Papers by Nicola Cacciatore
This thesis is the result of the author's original research. It has been composed by the author a... more This thesis is the result of the author's original research. It has been composed by the author and has not been previously submitted for examination which has led to the award of a degree.' 'The copyright of this thesis belongs to the author under the terms of the United Kingdom Copyright Acts as qualified by University of Strathclyde Regulation 3.50. Due acknowledgement must always be made of the use of any material contained in, or derived from, this thesis.
Italian and Italian American studies, 2023
Italian and Italian American studies, 2023
Italian and Italian American studies, 2023
Italian and Italian American studies, 2023
Italian and Italian American studies, 2023
Italian and Italian American Studies
ITALIA CONTEMPORANEA
L'articolo si propone di indagare la discussione che si sviluppò internamente ai comandi brit... more L'articolo si propone di indagare la discussione che si sviluppò internamente ai comandi britannici sull'opportunità di concedere ai partigiani italiani lo status ufficiale di combattenti, facente quindi parte di una forza armata regolare e protetti dalle convenzioni internazionali sulla guerra. La discussione nacque in risposta alle crescenti violenze tedesche durante l'estate del 1944 e proseguì poi, senza peraltro giungere a una conclusione, fino alla fine della Seconda Guerra Mondiale. L'analisi di questi documenti permette di arricchire il quadro del rapporto che la Resistenza ebbe con le forze armate e l'idea del "nuovo" esercito dell'Italia democratica. Un'idea di riforma che, come la proposta britannica di concedere ai partigiani il riconoscimento internazionale di combattenti, non trovò mai applicazione.
Modern Italy
Italian anti-fascists started to emigrate from the moment that Mussolini seized power. These émig... more Italian anti-fascists started to emigrate from the moment that Mussolini seized power. These émigrés, or fuorusciti, tried to organise themselves to put an end to Mussolini’s regime, but found themselves confronting a number of unexpected difficulties in their host countries. Among them, Giustiza e Libertà (GL) was one of the most active organisations. One of the problems they had to face was the issue of how best to deal with their hosts without compromising their integrity as Italians, and as patriots. The case of Paolo Vittorelli (Raffaele Battino), who is the subject of this article, presents a clear case study of this issue and shows how close collaboration between Italian anti-fascists and western democracies (in this case, the United Kingdom) was hindered by ideological problems. The study of such episodes helps us to shed light not only on the mentality of the GL émigrés, but also on the way the Italian Resistance would later approach the issue of working together with the A...
By the end of 1945 circa 200 British liaison missions had been parachuted in Italy to help and co... more By the end of 1945 circa 200 British liaison missions had been parachuted in Italy to help and coordinate the Italian Resistance. These missions were largely sponsored by the Special Operations Executive (SOE) whom Churchill had given the task of "Setting Europe ablaze" back in 1940, on the wake of the Axis victories in Europe, as the United Kingdom found itself standing alone after the collapse of France. At first, British liaison missions in Italy relied on Italian personnel, drawn from the ranks of the Italian Servizio di Informazione Militare (SIM). After the winter of 1943-1944, however, pushed by the increasing competition of the American Office of Strategic Services (OSS) and
My presentation today will examine the often disregarded topic of the relation between Italian pa... more My presentation today will examine the often disregarded topic of the relation between Italian partisans and British forces during the Italian campaign of 1943-1945. I'll start by stating that this relationship had been often portrayed as conflictual. On the one hand, the Italians, who longed for the "Guerra grossa" a direct confrontation with the Germans. On the other, the British, who wanted partisan bands to be small and nimble, in order to strike at selected targets and quickly disappear. On this apparent conflict, much of the Historiography around this topic has been built. This disagreement, in fact, has been connected with explained by the hostility that the British supposedly had towards the Italian Resistance, as they saw it as a potentially dangerous force for political reasons. The Resistance, in fact, was supposedly seen by the British as too politicised in the left-wing direction and a possible transmissive belt for revolutionary unrest in post-war Italy. For this reason, British officers supposedly tried to rig the score against the Italian partisans, to keep the Resistance weak and disjoined, masking this political intent behind military considerations. Roberto Battaglia, for example, claimed how the British played favourite, giving arms and supplies only to right-wing or independent bands, trying to weaken the Communist's position. 1 Hence, the phrase "alleato nemico" referred to the British and, by extension, the idea of a "rivoluzione mancata" which enjoyed a great popularity both in academia and with the general public in the 1970s. However, such idea has been challenged during the years and largely disproved. Scholars such as Elena Aga Rossi and Massimo de Leonardis have pointed out how the British were ultimately more concerned with the contingent factors in Italy and how, indeed, it were the military necessities of the moment what actually dictated their actions to a great degree, rather than political considerations. However, despite these studies the idea of an "alleato nemico" still survives in modern day Historiography and in public memory. As
My presentation today will focus on the relationship between Italian partisans and British forces... more My presentation today will focus on the relationship between Italian partisans and British forces in Italy during the Second World War. In particular, rather than on the relation itself I will focus on how this relationship had been portrayed by Historiography and how it was passed down to the public memory in Italy. I shall start by saying that this relation has been often described as conflictual. The main issue of contrast between Italians and British was identified in the disagreement on how to conduct partisan warfare. On one hand, the Italians, who longed for the "guerra grossa" the "big war" a direct confrontation with the Germans made possible by the creation of a partisan army, able to free and administer parts of the Italian peninsula. On the other, the British, who had a distaste for the left-wing complexion of the Italian partisan movement and wanted it organised in small groups, able to strike at selected targets and quickly disperse and disappear. Around this conflict, much of the narrative of the Italo-British relation had been built. Especially early Italian Historiography affirmed the idea that the British did not like the Italian Resistance and tried to hinder and control it. Here we can see Roberto Battaglia in this quote, claiming that the British "preferred right-wing partisans and tried to make life harder for left-wing ones". 'Proofs' of British hostility were said to be the directives given to the partisans, especially the Alexander proclmation during the Winter of 1943, the British policy concerning airdropped supplies, where the British supposedly 'played favourite' between bands of different political colour, and the issue of politics inside the Resistance, especially connected with the unfortunate turn of events in Greece during 1944 which caused a Red Scare in the British administration and led to general mistrust towards Communist partisans. This interpretation, however, was largely disproved during the 80s and again in the last few years. I refer here to the works of Aga Rossi, De Leonardis and Piffer, who, thanks to the opening of the British archives to the general public in 1972 were able to produce more accurate studies that prove how there was almost no hostility towards Italian partisans amongst the British military personnel in Italy, neither aginst the organisation of large bands, nor concerning the political complexion of the movement. As
Conference Presentations by Nicola Cacciatore
Conference paper on the issue of populist language used by Italian anti-fascist exiles during the... more Conference paper on the issue of populist language used by Italian anti-fascist exiles during the 1920s and 1930s.
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Papers by Nicola Cacciatore
Conference Presentations by Nicola Cacciatore