Fronte Russo - CSIR Cross

[Neil Hever]

Another family friend has offered me some WWII items from his dad. So far, I have a First Army "Class A" jacket and a later "Ike" style jacket with veteran patches for the the 5th and 7th Armies. The father, Stanley Hancoviz, served in Africa with operation Torch and later in Europe and Italy. It is no surprise that he would have picked up some Italian medals. I have identified them as the Fronte Russo Barbarossa invasion medal and the CSIR commemorative cross. He is offering them to me for free along with the Tropenhelm Schild. Info on the medals is somewhat scarce so if anyone can offer more details on them I would be appreciative. For example, is it likely Staff Sargeant Hancovicz might have picked these up in Africa? Comments welcome. Neil

[ziomanno]

Hi; in theory, yes: a soldier who fought in Russia could have been sent back to Italy, maybe because wounded or sick and thus transferred to another military unit, that later has been deployed in North Africa. For example, the Lancieri di Novara regiment (cavalry) saw action in both Russia and Africa, well after july '42.

[OldSteel]

Hi Neil,
as you say, the cross is the commemorative one of CSIR, nicknamed "Croce di ghiaccio" (Ice Cross) and was assigned to all the Veterans of the Russian front; the designer was "A.Picozzi" and your example is one of those official made of "war metal" by the manufacturer "F.M. Lorioli" of Milan, in fact at the bottom is marked:
LORIOLI MILANO-ROMA
A. PICOZZI MILANO
there were also silver versions for the Officers.
The "FRONTE RUSSO" badge, was always intended for Russian front Veterans of every rank, was always made by the manufacturer F.M. Lorioli, commissioned by the Headquarters of the 8th Armata (CSIR) and could be purchased privately at a pre-established price.
Initially they were made with the vertical pin, later but always in the war period, the version with oblique pin was produced, as your example.
Cross and badges were worn on the left pocket of the uniform jacket, they continued to be worn also by the RSI Armed Forces.
After the war several types of copies were made for the use of veterans, similar to the originals but with different characteristics.
Below you can see an example of a "Fronte Russo" badge with an oblique pin complete with all its parts.

Regards
Roberto

[Neil Hever]

Thank you friends for your feedback! Here is the US veteran who brought these souvenirs back home. Staff Sargeant Stanley Hancovicz served with the 5th and 7th Armies in Africa and Europe. NH

[OldSteel]

Thanks for sharing this memory, to stay on the theme of the Italian Campaign and the 5th US Army, I add this Ike Jacket M44 of the 88th Infantry Division "Blue Devil", in my collection, a small tribute to this unit that fought in the area where I live .

Regards
Roberto

[Neil Hever]

Here is the jacket I received. S. Sgt. Hancovicz post war veteran "Ike" jacket with two army group patches. It has been cleaned and pressed. I will post a photo later. NH

[Neil Hever]

And here is the jacket close up before cleaning and preserving. Rescued just in time! NH