Alpine Brigade Julia

Brigata Alpina "Julia"
	Coat of Arms Julia Alpine Brigade
Active	15 October 1949 – present; Alpine Brigade Julia
Allegiance	Italian Army
Branch	Army
Type	Brigade
Role	Alpini
Part of	Tridentina Division Command
Garrison/HQ	Udine
Colors	green
Engagements	Bosnia SFOR ; Kosovo KFOR ; Afghanistan ISAF

The Alpini Brigade Julia is a light Infantry brigade of the Italian Army, specializing in Mountain Combat. Its core units are the Alpini, the mountain infantry corps of the Italian Army, that distinguished itself in combat during World War I and World War II. The brigade’s name Julia alludes to the Julian Alps were the brigade is based. The Brigade carries on the name and traditions of the 3rd Alpine Division Julia.

The Brigade supplies the headquarters and most units to the Italian/Slovenian/Hungarian Battle Group. Component parts from the other two countries are the Slovenian 10th Motorized Battalion and the Hungarian 1st Light Infantry Battalion.

History[]

Constitution[]

The Julia was constituted on 15 October 1949 in the city of Udine. The brigade was the biggest in the Italian Army with around 10,000 men and was tasked to stop Warsaw Pact forces attacking through Austria over the Plöcken and Naßfeld passes, thus securing the Northern flank of the Italian 5th Army Corps, which formed the main line of defense against an enemy breakthrough into the Northern Italian plain. Initially the brigade was composed of the:

8th Alpini Regiment with
- Headquarter Platoon
- Feltre Alpini Battalion (ceded to the Alpine Brigade Cadore on 1 June 1956)
- Tolmezzo Alpini Battalion
- Cividale Alpini Battalion
- L'Aquila Alpini Battalion
- 8th Mortar Company
Belluno Mountain Artillery Group
Anti-tank Artillery Group
108th Field Hospital
58th Kitchen Platoon

In the following years the brigade was augmented with further units:

Julia Signal Company (1950)
3rd Mountain Artillery Regiment with Conegliano Mountain Artillery Group and Light Air-defense Group (1 February 1951)
Julia Engineer Company (1951)
11th Frontier Defense Regiment (May 1954) (renamed 11th Alpini Position Regiment on 1 January 1957 ) with the battalions
- XII° Battalion (renamed Val Fella Alpini Battalion on 1 July 1963)
- XIII° Battalion (created in 1959 and renamed Val Natisone Alpini Battalion on 1 July 1963)
- XIV Battalion (dissolved in 1962)
- XV° Battalion (renamed Val Tagliamento Alpini Battalion on 1 July 1963)
- XVI° Battalion (dissolved in 1962)
Julia Logistic Battalion (1955)
Light Army Aviation Company (1956)
Osoppo Mountain Artillery Group and Julia Logistic Support Battalion (1961)

On 26 October 1962 with transfer of the Mondovì Alpini Battalion and Pinerolo Mountain Artillery Group from the Alpine Brigade Taurinense the Julia reached its peak strength in men, units and equipment. For the next 30 years the Julia remained the largest brigade of the Italian Army. It was now composed of:

8th Alpini Regiment with
- Headquarter Company
- Gemona Alpini Battalion
- Tolmezzo Alpini Battalion
- Cividale Alpini Battalion
- L'Aquila Alpini Battalion
- Mondovì Alpini Battalion (dissolved in 1975, name used to create the Alpini Training Battalion Mondovì in Cuneo as part of the Alpine Brigade Taurinense)
- 8th Mortar Company (dissolved on 31 December 1964)
11th Alpini Position Regiment
- Val Tagliamento Alpini Battalion
- Val Fella Alpini Battalion
- Val Natisone Alpini Battalion
3rd Mountain Artillery Regiment with
- Headquarter Group
- Belluno Artillery Group
- Conegliano Artillery Group
- Udine Artillery Group
- Osoppo Artillery Group
- Pinerolo Artillery Group
Julia Logistic Battalion
Julia Engineer Company
Alpini Parachutist Platoon
Light Army Aviation Company

The Alpini Parachutist Platoon merged with the other four Alpini Brigades Parachutist Platoons on 1 April 1964 to form an Alpini Parachutist Company under direct command of the 4th Alpine Army Corps.

