History UsefulNotes / NewRomanLegions

* '''Carabinieri''' -- Created in 1815 (''well'' before the Italian Unification); served under the banners of the Kingdom of Sardinia; and inspired by the French Gendarmerie), their names coming from the carbines they used as a weapon. The Carabinieri have been historically the First Corps of the Army, and were upgraded to full branch in 2000, just about damn time. They handle serious cases of law-enforcement throughout the country by conducting operations against the mafias, organised crime, and [[SeriousBusiness unsanitary preparation of foods and drinks]] ([[JustifiedTrope given how much food and drinks Italy exports and a surprisingly high number of scams involving altering them, sometimes in poisonous ways]]), and, since their absorption of the Forestry Corps in 2017, crimes against the environment or happening in the national parks. During UsefulNotes/WorldWarTwo, after the fall of Mussolini, many ''carabinieri'' joined the [[LaResistance Resistenza]], or the Allied forces and fought bravely against the Germans. In more recent times, they're often employed in peace-keeping operations (Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq).

Italy won WWI or, at least, won on its front by defeating Austria-Hungary, completely destroying its army and that of its German ally after three years (1915-1918) of bloody fighting over the Alpine arch; this triggered the collapse of the multi-ethnic Austrian-Hungarian Empire.

However, the country -- due to a combination of factors such as lack of resources, scarce industrial production, inadequate equipment, poor training, inept officers, poor logistics and coordination, mutual distrust between allies and... fighting a war it didn't want against an ex-ally it didn't want to fight, all while being forcibly allied to Germany (which most Italians despised) -- did not, as you may have guessed, fare so well in UsefulNotes/WorldWarTwo; it was occupied by both the Germans and the Allies, lost all its overseas possessions and some of its north-eastern territories. In the wars aftermath, the country was kept largely demilitarized until the early-50s, when the intensifying Cold War prompted NATO to permit it to rearm.

** The ordinary ''carabiniere'' uniform is black with a white sash and a red stripe on the trousers; it comes with a black CommissarCap with a heraldic grenade (with a spread-out flame) in silver on it, definitely a NiceHat. In the past, their hats were [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Carb1875.jpg even nicer]]. Of course, when employed in war zones and peacekeeping operations they wear sensible camouflage. The ''Carabinieri'' also have a paratrooper regiment and a special regiment of guards of honour called '''Corazzieri''' ("Cuirassiers"), who are [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:2june2006_063.jpg quite]] [[BlingOfWar blinged out]] and whose duty's to protect the President or -- before 1946 -- the King of Italy. Finally, we've got the the '''G.I.S.''' (''Gruppo di Intervento Speciale'', "Special Intervention Group"), an élite counterterrorism force.

* '''Bersaglieri''' ("Marksmen") -- founded in 1836, they're a high-mobility, light infantry Corps with a penchant for sharp-shooting (as the name suggests). They fought at the Battle of the Chernaya river, during the Crimean War, where they earned a fame as CrazyEnoughToWork for ''countercharging the Russian cavalry and routing it'' (to be fair the Russians got charged on the side while they were busy, and ''could'' have won by regrouping and charging again but panicked when they tried and saw that those madmen with strange hats were not only giving chase but ''almost on top of them''); they were also the first corps to enter Rome on September 20, 1870, thus ending the temporal rule of the Pope and completing the Unification of Italy. Being the shock troops of the ''Regio Esercito'' (Royal Italian Army), they suffered enormous casualties during UsefulNotes/WW1. In UsefulNotes/WW2, they fought in Africa (distinguishing themselves at the battle of Mersa Matruh and El Alamein), Greece and on the Eastern Front; after the war, they served in Yugoslavia, Somalia and Iraq. They're easily recognisable due to the [[NiceHat wide hat decorated with black capercaillie feathers]] and their fast pace they keep on parades (instead of marching) while playing trumpets. Their hat outside of combat and parades is the fez, given to them by the French Zouaves as a sign of admiration after their performance during the battle of the Chernaya.

** They are also are the butt of many jokes in Italy, which portray them as BookDumb and simple-minded ("Why do ''carabinieri'' always go around in groups of three? Because one can read but can't write, the other can write but can't read, and the third keeps in check the dangerous intellectuals!") [[note]]The same joke is [[RussianHumour told by Russians]] about their regular police[[/note]]. This is probably because in the past many lower-class citizens enlisted in order to earn some money for their families; despite this, they are still nicknamed respectfully "l'Arma" ("THE Corps") or "la Benemerita" ("The Meritorious") and are well-respected ([[ActuallyPrettyFunny and invent many of the jokes on themselve]]). Telling them such jokes when they're on duty still constitutes an offence, as many have learned the hard way). They also tend to be hated by members of the other military forces due their role as Military Police -- unless they show up to close the post's refectory for unsanitory preparation of food, as it means the soldiers will eat in restaurants for a while with the State paying!

