On 1 November 1882, the
Royal Italian Army formed six Alpini regiments, one of which was the
6th Alpini Regiment in
Conegliano in
Veneto. On 1 November 1886, the 6th Alpini Regiment formed the Alpini Battalion "Feltre" in
Feltre, with companies ceded by the Battalion "Val Brenta" and Battalion "Cadore". On the same day the all Alpini battalions changed their names from their recruiting zones to the cities and towns, where their base was located. Furthermore Alpini soldiers and non-commissioned officers were issued thread tufts, called
Nappina in Italian, which were clipped to the
Cappello Alpino headdress, and colored white for the troops of a regiment's first battalion, red for the troops of a regiment's second battalion, green for the troops of a regiment's third battalion, and blue for the troops of a regiment's fourth battalion. As the 6th Alpini Regiment had grown to six battalions and had become too complex to administer it was divided on 1 August 1887 into the 6th Alpini Regiment and 7th Alpini Regiment. The latter was formed in Conegliano with the regimental command of the 6th Alpini Regiment and the battalions "Feltre", "Pieve di Cadore" and "Gemona". On the same date the regimental command of the 6th Alpini Regiment was reformed in
Verona. The 7th Alpini Regiment then consisted of the following units: •
7th Alpini Regiment, in
Conegliano • 64th, 65th, 66th, and 95th Alpini Company • Alpini Battalion "Pieve di Cadore" • 67th, 68th, 75th, and 96th Alpini Company • Alpini Battalion "Belluno" • 77th, 78th, 79th, and 106th Alpini Company • Alpini Battalion "
Val Cismon" • 264th and 265th Alpini Company (277th Alpini Company joined the battalion in November 1915) • Alpini Battalion "
Val Piave" • 267th and 268th (275th Alpini Company joined the battalion in November 1915) • Alpini Battalion "
Val Cordevole" • 206th and 266th (276th Alpini Company joined the battalion in November 1915) After the declaration of war the regiment's battalions operated in groups two in the following areas: the Alpini battalions "Feltre" and "Val Cismon" in the
Brenta –
Cismon area, the Alpini battalions "Belluno" and "Val Cordevole" in the
Cordevole and
Passo Fedaia area, and the Alpini battalions "Pieve di Cadore" and "Val Piave" in the
Ansiei –
Padola area, which included
Monte Piana. By the end of 1915 the Alpini regiments began to form additional companies with recruits born in 1896. These new companies were numbered from 118th to 157th and were used, together with the 38 companies formed earlier, to form an additional reserve battalion for each regular battalion. These new battalions were named for a mountain () located near their associated regular Alpini battalion's base, and the reserve battalions received the same
Nappina as their associated regular Alpini battalion. The 7th Alpini Regiment thus added the following
Monte battalions: • 95th, 148th, and 149th Alpini Company • Alpini Battalion "
Monte Antelao" • 96th, 150th, and 151st Alpini Company • Alpini Battalion "
Monte Pelmo" • 106th, 146th, and 147th Alpini Company As the mountainous terrain of the
Italian front made the deployment of entire Alpini regiments impracticable, the regimental commands of the eight Alpini regiments were disbanded in March 1916. Likewise in April 1916 the pre-war alpine brigade commands were disbanded, and the personnel of the regimental commands and alpine brigade commands used to from twenty regiment-sized group commands and nine brigade-sized grouping commands. Afterwards Alpini battalions were employed either independently or assigned to groups, groupings, or infantry divisions as needed. In November and December 1917, after the disastrous
Battle of Caporetto, the following retreat to the
Piave river, and the subsequent
First Battle of the Piave River and
First Battle of Monte Grappa, the Royal Italian Army disbanded twenty Alpini battalions, which had suffered heavy casualties during the battles and retreat. Among the twenty battalions were the Alpini battalions "Belluno" and "Monte Marmolada" of the 7th Alpini Regiment: the "Belluno" had covered the Italian retreat from the main line of the Alps and was surrounded and destroyed by
Austro-Hungarian troops at
Cansiglio on 10 November 1917.
