Italian Army - 2nd Engineer Regiment patrolling the Via della Conciliazione in Rome

The 2nd Engineer Regiment ( it, 2° Reggimento Genio Guastatori) is a

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 ...

regiment 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) ...

based in

Trento Trento ( or ; Ladin and lmo, Trent; german: Trient ; cim, Tria; , ), also anglicized as Trent, is a city on the Adige River in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol in Italy. It is the capital of the autonomous province of Trento. In the 16th cen ...

Trentino Trentino ( lld, Trentin), officially the Autonomous Province of Trento, is an autonomous province of Italy, in the country's far north. The Trentino and South Tyrol constitute the region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, an autonomous regio ...

. Founded in 1860 it is currently the oldest engineer regiment of the Italian Army. Since 1954 it has been part of the

4th Alpine Army Corps The Comando Truppe Alpine (Alpine Troops Command) or COMTA (formerly also COMALP) commands the Mountain Troops of the Italian Army, called ''Alpini'' (singular: ''Alpino'') and various support and training units. It is the successor to the ''4º ...

and therefore has a strong association with the army's mountain infantry corps, the

Alpini The Alpini are the Italian Army's specialist mountain infantry. Part of the army's infantry corps, the speciality distinguished itself in combat during World War I and World War II. Currently the active Alpini units are organized in two operatio ...

, with which the regiment shares the distinctive ''

Cappello Alpino The Cappello Alpino is the most distinctive feature of the Italian Army's Alpini troops uniform. The ''Alpini'' are light Infantry troops, specializing in mountain combat. Initially the Cappello was only issued to the Alpini, but soon the Cappello ...

''. Today the regiment is the engineer unit of the

Alpine Brigade "Julia" The Alpine Brigade "Julia" is a light infantry brigade of the Italian Army, specializing in mountain warfare. Its core units are Alpini, an infantry corps of the Italian Army, that distinguished itself during World War I and World War II. Th ...

and specializes in mountain combat.

History

In 1860 the 2nd Sappers Regiment was formed in

Piacenza Piacenza (; egl, label= Piacentino, Piaṡëinsa ; ) is a city and in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy, and the capital of the eponymous province. As of 2022, Piacenza is the ninth largest city in the region by population, with over ...

. The regiment was formed with companies transferred from the Sappers Regiment and sappers companies from the army of the

Grand Duchy of Tuscany The Grand Duchy of Tuscany ( it, Granducato di Toscana; la, Magnus Ducatus Etruriae) was an Italian monarchy that existed, with interruptions, from 1569 to 1859, replacing the Republic of Florence. The grand duchy's capital was Florence. In t ...

and the army of the Royal Provinces of

Emilia Emilia may refer to: People * Emilia (given name), list of people with this name Places * Emilia (region), a historical region of Italy. Reggio, Emilia * Emilia-Romagna, an administrative region in Italy, including the historical regions of Emi ...

, which had been integrated into the

Royal Sardinian Army The Royal Sardinian Army (also the Sardinian Army, the Royal Sardo-Piedmontese Army, the Savoyard Army, or the Piedmontese Army) was the army of the Duchy of Savoy and then of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which was active from 1416 until it became th ...

. The regiment consisted of a staff, a depot, and three battalions, with four sappers companies per battalion. Right away the regiment's companies participated in the invasion of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies following

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, patr ...

Expedition of the Thousand The Expedition of the Thousand ( it, Spedizione dei Mille) was an event of the Italian Risorgimento that took place in 1860. A corps of volunteers led by Giuseppe Garibaldi sailed from Quarto, near Genoa (now Quarto dei Mille) and landed in M ...

. During the invasion the regiment's companies participated in the Siege of Gaeta. For their conduct during the siege the regiment's 3rd Sappers Company and 7th Sappers Company were each awarded a

Bronze Medal of Military Valour 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 ...

. After the annexation of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies the regiment provided troops for the suppression of the popular revolt in Southern Italy in 1860-70. In 1866 the regiment participated in the

Third Italian War of Independence The Third Italian War of Independence ( it, Terza Guerra d'Indipendenza Italiana) was a war between the Kingdom of Italy and the Austrian Empire fought between June and August 1866. The conflict paralleled the Austro-Prussian War and resulted in ...

. In 1867 the regiment was merged with the 1st Sappers Regiment to form the Sappers Corps, which had its headquarters in

Casale Monferrato Casale Monferrato () is a town in the Piedmont region of Italy, in the province of Alessandria. It is situated about east of Turin on the right bank of the Po, where the river runs at the foot of the Montferrat hills. Beyond the river lies the ...

and consisted of 28 sappers companies. In 1870 the 1st, 2nd, 4th, 10th, and 25th sappers companies participated in the

capture of Rome The Capture of Rome ( it, Presa di Roma) on 20 September 1870 was the final event of the unification of Italy (''Risorgimento''), marking both the final defeat of the Papal States under Pope Pius IX and the unification of the Italian Peninsul ...

. On 1 January 1874 the corps was split and with the corps' staff and depot the 2nd Engineer Regiment was reformed in Casale Monferrato. The regiment received from the disbanded Sappers Corps 13 sappers companies, two

Ferrovieri The Ferrovieri Engineer Regiment ( it, Reggimento Genio Ferrovieri) is a military engineer regiment of the Italian Army based in Castel Maggiore in the Emilia Romagna. Today the regiment is administratively assigned to the army's Engineer Comman ...

companies, and a

train In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and transport people or freight. Trains are typically pulled or pushed by locomotives (often k ...

company. The regiment also received four

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 ...

companies from the 1st Artillery Regiment (Pontieri), which was disbanded and used to reform the 1st Engineer Regiment. In 1883 the regiment provided four Pontieri companies, three telegraphers companies, two Ferrovieri companies, two train companies, two sappers companies, and a Lagunari company for the formation of the 3rd Engineer Regiment and 4th Engineer Regiment. In 1895 the regiment provided six sappers companies for the formation of the 5th Engineer Regiment and dispatched 6 officers and 243 enlisted for the

First Italo-Ethiopian War The First Italo-Ethiopian War, lit. ''Abyssinian War'' was fought between Italy and Ethiopia from 1895 to 1896. It originated from the disputed Treaty of Wuchale, which the Italians claimed turned Ethiopia into an Italian protectorate. Full-s ...

. On 1 November 1895 the regiment was renamed 2nd Engineer Regiment (Sappers) and consisted now of a staff, four sappers brigades, two train companies, and a depot. Each of the four brigades consisted of three sappers companies. In 1910 the brigades were renamed battalions. During the

Italo-Turkish War The Italo-Turkish or Turco-Italian War ( tr, Trablusgarp Savaşı, "Tripolitanian War", it, Guerra di Libia, "War of Libya") was fought between the Kingdom of Italy and the Ottoman Empire from 29 September 1911, to 18 October 1912. As a result ...

of 1911-12 the regiment's I Battalion and II Battalion were deployed to

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Su ...

. In 1912 the regiment raised a fifth sappers battalion.

World War I

During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

battalions and companies raised by the regiment fought in all sectors of the Italian front. In total the regiment formed 42 sappers battalion commands and 122 sappers companies, 52 bridge sections, 31 divisional cableway sections, six firefighters sections, five cableway sections for alpine groups, one territorial militia battalion command and six territorial militia companies, and 11 army corps engineer parks. After the war the regiment was disbanded on 31 March 1920 and its personnel used to form a sappers battalion and a telegraphers battalion for each army corps on 1 April 1920. On 1 October 1922 the 1st Army Corps Engineer Grouping was formed in

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. Th ...