1975 Reorganization[]

In 1975 the regimental level was abolished by the Italian Army. The remaining units came under direct control of the Julia Brigade. Each Alpini battalion had 5 companies and an organic strength of around 1,000 men, with the exception of the Val Tagliamento Alpini Battalion, which was tasked to defend the lower Canal valley. The Val Tagliamento fielded no less than 16 full strength companies for an organic strength of almost 2,500 men. The new composition was:

Julia Command and Signal Battalion in Udine
Gemona Alpini Battalion in Tarvisio
- Headquarters and Service Company
- 69th Alpini Company
- 70th Alpini Company
- 71st Alpini Company
- 155th Heavy Mortar Company
Tolmezzo Alpini Battalion in Paluzza
- Headquarters and Service Company
- 6th Alpini Company in Forni Avoltri
- 12th Alpini Company
- 72nd Alpini Company
- 114th Heavy Mortar Company
Cividale Alpini Battalion in Chiusaforte
- Headquarters and Service Company
- 16th Alpini Company
- 20th Alpini Company
- 76th Alpini Company
- 115th Heavy Mortar Company
L'Aquila Alpini Battalion (moved in 1975 from Tarvisio to L'Aquila in central Italy)
- Headquarters and Service Company
- 93rd Alpini Company
- 108th Alpini Company
- 143rd Alpini Company
- 119th Heavy Mortar Company
Val Tagliamento Alpini Battalion in Tolmezzo
- Headquarters and Service Company
- 212th Alpini Company
- 216th Alpini Company (former Val Natisone Battalion company)
- 220th Alpini Company (former Val Natisone Battalion company)
- 269th Alpini Company (former Val Fella Battalion company)
- 270th Alpini Company (former Val Fella Battalion company)
- 271st Alpini Company (former Val Fella Battalion company)
- 272nd Alpini Company
- 273rd Alpini Company (former Val Fella Battalion company)
- 278th Alpini Company
- 288th Alpini Company (former Val Natisone Battalion company)
- 306th Alpini Company (former Val Fella Battalion company)
- 307th Alpini Company (former Val Fella Battalion company)
- 308th Alpini Company (former Val Fella Battalion company)
- 312th Alpini Company (former Val Fella Battalion company)
- 313th Alpini Company (former Val Fella Battalion company)
- 314th Alpini Company (former Val Fella Battalion company)
Vicenza Alpini (Training) Battalion in Codroipo
- Headquarters and Service Company
- 59th Alpini (Training) Company
- 60th Alpini (Training) Company
- 61st Alpini (Training) Company in Teramo
- 117th Alpini (Training) Company
Belluno Mountain Artillery Group (dissolved 31 October 1989) in Pontebba
- Headquarters and Service Battery
- 22nd Mountain Artillery Battery
- 23rd Mountain Artillery Battery
- 24th Mountain Artillery Battery
Conegliano Mountain Artillery Group in Udine
- Headquarters and Service Battery
- 13th Mountain Artillery Battery
- 14th Mountain Artillery Battery
- 15th Mountain Artillery Battery in L'Aquila
Udine Artillery Group (renamed "Light Anti-aircraft Artillery Group Udine" on 6 December 1991) in Tolmezzo
- Headquarters and Service Battery
- 17th Mountain Artillery Battery
- 18th Mountain Artillery Battery
- 34th Mountain Artillery Battery
Julia Logistic Battalion in Udine
Julia Anti-tank Company in Cavazzo Carnico
Julia Engineer Company in Gemona

Strategic plans in case of war[]

After the 1976 reform the 4th Alpine Army Corps was responsible to defend the Italian border along the main chain of the alps from the Swiss-Austrian-Italian border tripoint in the west to the Italian-Yugoslavian border in the east. In case of war with Yugoslavia the 4th Alpine Army Corps would remain static in its position guarding the left flank of the Italian V Corps, which would meet the enemy forces in the plains of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. The only brigade which would have seen combat in such a case would have been the Julia.

In case of a war with the Warsaw Pact the 4th Alpine Army Corps had two war planes: one in the case the Soviet Southern Group of Forces and Hungarian Army would march through Yugoslavia and the other in case the Warsaw Pact would violate the Austrian neutrality and march through Austria. In case the enemy forces would come through Yugoslavia, the Julia would cover the mountainous left flank of the 5th Corps, which with its four armoured and five mechanized brigades would try to wear down the enemy before it could break out into the North Italian Padan plain. The other Alpini brigades would remain static.

In the more likely case the Soviet and Hungarian divisions would invade Austria and march through Southern Styria and through the Drava valley in Carinthia the Alpini brigades would have been the first front line units of the Italian Army. The Cadore would have defended the Piave valley and the Tridentina the Puster valley, while the Orobica had a special mission and the Taurinense would remain in reserve. The Julia Brigade however was expect to the first Italian unit to encounter enemy forces as it was based closest to the assumed line of advance of Warsaw Pact forces.

Coming up the Drava valley the Eastern bloc forces could turn left at Villach and try to cross the Alps through the Canal Valley, which was garrisoned by the units of the Julia Brigade: the Gemona Alpini battalion was located right at the border in Tarvisio, with the Cividale Alpini Battalion further down the valley in Chiusaforte. Both battalions were to be supported by the Belluno Mountain Artillery Group in Pontebba. The Gemona was tasked with blocking the Canal Valley right at the border, while the Cividale was tasked with defending the Naßfeld Pass and thus securing the left flank of the Gemona battalion. The biggest battalion of the Italian Army the Val Tagliamento Alpini Battalion was based in Tolmezzo shortly before the Southern end of the Canal Valley. The Val Tagliamento fielded 16 full strength companies and had an organic strength of over 2,500 men and was the last line of defence in the mountains before the plains of Friuli-Venezia Giulia where the 5th Army Corps awaited any enemy who would manage to break through. The Val Tagliamento was supported by the Conegliano Mountain Artillery Group and Udine Artillery (Air-Defence) Group based in Udine and Tolmezzo. The Tolmezzo Alpini Battalion was stationed to the North of Tolmezzo in Paluzza and tasked with defending the Plöcken Pass as a breakthrough there would have allowed enemy forces to march through the But valley into the rear of the other units of the Julia. An attack through the Canal valley was considered to be the most likely scenario and therefore the Julia was by far the strongest brigade of the Italian Army fielding almost 10,000 men.

