[5][6][7] During World War I the regiment expanded to ten battalions, which fought separately in the alpine areas of the Italian front.

In 1935 the regiment was assigned to the 1st Alpine Division "Taurinense", with which it served during World War II in the invasion of France.

In winter 1942-43, the Skiers Battalion "Monte Cervino", which had been reformed by the 4th Alpini Regiment in October 1941, was destroyed on the Eastern Front during the Red Army's Operation Little Saturn.

In 1942 the division was transferred to Montenegro, where it served on occupation duty until the announcement of the Armistice of Cassibile on 8 September 1943.

[5][6][7] On 15 October 1872, the Royal Italian Army formed 15 locally recruited Alpini companies in the alpine regions of Northern Italy.

Upon entering the regiments, the battalions, which until then had been designated by a Roman numeral, were named for their recruiting zone, while the Alpini companies were renumbered sequentially from 1st to 72nd.

[6][7][8] In 1886 the regiment moved from Turin to Ivrea and on 1 November of the same year, the battalions changed their names from their recruiting zones to the cities and towns, where their base was located.

In 1895-96 the regiment provided 14 officers and 512 troops to help form the I and II provisional Alpini battalions, which were deployed to Eritrea for the First Italo-Ethiopian War.

[4][6][7] At the outbreak of World War I the Alpini speciality consisted of eight regiments, which fielded 26 battalions with 79 companies.

After Italy's initial declaration of neutrality 38 additional Alpini companies were formed during the autumn of 1914 with men, who had completed their military service in the preceding four years.

[9] On 18-27 May 1917, during the Tenth Battle of the Isonzo, the regiment's Alpini Battalion "Aosta" stormed and held the summit of Monte Vodice, and on 25-27 October 1918, during the Battle of Vittorio Veneto, the "Aosta" stormed and held the summit of Monte Solarolo.

The same month the 4th Alpini Regiment formed the 623rd Company, which consisted of volunteers and was assigned to the XI Replacements Battalion.

The XI Replacements Battalion was attached to 11th Alpini Regiment and shipped to East Africa, where in the meantime the "Pusteria" was engaged in combat against Ethiopian troops.

In East Africa the Alpini Battalion "Intra" fought in the Battle of Maychew, during which the battalion distinguished itself at Mekan Pass and was awarded a Silver Medal of Military Valor, which was affixed to the flag of the 4th Alpini Regiment and added to the regiment's coat of arms.

On 10 June 1940, the day Italy entered World War II, the regiment fielded 160 officers and 5,046 other ranks for a total strength of 5,206 men.

For its conduct on the Greek Front between 10 January and 23 April 1941 the Skiers Battalion "Monte Cervino" was awarded a Silver Medal of Military Valor, while the Alpini Battalion "Intra" was awarded a Bronze Medal of Military Valor for the conquest of three heights on 24-26 January 1941.

[7][9][23][24] On the evening of 17 January 1943, the Alpine Army Corps commander, General Gabriele Nasci, ordered a full retreat.

The 40,000-strong mass of stragglers — Alpini and Italians from other commands, plus German and Hungarians — followed the "Tridentina", which led the way westwards to the new Axis lines.

On the morning of 26 January 1943, the spearheads of the "Tridentina" reached the hamlet of Nikolayevka, occupied by the Soviet 48th Guards Rifle Division.

General Nasci ordered a frontal assault and by nightfall the troops of the "Tridentina" division had managed to break through the Soviet lines.

The XX Skiers Grouping was attached to the 5th Alpine Division "Pusteria", which was on occupation duty in Southern France in the Alpes-Maritimes.

After the announcement of the Armistice of Cassibile on 8 September 1943 invading German forces disbanded the XX Skiers Grouping and its battalions.

[6][7][9][25] However, on 9 September 1943, the Alpini Battalion "Ivrea", the Alpine Artillery Group "Aosta", and the 40th Battery of the Alpine Artillery Group "Susa" had ignored the order to move to Kotor and sided with Tito's Yugoslav National Liberation Army forces right away.

By early October the remnants these units, together with the remaining troops of the 19th Infantry Division "Venezia", retreated towards Pljevlja.

On 2 December 1943 in Pljevlja the remaining Italian soldiers, approximately 16,000 men, were grouped together in the Division "Garibaldi".

Integrated into the Partisan 2nd Corps the division fought in Montenegro, Herzegovina, Bosnia, and Sandžak until February 1945, when the last troops were repatriated via the liberated harbour of Dubrovnik.

[4][7][9] When the Armistice of Cassibile was announced 287 Alpini were waiting in Bari in Apulia to be shipped to Montenegro as replacements for the "Taurinense" division.

The Combat Group "Legnano"fought on the allied side in the Italian campaign until the German surrender.

[7][9] For its conduct and service between 18 March 1944 to 8 May 1945 with the Italian Liberation Corps and then the Combat Group "Legnano" the Alpini Battalion "Piemonte" was awarded a Silver Medal of Military Valor.

[6] Troops of the battalion and then the regiment were repeatedly deployed to Mozambique, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Kosovo, and once the War on Terror began also to Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Lebanon, and Somalia.