Italy Archer medal

[benten]

Does someone know more about this medal . I only know it is a medal from the Mussolini period and as an award for a shooting contest I presume ? What does the text say?

Cheers,

Benten

[benten]

Strange.........I posted this post yesterday (not today) and it disappeared !!......... So , because I didn't see my post ..........I posted it today once again......Now I see a double post ....the post from yesterday that is date on today ........

Cheers,

Benten

Edited April 26, 2007 by benten

[iffig]

The text means : "Royal Army. Shooting Competion".

Victor Emmanuel was, of course the Italian King.

This does not help much ....

[Kev in Deva]

The text means : "Royal Army. Shooting Competion".

Victor Emmanuel was, of course the Italian King.

This does not help much ....

Hallo iffig,

Your post will help to date the medal, and shows it does not have any connection to Mussolini.

Kevin in Deva

[iffig]

Hello,

Well the badge is, of course, of the Mussolinian period as evidenced by the "littorio" ("Fasces" worn by the "Lictores" in Rome) in the background, which were the omnipresent symbol of the regime: as you know, Mussolini was actually Prime Minister but Italy was still a Kingdom until the end of WW II and the subsequent proclamation of the Republic.

As the badge mentions "Regio Esercito", the badge must have been issued after a shooting competition of some sort. What is not known is the type of units involved: companies in a batallion ? batallion in a regiment ? regiments in a division ?

I cannot see how it would be possible to answer that.

All the best.

[Kev in Deva]

Hello,

Well the badge is, of course, of the Mussolinian period as evidenced by the "littorio" ("Fasces" worn by the "Lictores" in Rome) in the background, which were the omnipresent symbol of the regime: as you know, Mussolini was actually Prime Minister but Italy was still a Kingdom until the end of WW II and the subsequent proclamation of the Republic.

As the badge mentions "Regio Esercito", the badge must have been issued after a shooting competition of some sort. What is not known is the type of units involved: companies in a batallion ? batallion in a regiment ? regiments in a division ?

I cannot see how it would be possible to answer that.

All the best.

Hallo iffig,

if my memory serves me correct, and I may be wrong the Fasces symbol dates back to the times of the Romans, and was not the invention of the Italian Fascists (they stole a lot of symbols no more than the nazis), I believe it represented a person in official capacity of the Roman Empire, a Judge?? Even shooting competions require judges and administration.

So could the medal predate the Fascist period??

Kevin in Deva

[iffig]

Of course, in Ancient Rome, "lictores" existed, and that was the sense of my previous answer; they were not Magistrates (in the Roman sense) but were guards for "Imperium habentes" Magistrates (that is Magistrates detaining supreme power - such as Consuls, for example). Their symbol was the "fasces" (that is a bundle with, at its center an axe: the bundle symbolized the unity of the Roman people and the axe it's resolution to use violence to preserve it). "Fascism" is, of course, derivated from "Fasces" and is part of what you rightly describe as the appropriation of Roman symbols by Mussolini. Now, as the badge features the name of an Italian King, it cannot have been issued after the proclamation of the Italian Republic (If I remeber well, it has been instaured in 1946). Could it have been issued before 1922 (the date of the installation of the Fascist Regim) ? Well, absolutely speaking it is possible, but I think it is a very remote possibility because of the Roman symbols in the background which are typically fascist. I do not remember having seen such symbols on any official badge, medal or military insignia of any sort before 1922 and for an excellent reason: they are symbols of republican Rome, not acceptable in a monarchy as was Italy after the Resorgimento and until 1945. It is only during the period 1922-1945 that such symbols were tolerated, as part of the shaky equilibrium between monarchists and fascists.