, which received the Sappers Battalion and the Telegraphers Battalion of the I Army Corps, and a miners company from the disbanded Miners Engineer Regiment. Both battalions had been raised on 1 April 1920. The grouping consisted of a command, a sappers-miners battalion, a telegraphers battalion, a photo-electricians company, six dovecotes (in

Cuneo Cuneo (; pms, Coni ; oc, Coni/Couni ; french: Coni ) is a city and '' comune'' in Piedmont, Northern Italy, the capital of the province of Cuneo, the fourth largest of Italy’s provinces by area. It is located at 550 metres (1,804 ft) ...

Exilles Exilles ( Occitan: ''Eissilhas''; nonstandard Occitan: ''Isiya''; Piedmontese: ''Isiles''; Latin: ''Excingomagus'' or ''Scingomagus''; Italianization under Italian Fascism: ''Esille'') is a municipality in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the I ...

Fenestrelle Fenestrelle ( oc, Finistrèlas, pms, Fenestrele) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about west of Turin. It is the location of the Fenestrelle Fort, an alpine fortification ...

Vinadio Vinadio ( oc, Vinai) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Cuneo in the Italian region of Piedmont, located about southwest of Turin and about southwest of Cuneo, on the border with France. It is located along the Stura di Demonte r ...

, and Alessandria), and a

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 ...

. In 1924 the grouping moved to

. On 11 October 1926 the grouping was renamed 2nd Engineer Regiment and consisted now of a command, a sappers-miners battalion, a telegraphers battalion, a cableway battalion, a depot and six dovecotes (in Alessandria,

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of t ...

Tende Tende (; Italian, Occitan and Royasc: ''Tenda'') is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France. Geography Tende is located within Mercantour National Park in the French Alps. The mountainous commune is bordered ...

, and

Nava Nava or NAVA may refer to: Organizations * National Association for the Visual Arts in Australia * North American Vexillological Association Places * Nava, Jõgeva County, Estonia, a village * Nava, Saare County, Estonia, a village * Nava, Ma ...

). In February 1928 the regiment provided troops for the formation of the

11th Engineer Regiment 11 (eleven) is the natural number following 10 and preceding 12. It is the first repdigit. In English, it is the smallest positive integer whose name has three syllables. Name "Eleven" derives from the Old English ', which is first attested ...

. On 1 February 1931 the Cableway Battalion was reorganized as Miners-Cableway Battalion and transferred on 28 October 1932 to the newly formed

1st Miners Regiment The 1st Engineer Regiment ( it, 1° Reggimento Genio) is an inactive military engineer unit of the Italian Army, which was last based in Trento in Trentino. Founded in 1848 it is the oldest engineer regiment of the Italian Army. The regiment was ...

Novi Ligure Novi Ligure (; lij, Nêuve ; pms, Neuvi ) is a city and ''comune'' north of Genoa, in the Piedmont region of the province of Alessandria of northwest Italy. The town produces food, iron, steel, and textiles. It is an important junction for both ...

. On the same day the regiment received the I Battalion of the disbanded

2nd Radio-Telegraphers Regiment The 2nd Alpine Signal Regiment ( it, 2° Reggimento Trasmissioni Alpino) is a deployable signals regiment of the Italian Army based in Bolzano in South Tyrol that specializes in mountain warfare. Since 1951 it has been assigned of the 4th Alpine A ...

. 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 ...

the regiment formed the XIV Cableway Battalion, an autonomous cableway company, a connections company, a sappers company, a mixed engineer company, a water platoon, a cableway replacements company, and two firefighting sections. In January 1937 the telegraphers and radio-telegraphers battalions were renamed connections battalions.

World War II

With the outbreak of

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's depot began to mobilize new units: * Command of the 5th Engineer Grouping * IV Mixed Engineer Battalion (for the

4th Alpine Division "Cuneense" The 4th Alpine Division "Cuneense" ( it, 4ª Divisione alpina "Cuneense") was a division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II, which specialized in mountain warfare. The headquarters of the division was in the city of Cuneo, and the major ...

) * LIV Mixed Engineer Battalion (for the

54th Infantry Division "Napoli" The 54th Infantry Division "Napoli" ( it, 54ª Divisione di fanteria "Napoli") was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Napoli was formed on 15 April 1939 in Caltanissetta and named for the city of Naples. The d ...

