Alessandro Gloria (

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, 7 July 1883 –

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

, 24 October 1970) was an Italian general during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Biography

Gloria was born in

on July 7, 1883, the son of Gaspare Gloria and Maria Sacchi. After enlisting in 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 ...

, on 3 November 1901 he enrolled in the Royal Military Academy of Artillery and Engineers in

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

, graduating as artillery

Second Lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

on 7 September 1903. After promotion to

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

and later to

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

, he fought in

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...

with the 7th Field Artillery Regiment during the

Italo-Turkish War The Italo-Turkish or Turco-Italian War ( tr, Trablusgarp Savaşı, "Tripolitanian War", it, Guerra di Libia, "War of Libya") was fought between the Kingdom of Italy and the Ottoman Empire from 29 September 1911, to 18 October 1912. As a result o ...

(1911-1912), earning a

Bronze Medal of Military Valour The Bronze Medal of Military Valor ( it, Medaglia di bronzo al valor militare) is an Italian medal for gallantry. It was established by Charles Albert of Sardinia on 26 March 1833, along with the higher ranking Gold and Silver Medals for Military ...

for action near

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to: Cities and other geographic units Greece *Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...

in October 1911, and later in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

with the 32nd Field Artillery Regiment, being badly wounded on the

Isonzo Front The Battles of the Isonzo (known as the Isonzo Front by historians, sl, soška fronta) were a series of 12 battles between the Austro-Hungarian and Italian armies in World War I mostly on the territory of present-day Slovenia, and the remaind ...

in January 1916 and receiving a further two Bronze Medals of Military Valour.Charles D. Pettibone, The Organization and Order of Battle of Militaries in World War II Volume VI Italy and France Including the Neutral Countries of San Marino, Vatican City (Holy See), Andorra, and Monaco, p. 80-89-116-135. After promotion to

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

at the end of the war, he went on to serve with the 19th Heavy Field Artillery Regiment, and in 1920 he was transferred to the Headquarters of the Military Division of Turin. After a long period as a teacher at the local War School he became a

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

and then a

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

in 1930, being placed at the disposal of the Command of the Army Corps of Turin. He later assumed command of the 8th Heavy Field Artillery Regiment, and became alternate judge at the territorial

military court A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...

of Rome from 1 July 1931 to 10 February 1933. Between June 26, 1933, and September 30, 1935, he served in the General Staff of the army in Rome, and from October 1, 1935, to February 1, 1937, he was commander of the 17th Artillery Regiment "Sforzesca" before being assigned to the Army Corps of

Alessandria Alessandria (; pms, Lissandria ) is a city and ''comune'' in Piedmont, Italy, and the capital of the Province of Alessandria. The city is sited on the alluvial plain between the Tanaro and the Bormida rivers, about east of Turin. Alessandria ...

. After promotion to

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

on 1 July 1937 he was appointed commander of the III Border Sector, holding this position until 10 April 1938 when he became deputy commander of the 3rd Infantry Brigade "Monferrato". On March 31, 1939, he was appointed commander of the anti-aircraft artillery of

. On 1 January 1940 he was promoted to

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

and given command of the

37th Infantry Division Modena 37th may refer to: *37th (Howitzer) Brigade Royal Field Artillery, a brigade of the Royal Field Artillery which served in the First World War * 37th (North Hampshire) Regiment of Foot, raised in Ireland in February 1702 * 37th (Northern Ontario) Ba ...

, which after Italy's entrance into

on 10 June, he led during operations on the western alpine border, earning another Bronze Medal of Military Valour. On November 24, 1940, he was transferred with his division on the Albanian front, where five days later he was badly wounded during a

reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops (skirmisher ...

and temporarily replaced by General Luigi Trionfi. After recovering from his wounds, he retook command of the "Modena" Division on February 1, 1941, leading it till the end of the operations against Greece and receiving a final Bronze Medal of Military Valour. On 5 May he temporarily assumed command of the XXVI Army Corps; on 25 August 1941 he was transferred to Libya and given the command of the 25th Infantry Division Bologna, which he led during the

siege of Tobruk The siege of Tobruk lasted for 241 days in 1941, after Axis forces advanced through Cyrenaica from El Agheila in Operation Sonnenblume against Allied forces in Libya, during the Western Desert Campaign (1940–1943) of the Second World War. ...

