The 214th Coastal Division ( it, 214ª Divisione Costiera) was an
infantry division of the
Royal Italian Army
The Royal Italian Army ( it, Regio Esercito, , Royal Army) was the land force of the Kingdom of Italy, established with the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy. During the 19th century Italy started to unify into one country, and in 1861 Manfre ...
during
World War II.
Royal Italian Army coastal divisions were second line divisions formed with reservists and equipped with second rate
materiel. They were often commanded by officers called out of retirement.
[Jowett p 6]
History
The division was activated on 1 July 1943 in
Bari
Bari ( , ; nap, label= Barese, Bare ; lat, Barium) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, southern Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy a ...
and received units from the
212th Coastal Division and XXXI Coastal Brigade.
The division was assigned to
XXXI Army Corps and had its headquarter in
Santa Severina.
The division was responsible for the
coastal defense of the coast of the
Ionian Sea
The Ionian Sea ( el, Ιόνιο Πέλαγος, ''Iónio Pélagos'' ; it, Mar Ionio ; al, Deti Jon ) is an elongated bay of the Mediterranean Sea. It is connected to the Adriatic Sea to the north, and is bounded by Southern Italy, including C ...
coast of Calabria between
Botricello
Botricello ( Calabrian: ) is a town and '' comune'' in the province of Catanzaro, in the Calabria
, population_note =
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and Lido Sant'Angelo.
In early September the division prepared to fight the British
XIII Corps, which had landed on 3 September 1943 in southern Calabria in
Operation Baytown and was advancing towards the 214th Coastal Division's positions. After the
Armistice of Cassibile
The Armistice of Cassibile was an armistice signed on 3 September 1943 and made public on 8 September between the Kingdom of Italy and the Allies during World War II.
It was signed by Major General Walter Bedell Smith for the Allies and Brig ...
was announced on 8 September 1943 the division remained at its positions and surrendered to the British XIII Corps. Afterwards the division joined the
Italian Co-belligerent Army, but did not participate in the
Italian campaign. The division was dissolved in summer 1944.
Organization
* 214th Coastal Division, in
Santa Severina
** 103rd Coastal Regiment (transferred from the
212th Coastal Division)
*** CCCXLII Coastal Battalion
*** VI Dismounted Squadrons Group/
Regiment "Lancieri di Novara"
A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation.
In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...
** 148th Coastal Regiment
*** 3x Coastal battalions
** CCCXCVI Coastal Battalion
** XXVII Coastal Artillery Group
** LV Coastal Artillery Group
** LXXXI Coastal Artillery Group
** CXL Coastal Artillery Group
** 403rd Mortar Company (
81mm mod. 35 mortars)
** 702nd Mixed Engineer Company
** 178th Anti-paratroopers Unit
** 312th Anti-paratroopers Unit
** 443rd Anti-paratroopers Unit
** 447th Anti-paratroopers Unit
** 451st Anti-paratroopers Unit
** 214th
Carabinieri Section
** Field Post Office
** Division Services
Attached to the division:
* Armored Train 152/3/T, in
Crotone
Crotone (, ; nap, label= Crotonese, Cutrone or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Calabria, Italy. Founded as the Achaean colony of Kroton ( grc, Κρότων or ; la, Crotona) in Magna Graecia, it was known as Cotrone from the Middle Ages until ...
(4x
152/40 naval guns, 4x
20/77 Scotti anti-aircraft guns;
transferred from the
212th Coastal Division)
Commanding officers
The division's commanding officers were:
*
Generale di Brigata
A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry.
In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...
Carlo Lama Carlo is a given name. It is an Italian form of Charles. It can refer to:
*Carlo (name)
* Monte Carlo
*Carlingford, New South Wales, a suburb in north-west Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
*A satirical song written by Dafydd Iwan about Prince Cha ...
(1 July 1943 - ?)
References
*
*
{{Italian Divisions World War II
Coastal divisions of Italy
Infantry divisions of Italy in World War II