) * V Engineer Battalion * XXVII Engineer Battalion * V Telegraphers Battalion * V Marconists Battalion * and many smaller units The 4th Alpine Division "Cuneense" and the 5th Engineer Grouping were sent in summer 1942 to the Eastern Front, where both were destroyed during

Operation Little Saturn Operation Little Saturn was a Red Army offensive on the Eastern Front of World War II that led to battles in Don and Chir rivers region in German-occupied Soviet Union territory in 16–30 December 1942. The success of Operation Uranus, launch ...

in December-January 1943. The IV Mixed Engineer Battalion of the Cuneense was awarded a

Silver Medal of Military Valour 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, ...

for its conduct and sacrifice on the Eastern Front. The 2nd Engineer 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.

2nd Miners Regiment

On 28 October 1932 the 2nd Miners Regiment 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 ...

. The regiment consisted of a command and three miners battalions, which had been transferred from the 4th Engineer Regiment, 5th Engineer Regiment, and

. The regiment's command and depot were formed with personnel from the disbanded

1st Radio-Telegraphers Regiment The 1st Signal Regiment ( it, 1° Reggimento Trasmissioni) is a deployable signals regiment of the Italian Army "The safeguard of the republic shall be the supreme law" , colors = , colors_labels = , m ...

, while the three miners battalions were transferred from the 4th Engineer Regiment, 5th Engineer Regiment, and

. During

the regiment's depot mobilized the V, VI, VII, VIII, X, and CV miners battalions. The regiment was disbanded by invading German forces after the announcement of the Armistice of Cassibile on 8 September 1943.

Cold War

On 20 April 1954 the 2nd Engineer Grouping was formed in

Bolzano Bolzano ( or ; german: Bozen, (formerly ); bar, Bozn; lld, Balsan or ) is the capital city of the province of South Tyrol in northern Italy. With a population of 108,245, Bolzano is also by far the largest city in South Tyrol and the third ...

. On 1 April 1955 the grouping was renamed 2nd Engineer Regiment and assigned to the IV Alpine Army Corps. The regiment received the flag and traditions of the 2nd Engineer Regiment. The regiment consisted of the following units: * CoA mil ITA rgt genio 02

2nd Engineer Regiment, in

** Command Platoon, in Bolzano ** II Miners Battalion, in Bolzano ** IV Fortification Engineer Battalion, in

Sterzing Sterzing (; it, Vipiteno ) is a comune in South Tyrol in northern Italy. It is the main town of the southern Wipptal, and the Eisack River flows through the medieval town. History Origin The town traces its roots to 14 B.C., when Nero Claud ...

** IV Engineer Battalion, in Bolzano (transferred from the

1st Engineer Regiment First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

on 1 July 1955) ** 1st Camouflage Company (transferred from the 5th Engineer Regiment on 7 May 1955) On 16 January 1964 the IV Fortification Engineer Battalion was disbanded, while the 1st Camouflage Company and the 1st Mechanics-Electricians Company and 1st Photo-Electricians Company of the 1st Engineer Regiment were merged into a Mixed Company. On 1 March of the same year the regiment received from the disbanded

the VII Engineer Battalion in

Riva del Garda Riva del Garda (''Rìva'' in local dialect) is a town and ''comune'' in the northern Italian province of Trento of the Trentino Alto Adige region. It is also known simply as ''Riva'' and is located at the northern tip of Lake Garda. History R ...

