The 4th Alpine Division "Cuneense" () was a division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II, which specialized in mountain warfare. The headquarters of the division was in the city of Cuneo, and the majority of its Alpini soldiers were drafted from the surrounding Province of Cuneo - hence the division's name "Cuneense". The division participated in all Italian World War II campaigns with the exception of the North African Campaign. The division was annihilated during Operation Little Saturn by Soviet forces in January 1943. History The division's lineage begins on 19 October 1933 when the 1st Alpini Regiment in Mondovì and 2nd Alpini Regiment in Cuneo left the 1st Alpine Division "Taurinense" and entered the newly raised IV Alpine Brigade in Cuneo. On 27 October 1934 the brigade changed its name to IV Superior Alpine Command, which received the name Cuneense in December of the same year (). The command received the newly formed 4th Mountain Artillery Regiment in Cuneo on 1 January 1934. On 31 October 1935 the IV Superior Alpine Command "Cuneense" was reformed as 4th Alpine Division "Cuneense" with the 1st and 2nd Alpini regiments and the 4th Alpine Artillery Regiment. On 25 December 1935 the Cuneense temporarily transferred its Alpini battalions "Pieve di Teco" and "Saluzzo" and one of its artillery batteries to the 5th Alpine Division "Pusteria" for the Second Italo-Ethiopian War. World War II Invasion of France The division participated in the Italian invasion of France in June 1940. On 22 June it entered French territory in the Chabriere and Mary valleys. Greco-Italian War In December 1940 the division was sent as reinforcements to Albania for the Greco-Italian War. Between 15-17 December 1940 the division's units entered the front in the upper Devoll valley and inserted in 23 November the division had entered the front in the upper Devoll valley. On 18 March 1941 the division was taken out of the front and sent to Berat. At the end of March the division deployed to the Yugoslav-Albanian border for the upcoming Invasion of Yugoslavia. On 10 April the division crossed the border and advanced to Debar in Macedonia. After the war's conclusion the division returned to Italy in May 1941. Soviet Union The Tridentina was one of the ten Italian divisions of the Italian Army in Russia, which fought on the Eastern Front. In July 1942 the division, together with the