For 163 years the marine brigade Saint Mark represents a fundamental capacitive element of the Navy, capable of carrying out countless and diversified tasks: from support to maritime interdiction operations to amphibious operations with a projection of forces onto the sea and from sea to land, from the defense of bases, to high representation for the Armed Forces.
March 21st marks the anniversary of its foundation, in 1861, as the "Royal Navy" for the defense of ports and naval arsenals and to equip warships with "landing companies".
Nowadays the marine brigade is an essential piece of the naval team, engaged in the Mediterranean which extends from the Arctic to the Red Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific, passing through the extreme South America where the ship will transit in a few days Vespucci.
In fact, starting from January 2024st 400, on average over XNUMX riflemen of the brigade are engaged daily in operational or training activities far from the Brindisi headquarters: from operations Safe Mediterranean e Gabinia (national), to European missions irini, Atalanta e Aspides (EU), from NATO operations Brilliant e Noble Shield, to the training of littoral expeditionaty group in Norway, to name just a few. But the brigade is also involved in some international missions on the ground, such as BMIS in Djibouti, Task Force 153 in Bahrain, KFOR in Pristina, MFO in Sinai, EUTM in Somalia and Mibil in Lebanon.
A commitment for the marine brigade Saint Mark at 360° in all relevant national and international activities of the Navy and Defense, always at the service of the Nation for over 163 years, by sea, by land!
Historical insights
The history and traditions of the marines have their roots in very ancient times, so much so that the "milites classiarii" of the Roman fleet were identified as precursors.
In 1713 Vittorio Amedeo II founded the "La Marina" regiment drawing from the sailors of the naval team. The origin of the modern Marine riflemen can be traced back to the "Royal Navy" infantry corps, established on 21 March 1861, for the defense of ports and naval arsenals and to equip warships with "landing companies".
Four days after the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, in fact, at the behest of Prime Minister Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, the decree was submitted to King Vittorio Emanuele II of Savoy, which illustrated the opportunity to establish a special body called “Royal Marine Infantry”: the main tasks concerned boardings at sea and the defense of maritime installations on land. In 1878, the Royal Navy was disbanded but those sailors trained and skilled in the use of the musket who trained independently on board the ships on which they were employed remained operational.
Over the years the Marine Infantry has always been subjected to remodelling, in terms of employment, personnel and locations and today, 163 years later, the Marine Brigade Saint Mark, has its headquarters in Brindisi where the amphibious units are also located Saint Mark, St. George e San Giusto.