Operation Crusader Operation Crusader (18 November – 30 December 1941) was a military operation of the Western Desert Campaign during the Second World War by the British Eighth Army (United Kingdom), Eighth Army (with Commonwealth, Indian and Allied contingents) ...

, the

battle of Alam Halfa The Battle of Alam el Halfa took place between 30 August and 5 September 1942 south of El Alamein during the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War. '' Panzerarmee Afrika'' (''Generalfeldmarschall'' Erwin Rommel), attempted an envelopme ...

and the

second battle of El Alamein The Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October – 11 November 1942) was a battle of the Second World War that took place near the Egyptian Railway station, railway halt of El Alamein. The First Battle of El Alamein and the Battle of Alam el Halfa ...

; in October 1942 he was also temporarily given command of the XXI Corps, of which the "Bologna" Division was part. After the destruction of his division at El Alamein, he was repatriated on 6 December, and nine days later he was promoted to

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

, remaining at the disposal of the Ministry of War until 9 January 1943, when he was given command of the V Army Corps operating in

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...

. On May 5 of the same year he left command of the V Corps and returned to Rome, remaining there until July 27, 1943, when he was given command of the XXXV Army Corps in

South Tyrol it, Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano – Alto Adige lld, Provinzia Autonoma de Balsan/Bulsan – Südtirol , settlement_type = Autonomous province , image_skyline = , image_alt ...

, with headquarters in

Bolzano Bolzano ( or ; german: Bozen, (formerly ); bar, Bozn; lld, Balsan or ) is the capital city of the province of South Tyrol in northern Italy. With a population of 108,245, Bolzano is also by far the largest city in South Tyrol and the third la ...

. Although Marshal of Italy

Pietro Badoglio Pietro Badoglio, 1st Duke of Addis Abeba, 1st Marquess of Sabotino (, ; 28 September 1871 – 1 November 1956), was an Italian general during both World Wars and the first viceroy of Italian East Africa. With the fall of the Fascist regime ...

had declared, immediately after the fall of the Fascist regime on 25 July, that the war would continue alongside Germany, it was now clear to the Germans that the Italian government was negotiating surrender with the Allies. In order to prevent this, German troops began crossing the border with Italy and taking control of Alpine passes and valleys, occupying the most strategically important locations. Gloria tried to oppose this, but was unable to stop the Germans, who were also willing to engage in an armed confrontation with the Italians – despite the two countries being still allied – in order to reach their goals. However, when the commander of the newly established Auffrischungsstab München, General

Valentin Peter Feuerstein Valentin Peter Feuerstein (1917–1999), also known as Peter Valentin Feuerstein, was a German painter and stained-glass artist who created windows for major churches in Germany, including the Ulmer Münster, the Freiburger Münster and the Übe ...

, from

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; bar, Innschbruck, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian ) is the capital of Tyrol (state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the ...

, informed Gloria that the 44th Infantry Division would enter Italian territory, he replied that this unit could not enter, threatening armed intervention to oppose it. Following 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 ...

, on 9 September 1943 he was captured by German troops at his headquarters in Bolzano, and then interned in the officer POW Camp 64/Z in Schokken (today

Skoki Skoki (german: Schokken) is a town in Poland, Greater Poland Voivodeship, Wągrowiec County, with 3,779 inhabitants (December 2004). It is located about 40 km north of Poznań. It is the seat of the administrative district (gmina) called Gm ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

. He returned to Italy after the end of the war, in October 1945, and was discharged from the Army on July 7, 1956. He died in

on October 24, 1970.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gloria, Alessandro 1883 births 1970 deaths Italian generals Italian military personnel of World War I Italian military personnel of World War II Italian military personnel of the Italo-Turkish War Recipients of the Silver Medal of Military Valor Recipients of the Bronze Medal of Military Valor