M Battalion

[Panzergrenadier2967]

did M battalion use German weapons?

[apple pie]

My father was in an M Battalion in Croatia. He says they used Italian weapons exclusively.

[jwsleser]

As 'apple pie' stated, no they didn't use German weapons. As these units were formed during 1941-43, only Italian equipment/uniforms, etc. were used.

After the poor performance of the blackshirt units in 1940-41 campaigns, it was decided to provide select MVSN units with additional training. The units were selected based on their wartime performance. A special training camp was built at Rome and militia battalions started to pass thru it. At the end of period the unit received the honorific "M" insignia. This insignia replaced the MVSN fasces worn on the mostrine. The idea was to create a higher esprit among the soldati by treating these battalions as elite.

There three kinds of M battalion: assault, landing, and support weapons.

In total, 22 M battalion were formed between 1941 and 1943: 15 assault, 4 landing, 3 support weapons.

11 fought on the Russian Front. When the remains of the ARMIR returned from Russia, the survivors of the M battalions were used to form the M Armored Division. This require many of the men to be retrained for roles other than infantry (e.g. tank and artillery crewmen).

Pista! Jeff

[zaptiè]

the M Division received some armament from German, also Tiger tanks .

[Dili]

No Tiger tanks only PZ IV and probably Stug's. But the M division was never finished.

[jwsleser]

RE: M Armored Division

True, they did receive German tanks, 88 A/T guns and some other systems, but the units formed for the division were no longer M Battalions.

Pista! Jeff