[4] The first unit to carry out this role was the III Missile Brigade, established on 1 October 1959.

Each group fielded four Honest John launch systems and were based in Elvas, Oderzo, Codogné and Portogruaro.

With the end of the Cold War the Italian Army began to draw down its forces.

[10] The Artillery Brigade was established consisting of two echelons, one aimed at preparing the dependent units, while the other was intended for the establishment of the Commands in operations or for reinforcement with specialists from other Commands engaged in operations.

In 1821, it was merged with the existing Royal Military Academy and assumed the name of Application School of Artillery and Engineering.

[11] The traditions of the School of Artillery draw their origins from the "Central School of Artillery Shooting" (Scuola Centrale di Tiro di Artiglieria), established on 1 July 1888 (Royal Decree No.

The School was established in order to give adequate impetus to the professional education of cadres and to give artillery training a unitary direction, supported by application standards corresponding to the performance of weapons.

In Bracciano a Training Group was established for the preparation of personnel for the specialist units.

In 1925 the Artillery Central School was transferred in Civitavecchia, directly under the Army General Staff.

[4][12] The courses were held mainly for Officers who were preparing to take up the posts of group or regimental commander.

For the exercises it had the regiments of the Division "Torino", also based in Civitavecchia, and permanently received in aggregation from other bodies the Groups or Batteries of the non-divisional artillery specialties.

[12] In 1927 the Artillery Shooting School, aimed to troops and enlisted personnel, was reestablished and reactivated in Nettuno.

[4][12] During the Second World War the activity of the Shooting School of Neptune had a notable increase, above all to retrain the ranks of reservists called to arms who had to constitute or complete the Artillery units.

[14] In 1948, with the establishment of the 1st Battery of reserve officers cadets, the Artillery School also assumed the nature of a training institute for reserve cadres, while it lost the Anti-aircraft detachments of Bracciano, Sabaudia and Civitavecchia.

[4][12] In 1949 the XI Field Artillery Group was moved to the then-V Territorial Military Command in Padua.

In 1954 the Reserve Officers and Sub-officers School was established in Foligno, with the exception of the self-propelled speciality and the Artillery specialists who kept their headquarters in Bracciano,[4][12] both under the VIII Territorial Military Command of Rome.

The Colonel, Course Director, on the other hand, presided over the didactic organization, making use of the activities of some "units".

[4] On 2 May 1976 the 1st Group inherited the War Flag, the Red Tie and the Garibaldi traditions of the 1st Artillery Regiment.

[4] In June 1981, with the dissolution of the School of Artillery Officers and Subfofficers in Foligno which took care of the training of the students of mechanical towing specialities, the 18th Group was suppressed and transformed into the Mechanical Towing A.U.C.

[14] Subsequent reorganizations led to the dissolution of the Specialists Group and of the Support Unit.

[4] The Commander also assumed the position of Deputy Inspector of the Arm of Artillery on the same date.