Carabinieri
The Carabinieri is the shortened (and common) name for the Arma dei Carabinieri, an Italian military corps of the gendarmerie type with police functions, which also serves as the Italian military police. Historically, a Carabiniere was a cavalry soldier armed with a carbine. Their motto is Nei Secoli Fedeli (Faithful for the Centuries).
History
The corps was created by King Victor Emanuel I of Sardinia, with the aim of providing Piedmont with a police corps similar to the French Gendarmerie. Previously, police duties were managed by the Dragoni di Sardegna corps, created in 1726 and composed of volunteers.
After French soldiers had occupied Turin at the end of the 18th century and later abandoned it to the Savoy family, the corps of Carabinieri Reali was instituted under the Regie Patenti (Royal Patent) of July 13, 1814.
Both a military and a police corps, the Carabinieri have fought in every conflict in which Italy has been involved, suffering heavy losses and being awarded many decorations for gallantry.
The Carabinieri are particularly proud of the memory of Brigadier Salvo D'Acquisto, who was executed by the Germans in Palidoro, near Rome, in World War II, having exchanged his life for the lives of innocent citizens due to be executed in retaliation for the murder of a German soldier. Brigadier D'Acquisto falsely claimed responsibility and was shot for the offense.
The history of the Carabinieri is replete with other such actions and the corps is nicknamed La Benemerita (the Meritorious).
The Carabinieri recently became an armed force (alongside the Army, Navy and Air Force), thus ending their long standing as the first corps (Arma) of the Army (Esercito). It is likely that Carabinieri will continue to be referred to as the Arma by antonomasia, unrivalled in popular affection and national pride.
In recent years Carabinieri units have been dispatched all over the world in peacekeeping missions, including in Kosovo, Afghanistan and Iraq. In 2004 twelve Carabinieri were killed in a suicide bomb attack on their base in Nasiriyah, near Basra, in southern Iraq, the largest Italian military loss of life in a single action since the Second World War.
At the Sea Islands Conference of the G8 in 2004, the Carabinieri was given the mandate to establish a Center of Excellence for Stability Police Units (CoESPU) to spearhead the development of training and doctrinal standards for civilian police units attached to international peacekeeping missions.
Organization
Chain of command
The corps is headed by the Comando, consisting of the Comandante Generale (a General), the Vice-Comandante Generale (a Lieutenant General) and the Headquarters Staff.
Territorial organization
The Carabinieri are organised on a territorial basis. There are five Zones (commanded by Lieutenant Generals), fourteen Regions (commanded by Major Generals) and 104 Provinces (commanded by Brigadier Generals or Colonels). At a local level, in medium city there are Companies, commanded by a "Capitano" (Captain), an in small towns there are Stations, commanded by a "Maresciallo" (Italian for Warrant Officer, not "Marshal").
Special organizations
Specialized units also exist, such as the Nucleo Tutela Patrimonio Artistico (specializing in the protection of artwork and in the recovery of stolen paintings) and the Mobile Command, consisting of twelve Mobile Regiments.
The Carabinieri's elite counter terrorism unit is the Gruppo Intervento Speciale (GIS), which has the same training as the NOCS of the Polizia di Stato, but has wider duties as the Carabinieri are also responsible for military policing (so only the GIS is involved when military installations are under threat) and may be sent abroad on peacekeeping or enforcement duties.
The Corazzieri (Cuirassiers) are an elite corps and are the honor guard of the President. They are distinguished by their uniforms and height (the minimum height for admission is 190cm, or 6 feet 3 inches).
The Carabinieri in Italian culture
Many films and tv series have featured the Carabinieri, even acting as protagonists. Racconti del Maresciallo, La Tenda Nera, Il Maresciallo Rocca and Carabinieri are some of the titles that have been produced, mainly by the RAI fiction division, in the last few years.
In January 2005, the private television network Canale 5 started to broadcast a Carabinieri-related drama series called R.I.S. based on the Ra.C.I.S. (Raggruppamento Carabinieri Investigazioni Scientifiche; Carabinieri Scientific Investigation Group) and modelled on the American CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.