Corpo Truppe Volontarie The Corps of Volunteer Troops ( , CTV ) was an Italian expeditionary force which was sent to Spain to support General Francisco Franco and the Nationalist forces under General Francisco Franco during the Spanish Civil War , 1936 - 39 . Background . In July 1936 , at the beginning of Spanish Civil War , most of the elite Nationalist forces were isolated in Spanish Morocco or on the Canary Islands . Meanwhile , in Spain , smaller formations of Nationalists and Guardia Civil forces were locked in combat with pro - government militias , Assault Guards and those army units which remained loyal to the leftist Popular Front government . Making the situation more difficult for the Nationalists was the fact that the Spanish Air Force and Navy generally remained loyal to the government . If the Nationalist forces fighting in Spain did not receive reinforcements , the rebellion could soon fail . General Franco and the other Nationalist leaders sent emissaries to Berlin and Rome to ask for help . Both German dictator Adolf Hitler and Italian dictator Benito Mussolini immediately responded in a positive manner . They sent transport aircraft and crews to Morocco to airlift Nationalist forces from there to Spain . The colonial troops from Morocco allowed the Nationalist forces to take the initiative on mainland Spain . The Italians also used Nationalist - held , and also Portuguese , harbours as staging points for sending supplies to the Nationalist forces , and also for landing Spanish troops to support the rebellion . Italian submarines began to sink Spanish , Soviet and other nations ' ships transporting materials through the Mediterranean to Republican harbours . However action by the League of Nations resulted in the Nyon Agreement of September 1937 , which classed these operations as acts of piracy , and was enforced by the French Navy and the British Royal Navy . Commanders . The following are the commanders of the Corps of Volunteer Troops and significant battles fought with CTV participation while they were in command : Timeline . 1936 . 3 September : Republican forces from Catalonia , under the command of Captain Alberto Bayo , made a landing on Majorca . His formations were the target of Italian air forces which attacked on 24 October . On the same date , Italian bombers and fighters launched their first air raid on Madrid . This was intended to demonstrate to the Republican forces the power of Franco ' s allies . In the following days , they began a series of bombing raids on the Spanish capital . 2 November : Italian and German bombers and their fighter escorts were attacked by Soviet aircraft , nicknamed " " Chatos " " by the Spanish , which resulted in some losses for the Italians . 12 December : After the failure of Franco ' s offensive on Madrid , Mussolini decided to send regular army forces to Spain . Mussolini made this decision after consulting with Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs Galeazzo Ciano and General Mario Roatta . Ciano and Roatta were two of the most influential men in Italy at the time . Roatta was made the Commander - in - Chief of the Italian " expeditionary force . " General Luigi Frusci became his Deputy Commander . 23 December : The first formation of 3 , 000 troops landed in Cadiz . They were called the " Italian Army Mission . " 1937 . January : By this time , approximately 44 , 000 regular Italian army soldiers and members of the Fascist paramilitary ( " Blackshirts " ) were in Spain . At the end of February , the " expeditionary force " was renamed the " Corps of Volunteer Troops " ( " Corpo Truppe Volontarie " , or CTV ) . The CTV was organised into four divisions : The Blackshirt ( " Camicie Nere " , or CCNN ) Divisions contained regular soldiers and volunteer militia from the Fascist Party . The CCNN divisions were semi - motorised . There it also had the independent XXIII de Marzo Group of CCNN infantry . The Italian CTV also had a Tank and Armoured Cars Group , Corps Artillery of ten regiments ( Groups ) of field artillery , and four batteries of anti - aircraft artillery . 3 February to 8 February : The 1st CCNN Division " Dio lo Vuole , " in support of the Nationalists , launched an offensive against Málaga . On 8 February , the Italians and Nationalists captured the city . The Battle of Málaga was a decisive victory for the Nationalists . About 74 Italian soldiers were killed , 221 wounded , and two missing in the battle . March : The Corps of Volunteer Troops now numbered over 50 , 000 troops . 