Due their historical and current engagements, Italian armed forces also have a well-deserved reputation for CombatPragmatism, born from such things as inventing aerial bombing back when dropping bombs from aircraft had been preventively declared a war crime ([[ExactWords the declaration specified from blimps]]. [[LoopholeAbuse The Italians used planes]]), strapping torpedoes to commercial speedboats and sending them into enemy harbours to sink battleships, developing the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_torpedo Human torpedo]] to complement and replace the aforementioned vessels (which had proven useful against [[UsefulNotes/TheSoundOfMartialMusic Austria-Hungary]], but had become obsolete by the time of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII), as well as ''still'' fielding and using [[KIllItWithFire man-portable flamethrowers]]. In spite of this, they have managed to earn and keep a reputation as 'nice guys' when deployed for peace-keeping missions, mostly by honestly policing and bringing food and useful things to the civilians living in the areas they control.

** In the original Tom Clancy novels (introduced in ''Literature/TheBearAndTheDragon''), an Italian Carabineri named Ettore Falcone was recruited to Rainbow because at one point, his wife was killed by the Mafia during a shootout and avenged his wife's death by putting down the killers who were the sons of a high-ranking mafia boss. Because the Italian government feared that he might spark another war between the mafia and the police, he was seconded to Rainbow for his own safety. He is said to be the best marksman in the Rainbow team.

** In the original Tom Clancy novels (introduced in ''Literature/TheBearAndTheDragon''), an Italian Carabineri named Ettore Falcone was recruited to Rainbow Six because at one point, his wife was killed by the Mafia during a shootout and avenged his wife's death by putting down the killers who were the sons of a high-ranking mafia boss. Because the Italian government feared that he might spark another war between the mafia and the police, he was seconded to Rainbow for his own safety. He is said to be the best marksman in the Rainbow team.

** In the original Tom Clancy novels (introduced in ''Literature/TheBearAndTheDragon'', an Italian Carabineri named Ettore Falcone was recruited to Rainbow Six because at one point, his wife was killed by the Mafia during a shootout and avenged his wife's death by putting down the killers who were the sons of a high-ranking mafia boss. Because the Italian government feared that he might spark another war between the mafia and the police, he was seconded to Rainbow for his own safety. He is said to be the best marksman in the Rainbow team.

* '''Bersaglieri''' ("Marksmen") -- founded in 1836, they're a high-mobility, light infantry Corps with a penchant for sharp-shooting (as the name suggests). They fought at the Battle of the Chernaya river, during the Crimean War, where they earned a fame as CrazyAwesome for ''countercharging the Russian cavalry and routing it'' (to be fair the Russians got charged on the side while they were busy, and ''could'' have won by regrouping and charging again but panicked when they tried and saw that those madmen with strange hats were not only giving chase but ''almost on top of them''); they were also the first corps to enter Rome on September 20, 1870, thus ending the temporal rule of the Pope and completing the Unification of Italy. Being the shock troops of the ''Regio Esercito'' (Royal Italian Army), they suffered enormous casualties during UsefulNotes/WW1. In UsefulNotes/WW2, they fought in Africa (distinguishing themselves at the battle of Mersa Matruh and El Alamein), Greece and on the Eastern Front; after the war, they served in Yugoslavia, Somalia and Iraq. They're easily recognisable due to the [[NiceHat wide hat decorated with black capercaillie feathers]] and their fast pace they keep on parades (instead of marching) while playing trumpets. Their hat outside of combat and parades is the fez, given to them by the French Zouaves as a sign of admiration after their performance during the battle of the Chernaya.

* The '''COM.SUB.IN.''' is the élite combat frogmen force of the Italian Navy; their origins go back to UsefulNotes/WW1 (Italy developed the idea of modern combat frogmen forces). Their rooster: sinking of the Austrian-Hungarian warships ''Szent István'' and ''Viribus Unitis'' (1917, 1918); raids against the British naval bases of Souda Bay, Gibraltar and Alexandria (1940, 1941); sinking of the ''HMS Valiant'', of the ''HMS Queen Elizabeth'' and of other Allied ships throughout [=WW2=].[[note]]A point of interest is that this list of warships sunk contains the only two battleships whose sinkings have been captured on film, these being the ''SMS Szent István'' and ''HMS Valiant''[[/note]] After the war, the early U.S. Navy [=SEALs=] were partially trained and advised by former Italian frogmen...

* The '''COM.SUB.IN.''' is the élite combat frogmen force of the Italian Navy; their origins go back to UsefulNotes/WW1 (Italy developed the idea of modern combat frogmen forces). Their rooster: sinking of the Austrian-Hungarian warships ''Szent István'' and ''Viribus Unitis'' (1917, 1918); raids against the British naval bases of Souda Bay, Gibraltar and Alexandria (1940, 1941); sinking of the ''HMS Valiant'', of the ''HMS Queen Elizabeth'' and of other Allied ships throughout [=WW2=]. After the war, the early U.S. Navy [=SEALs=] were partially trained and advised by former Italian frogmen...

