SKU: 40124769625

Bolt Action Italian Army & Blackshirts Infantry ( 402015801 )

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Description

Bolt Action Italian Army & Blackshirts Infantry ( 402015801 )Mussolini famously boasted that the Italian army had eight million bayonets standing at the ready. In actuality, the standing Italian army was far smaller than that, with huge numbers of troops conscripted into a war they neither believed in nor understood. The fighting ability of units of the Italian army varied greatly, with much of the rank and file lacking proper equipment, transport and even motivation. Still, there were several key battles in

Mussolini famously boasted that the Italian army had eight million bayonets standing at the ready. In actuality, the standing Italian army was far smaller than that, with huge numbers of troops conscripted into a war they neither believed in nor understood. The fighting ability of units of the Italian army varied greatly, with much of the rank and file lacking proper equipment, transport and even motivation. Still, there were several key battles in North Africa and the Eastern Front where they performed well.

Initially, the standard rifle was the Carcano Model 1891 as used in World War I. A shortened version was introduced in 1941 (the M91/41); this along with the M38 Carbine, was intended to replace the M1891 – the shorter barrels being far more practical for the infantry to carry and manoeuvre. These latter two weapons are represented in our new plastics. Also represented is the M91/38 cavalry carbine – typically issued with a fixed rear sight (set to 200 metres) and a folding bayonet. The excellent 9mm Beretta M38 was the standard sub-machine gun. The Italian light machine gun – the Breda Model 1930 – suffered from a slow rate of fire, the same small calibre ammunition as the squad’s rifles, and a mechanism prone to jamming and breakage.

Camicie Nere (Blackshirts) Militia

The MVSN or Milizia Volontaria per la Sicurezza Nazionale (Voluntary Militia for National Security) was made by the Fascist Party into a paramilitary organization similar in concept to the German SS. The rank and organizational terminology used by the MVSN was very close to that of ancient Rome, with legions, centuries, cohorts, maniples and so on. Mostly concerned with territorial security and counter-partisan activities, in wartime the Camicie Nere were organized into ‘assault legions’ that were fielded alongside regular army infantry divisions to reinforce them and as a way to ‘politicize’ the Regio Esercito.

The quality of these militia units varied immensely, ranging from barely trained village bullies to veterans of the Spanish Civil War and highly motivated ‘Giovani Fascisti’ (young fascists).

The Sprue

The Italian uniform changed several times during the course of the war and we chose the pattern that could best represent a wide array of troops, at different times during the war, and in different theatres of operation. At 28mm scale, these are ideal to represent M37 or M40 tunics. We have also included the Camiciotto Sahariana pullover smock for added variety.

Weaponry includes the M91/41 rifle, M91/38 Carcano Cavalry Carbine, M38A Beretta SMG, M38 Carcano carbine, M1934, 9mm Beretta pistol and Breda M30 LMG.

A wide variety of headgear for the Italian Army and Blackshirts are included – M33 steel helmets, Bustina cap, M1935 pith helmet, Blackshirt soft fez & Blackshirt hard fez.

Not only that but the sprue contains masses of optional extras such as two types of gas mask bags, goggles, bayonets, combat knives, etc!

Box contains 30 plastic highly customisable Italian Infantry, with decal sheet and assembly guide.

