Page 77 - La Grande Guerra dei Carabinieri

77
Odoardo Marchetti, qui raffigurato con i gradi di brigadier generale. Marchetti ricoprì incarichi differenti nell'Ufficio Informazioni sino a diven-
tarne il capo.
Odoardo Marchetti, here with the rank of brigadier general. Marchetti held different positions in the Information Office until he became its chief.

intelligence service
The intelligence

and the Carabinieri Corps

t the outbreak of the First World War, the Kingdom of Italy’s military information
system was a structured tool that defended from enemy threats and protected sensitive
A information. Born from the inspiration of highly competent officers like Enrico
Cosenz and Tancredi Saletta, and thanks to Alberto Pollio, information related ac-
tivities received particular attention leading to a sort of specialization of the officers
selected by experience and ability. This system, of a distinctly military nature, was
supported by a strong contingent of Carabinieri. These Carabinieri, since the Ital-
ian Wars of Independence, have fulfilled tasks of an informative nature with pro-
fessionalism, proving to be flexible components and able to direct the collection
of information for military purposes. Within the structure of the 1st office (In-
formation), there is included a counter-espionage and military police section,
which has always been the prerogative of the Carabinieri Corps, with highly
qualified personnel who, even before the outbreak of war, had distinguished
themselves during military operations. As regards the Carabinieri, specifical-
ly referring to those in the territorial branch, their ability to penetrate the so-
cial and economic fabric of the country is thanks to the great thoroughness
of their deployment, that the Carabinieri Corps has maintained since its es-
tablishment. At the peripheral level, the Carabinieri Corps engaged in mil-
itary police activities which constituted an efficient network of information
gathering that lead to the collection of further data on the possible risks of
espionage or penetration of possible saboteurs, relative to morale of the front
and the immediate rear. Ultimately, the Carabinieri Corps constituted one of
the organizations through which it was possible to obtain vigilant supervision of
the territory as well as offering military security.