On 1 November 1886, the
Royal Italian Army's Alpini battalions changed their names from their recruiting zones to the cities and towns, where their base was located. At the same time 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. On the same day the
6th Alpini Regiment's Battalion "Cadore", which consisted of the 65th, 66th, 67th, and 68th companies and was based in
Pieve di Cadore, was renamed Alpini Battalion "Pieve di Cadore". Furthermore on the same day, 1 November 1886, the 6th Alpini Regiment formed the
Alpini Battalion "Feltre", for which the Alpini Battalion "Pieve di Cadore" ceded its 65th and 66th Alpini companies. As replacement the "Pieve di Cadore" battalion received the newly formed 75th Alpini Company. As the regiment's second battalion the "Pieve di Cadore" battalion's troops received a red
Nappina. The battalion's recruiting area was the
Cadore in the upper
Piave valley. On 23 May 1915, Italy declared war on
Austro-Hungary and the Alpini Battalion "Pieve di Cadore" occupied positions in the
Dolomites near the
Tre Cime di Lavaredo, on
Monte Cavallino, and on
Monte Piana. As the mountainous terrain of the
Italian front made the deployment of entire Alpini regiments impracticable the Alpini battalions were employed either independently or assigned to groups, groupings, or infantry divisions as needed. 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. In December 1915, the Alpini Battalion "Pieve di Cadore" ceded the 96th Alpini Company to the newly formed Alpini Battalion "
Monte Antelao", which also included the 150th and 151st Alpini Company. In 1916 the Alpini Battalion "Pieve di Cadore" was deployed until May in the sector of the Tre Cime di Lavaredo and then in June on
Monte Cristallo. From July until the end of the year the battalion fought in the
Tofane group. In January 1917, the battalion was sent to the
Val Costeana, before it moved in August to the
Isonzo front for the
Eleventh Battle of the Isonzo, during which the battalion fought at
Mešnjak. From October 1917 to August 1918, the battalion held positions on Monte Altissimo di Nago. In October–November 1918, during the decisive
Battle of Vittorio Veneto, the battalion was on
Monte Valderoa, from where it advanced to
Feltre. 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. In April 1937, the "Pusteria" division returned to Italy and the 7th Alpini Regiment returned to Belluno, while the Alpini battalions "Pieve di Teco" and "Exilles" returned to their respective regiments. 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.
World War II On 10 June 1940, Italy entered
World War II and the Alpini Battalion "Pieve di Cadore", which consisted of a command company, and the 67th, 68th, and 75th Alpini companies, participated, together with the rest of the 7th Alpini Regiment, in the
invasion of France. 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, which was affixed to the 7th Alpini Regiment's flag and added to the regiment's coat of arms.
Recent times On 7 August 1992, the Alpini Battalion "Pieve di Cadore" lost its autonomy and the next day the battalion entered the newly formed 12th Alpini Regiment, which inherited the "Belluno" battalion's flag, traditions, honors and coat of arms. 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 167th Mortar Company was renamed 167th Support Weapons Company. On 22 October 1995, the regiment was reduced to a reserve unit, which consisted of a Command and Logistic Support Platoon and the 67th Alpini Company. On 31 January 1997, the Alpine Brigade "Cadore" and 12th Alpini Regiment were disbanded, and on the following 26 February the regiment's flag was transferred to the Shrine of the Flags in the
Vittoriano in
Rome. == Organization ==