Second Italo-Ethiopian War machine gun during the
Battle of Amba Aradam On 22 December 1935, the 7th Alpini Regiment was mobilized for the
Second Italo-Ethiopian War. On the same date the regiment received the Alpini Battalion "Pieve di Teco" from the
1st Alpini Regiment and the Alpini Battalion "Exilles" from the
3rd Alpini Regiment. On 31 December of the same year, the 7th Alpini Regiment, which now consisted of the Alpini Battalions "Feltre", "Pieve di Teco", and "Exilles", was assigned to the newly formed
5th Alpine Division "Pusteria", which also included the newly formed
11th Alpini Regiment and
5th Alpine Artillery Regiment "Pusteria". On 6 January 1936 the "Pusteria" division's units embarked in
Livorno and
Naples for the transfer to
Massawa in
Eritrea. The same month the depot of the 7th Alpini Regiment formed the command and the 643rd Company of the VII Replacements Battalion. The replacement troops were volunteers drawn from the regiments, which had transferred battalions to the 7th Alpini Regiment for the war. The VII Replacements Battalion consisted of the 603rd, 614th, and 643rd companies, with the 603rd Company having been formed by the 1st Alpini Regiment and the 614th Company by the 3rd Alpini Regiment. Each of the three companies used a different colored
Nappina, with the color corresponding to the battalion of the deployed regiment the company was meant to support. The VII Replacements Battalion was attached to 7th Alpini Regiment and immediately shipped to Eritrea, where in the meantime the "Pusteria" was engaged in combat against Ethiopian troops. On 15 February 1936, the 7th Alpini Regiment's depot in
Belluno formed the command of the
12th Alpini Regiment, which took command of 7th Alpini Regiment's battalions "Pieve di Cadore" and "Belluno", which had remained in Italy. The 12th Alpini Regiment was assigned to the
3rd Alpine Division "Julia" and also included the Complement Officer Cadets Battalion "Bolzano" of the
6th Alpini Regiment, which was detached to the Alpini specialty's Complement Officer Cadets School in
Bassano del Grappa. On 10–19 February 1936, the "Pusteria" fought in the
Battle of Amba Aradam and on 27–29 February in the
Second Battle of Tembien. During the latter battle a volunteer force of 150 Alpini of the VII Replacements Battalion conquered the Northern summit of Amba Uork in a night attack. For this the battalion was awarded a
Bronze Medal of Military Valor. On 15 March 1936, the commanding officer of the VII Replacements Battalion, Major Tommaso Risi, renamed the battalion Alpini Battalion "Uork Amba". The 7th Alpini Regiment and Alpini Battalion "Uork Amba" then fought in the
Battle of Maychew and the
Battle of Lake Ashenge. After the end of the war the "Pusteria" remained in
Ethiopia and was tasked with subjugating the restive population. On 22 October 1936, the 7th Alpini Regiment's depot in Feltre formed a second VII Replacements Battalion with volunteers. The battalion arrived in Ethiopia on 15 January 1937 and its personnel was merged into the Alpini Battalion "Uork Amba". On 18 March 1937, the Alpini Battalion "Uork Amba" left the 7th Alpini Regiment and on the same day the name of the battalion was officially sanctioned. The battalion remained in Ethiopia as an autonomous unit, while the "Pusteria" division returned to Italy, where its last units disembarked in Naples on 12 April 1937. The next day the division was honored with a parade through
Rome and then the division's units returned to their bases. The 7th Alpini Regiment returned to Belluno, while the Alpini battalions "Pieve di Teco" and "Exilles" returned to their respective regiments, and the Alpini Battalion "Feltre" returned to the city of Feltre. On 24 April of the same year, the 12th Alpini Regiment was disbanded and the battalions "Pieve di Cadore" and "Belluno" returned to the 7th Alpini Regiment. Initially the Complement Officer Cadets Battalion "Bolzano" was also assigned to the 7th Alpini Regiment, but it was soon transferred to the
11th Alpini Regiment. •
7th Alpini Regiment, in
Belluno For their conduct and service on the Greek front between 24 November 1940 and 23 April 1941 the Alpini battalions "Feltre" and "Pieve di Cadore" were awarded a shared
Silver Medal of Military Valor, while the Alpini Battalion "Belluno" was awarded a
Silver Medal of Military Valor for its conduct and valor between 27 November 1940 and 25 April 1941. Likewise the Alpini Battalion "Val Cismon" was awarded a
Silver Medal of Military Valor for its conduct and valor between 17 January and 23 April 1941. Two of the Silver Medals of Military Valor were affixed to the 7th Alpini Regiment's flag and added to the regiment's coat of arms. At the same time the Alpini Battalion "Uork Amba" fought in the
East African campaign of
World War II, during which it was assigned to the 10th Regiment "Granatieri di Savoia" of the
65th Infantry Division "Granatieri di Savoia". The battalion distinguished itself in the
Battle of Keren and then retreated with the remaining Italian forces to
Massawa, where the remnants of the battalion surrendered to British forces on 8 April 1941. For its service and sacrifice the battalion was awarded a
Silver Medal of Military Valor, which was affixed, together with the Bronze Medal of Military Valor the battalion had been awarded earlier, to the flag of the 7th Alpini Regiment and added to the regiment's coat of arms after World War II had ended. On 12 November 1976 the
President of the Italian Republic Giovanni Leone assigned with decree 846 the flag and traditions of the 7th Alpini Regiment to the
Alpini Battalion "Feltre", while the
Alpini Battalion "Pieve di Cadore" and
Alpini Battalion "Belluno" were granted a new flag. At the same time the medals and military honors awarded to the Alpini battalions "Pieve di Cadore" and "Belluno" were transferred from the flag of the 7th Alpini Regiment to the two battalions' flags, while the medals and military honors awarded to the entire regiment were duplicated for the flags of the two battalions.
Recent times On 21 August 1992, the Alpini Battalion "Feltre" lost its autonomy and the next day the battalion entered the reformed 7th Alpini Regiment. During the same year the "Cadore" brigade's Anti-Tank Company was disbanded and its personnel, with their
TOW anti-tank guided missiles, assigned to the mortar companies of the battalions of the 7th Alpini Regiment and
12th Alpini Regiment. Consequently the regiment's 125th Mortar Company was renamed 125th Support Weapons Company. In November 1994 the regiment was sent to the
Province of Asti, which had been inundated by severe floods. For its work in Asti the
Italian Red Cross awarded the 7th Alpini Regiment a Bronze Medal of Merit, which was affixed to the regiment's flag. On 31 January 1997, the Alpine Brigade "Cadore" was disbanded and the next day the 7th Alpini Regiment was assigned to the
Alpine Brigade "Julia". In 2001 the 125th Support Weapons Company was split into the 125th Mortar Company and the 269th Anti-tank Company "Val Fella". On 30 November 2004, the
16th Regiment "Belluno" in Belluno was disbanded, and the following year the 7th Alpini Regiment moved from Feltre to Belluno. In 2011, the 269th Anti-tank Company "Val Fella" was disbanded and its personnel integrated into the 125th Mortar Company, which was renamed 125th Maneuver Support Company. == Organization ==