29th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Italian) The new Italian Social Republic was founded on 23 September 1943 under dictator Benito Mussolini. On 2 October 1943, Heinrich Himmler and Gottlob Berger devised the "Programm zur Aufstellung der italienischen Milizeinheiten durch die Waffen-SS" ("Program for the deployment of Italian militia forces by the Waffen-SS") which was approved by Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini. In October 1943, 15,000 volunteers started training at Truppenübungsplatz Münsingen, but 9,000 of them were unsuitable and released for training in police units, the Black Brigades or for labor. On 23 November 1943, 13 Miliz-Battalions pledged their loyalty before being moved to "SS-Ausbildungsstab Italien". The
Sword of Islam (Mussolini) art firm "Picchiani e Barlacchi di Firenze" on the order of Mussolini himself. After 1937, it was no longer used and was guarded in a small glass reliquary at Rocca delle Caminate, summer residence of Mussolini. There were no more signs of the precious object after July 25, 1943, when Rocca delle Caminate was ravaged and plundered by anti-fascists. Sword of Islam (Mussolini) The Sword of Islam () was a ceremonial melee weapon given in 1937 to Benito Mussolini, who was pronounced as the "Protector of Islam" (). In 1934, after the creation of Italian Libya, Mussolini adopted a policy