During the first years of World War II, the VII Corps saw no action.
After the western Allies had landed in French North Africa, the Axis Powers reacted with Case Anton to occupy the Zone Libre, the part of France not occupied in 1940.
The plan included the Italian occupation of the French island of Corsica which was to be executed by the VII Corps on 11 November 1942.
The Corps remained on Corsica with anti-partisan and coastal defense tasks, until the Armistice of Cassibile.
The Corps commander, Giovanni Magli, and most of the Corps' units switched sides and from 13 September to 4 October 1943, in collaboration with French units, fought against the Germans in the Liberation of Corsica.