The Ministry of War ( it, Ministero della guerra) was a ministry of the Kingdom of Italy from 1861 to 1946 and of the Italian Republic from 1946 to 1947. Under the Kingdom of Italy, it oversaw the Royal Army ( it, Regio Esercito), while under the Italian Republic it oversaw the Italian Army ( it, Esercito Italiano). It was abolished in 1947, when it merged with the Ministry of Aeronautics and the Ministry of the Navy to form the

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

History

The Italian Ministry of War had its origins in the Kingdom of Sardinia, which on 11 October 1850 divided its Ministry of War and the Navy, moving the oversight of the

Royal Sardinian Navy The Royal Sardinian Navy was the naval force of the Kingdom of Sardinia. The fleet was created in 1720 when the Duke of Savoy, Victor Amadeus II, became the King of Sardinia. Victor Amadeus had acquired the vessels be used to establish the flee ...

to the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce and retaining oversight of the Royal Sardinian Army in a new Ministry of War.. When Italy unified in 1861 to form the Kingdom of Italy, the last

King of Sardinia The following is a list of rulers of Sardinia, in particular, of the monarchs of the Kingdom of Sardinia and Corsica from 1323 and then of the Kingdom of Sardinia from 1479 to 1861. Early history Owing to the absence of written sources, little ...

became the King of Italy as

Victor Emmanuel II Victor Emmanuel II ( it, Vittorio Emanuele II; full name: ''Vittorio Emanuele Maria Alberto Eugenio Ferdinando Tommaso di Savoia''; 14 March 1820 – 9 January 1878) was King of Sardinia from 1849 until 17 March 1861, when he assumed the title o ...

, and in that year Italy's Fourth Cavour government drew upon the former Sardinian Ministry of War to create an Italian Ministry of War to oversee the new Italian Royal Army ( it, Regio Esercito).. Until 1920, the ministry was a stronghold of the upper hierarchy of the Royal Army, who always rejected any form of control by the

Parliament of Italy The Italian Parliament ( it, Parlamento italiano) is the national parliament of the Italian Republic. It is the representative body of Italian citizens and is the successor to the Parliament of the Kingdom of Italy (1861–1943), the transitiona ...

. During the years from 1861 to 1920, the minister usually was a Royal Army general, the office of the Royal Army's chief of the

general staff A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large military un ...

dominated Royal Army policymaking, and civilians rarely had much of a say in the Royal Army's affairs. If anything, Italy's participation in increased the general staff's dominance within the ministry. When Ivanoe Bonomi became Minister of War in the Fifth Giolitti government in 1920, however, he introduced a reform of the military system which took his name and reduced the powers of the office of the chief of the general staff. Under the

fascist Fascism is a far-right, Authoritarianism, authoritarian, ultranationalism, ultra-nationalist political Political ideology, ideology and Political movement, movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and pol ...

government of Prime Minister

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...

, Mussolini himself served as the Minister of War from 1925 to 1929 and from 1933 to , delegating its ordinary management to a Royal Army general, who he appointed as undersecretary of state. The Mussolini government made changes to the Ministry of War's responsibilities during the mid-1920s. On 30 August 1925, it split off the Ministry of War's oversight of aviation activities into a new Ministry of Aeronautics, reflecting the transformation of the Ministry of War's Commissariat for

Aeronautics Aeronautics is the science or art involved with the study, design, and manufacturing of air flight–capable machines, and the techniques of operating aircraft and rockets within the atmosphere. The British Royal Aeronautical Society identifies ...

into the new ''

Regia Aeronautica The Italian Royal Air Force (''Regia Aeronautica Italiana'') was the name of the air force of the Kingdom of Italy. It was established as a service independent of the Royal Italian Army from 1923 until 1946. In 1946, the monarchy was abolis ...

'' ("Royal Air Force") in 1923. With the "Mussolini Order" of 1926, oversight of the

Royal Corps of Colonial Troops The Royal Corps of Colonial Troops ( it, Regio Corpo Truppe Coloniali or RCTC) was a corps of the Italian Armed Forces, in which all the Italian colonial troops were grouped until the end of World War II in Africa. History Many of the Askaris in ...

