I apologize if this is the wrong subreddit but Hello all. Not sure if anyone has done any research into their family military history before in Italy but I am stumped and maybe someone could help me. My Great Grandfather served in Italy during WW1. He had actually emigrated to the US before the war broke out but went back to fight for Italy. In the research I have done, I had been reading that to get any records, you need to contact the Province they were born in. So I contacted the province archives (I know his information is correct because I have his birth certificate). They told me to contact the military archives in Rome. So I did that. The archives in Rome had me turn around and re contact the same archives that I previously mentioned. They responded saying they have 1 record of him being listed on a roster with a date and that was it. They also stated unless they were a commissioned officer they usually didn't keep those records. Along with his birth certificate I have a picture of him in his military uniform so I know he was involved in some way. My goal in all of this is to just find out what unit he would have served in, any battles he would have fought in and if he was awarded any medals. I know this is asking a lot but if someone has any idea of where I can go from here I would greatly appreciate any hints or tips on where to look next. Thank you!
So I contacted the province archives (I know his information is correct because I have his birth certificate). They told me to contact the military archives in Rome. So I did that. The archives in Rome had me turn around and re contact the same archives that I previously mentioned. They responded saying they have 1 record of him being listed on a roster with a date and that was it.
Sounds about right. It is possible that more extensive records exist but it is also true that, depending on where you ask, they may be unaware whether they do, or where they are located if they do exist. You could ask again, but also consider approaching local museums or institutions, in the odd chance that they have something.
Now, assuming that you don't have his foglio matricolare - his personal records - since he either didn't keep it or you don't know how to locate it, his place and date of birth may be enough to determine his conscription center. From there, one may be able to make certain guesses about his subsequent destinations - of course, without his personal records, those would be only hypoteticals, since soldiers could be moved over to other units, or reassigned for various different reasons.
A few things that may be relevant to your research are his personal situation before his return to Italy: whether he had already been drafted before he left Italy, whether he had served before he left Italy, whether he had been drafted after his emigration and therefore failed to appear to his conscription center, whether he had informed the local authorities of his emigration, whether he belonged to a new draft class, whether he volunteered ahead of time. Also, if you know the details of his travel back to Italy, that might help figure out where he reported to duty.
Last, if you wish to post his picture, it might be possible to determine his unit, branch and designation from an examination of his uniform, as long as one has a good eye for military stuff - which I don't.
Assuming that you know enough Italian, more precise information on the process of conscription might be available somewhere in the ponderous but comprehensive publication of the Historian Office of the Italian Ministry of War: L'Esercito Italiano nella Grande Guerra.