The division's lineage begins with the Brigade "Puglie" established in
Milan on 1 August 1862 with the 71st and 72nd infantry regiments.
World War I The brigade fought on the
Italian front in
World War I. In fall 1926 the
72nd Infantry Regiment "Puglie" was disbanded, while Brigade "Puglie" was renamed
X Infantry Brigade. On 15 May 1939 the 72nd Infantry Regiment "Puglie" was reactivated and the command of the 38th Infantry Division "Puglie" was raised. On the same date the division received the 71st Infantry Regiment "Puglie" from the
10th Infantry Division "Piave" and the 15th Artillery Regiment from the
13th Infantry Division "Re".
World War II In February 1941 the division was sent to
Albania to reinforce the Italian front in the
Greco-Italian War. On 5 March the Puglie entered the front at
Dishnicë. From 9 March 1941 the Puglie division
tried to take Monastery Hill near the hamlet of Komarak, as part of the failed
Italian Spring Offensive. By 11 March 1941 the division had suffered so many casualties that it was removed from the front line and sent to the rear to be rebuilt. On 1 April 1941 the Puglie was transferred to the Albanian-Yugoslav border for the upcoming
Invasion of Yugoslavia. The Puglie took up positions near
Kukës, Fushë-Muhurr and Qafë-Murrë. On 7 April 1941 the division defeated Yugoslav attacks at
Blatë and on 9 April at
Maqellarë. On 11 April the division crossed the border and entered
Kosovo, where it captured
Debar. On the same day the Puglie met up with German forces entering Kosovo from the north. On 27–28 April 1941 the Puglie occupied
Prizren,
Peć and
Gjakova. On 1 May 1941 additional garrisons were established at
Orahovac,
Štimlje and
Skenderaj and the division's headquarter established itself in Prizren. The Puglie remained in Kosovo on
anti-partisan duty for the rest of the war. After the announcement of the
Armistice of Cassibile on 8 September 1943 the Puglie retreated to Albania, where it was disbanded by Albanians == Organization ==