Paride Negri (2 September 1883 – 8 April 1954) 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

He was born in

Perugia Perugia (, , ; lat, Perusia) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber, and of the province of Perugia. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and part o ...

on 2 September 1883, the son of Pietro Negri. In 1900 he entered the Royal 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 ...

, from which he graduated on 7 September 1903 with the rank of 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 ...

. He participated in 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 ...

with the rank of

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 ...

, and later in the

First World War 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 ...

, serving at the observation points operating on aerostatic balloons for the direction of

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

fire 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 ...

; by the end of the war he reached the rank of

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 ...

, being awarded a

Bronze Medal A bronze medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of bronze awarded to the third-place finisher of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The outright winner receive ...

and a

War Cross for Military Valor The War Cross for Military Valor ( it, Croce di Guerra al Valor Militare) is an Italian order for military valor. Established in 1922, the cross may be awarded only in time of war. Appearance The medal is a Greek cross made of copper. Inscr ...

. After serving as a

staff officer 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 ...

, he was promoted to

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 ...

on 28 November 1929, first taking command of the Reserve Officer School of

Lucca Lucca ( , ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the Serchio River, in a fertile plain near the Ligurian Sea. The city has a population of about 89,000, while its province has a population of 383,957. Lucca is known as one o ...

and then of the 27th Artillery Regiment between 1935 and 1936. On 1 June 1936 he was promoted to the rank of

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 ...

. In 1937 he became commander of the artillery of the Army Corps of

Udine Udine ( , ; fur, Udin; la, Utinum) is a city and ''comune'' in north-eastern Italy, in the middle of the Friuli Venezia Giulia region, between the Adriatic Sea and the Alps (''Alpi Carniche''). Its population was 100,514 in 2012, 176,000 with t ...

, then he returned to

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 ...

, where he was promoted to Head of Office of the Command of the Staff Officer Corps, later becoming Chief of Staff of the Army Command of

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

between 1938 and 1939. From 15 September 1939 to 8 June 1941, after promotion 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 ...

on 17 August 1939, he was commander of the

41st Infantry Division "Firenze" The 41st Infantry Division "Firenze" ( it, 41ª Divisione di fanteria "Firenze") was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Firenze was formed on 15 September 1939 in Florence ( it, Firenze) and named for the city. ...

, which he commanded during the campaign against Greece in March-April 1941, after which it was stationed in

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

as an occupation unit. After a period at the VII Army Corps for special duties from June to December 1941, on 1 December he was appointed commander of the 154th Infantry Division "Murge", stationed in

Herzegovina Herzegovina ( or ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Hercegovina, separator=" / ", Херцеговина, ) is the southern and smaller of two main geographical region of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being Bosnia. It has never had strictly defined geogra ...

for occupation duties, with garrisons in

Mostar Mostar (, ; sr-Cyrl, Мостар, ) is a city and the administrative center of Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the historical capital of Herzegovina. Mostar is sit ...

and other towns. The Division was engaged in operations against the

Yugoslav partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian, Slovene: , or the National Liberation Army, sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska (NOV), Народноослободилачка војска (НОВ); mk, Народноослобод ...

. In Mostar Negri declared to the German command that 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 ...

would not take action against the

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

, and to a German officer who demanded that he hand over the Jews living in the area under his control he replied harshly: "''The deportation of the Jews is contrary to the honor of Italian army''". On 13 May 1942, while crossing the woods of Bisina, six kilometers north of

Nevesinje Nevesinje ( sr-cyrl, Невесиње) is a town and municipality located in the Republika Srpska entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, the town has a population of 5,162 inhabitants, while the municipality has 12,961 inhabitants. Geograp ...

, with a large column of his division, he was ambushed by the partisans, who blocked the road with fallen trees, rocks and

telegraph pole A utility pole is a column or post typically made out of wood used to support overhead power lines and various other public utilities, such as electrical cable, fiber optic cable, and related equipment such as transformers and street lights. It c ...

s and opened fire on the head of the column, killing the commanding officer of the 154th Artillery Regiment and another four officers as well as the two drivers. Under heavy enemy fire, Negri managed to organize an improvised defense that allowed the column to retreat from the ambush site, and after the arrival of a reinforcing

blackshirt The Voluntary Militia for National Security ( it, Milizia Volontaria per la Sicurezza Nazionale, MVSN), commonly called the Blackshirts ( it, Camicie Nere, CCNN, singular: ) or (singular: ), was originally the paramilitary wing of the Nation ...

unit he led the counterattack, in which he was slightly wounded. For this, he was awarded another Bronze Medal of Military Valor. From January to March 1943 he was acting commander of the VI Army Corps (having been 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 ...

), while also retaining command of the "Murge" Division until 1 March, and later he was placed at the disposal of the High Command of

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

and

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 ...

(SUPERSLODA). From March to early September 1943 he was attached to the Armed Forces High Command of

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

for special duties. On 2 September 1943 he was assigned to the

Ministry of War Ministry of War may refer to: * Ministry of War (imperial China) (c.600–1912) * Chinese Republic Ministry of War (1912–1946) * Ministry of War (Kingdom of Bavaria) (1808–1919) * Ministry of War (Brazil) (1815–1999) * Ministry of Defence (Est ...

in Rome for special assignments, due to having reached the age limit. He died in Rome in 1954.Generals.dk
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Negri, Paride 1883 births 1954 deaths Italian generals Italian military personnel of World War II Italian military personnel of World War I Recipients of the Bronze Medal of Military Valor People from Perugia it:Paride Negri sl:Paride Negri