( it, Regio Corpo Truppe Coloniali, or RCTC) in the colonies of the Italian Empire moved from the Ministry of War to the Ministry of the Colonies. Italy entered World War II on the side of the Axis powers in June 1940. In September 1943, it

surrendered Surrender, in military terms, is the relinquishment of control over territory, combatants, fortifications, ships or armament to another power. A surrender may be accomplished peacefully or it may be the result of defeat in battle. A sovereign ...

to the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

and switched sides, becoming a co-belligerent with the Allies. Between September 1943 and the surrender of Nazi Germany in May 1945, with the Kingdom of Italy in control of southern Italy, the ministry oversaw the Royal Army's forces as they fought as the Italian Co-belligerent Army alongside Allied forces in the Italian campaign and simultaneously in the

Italian Civil War The Italian Civil War (Italian language, Italian: ''Guerra civile italiana'', ) was a civil war in the Kingdom of Italy fought during World War II by Italian Fascists against the Italian resistance movement, Italian partisans (mostly politically ...

against the

Italian Social Republic The Italian Social Republic ( it, Repubblica Sociale Italiana, ; RSI), known as the National Republican State of Italy ( it, Stato Nazionale Repubblicano d'Italia, SNRI) prior to December 1943 but more popularly known as the Republic of Salò ...

, which the Germans established as a puppet state in northern Italy under Mussolini and which continued to fight on the Axis side. In 1946, the Italian Republic replaced the Kingdom of Italy. Under the republic, the Ministry of War exercised oversight of what was now known as the Italian Army ( it, Esercito Italiano). Under the Third De Gasperi government, by Decree Number 17 of the provisional head of state on 4 February 1947, the Ministry of War, Ministry of the Navy, and Ministry of Aeronautics were abolished as of 14 February 1947, and their responsibilities were transferred to a new, unified

Organization

1928

In 1928, the organization of the ministry was as follows: * Office of the

Minister Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

* Coordination Office *

General Staff A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large military un ...

* General Directorate for Civilian Personnel and General Affairs * General Directorate for Officer Personnel * General Directorate for Non-Commissioned Officers and Troops * General Directorate for Artillery and Automobiles * General Directorate for Engineers * General Directorate for Logistical Services * General Directorate for Military

Health Care Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delivered by health profe ...

* General Administrative Inspectorate * Director of the Military Chemical Center * Equestrian and Veterinary Service * Division for Physical Education, Pre-Military Education, and Military Schools

1940

With Italy's entry into World War II in June 1940, the ministry was reorganized under Law Number 1039 on 6 July 1940 as follows: * Office of the Minister * Private Secretariat of the Undersecretary of State * Headquarters * General Directorate for Officers on Permanent Duty * General Directorate for Officers on Leave * General Directorate for Civilian Personnel and General Affairs * General Directorate for Artillery * General Directorate for Engineers * General Directorate for Logistics Services * General Directorate for Military Health * General Directorate for Administrative Services * Directorate for the Military Chemical Service * General Directorate for Recruits, Non-Commissioned Officers, and Troops * General Directorate for Motorization * Superior Inspectorate of Technical Services * Equestrian and Veterinary Service * Military Information Service * Autonomous Company of the

Royal Carabinieri The Carabinieri (, also , ; formally ''Arma dei Carabinieri'', "Arm of Carabineers"; previously ''Corpo dei Carabinieri Reali'', "Royal Carabineers Corps") are the national gendarmerie of Italy who primarily carry out domestic and foreign poli ...

* Military Publications Office

List of ministers

See

Minister of War (Italy) The Minister of War of Italy ( it, Ministri della guerra del Regno d'Italia), was the minister responsible for the Ministry of War and the Royal Italian Army. The position was abolished with the creation of the position for Minister of Defence ( ...

References

External links

Olympedia: Ministero della Guerra
{{Council of Ministers of Italy War Military of Italy 1861 establishments in Italy 1947 disestablishments in Italy Ministries established in 1861 Ministries disestablished in 1947