When it was initially formed on 10 November 1938 under the command of General Ettore Bastico, it comprised three corps: This formation was the brainchild of General Alberto Pariani, then Chief of the General Staff, who desired to combine armoured and motorised divisions into a potent force based in the Po valley and ready to move towards any of Italy's land borders at a moment's notice.
[3] In the first half of 1940 the Centauro division was moved to Albania, where it took part in the Italian invasion of Greece later that year.
[1] During the Italian invasion of France (10–25 June 1940), the Army of the Po (minus the Centauro) was held in reserve.
In July 1943, the headquarters of the Sixth Army took charge of the defence of Sicily.
The 6th Army suffered heavy losses against the Allies in July–August 1943 and withdrew to northern Italy for reorganization.