Gente dell'aria
Fuhrer Military Headquarters was satisfied with the breakout of the SS Panzer Corps and the apparent destruction of what remained of the Italian army but now pondered their next steps.
The Corps’ commander, General Paul Hausser was keen to ingratiate himself with Hitler following previous disagreements with the German dictator and reported, somewhat optimistically, that Italian resistance had been shattered by the arrival of the SS and if necessary he would advance on Rome or even Naples. His tanks were advancing on the city of Parma where they could take their panzers down the main roads as far as Rimini where they could cross the Apennines or head even further down the eastern coast towards Foggia
Despite these offers of further conquest Hitler remained sore from the overly optimistic plans hatched in the previous months. The experience of Conrath’s convoy had made it clear the days of reckless endeavours were past the Wehrmacht; the Apennines were to become the Third Reich’s new southern border but they would not be crossed.
Hausser was instead ordered to divide his forces now the Italians had been broken. After reaching Parma they would advance south towards Rimini to establish a defensive perimeter whilst the remainder would head north to “clean out the Bolshevik nest” in Milan and secure the industry of the Po Valley. Nazi propaganda boasted of marching on Rome regardless in the hope of finally bringing about a political collapse in the Italian capital. Goebbels’ aim at this point had more to do with sowing chaos throughout Southern Italy rather than genuine hopes of a Fascist restoration.
General Ambrosio had long become wary of German overpromising however many within the new regime were not so sceptical and the Comando Supremo Chief would spend the days following the German crossing of the Po reassuring the King and many of his new ministers that fleeing Rome would be premature. The arrival of the American 82nd Airborne Division had briefly caused the Roman population to break out in celebration however the immediate transfer of the paratroopers to the northern outskirts of the capital to reinforce the Italian Motorised Corps had muted the jubilation with the realisation their city might soon become a battlefield.
Alarm grew with news of collapse in the north and the arrival of the first refugees who told horror stories of SS atrocities to match those of the displaced who had fled the Germans in Campania. Fears and frustrations continued to be taken out on symbols of the old Fascist regime; it was a practice which was increasingly permitted by the Caviglia government as the situation deteriorated and the Italian people began looking for those to blame.
Such grievances would reach a crescendo with the killing of Benito Mussolini on the 12th of August. Security arrangements around the former Italian dictator had grown increasingly complex and strict in preparation for handing him over to the Allies along with several other persons of interest. The wariness of moving Mussolini from Rome had further complicated matters for the Army, whose dealings with the local Carabinieri became increasingly strained in trying to maintain the precautions of keeping Mussolini well guarded but also mobile so as not to be in one location for too long.
Mussolini’s condition in the final weeks of his life has been the subject of some dispute. The Duce’s physical health is said to have declined further with some suggesting his ulcers may have been close to causing internal bleeding fuelling some more fanciful speculations that Mussolini had actually died at some point before the 12th.
Mussolini’s incapacity from illness consumed much of his time in captivity which was largely spent solitary and in bed. All that can be officially gleaned is from the only and last piece of correspondence sent by Mussolini during his detention; a request made to the Archbishop of Pisa regarding whether a Memorial Mass might be held on the second anniversary of his son Bruno’s death.
Bruno Mussolini had died in a plane crash outside of Pisa during a test flight and his funeral had been held there subsequently. Mussolini seemed keen on the memorial being held there as well only for the request to ironically play a role in his own death. Whether it was leaked by those passing the letter to the clergy or the clergy themselves the civilian population of the municipality of Trastevere in the centre of Rome had become aware Mussolini was being held at the local Caserma Podgora barracks.
Armed with this knowledge and given the scarcity of petrol it appeared obvious to the local population that Mussolini was being moved when three army trucks left the barracks on the 12th of August. Whether by insight or opportunism the Romans assembled.
A crowd gathered around the three trucks and surrounded them completely by the time they were attempting to cross the Tiber river. The soldiers guarding Mussolini attempted to disperse the crowd at gunpoint however they did not open fire and were soon overwhelmed by a hail of makeshift missiles and soon disappeared into the crowd, unwilling to risk their own lives further.
Subsequent forces were dispatched from the barracks when it became clear the crowd was not moving; however by the time the army had regained control Benito Mussolini had been dragged from one of the trucks and apparently beaten to death. The crowd dispersed before any number of culprits could be identified and despite many subsequent claims of individuals having struck the decisive blows only a few grainy photos of the event have been unearthed none of which show the killing.
The photos do seem to attest to spontaneity though it would not have been hard for anyone wishing Mussolini dead to guess what might happen if he was handed over to a crowd of angry Romans and suspicion of the entire security failure being manufactured soon arose. Potential motives on behalf of the Caviglia government varied from avoiding the embarrassment of handing Mussolini over to foreign powers, preventing him from implicating anyone in the new regime of being responsible for war crimes or undermining the chances of a Fascist counter-coup by killing their leader. However with successive Italian regimes taking steps to elude the question no smoking gun has emerged to directly implicate anyone with official sanction for the killing.
Regardless of possible intent the aftermath was undoubtedly a setback for the government in Rome. Initially the incident was downplayed as having been a riot provoked by criminal elements with no mention of Mussolini. Foreign press were under no such censure however, particularly Allied journalists who had been welcomed into the city to showcase the arrival of American troops. Two days after the event it was officially acknowledged that Mussolini had died, the admission was brief and in Italian news it remained secondary to the ongoing German invasion.
The cover-up did little to assuage Allied concerns over Mussolini being thrown to the mob. Though few tears were shed for the dictator by his enemies but the manner of his death unsettled the leadership in London and Washington and increased distrust of the regime they had only recently recognised as legitimate. It was an atmosphere of suspicion Rome could ill afford, coming at a time when Italy was fighting for its life. The disappearance of General Mario Roatta, a key ally of Ambrosio and responsible for genocide in Slovenia, only for him to emerge in Spain years later, would further rattle Allied and public confidence.
In an attempt to raise morale at home and ingratiate themselves with the Allies anew Comando Supremo gave the green light to an operation which had been drafted at the beginning of the German invasion; an revenge raid on Berlin by Italian bombers. Eight Piaggio P108 heavy bombers would take off from Pisa on the 19th of August to drop incendiaries and propaganda leaflets on the German capital, only two would return. This had been the plane Bruno Mussolini had died testing, the operation resulted in the deaths of many of his surviving squadmates and the effective end of his squadron.
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