Uniform and Equipment:

The most distinctive aspect of a Bersaglieri's uniform is by far the: Piumetto da Bersaglieri.
They are made of natural black Grouse/Capercaillie feathers and can contain up to 400 plumes
for parade versions, though the combat model only used about 100. Originally, only enlisted men wore the Grouse feathers, while officers wore green Ostrich feathers. At some unrecorded time during the 1800's officers made the switch, and now all Bersaglieri use the same capercaillie feathers. The Bersaglieri's piume
are always worn on the right side and there are two reasons for this. Firstly, the feathers shade the soldier's aiming eye allowing for better accuracy. Secondly, during the 1800's, many other armies incorporated feathers into their hats, but they were always worn on the left side. The Bersaglieri chose the right side to confuse enemy troops at a distance who might think they were moving away from them rather than advancing! A Bersagliere's Piume also act as a clever camouflage while in thickets and brush. To some, these feathers may seem funny, and I'm sure WWII Bersaglieri were the brunt of many "chicken" jokes just as Bersaglieri reenactors are today, but NO Bersaglieri would have been embarrassed or ashamed to wear his piumetto, nor would these elite troops have reason to be. The Bersaglieri's Piumetto was a symbol of his elite status, much like the green beret or red badge of courage. In WWII, if you saw the black piume coming at you, you knew you were in for a fight.













                                                                                                                                                                                    
     M33 Elmetto in grigio/verde color with leather Bersaglieri cockerel feather plume holder on side. Despite Italy's many short comings regarding equipment, the M1933 was considered at the time to be at the forefront of helmet design. The nickel-steel helmet, painted in the same grey/green as the uniform, incorporated three ventilation holes and a more modern internal system than the Russians for example. Until 1943 the unit and branch of service was routinely stenciled on the front. All Bersaglieri troops wore black capercaillie plumes on the right side of their helmet which was affixed by a leather bootineer that clipped to the rim of the helmet.

     Giubba M40 or 1940 open collar tunic in grigio/verde. It has a three button front with four single button pockets, an integral cloth belt, and two back hunter pockets. Mostrines in branch colors are sewn onto upper collar, and any rank chevrons are worn on both upper arms. Badges and awards are worn on breast above pockets.

 

1940 grigio/verde wool Pantaloon trousers. Like most older pattern clothing, these should sit well above your bellybutton and tie below the knee at the top of the calve. They should be of a baggy fit.

  "Puttee" leg wrapings in grigio/verde. Issued in lieu of more expensive knee high boots, Puttees theoretically kept insects, rocks, and sand out of a soldier's pants and shoes. Made of wool, they were favored in the winter and uncomfortable in the summer, and did little to stave off any of the above mentioned, though they did offer some amount of shin protection.

  During the first world war, Italians like other European soldiers, used foot wraps rather than socks, but by WWII, the Italian Army had adopted a modern style woolen sock. From what I can tell, there were two styles of sock. The first was that of an undyed hand knit crew sock. Photos show soldiers wearing these socks rolled to the boot tops which seems to be the most "stylish" way. The second type was a full knee high wool sock that is sometimes seen worn in place of putees.

M1912 natural leather hobnailed boots. Italian soldiers were victims of poor supply lines throughout the war, and shoes because they wear out so often, were in short supply. I have spoken to several RSI veterans who have stated that often a soldier had to privately purchase his own shoes or was issued captured French or Russian stock. Italian soldiers at the front were sometimes refitted with German gear. As this is the case, and it is still quite hard and expensive to find Italian boots, new recruits will be allowed to use German, French or Russian lowboots until proper M1912's can be attained.

