By November 1918, only one Italian training unit equipped with French Schneider and Renault tanks had been formed.

Consequently, during the 1920s the Italian army had just one single tank type in its armoured inventory – the Fiat 3000. Only in 1927 was the first tank unit formed as a branch of the infantry and not as an independent organization.

Pier Paolo Battistelli and Filippo Cappellano explore the development of these tanks. Between 1933 and March 1939, a further 2,724 CV 33 / L 3 tanks were built, 1,216 of which were exported all over the world. By the time Italy entered the war in June 1940, the army had 1,284 light tanks, 855 of which were in combat units, including three armoured divisions.

Featuring detailed illustrations, this compact guide covers all of these types, including variants of the CV 33 / L 3 tanks that included flame-throwers, bridge-layers, recovery vehicles, and a radio command tank.

I immensely enjoyed this convenient compendium. Photos, extended captions, color plates and informative illustrations season Osprey's savory study. Bibliography and index complete contents. Grab this entertaining little book. -- www.cybermodeler.com * David L. Veres *

Colonel Dr Filippo Cappellano is the chief of the Italian Army Historical Branch (Ufficio Storico SME). A renowned military historian, he is the author of several books, essays and articles on the history of the Italian Army.

Pier Paolo Battistelli earned his PhD in Military History at the University of Padua. A scholar of German and Italian politics and strategy throughout World War II, he is active in Italy and abroad writing titles and essays on military history subjects.

Richard Chasemore is a technical illustrator who has worked on a wide variety of projects in publishing an advertising, using both traditional and digital media. He is a long-standing contributor to the top-selling Star Wars Incredible Cross Sections series.