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→Second World War
==Second World War==
==Second World War==
When the first Italian Army armoured divisions were formed in 1939 the connection between the Bersaglieri and mobile warfare improved. Each armoured and motorised division was allocated one Bersaglieri regiment.
When the first Italian Army armoured divisions were formed in 1939, Bersaglieri mobile warfare experience greatly improved. Each armoured and motorized division was allocated one Bersaglieri regiment.
The Bersaglieri regiments expanded to three battalions each during the Second World War, but the ''Comando Surpemo'' (Italian Supreme Command) resisted temptations to degrade their quality in favour of numbers, and recruits had to be of above-average height and stamina. The recruits endured intense physical training, just as their fathers and great-grandfathers had, and had to qualify as excellent marksmen.
The Bersaglieri regiments expanded to three battalions each during the Second World War, but the ''Comando Surpemo'' (Italian Supreme Command) resisted temptations during wartime to degrade their quality in favour of numbers, and recruits still had to be of above-average height and stamina. The recruits endured intense physical training, just as their forefathers had, and had to qualify as excellent marksmen.
The first Bersaglieri units to see combat in North Africa was the ''Brigata Corazzata Dpeciale'' (Special Armoured Brigade). They arrived in Libya in late 1940 and along with the ''Sabratha'' Division fought well in defence of Derna–Giovanni Berta, with two British armoured car units ambushed and the Australian 2nd/4th Battalion nearly overrun during the final stages of [[Operation Compass]].
The first Bersaglieri units to see combat in North Africa was the ''Brigata Corazzata Dpeciale'' (Special Armoured Brigade). They arrived in Libya in late 1940 and along with the ''Sabratha'' Division fought well in defence of Derna–Giovanni Berta, with two British armoured car units ambushed and the Australian 2nd/4th Battalion nearly overrun during the final stages of [[Operation Compass]].