In case the Julia would have failed to hold the Canal valley the Italian Army had a nuclear armed heavy artillery group stationed in the brigades rear: the 27th Heavy Artillery Group Marche in Udine armed with M110 howitzers. W33 Nuclear shells for the 27th group were stored in Reana del Rojale at the Italian Army ammunition depot "San Bernardo". The 27th group was ordered to turn the Canal valley into a fiery hell if the Julia would have been overrun. The group fielded two firing batteries with 4 artillery systems per battery and had 140 (!) nuclear artillery shells to fulfil its task. In the 1980ties the W33 nuclear artillery shells were replaced with fewer but more powerful W79 nuclear artillery shells.

To aid in the defence of the narrow mountain valleys the 4th Army Corps re-activated some fortifications of the World War II era Alpine Wall. In the area of operation of the Julia the task of maintaining and manning the fortifications fell to the Val Tagliamento Alpini Battalion. The fortified lines were at Plöcken Pass, Campiolo, Portis, Torre Moscarda, Stua di Ramaz, Cavazzo, Ugovizza, Malborghetto, Val d'Uque, Tratte, Sella Sompdogna, Sella Nevea, Sella Carnizza, Case Marco, Cereschiatis and Ponte del Cristo.

1990s reorganization[]

On 26 September 1992 the Val Tagliamento Battalion was dissolved. In August 1992 the battalions took the names of historical Alpini regiments to carry on the regimental traditions. Each regiment consisted of one of the brigades Alpini battalions and an additional support company. Furthermore the Anti-tank Company was dissolved and the Command and Signal Battalion was merged with the Engineer Company into the newly formed Command and Tactical Support Battalion. The new composition was:

8th Alpini Regiment Gemona Battalion
9th Alpini Regiment L'Aquila Battalion (ceded to the Alpine Brigade Taurinense in 1997)
14th Alpini Regiment Tolmezzo Battalion (dissolved in 2005)
15th Alpini Regiment Cividale Battalion (dissolved 11 November 1995)
3rd Mountain Artillery Regiment Conegliano Artillery Group and Udine Light Anti-aircraft Artillery Group (Udine dissolved 11 November 1995)
Vicenza Alpini Training Battalion (dissolved in 1996)
Julia Command and Tactical Support Battalion
Julia Logistic Battalion (dissolved November 29 January 2002)

With the suppression of the Alpine Brigade Cadore in 1997, the two remaining regiments of that brigade passed to the Julia:

7th Alpini Regiment Feltre Battalion
16th Alpini Regiment Belluno (Training) Battalion (ceded to Alpine Troops Command in 1998)

With the suppression of the Alpine Brigade Tridentina in 2002, the last remaining regiment of that brigade passed to the Julia Brigade on 1 July 2002:

5th Alpini Regiment Morbegno Battalion

Furthermore the Julia received the 2° Engineer Regiment Iseo Battalion from the Alpine Troops Command in 2002.

Today[]

The brigade is based in the eastern half of northern Italy. The headquarter is in the city of Udine. In 2013 the brigade received the 2nd Cavalry Regiment Piemonte Cavalleria from the disbanded Pozzuolo del Friuli Cavalry Brigade. Today the brigade consists of the following units:

Julia Combat Service Support Battalion in Udine
2nd Cavalry Regiment Piemonte Cavalleria in Trieste (Friuli-Venezia Giulia)
5th Alpini Regiment Morbegno Battalion in Sterzing
7th Alpini Regiment Feltre Battalion in Belluno
8th Alpini Regiment Tolmezzo Battalion in Cividale
3° Mountain Artillery Regiment Conegliano Group in Tolmezzo
2° Engineer Regiment Iseo Battalion in Trento
Julia Logistic Regiment in Meran

Equipment[]

The Alpini companies of the Alpini regiments are equipped with Bv 206S tracked all-terrain carriers, Puma 6x6 wheeled armored personnel carriers and Lince light multirole vehicles. The mortar companies of the Alpini regiments are equipped with 120mm mortars, while the anti-tank companies field Spike anti-tank guided missile systems. The Cavalry regiment is equipped with a mix of Centauro tank destroyers and Puma 4x4 wheeled armored personnel carriers. The artillery regiment of the brigade fields 18x FH-70 towed howitzers.

Sources[]

Italian Army Homepage: Alpine Brigade Julia

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