World War II On 6 November 1939, the 33rd Tank Infantry Regiment was formed in
Parma. The new regiment received the
XXII Tank Battalion L and XXIII Tank Battalion L from the
1st Tank Infantry Regiment and the VI Tank Battalion L and XXXII Tank Battalion L from the
3rd Tank Infantry Regiment. The battalions were equipped with
L3/35 tankettes with the L standing for or "Light". The regiment was assigned to the
133rd Armored Division "Littorio", which had been formed on the same date and also included the
12th Bersaglieri Regiment and 133rd Armored Artillery Regiment. In April 1940, the regiment's battalions were renumbered and the regiment then consisted of the following units: In summer 1940, the I Tank Battalion L was transferred to
Libya, where it participated in the
Western Desert campaign. On 22 December 1940, the regiment was ordered to form a new tank battalion, which was designated
VI Tank Battalion M13/40. The battalion was equipped with
M13/40 tanks with the M standing for or "Medium". In January 1941, the VI Tank Battalion M13/40 was rushed to Libya to shore up the disintegrating Italian
10th Army, which was crumbling under heavy British pressure during the British
Operation Compass. On 22 January 1941, the VI Tank Battalion M13/40 arrived at
Benghazi, with thirty-seven M13/40s tanks and another thirty-six M13/40s for the XXI Tank Battalion L, which was waiting at Benghazi to convert to the new vehicle, having lost its L3/35 tankettes in the
fall of Tobruk. Neither battalion had time to acclimatise or train as both were sent to reinforce the Bignami Group ( of Colonel Riccardo Bignami near
Suluq. Over the next days the VI Tank Battalion M13/40 was in constant contact with British forces as the remnants of the Italian 10th Army under Lieutenant General
Giuseppe Tellera tried to escape the British onslaught. The next day the remaining Italian troops surrendered and the Tenth Army ceased to exist. The VI Tank Battalion M13/40 was declared lost due to war time events. The battalion consisted of a command, a command and services company, and three tank companies with
M47 Patton tanks. The battalion fielded now 434 men (32 officers, 82 non-commissioned officers, and 320 soldiers). On 12 November 1976 the
President of the Italian Republic Giovanni Leone assigned with decree 846 the flag and traditions of the 33rd Tank Infantry Regiment to the 6th Tank Battalion "M.O. Scapuzzi".
Recent times With the end of the
Cold War the Italian Army drew down its forces and, on 31 August 1993, the 6th Tank Battalion "M.O. Scapuzzi" in
Civitavecchia lost its autonomy and transferred the flag of the 33rd Tank Regiment, which the battalion held since 1976, to
Ozzano dell'Emilia, while on the same day the flag of the
4th Tank Regiment was transferred from Ozzano dell'Emilia to Civitavecchia. The next day, on 1 September 1993, the
11th Tank Battalion "M.O. Calzecchi" in Ozzano dell'Emilia entered the reformed 33rd Tank Regiment, while the 6th Tank Battalion "M.O. Scapuzzi" entered the 4th Tank Regiment. The 11th Tank Battalion "M.O. Calzecchi" was equipped with
Leopard 1A2 main battle tanks and the 33rd Tank Regiment was now assigned to the
Mechanized Brigade "Friuli". As the Mechanized Brigade "Friuli" was earmarked to become an
air assault brigade the 33rd Tank Regiment was transferred in 1997 to the
132nd Armored Brigade "Ariete". On 1 June 1999, the tankers specialty was transferred from the infantry arm to the cavalry arm. Consequently, on the same date the regiment replaced its flag with a cavalry
standard. On 31 August 2001, the 33rd Tank Regiment was disbanded and the regiment's standard transferred to the
Shrine of the Flags in the
Vittoriano in
Rome for safekeeping. == See also ==