    


Ammo pouches, belts and neck strap.
  Bersaglieri were issued their own style of ammo pouch, which was brown in color and distinctively different from the grey/green pouches of the normal Italian soldier. However, there are numerous photos of Bersaglieri using the standard grey/green pouches as well. One must keep in mind that supplies were short and supply lines in constant flux. A member of the 4th Bersaglieri must strive to attain the proper brown pouches, but may use the more common grey/green ones until that time.
  Each pouch holds four clips of 6.5mm ammo for the M1891 Carcano rifle or 1938 carbine. The pouches are worn in the front and center of the belt.
  The belt itself is not buckled in the front, as is in America, but rather buckled on the right side. The accompanying neck strap hooks to the ammo pouches and is simply looped around the neck. This rig is a little odd at first and not as comfortable as German Y-straps, but this is what they wore. Additionally, the belts seem to have been produced in a "one size fits all" size 30" waist. This can be overcome by purchasing two belts and sewing them together with a leather awl.
   As for the belt that is used to hold up the Bersagliere's trousers, it is made of canvas cloth in a khaki color and incorporates two 1" metal rings at one end as a fastener. Although this belt is not readily available for purchase, it can easily be reproduced by buying the materials and sewing your own.

  M1930 Aluminum mess tin.

  Crimson colored felt collar mostrines of the Bersaglieri. A stylized version of Rome's "eternal flame", these mostrine bore the Star of Savoy early in the war, and later, the wreathed gladius of the RSI.

Trained in Germany badge for the four infantry divisions who swore allegiance to Mussolini and Hitler after the armistice and joined the new Italian Social Republic or RSI.

  Crimson colored fez of the Bersaglieri, adopted from their first encounters with Zouaves during the Crimean War. The French Zouaves were so impressed with the boldness of the Bersaglieri, that they offered their fez's as a sign of respect.

  M1938 or M41 Carcano carbine in 6.5mm. Although this was by far the most common arm of the Italian Bersaglieri throughout the war, some RSI units were equiped with German or French rifles. For this reason, new members may use German k-98's or french MAS36 in 7.5mm to get started if they have them already.

   Officers and machine gunners ONLY, may carry a pistol into battle.
The standard issue pistol for the Italian Army was the M1934 Beretta 9mm semi automatic pistol.
However, it should be noted that RSI officers trained in Bavaria were also issued P-38's. A number of officers and NCO's also used privately purchased side arms. As a general rule, if you can easily get an Italian Beretta, then fine, if not, any WWII era pistol will work.

   Beretta 1938a sub-machine gun 9mm. This was an excellent weapon, respected by Axis and Allies alike. It could fire a single shot or a three round burst. Today, they are very rare and expensive.
Anyone who owns one and joins the unit, may certainly use it.

   German "stielgrenate" stick grenades. These were very common in all Italian theaters and all unit members are allowed to use them in battle or living history displays.

   Tascapane or "zaino" also known as the T35 gas mask bag in khaki. Later in the war, the first type shown was worn by mounted troops instead of the standard issue Saco armi a piedi and Borsa tattica. The second type shown was less common and rarely seen after 1942.

        
The Bersaglieri carried the same "backpacks" as the regular infantry, which would be both the Saco armi a piedi (1) and the Borsa tattica (2). When on the march, the Borsa tattica had the greatcoat or cappotto armi a piedi rolled on it and was kept inside the Saco armi a piedi, with the blanket on top of that and the tent section on the bottom. The Borsa tattica is taken out and used alone for actions that require a type of "assault" pack. 

Boraccia or canteen which held between 1 3/4 - 3 1/2 pints of fluid, depending upon type. Equipped with a "water conservation" valve on the mouthpiece.

M1929 cammoflage tent section, which doubled as a poncho. This was a favorite of both Germans and Italians alike, and was the inspiration for US military cammo for decades to come.

    Standard issue Italian blanket. This was kept rolled and attached to either the Saco a piedi or the Borsa tattica. This item was highly sought after by Germans and italians were frequently "robbed" to get them.

     Italian service tags "dog tags".  I only have minimal info on these currently, but am working on obtaining the info contained on each tag as well as a supplier of tags in Italy.

        Breda Bomba a Mano....or "Red Devils" by the Allies who were unfortunate enough to encounter them. Unlike most other grenades, these red colored incendiary grenades exploded upon impact instead of using a timed fuse!

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