, the XIV Army Corps Engineer Battalion in

, the 1st Cableway Company in Trento, and the Mixed Company in Trento. In 1974 the 1st Cableway Company and the Mixed Photoelectric-Camouflage Company were disbanded. In preparation for the 1975 army reform the IV Engineer Battalion and VII Engineer Battalion were disbanded on 28 May 1975. During this reform the Italian Army disbanded the regimental level and newly independent battalions were granted for the first time their own flags. During the reform engineer battalions were named for a lake if they supported a corps or named for a river if they supported a division or brigade. On 6 November 1975 the 2nd Engineer Regiment was disbanded and the regiment's II Miners Battalion was renamed 2nd Mining Engineer Battalion "

Iseo Iseo may refer to: Acronyms * International Sustainable Energy Organization (ISEO) Places Italy * Iseo, Lombardy, a ''comune'' in the Province of Brescia * Lake Iseo, a lake in the Provinces of Bergamo and Brescia, Lombardy * Provaglio d'Iseo ...

" and assigned the flag and traditions of the 2nd Engineer Regiment and the traditions of the 2nd Miners Regiment, while the XIV Army Corps Engineer Battalion was renamed 4th Engineer Battalion "Orta" and assigned the flag and traditions of the 4th Engineer Regiment. Both battalions were assigned to the

' Engineer Command and consisted of a command, a command and park company, and three engineer respectively three mining engineer companies. On 22 January 1976 the battalion received the

. For its conduct and work after the

1976 Friuli earthquake Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phi ...

the battalion was awarded a Bronze Medal of Army Valour, which was affixed to the battalion's flag. In 1986 the battalion was renamed 2nd Sappers Battalion "Iseo" and now consisted of a command, a command and services company, three sappers companies, and a special equipment company.

Recent times

On 13 October 1995 the 2nd Engineer Regiment was reformed in the city of

by renaming the

, which had been formed on 4 October 1993 with the personnel and materiel of the 4th Engineer Battalion "Orta". The same day the Orta was renamed "Iseo" and the flag assigned to the Orta was transferred to

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The city is noted for it ...

, where it was returned to the 4th Engineer Regiment. In 2002 the regiment was transferred from the Alpine Troops Command to the

Current structure

As of 2022 the 2nd Engineer Regiment consists of: * CoA mil ITA rgt genio 02

Regimental Command, in

10th Command and Logistic Support Company "Tuono" ** Nappina amarante

XXXI Sappers Battalion "

" ***

3rd Sappers Company "

Gaeta Gaeta (; lat, Cāiēta; Southern Laziale: ''Gaieta'') is a city in the province of Latina, in Lazio, Southern Italy. Set on a promontory stretching towards the Gulf of Gaeta, it is from Rome and from Naples. The town has played a consp ...

" ***

5th Sappers Company "Audace" *** Nappina amarante

7th Sappers Company "Tigre" *** Nappina amarante

124th Deployment Support Company "Lupi" The Command and Logistic Support Company fields the following platoons: C3 Platoon, Transport and Materiel Platoon, Medical Platoon, Commissariat Platoon, and EOD Platoon. Each of the two sapper companies fields a Command Platoon, an Advanced Combat Reconnaissance Teams Platoon, and two sapper platoons. The Deployment Support Company and Mobility Support Company field the battalion's heavy

military engineering vehicle A military engineering vehicle is a vehicle built for construction work or for the transportation of combat engineering, combat engineers on the battlefield. These vehicles may be modified civilian equipment (such as the Armored bulldozer, armou ...

s: Biber

bridgelayer An armoured vehicle-launched bridge (AVLB) is a combat support vehicle, sometimes regarded as a subtype of military engineering vehicle, designed to assist militaries in rapidly deploying tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles across gap-t ...

s, Dachs armored engineer vehicles, cranes, excavators,

Medium Girder Bridge The Medium Girder Bridge (MGB) is a lightweight, man portable bridge and can be assembled without help from heavy equipment. In addition, it is also a deck type, two-girder bridging system capable of carrying loads up to and including Main battl ...

s etc. The sapper companies and Command and Logistic Support Company are equipped with VTLM "Lince" and VTMM "Orso" vehicles.

External links

Italian Army Website: 2° Reggimento Genio Guastatori

References

{{Italian Army Alpini Regiments Alpini regiments of Italy Regiments of Italy in World War I Regiments of Italy in World War II Engineer Regiments of Italy Military units and formations established in 1860