Created amidst the exigencies of World War II, Comando Supremo was a large organization with several departments and operational command of the armed forces on the active fronts.

On 11 June 1940, King Victor Emmanuel III named Mussolini "Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces Operating on all Fronts".

The office of deputy chief of staff was abolished and Comando Supremo was given operational control of the armed forces, standing between them and Mussolini.

Comando Supremo acquired the right to command the staffs of the four service branches (army, navy and air force) and of the Milizia Volontaria per la Sicurezza Nazionale (Voluntary Militia for National Security), which was previously directly subordinate to Mussolini as the Duce del Fascismo (Leader of Fascism).

The chief of staff of the armed forces went from being an advisor with responsibility for planning only to being in direct control of operations on most of Italy's battle fronts.

By 1 January 1943, it had direct command of Italian forces operating in Africa, Albania, Croatia, Dalmatia, the Dodecanese, Greece, Montenegro, Slovenia and the Soviet Union.

[1] Under Cavallero, Comando Supremo maintained good relations with Oberbefehlshaber Süd, the command of German forces in Italy.

[1] The division of command between Comando Supremo and the army general staff ceased to have a functional basis in 1943, with the end of active Italian participation on the Eastern Front, the loss of Africa and the Allied invasion of Sicily.

When Victor Emmanuel approved the plan on 20 July, he informed Ambrosio, who made arrangements to arrest Mussolini and bring more troops to Rome.

After the appointment of Badoglio as prime minister, the king resumed his command of the armed forces and Comando Supremo became directly subordinate to him.

Although Roatta was later to describe this as a return to normality, in fact the situation was entirely new, since nothing like Comando Supremo had existed in Italy before the king delegated his command to Mussolini.

On 31 May, on the advice of the minister of war, Alessandro Casati, the lieutenant-general of the realm, Prince Umberto, issued a legislative decree reducing the chief of staff of Comando Supremo to a purely advisory role.