At the outbreak of World War I in 1914 the Bersaglieri corps consisted of 12 regiments of three battalions on foot, and one cyclist's battalion each. Each regiment also contained a machine gun section with two machine guns. The battalions on foot consisted of three companies of 250 men each, while the cyclist battalions consisted of three companies of 150 men each. Additionally, each cyclist's battalion had its own machine gun section with two machine guns. Between the outbreak of the war and the Italian declaration of war on 23 May 1915 the Italian army was forced to send the 1st Bersaglieri Regiment and five battalions from other Bersaglieri regiments to Libya as the local population fiercely resisted the Italian occupation. On 29 December 1914 the army sent the 10th Bersaglieri Regiment to Albania, which was in turmoil after its freshly installed ruler William, Prince of Albania had fled the country in September 1914. Already since 4 May 1912 two battalions of the 4th Bersaglieri Regiment were in Rhodes to garrison the newly conquered Italian Islands of the Aegean.