency or VLF is the ITU designation for radio frequencies (RF) in the range of 3–30 kHz, corresponding to wavelengths from 100 to 10 km, respectively. The band is also known as the myriameter band or myriameter wave a ...

Station) ** SDI Battalion Centre - Rome (Battaglione SDI Centro - Roma), in Rome *** Command Support Team *** Telecommunications Team *** SDI Company Rome, at the Navy General Staff ** SDI Battalion South (Battaglione SDI Sud), in Taranto *** Command Support Team *** Telecommunications Team *** SDI Company Taranto, in Taranto **** 3x SDI platoons: in Taranto (Military Harbour),

Grottaglie Grottaglie (; scn, label=Salentino, li Vurtàgghie; la, Criptalium) is a town and '' comune'' in the province of Taranto, Apulia, in southern Italy. Geography Grottaglie is located in the Salento peninsula, dividing the Adriatic sea from Ioni ...

(Navy Helicopter Station), and Pozzuoli (Ammunition Depot Montagna Spaccata) *** SDI Company Brindisi, in Brindisi **** 3x SDI platoons: in Brindisi (Military Harbour),

Mesagne Mesagne ( Mesagnese: ) is a '' comune'' in the province of Brindisi and region of Apulia, on the south-east Italy coast. Its main economic activities are tourism and the growing of olives and grapes. It is the fifth most-populous town of the prov ...

(Ammunition Depot), and at the San Marco Marine Brigade headquarter *** SDI Company Sicily, in Augusta **** 4x SDI platoons: in Augusta (Military Harbour), Priolo Gargallo (Ammunition Depot Cava di Sorciaro),

Catania Catania (, , Sicilian and ) is the second largest municipality in Sicily, after Palermo. Despite its reputation as the second city of the island, Catania is the largest Sicilian conurbation, among the largest in Italy, as evidenced also b ...

(Navy Helicopter Station), and the NATO Pier in Augusta

3rd Naval Division

The brigade is transported by the navy's 3rd Naval Division, co-located with the brigade in Brindisi, which consists of the following ships: *

Aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...

: ''

Giuseppe Garibaldi Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as ''Gioxeppe Gaibado''. In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as ''Jousé'' or ''Josep''. 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, pa ...

'' (will be replaced in June 2022 by

landing helicopter dock A landing helicopter dock (LHD) is a multipurpose amphibious assault ship which is capable of operating helicopters and has a well deck. The United States Navy (USN) and the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) use the term as a hull classification sy ...

Trieste Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into pr ...

'') * ''San Giorgio''-class

amphibious transport dock An amphibious transport dock, also called a landing platform dock (LPD), is an amphibious warfare ship, a warship that embarks, transports, and lands elements of a landing force for expeditionary warfare missions. Several navies currently operat ...

s: ''San Giorgio'', ''San Marco'', '' San Giusto''

Equipment

Beretta 92 The Beretta 92 (also Beretta 96 and Beretta 98) is a series of semi-automatic pistols designed and manufactured by Beretta of Italy. The Beretta 92 was designed in 1975, and production began in 1976. Many variants in several different calibers ...

FS service pistol *

Heckler & Koch MP5 The Heckler & Koch MP5 (german: Maschinenpistole 5) is a 9x19mm Parabellum submachine gun, developed in the 1960s by a team of engineers from the German small arms manufacturer Heckler & Koch. There are over 100 variants and clones of the MP5, ...

A3 submachine gun * Beretta ARX160 service rifle * GLX-160 underslung grenade launcher for the ARX160 * FN Minimi light machine gun * MG 42/59 machine gun * M2 heavy machine gun *

Panzerfaust 3 The Panzerfaust 3 (lit. "armor fist" or "tank fist") is a modern semi-disposable recoilless anti-tank weapon, which was developed between 1978 and 1985 and first entered service with the Bundeswehr in 1987 (although they did not officially adopt ...

anti-tank rocket * Spike

anti-tank guided missile An anti-tank guided missile (ATGM), anti-tank missile, anti-tank guided weapon (ATGW) or anti-armor guided weapon is a guided missile primarily designed to hit and destroy heavily armored military vehicles. ATGMs range in size from shoulder ...

FIM-92 Stinger The FIM-92 Stinger is an American man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) that operates as an infrared homing surface-to-air missile (SAM). It can be adapted to fire from a wide variety of ground vehicles, and from helicopters as the Air-t ...

man-portable air-defense system Man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADS or MPADS) are portable surface-to-air missiles. They are guided weapons and are a threat to low-flying aircraft, especially helicopters. Overview MANPADS were developed in the 1950s to provide military g ...

* 81mm mortars * 120mm mortars

Notes

{{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 Marina Militare Military units and formations established in 2013 Italian Marines de:San-Marco-Brigade