* '''Guardia Costiera''' (''Coast Guard'') -- They guard the metric fuckton of coastline Italy has, obviously. They work for the Ministry of Transports, and as such their ship are lightly armed or outright unarmed; despite being a police force, the CG is technically part of the Navy, thus their ships have the capacity to mount much heavier weapons than normal if necessary. Oddly enough, they seem to prefer the baseball cap.

* The Royal Italian Army is a playable faction in ''[[VideoGame/Battlefield1]]'', in which they fight against the Austro-Hungarians.

* '''Carabinieri''' -- Created in 1815 (''well'' before the Italian Unification); served under the banners of the Kingdom of Piedmont; and inspired by the French Gendarmerie), their names coming from the carbines they used as a weapon. The Carabinieri have been historically the First Corps of the Army, and were upgraded to full branch in 2000, just about damn time. They handle serious cases of law-enforcement throughout the country by conducting operations against the mafias, organised crime, and [[SeriousBusiness unsanitary preparation of foods and drinks]] ([[JustifiedTrope given how much food and drinks Italy exports and a surprisingly high number of scams involving altering them, sometimes in poisonous ways]]), and, since their absorption of the Forestry Corps in 2017, crimes against the environment or happening in the national parks. During UsefulNotes/WorldWarTwo, after the fall of Mussolini, many ''carabinieri'' joined the [[LaResistance Resistenza]], or the Allied forces and fought bravely against the Germans. In more recent times, they're often employed in peace-keeping operations (Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq).

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/436px-Italian_Soldier_Olypmic_Games_Turin_2006.jpg]][[caption-width-right:350:Daaayum, girl!]]

However, the country -- due to a combination of factors such as lack of resources, scarce industrial production, inadequate equipment, poor training, inept officers, poor logistics and coordination, mutual distrust between allies and... fighting a war it didn't want against an ex-ally it didn't want to fight, all while being forcibly allied to Germany (which most Italians despised) -- did not, as you may have guessed, fare so well in UsefulNotes/WorldWarTwo; it was occupied by both the Germans and the Allies, lost all its overseas possessions and some of its north-eastern territories.

** They are also are the butt of many jokes in Italy, which portray them as BookDumb and simple-minded ("Why do ''carabinieri'' always go around in groups of three? Because one can read but can't write, the other can write but can't read, and the third keeps in check the dangerous intellectuals!") [[note]]The same joke is [[RussianHumour told by Russians]] about their regular police[[/note]]. This is probably because in the past many lower-class citizens enlisted in order to earn some money for their families; despite this, they are still nicknamed respectfully "l'Arma" ("THE Corps") or "la Benemerita" ("The Meritorious") and are well-respected ([[ActuallyPrettyFunny and invent many of the jokes on themselves]]. Telling them such jokes when they're on duty still constitutes an offence, [[WhatAnIdiot as many have learned the hard way]]). They also tend to be hated by members of the other military forces due their role as Military Police -- unless they show up to close the post's refectory for unsanitory preparation of food, as it means the soldiers will eat in restaurants for a while with the State paying!

** They are also are the butt of many jokes in Italy, which portray them as BookDumb and simple-minded ("Why do ''carabinieri'' always go around in groups of three? Because one can read but can't write, the other can write but can't read, and the third keeps in check the dangerous intellectuals!") [[note]]The same joke is [[RussianHumour told by Russians]] about their regular police[[/note]]. This is probably because in the past many lower-class citizens enlisted in order to earn some money for their families; despite this, they are still nicknamed respectfully "l'Arma" ("THE Corps") or "la Benemerita" ("The Meritorious") and are well-respected ([[ActuallyPrettyFunny and invent many of the jokes on themselves]]. [[CaptainObvious Telling them such jokes when they're on duty still constitutes an offence]], [[WhatAnIdiot as many have learned the hard way]]). They also tend to be hated by members of the other military forces due their role as Military Police -- unless they show up to close the post's refectory for unsanitory preparation of food, as it means the soldiers will eat in restaurants for a while with the State paying!

Italy has had a mixed record on warfare since its unification. While they did a good job during the '''Crimean War''' (1856) and in Libya, defeating the Ottomans during the '''Turkish-Italian War''' (1911) -- where the first aerial bombing in history took place -- the Italians had been humiliated during the ambush at Adowa (1896) [[note]] during which 40,000 Ethiopians, armed with a few modern guns courtesy of France and Russia, ambushed the 18,000-men-strong Expeditionary Force and cut it down to the last man... not unlike the Little Big Horn.[[/note]], in what was then Abyssinia, a loss they would later avenge in 1936 under the rule of Mussolini.