Italian Wars of Independence First Italian War of Independence On 29 March 1848, one week after the people of
Milan had driven the
Imperial Austrian Army out of the city during the
Five Days of Milan, the
Provisional Government of Milan ordered to form two cavalry
depots in Milan: one for a
Dragoons regiment and the other for a
Chevau-légers regiment. Once the 1st Dragoons Squadron and the 1st Chevau-légers Squadron had been formed, they were sent to join the Lombard Division for the ongoing first campaign of the
First Italian War of Independence. Afterwards the two depots continued to form the remainder of the two regiments, which were named Lombard Dragoons Regiment () respectively Lombard Chevau-légers Regiment (). The two regiments assembled at
Vigevano in Lombardy. However, on 22-27 July 1848, the
Royal Sardinian Army lost the
Battle of Custoza and the
Battle of Volta Mantovana. On the evening of 27 July, King
Charles Albert ordered a retreat towards Milan. In the morning of 4 August 1848, the Sardinian forces, which included the 1st Dragoons Squadron and the 1st Chevau-légers Squadron, clashed with the Austrian vanguards outside of Milan. By 19h in the evening of 4 August, the Sardinian troops retreated within the walls of Milan, where one hour later King Charles Albert held a war council, which decided to abandon the city due to a lack of munitions and food. The next morning the Sardinians were informed that the Austrian commander Field Marshal
Joseph Radetzky von Radetz had agreed to allow the Sardinians to retreat and by 6 August the Sardinians had left Milan and retreated over the
Ticino river into
Piedmont. With the Sardinian troops also thousands of Milanese civilians and the military units of the Provisional Government of Milan, crossed the Ticino. Three days later, on 9 August, the Austrian General
Heinrich von Heß and the Sardinian General
Carlo Canera di Salasco signed the
Armistice of Salasco, which stated that Charles Albert's troops would withdraw from the whole of the
Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia, and the
Duchy of Parma and Piacenza and
Duchy of Modena and Reggio. Thus ended the First Campaign of the war. The armistice forced the Lombard Dragoons Regiment and Lombard Chevau-légers Regiment to move to
Venaria Reale near
Turin, where both regiments were formally incorporated into the Royal Sardinian Army on 5 September 1848. On 1 March 1849, the Sardinian
Chamber of Deputies voted for the resumption of the war, with 94 votes in favour and 24 against. King Charles Albert decided that hostilities would resume on 20 March and, as stipulated in the 1848 armistice, the Austrians were informed about the continuation of the war eight days before the hostilities resumed. Charles Albert massed his army near
Novara, while the Lombard Division under General
Girolamo Ramorino and the Lombard Chevau-légers Regiment were sent to guard the Ticino river crossings at
Pavia. On 20 March, the Lombard division was at
La Cava, from where it was possible to observe the Ticino river from Pavia to its confluence with the
Po river. In the event the Lombard Division was attacked it was to retreat North through
Sannazzaro towards
Mortara. However, early on 20 March General Ramorino abandoned La Cava and moved his forces South across the Po river, leaving only the
21st Infantry Regiment at La Cava with orders to retreat across the Po river if the regiment was attacked. At noon on the same day the whole Austrian Army crossed the Ticino river at Pavia and, even though the 21st Infantry Regiment led Major
Luciano Manara resisted for six hours, the Austrians fixed the 21st Infantry Regiment in place with a screening forces, while the main body of the army marched North towards Mortara and
Vigevano. In 1862 and 1863, the regiment operated in
southern Italy to suppress the
anti-Sardinian revolt, which had erupted after the Kingdom of Sardinia had annexed the
Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. During this time the regiment was based in
Campania and clashed with rebels at
Rapolla and
Venosa in the
Vulture region, and then at
Gioia del Colle at the southern end of the
Murge plateau. During these operations against the rebels the regiment lost 43 troops. On 16 February 1864, the regiment ceded its 5th Squadron to help form the Regiment "Cavalleggeri di Caserta". On 20 May 1920, the Royal Italian Army disbanded five additional cavalry regiments, among them the Regiment "Cavalleggeri di Foggia" (11th). On 1 July 1920, the II Squadrons Group "Lancieri di Mantova" of the
Regiment "Genova Cavalleria" (4th) in
Bologna was disbanded and the Regiment "Cavalleggeri di Saluzzo" (12th) moved from Milan to Bologna, where it took over the barracks of the disbanded Squadrons Group. On the same day, 1 July 1920, the traditions and standard of the Regiment "Cavalleggeri di Foggia" (11th) were entrusted to the Regiment "Cavalleggeri di Saluzzo" (12th), which was renamed Regiment "Cavalleggeri di Saluzzo". On 24 May 1925, the standard of the Regiment "Cavalleggeri di Foggia" (11th) was transferred to the
Shrine of the Flags, which at the time was located in
Castel Sant'Angelo, for safekeeping. On 12 November 1976, the
President of the Italian Republic Giovanni Leone assigned with decree 846 the
standard and traditions of the Regiment "Cavalleggeri di Saluzzo" (12th) to the squadrons group. In 1980, the squadrons group replaced its M47 Patton tanks with
Leopard 1A2 main battle tanks. In 1986, the Italian Army abolished the divisional level and brigades, which until then had been under one of the Army's four divisions, came under direct command of the army's
3rd Army Corps or
5th Army Corps. As the Mechanized Division "Folgore" was scheduled to disband on 31 October 1986, the 12th Squadrons Group "Cavalleggeri di Saluzzo" was reorganized as a mechanized unit. On 31 July 1986, the squadrons group was renamed as 12th Mechanized Squadrons Group "Cavalleggeri di Saluzzo" and assigned to the
Armored Brigade "Vittorio Veneto", which on 30 October of the same year was renamed Mechanized Brigade "Vittorio Veneto". The squadrons group consisted now of a command, a command and services squadron, three mechanized squadrons with
M113 armored personnel carriers, and a heavy mortar squadron with
M106 mortar carriers with 120mm mod. 63 mortars.
Recent times After the end of the
Cold War the Italian Army began to draw down its forces and the Mechanized Brigade "Vittorio Veneto" was one of the first brigades earmarked to be disband. On 31 January 1991, the 12th Mechanized Squadrons Group "Cavalleggeri di Saluzzo" was disbanded and the standard of the Regiment "Cavalleggeri di Saluzzo" (12th) was transferred the following 20 February to the
Shrine of the Flags in the
Vittoriano in Rome for safekeeping. == See also ==