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SKU: 40124769625

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Blu
Houston, US
★★★★★ 5
P O W E R F U L .
Format: Paperback
The author summarized: "The ghost of the disappeared Soviet Union ... still haunts the imagination of contemporaries .... This amazing story teaches us not to trust in the seeming certainty of continuity and should help us prepare for sudden shocks in the future" (p. 439). An engrossing in-depth eloquent analyses concerning the events and individuals affecting the 1991 demise of the Soviet Union. Moreover, the unforeseen Chernobyl nuclear disaster on April 26, 1986, crystallized the horrors of a possible nuclear war. Thus, a new orientation to end the exorbitant arms race with the United States. Further, General Secretary Gorbachev promulgated new reforms, including, relaxing travel restrictions in 1989: "... [T]he shock that thousands of Soviet people experienced when they crossed Soviet borders and visited Western countries .... For first-time Soviet travelers to the West a visit to a supermarket produced the biggest effect. The contrast between half-empty, gloomy Soviet food stores and glittering Western palaces with an abundant selection of food was mind-boggling.... This experience changed Soviet travelers forever" (p. 82). At times, repetitive and somewhat confusing. For instance, U.S. President Bush needed Gorbachev's approval for his Iraq offense, which was initially described on Page 143, then inexplicably again, on Page 172. On another occasion, the author indicated that Yeltsin was influenced by Alexander Solzhenitsyn's brochure "How To Rebuild Russia," on Page 150, which is again repeated, on Page 173. Scrupulous editing needed. Notwithstanding such glitches, nonetheless, a fascinating detailed portrayal of the unexpected implosion of a superpower. Having read other books on the subject, if I had to select only ONE about the USSR collapse, I would choose this as the best.
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Reviewed in the United States on July 8, 2025
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Andrew Platek
West Palm Beach, US
★★★★★ 5
Thought Provoking
Format: Kindle
I bought this book after I heard the author on a podcast. Growing up in the US we have been inundated with the story that the collapse of the Soviet Union was an inevitable triumph of liberal, Western values. I had my doubts. Even poorly run dictatorships can muddle along for years. What the author did was center Gorbachev in the story. He was the eye of the storm. It was the terrible combination of Gorbachev’s ambitious idealism and gross ineptitude that led to the dismantling of the Soviet Union. Unlike much of Marxist historical narratives which emphasize the forces of history; the author shows that it’s individuals who shape events and are shaped by them. A different person than Gorbachev could have turned the tide in a different direction and left us a different world than we have today. This is a history book that teaches lessons not just about the Soviet Union but about human history in general.
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Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2025
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Luca turin
Carnegie, US
★★★★★ 5
A compelling account of the fall of the USSR
Format: Kindle
Zubok describes blow by blow the series of decisions that sent the USSR towards disaster. Gorbachev, widely hated in Russia, comes across as principled but indecisive, ignorant of economics, and incapable of translating his worship of Lenin into coherent action. The book reads like a thriller despite the density of facts. Zubok is a pessimist, but his thesis is convincing.
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Reviewed in the United States on May 21, 2024
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Miguel
Massapequa, US
★★★★★ 5
Fascinating, an against the grain account of the perestroika era
Format: Kindle
Gorbachev is hailed as a hero in the West but the book tells the story of a meek, naive individual that precipitated the fall of the Soviet Union creating suffering and an a!most unprecedented calamity.
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Reviewed in the United States on December 19, 2025
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Khatuna Brady
Carnegie, US
★★★★★ 2
A masterfully falsified history of the late Soviet developments
Format: Paperback
This book represents academic propaganda, providing some interesting insights into important events. Some details are true, but some crucial details are omitted. It represents a sanitized version of Russia's modern history. It provides misleading information about Gorbachev's constitutional reforms, aimed at partitioning of 15 republics into 53 confederation entities. Originally, the targeted republics were Kazakhstan, Moldova, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Ukraine, etc. Those conflicts were manufactured by the Soviet center to discredit "nationalists," facilitate the partition of national republics, and grant Moscow right to protect ethnic minorities. According to Starovoitova, Bakatin, Yakovlev, and a few other primary sources, the Soviet security services led special operations in the Caucasus and Central Asia to provoke those conflicts. Zubok avoids citing those parts. Using the imperial approach of "divide and rule," Moscow attempted to become a peacekeeper in the conflicts it created between different ethnicity. In addition to fragmenting the republics with well-developed national identities, Gorbachev's new constitution would revoke their right to leave the USSR, written in Lenin's 1922 Constitution (Shakhnazarov, 1992). Zubok does not explain any of it. His book is an effort to protect the truth and conceal facts with Russian myths and lies about nationalism (also referred to as Nazism). Notably, Zubok does not recognize non-Russian republics and describes them as "territories." He mentions Pitsunda as a resort on the Black Sea, not as Georgia. For lying about the genocidal ethnic cleansing conducted by the Russian military against the Georgian population of Abkhazia, Zubok owes apology to the victims of conflicts and wars initiated by Gorbachev and carried on by Yeltsin. The story about "the hardliners coup against Gorbachev" is also a big fat lie. American scholars, Amy Knight, John Dunlop, and William Odom provide more accurate insights. For Russian sources, read Marshal Shaposhnikov or Aleksandr Lebed's memoirs (1995) and listen to Gennady Yanaev's interview (2009). According to Mitrokhin archives (original), the August 1991 coup was an active measure the KGB developed per Gorbachev's request. The so-called coup was part of Gorbachev's constitutional reform, which would lead to the removal of unfriendly leaders (including Yeltsin) from the republics. It failed because the Soviet military brass, foremost Pavel Grachev, had defected to Yeltsin earlier in 1991. When you read a book by a seasoned Russian propagandist, like Zubok or Trenin, take it with a grain of salt, because it will always contain a mix of lies and truth.
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Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2023

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