8 March to 23 March : Benito Mussolini decided that Fascist Italian forces should lead a fourth offensive on Madrid . This Italian offensive resulted in the Battle of Guadalajara . The battle ended as a decisive victory for the Republican forces . In contrast , the Italian forces suffered heavy losses . The Italian armor , consisting for the most part of L3 / 35 tankettes , proved to be no match for the tanks provided to the Republicans by the Soviet Union . The Italian offensive was repulsed by a strong Republican counter - offensive . Of the four Italian divisions engaged , only the Littorio Division did not suffer heavy losses . The three CCNN divisions had such heavy losses that they had to be reorganized into two divisions and a special weapons ( armour and artillery ) group . The 3rd CCNN Division was disbanded and consolidated with the 2nd CCNN Division in April 1937 . From this point until the end of the war , the commanders of the Italian Corps did not organize their own offensives . Instead they acted under the Nationalist command . Similarly the commander of the German Legion Condor , General Hugo Sperrle , commanded the Italian air force in Spain . April to August : As the CCNN Divisions were reduced , Italians began to serve in mixed Italo - Spanish " Flechas " ( " Arrows " ) units where the Italians provided the officers and technical personnel , while the Spanish served in the rank - and - file . The first were the Flechas Azules ( “ Blue Arrows ” ) Mixed Brigade and the Flechas Negras ( “ Black Arrows ” ) Mixed Brigade , that served respectively in Extremadura and Viscaya from April to August 1937 . Also in Viscaya were the CTV ' s XXIII de Marzo Group and 11 Artillery Groups . August to September : Roatta ' s replacement , General Ettore Bastico commanded the CTV forces including the Division XXIII di Marzo formed from the XXIII de Marzo Group . The CTV broke the Republican ' s lines near Soncillo , captured a key pass , the Puerto del Escudo , and penatrated deep into the Republican rear during the Battle of Santander , resulting in a decisive victory for the Nationalists . After that they were transferred to the Aragón Front . Some CTV forces may have been involved in the Battle of El Mazuco , but details are unconfirmed . October : After the northern campaigns , the 1st CCNN Division and 2nd CCNN Division was consolidated with the Division XXIII di Marzo and renamed the " XXIII de Marzo - Llamas Negras " Division . 1938 . March : The Flechas Negras Brigade was expanded into the Flechas Division " Arrows " serving in the Aragon Offensive and the March to the Sea with the CTV now under Mario Berti . 18 March : Barcelona was the target of thirteen Italian large - scale air raids . The Italian aircraft were armed with incendiary and gas bombs , which resulted in the death of around 2 , 500 civilians . November : The Flechas Division was strengthened renamed " Flechas Negras " and the Flechas Azules Brigade was expanded into two other Flechas Divisions that took part in the Catalonia Offensive the final offensive of the war , along with the rest of the CTV under Gastone Gambara : 1939 . February : Following the victory of Franco and the Nationalists over the Republicans , General Bastico and the Italian volunteers withdrew from Spain . Aftermath . On 1 April 1939 , the success of the Nationalists meant that the Italians now had a friendly regime in the western Mediterranean . But they acquired this friend at a high cost in both men and materials . Of the approximate 78 , 500 men sent to Spain , 3 , 819 were killed and about 12 , 000 were wounded . The Italian military left behind roughly 3 , 400 machine guns , 1 , 400 mortars , 1 , 800 artillery pieces , 6 , 800 vehicles , 160 tanks , and 760 aircraft . But , while the military equipment represented a loss to Italy ' s war inventory , most of the equipment was obsolete . The financial cost of the war was more debilitating . The cost of the CTV to Italy amounted to between 6 and 8 . 5 billion lire . At 14 to 20 percent of annual expenditure , this represented an immense drain on the Italian economy . The high cost of Mussolini ' s Spanish adventure severely handicapped Italy in the period leading up to World War II .