After the
Second Italian War of Independence the
Austrian Empire had to cede the
Lombardy region of the
Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia to the
Kingdom of Sardinia. After taking control of the region the government of Sardinia ordered on 29 August 1859 that the
Royal Sardinian Army should raise five infantry brigades and one grenadier brigade in Lombardy. Subsequently on 1 November 1859 the Brigade "Granatieri di Lombardia" was activated with the newly raised 3rd and 4th grenadier regiments. On 5 March 1871 the brigade was assigned to the infantry and renamed Brigade "Lombardia". On the same date brigade's two regiments were renamed 73rd Infantry Regiment and 74th Infantry Regiment.
World War I The brigade fought on the
Italian front in
World War I. On 20 October 1926 the brigade assumed the name of XV Infantry Brigade and received the
26th Infantry Regiment "Bergamo" from the disbanded
Brigade "Bergamo". The XV Infantry Brigade was the infantry component of the 15th Territorial Division of
Pola, which also included the 4th Artillery Regiment. On 25 January 1930 the division moved to
Volosko and consequently changed its name to 15th Territorial Division of Volosca. On 24 March 1932 the division moved to
Opatija and changed its name to 15th Territorial Division of Abbazia. In 1934 the division changed its name to 15th Infantry Division "
Carnaro". On 24 May 1939 the
73rd Infantry Regiment "Lombardia" in
Rijeka changed its name to 25th Infantry Regiment "Bergamo", while the 12th Infantry Regiment "Casale" of the
12th Infantry Division "Sassari" in
Trieste changed its name to 73rd Infantry Regiment "Lombardia". On the same date the 15th Infantry Division "
Carnaro" was renamed 15th Infantry Division "Bergamo" and ceded the 74th Infantry Regiment "Lombardia" to the newly activated 57th Infantry Division "Lombardia", which also received the 73rd Infantry Regiment "Lombardia" from the 12th Infantry Division "Sassari" and the newly raised 57th Artillery Regiment.
World War II The Lombardia remained at its garrisons until April 1941, when the division participated in the
Invasion of Yugoslavia as part of the
V Army Corps. On 8 April 1941 the division entered combat and on 11 April 1941 it broke through the Yugoslavian defences and crossed the border in the
Sora river valley. On 12 April 1941 the Lombardia captured
Podkilavac, Grobnik (near
Čavle and
Jelenje. By 13 April 1941 it had reached
Krasica and
Škrljevo, at which point the Yugoslavian army ceased to offer resistance. On 15 April 1941, garrisons in coastal towns of
Novi Vinodolski,
Ledenice,
Crikvenica, and as far south as
Žuta Lokva were established. From 9 October to 9 November 1941 the Lombardia participated in the anti-partisan
Operation Uzice on the Serbo-Croatian border. By 1942 the division's main garrisons were in western
Croatia at
Gerovo,
Delnice, and
Ogulin. In early 1943 the division also participated in the
Battle of the Neretva. By that time partisan activity had grown in frequency and scale, and by September 1943 partisans routinely performed battalion-sized attacks on Italian checkpoints and railways. After the
Armistice of Cassibile was announced on 8 September 1943, the Lombardia was disbanded by
invading German forces. == Organization ==