The 1st Pontieri Regiment ( it, 1° Reggimento Pontieri) is an inactive

military engineer Military engineering is loosely defined as the art, science, and practice of designing and building military works and maintaining lines of military transport and military communications. Military engineers are also responsible for logistics ...

unit of 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) ...

last based in Legnano in Lombardy. The term "Pontieri" comes from the Italian word for bridge ( it, Ponte) and is used to denote units of the engineer arm tasked with the construction of bridges. Enlisted personnel in such units is addressed by the singular form: "Pontiere". The unit was formed in 1933 as 1st Pontieri Regiment (Light Bridges) and active during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. The regiment was disbanded by invading German forces after the announcement of the

Armistice of Cassibile The Armistice of Cassibile was an armistice signed on 3 September 1943 and made public on 8 September between the Kingdom of Italy and the Allies during World War II. It was signed by Major General Walter Bedell Smith for the Allies and B ...

on 8 September 1943. In 1992 the unit was reformed as 1st Pontieri Engineer Battalion, which received the flag and traditions of the 1st Pontieri Regiment. The battalion was disbanded in 1995. The regimental anniversary falls, as for all engineer units, on June 24, the end of the

Second Battle of the Piave River The Second Battle of the Piave River, fought between 15 and 23 June 1918, was a decisive victory for the Italian Army against the Austro-Hungarian Empire during World War I. Though the battle proved to be a decisive blow to the Austro-Hungari ...

in 1918.

History

On 15 May 1933 the 1st Pontieri Regiment (Light Bridges) was formed in

Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city municipality in the region and the second largest in nor ...

with existing

Pontieri The 2nd Pontieri Engineer Regiment ( it, 2° Reggimento Genio Pontieri) is a military engineer regiment of the Italian Army based in Piacenza in the Emilia Romagna. Today the regiment is administratively assigned to the army's Engineer Command an ...

and Lagunari units from the disbanded Pontieri and Lagunari Regiment: II Pontieri Battalion in Verona, IV Pontieri Battalion in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, and V Lagunari Battalion in

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...

. The new regiment formed these units into two Pontieri battalions, with each battalion also fielding two Lagunari companies. The regiment provided 15 officers and 375 enlisted to fill out units that were deployed for the

Second Italo-Ethiopian War The Second Italo-Ethiopian War, also referred to as the Second Italo-Abyssinian War, was a war of aggression which was fought between Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Italy and Ethiopian Empire, Ethiopia from October 1935 to February 1937. In Ethio ...

in 1935-36. On 1 October 1938 the battalions were reorganized as I Mixed Bridges Battalion and II Mixed Bridges Battalion. Each battalion consisted of two light bridges companies and one heavy bridges company. With the outbreak of

the regiment's

depot Depot ( or ) may refer to: Places * Depot, Poland, a village * Depot Island, Kemp Land, Antarctica * Depot Island, Victoria Land, Antarctica * Depot Island Formation, Greenland Brands and enterprises * Maxwell Street Depot, a restaurant in Ch ...

began to mobilize new units: * II and XXXIV Pontieri battalions (heavy bridges) * XV and XVI motorized Pontieri battalions (light truck-transported bridges) * XVII, XVIII, XIX, XX, XXI, and XXII Pontieri battalions (light bridges) * IX Pontieri Battalion (one heavy bridges company and one light bridges company) * and dozens of autonomous Pontieri companies The IX Pontieri Battalion served on the Eastern Front, where it earned a

Silver Medal of Military Valor The Silver Medal of Military Valor ( it, Medaglia d'argento al valor militare) is an Italian medal for gallantry. Italian medals for valor were first instituted by Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia on 21 May 1793, with a gold medal, and, below it, ...

, while the battalion's 22nd Company was awarded a

Bronze Medal of Military Valor The Bronze Medal of Military Valor ( it, Medaglia di bronzo al valor militare) is an Italian medal for gallantry. It was established by Charles Albert of Sardinia on 26 March 1833, along with the higher ranking Gold and Silver Medals for Military ...

for its last stand on the

Don Don, don or DON and variants may refer to: Places *County Donegal, Ireland, Chapman code DON *Don (river), a river in European Russia *Don River (disambiguation), several other rivers with the name * Don, Benin, a town in Benin *Don, Dang, a vil ...

. The 1st Pontieri Regiment was disbanded by invading German forces after the announcement of the

on 8 September 1943. On 22 September 1992 the 1st Pontieri Battalion of the

2nd Pontieri Engineer Regiment The 2nd Pontieri Engineer Regiment ( it, 2° Reggimento Genio Pontieri) is a military engineer regiment of the Italian Army based in Piacenza in the Emilia Romagna. Today the regiment is administratively assigned to the army's Engineer Comman ...

in Legnano became an autonomous unit and received the flag and traditions of the 1st Pontieri Regiment. The battalion consisted of a command, a command and services company, three Pontieri companies, and a special equipment company. The battalion was assigned to the Northeastern Military Region. With the end of the Cold War the army began to reduce its forces and the battalion was renamed 5th Engineer Battalion "Bolsena" on 31 August 1995 and the flag of the 1st Pontieri Regiment was returned to the Shrine of the Flags in the Vittoriano in Rome.

References

{{Italian Army Engineer Regiments Engineer Regiments of Italy