Lorenzo Scano
Ed: ELLE ESSE
pagg: 186
"The Italian government, having recognized the impossibility of continuing the unequal struggle against the overwhelming opposing power, in order to save further and more serious disasters for the Nation, requested an armistice from General Eisenhower, commander-in-chief of the Anglo-American allied forces .
The request was accepted.
Consequently, every act of hostility against Anglo-American forces must cease on the part of Italian forces everywhere.
However, they will react to possible attacks from any other source ".
This is the proclamation read by General Dwight Eisenhower the 8 September 1943 to the microphones of Radio Algiers.
The armistice was signed on September 3 by the Badoglio government but the Italians still kept it secret.
In those days the king of Italy, Vittorio Emanuele III of Savoy, prepared his and the royal family's escape.
Lorenzo Scano's book moves in this scenario, trying to reconstruct the events that led to the sinking of the flagship Roma and the delivery of the Italian fleet to the Allies.
The lack of clarity in the orders issued in those days was perhaps the main cause of so many deaths.
The sinking of the battleship Roma, occurred in the Gulf of Asinara, about 15 miles east of Punta dello Scorno, due to the bombing of German Dornier 217 aircraft armed with FX 1400 bombs (3,3 meters long by 35 centimeters wide, explosive load of 300 kg, total weight 1500 kg, radioguided) is difficult to explain. Only on that occasion there were more 1300 dead.
The author, Lorenzo Scano, tries to highlight how those victims can hardly be considered part of the "anti-Nazi resistance".
In the author's opinion, Admiral Bergamini, at the head of the fleet, was faithful to the end of his word to his former German ally and probably did not want to be the first to shoot, which cost his life and those of his men.
The book also seeks to understand what were the relations between the fleet movement and that of the king who, perhaps, intended to retreat to Sardinia, a place from which to start a new future.
What were the King's real intentions?
Why did we continue to deal with the Allies and the Germans even after the armistice was signed? What did you want to get?
We do not know and perhaps we will never know, yet it is clear to everyone that since the 1940 someone in Italy worked for the victory of the Allies, otherwise what sense would the art. 16 of the Treaty of Paris?
"Italy will not incriminate or otherwise harass Italian citizens including members of the Armed Forces, simply because they have expressed sympathy for the cause of the Allied or Associate powers or have acted in favor of the cause during the period between 10 June 1940 and the date of entry into force of this treaty ".
An interesting book full of ideas to deepen our knowledge of a crucial moment for our homeland.
Alessandro Rugolo
