223rd Coastal Division (Italy)
The 223rd Coastal Division () was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. Royal Italian Army coastal divisions were second line divisions formed with reservists and equipped with second rate materiel. They were often commanded by officers called out of retirement. History. In November 1942 Axis forces invaded Southern France and divided it into a German and an Italian occupation zone. For the coastal defense of its zone Italy raised on 1 January 1943 the 223rd Coastal Division in Bologna and the 224th Coastal Division in Florence. Both divisions were formed with  replacements and reserve units of the army's regular Alpini regiments. The 223rd Coastal Division was based in La Colle-sur-Loup and assigned to I Army Corps. After the announcement of the Armistice of Cassibile on 8 September 1943 the division was disbanded by invading German forces. Commanding officers. The division's commanding officer was: