Infantrymen belonging to the 1ST Motorized Group attacking Monte Lungo positions.. This was the first military action performed by the units of the newly re-established Italian Army after the armistice of September 8, 1943.

After the operations on fronts abroad were over, the Italian territory became the new theatre of war with the occupation of Sicily.

On September 8, 1943, the Italian Army experienced a great defeat, as it was obliged to conclude an armistice.

Defeated but non conquered, Italian soldiers and still existing units formed the 1st Motorised Group and its supporting units as early as October 1943. Monte Lungo (December 1943) and Monte Marrone (April 1944) were the military actions marking the recovery of the newly re-established Italian Army.

Then , the Italian Liberation Corps was established based on the 1st Motorised Group(September - October 1944) and in December 1944, 5 Combat Groups were set up which were able to reach Milan and Venice with the Allies.

Italy contributed to fighting the Germans also abroad, mainly in the Balkans (1943-1944) where the partisan divisions "Garibaldi " and "Italia" including Units and survivors who had escaped deportation by the Germans showed their military valour.

February 1945: a patrol of the "Cremona" Combat Group wearing British uniforms and equipment.

The heavy toll taken by the 2nd World War can be summarized as follows: 161.729 men died or disappeared on the different fronts till the end of war on September 8, 1943; 18.655 men died in Italy and 54.622 on fronts abroad from September to October 1943 due to reactions against the Germans; nearly 12.000 soldiers incorporated in regular units and in partisan troops died during the War of Liberation and nearly60.000 military internees died in concentration camps.

Though high, these numbers are not definitive.