History in Florence

Florence has a rich history--from the early history of the Etruscans and Romans to the modern history of Italy.  Wherever we ramble in Florence, we can find history.

The other day, we took a walk to our favorite park near our apartment.  During our walk , we noticed a monument that escaped our notice on previous visits.

The monument is a memorial to three Florentine partisans active during WWII.  Sadly, the three were captured and tortured to death.  The memorial plaque (with a rough translation) appears below.

On June 7, 1944 in the nearby house before the last battle of our liberation, Enrico Bocci, lawyer, Italo Piccagli, captain, and Luigi Morandi, student, armed only with constant faith were surprised by Nazi-fascists.  After resisting capture and despite suffering inhumane torture, their courage gave life to ideals of justice and freedom until the last--awarded the gold medal for military valor for civil peace among peoples.

One of the partisans, Luigi Morandi was a 24 year old student and former soldier in the Italian army.  In the house near the park, he operated a secret radio that transmitted intelligence to the Allies as their army moved northward toward Florence to liberate all of Italy.  The intelligence included information about German defensive positions in the nearby Apennine mountains, rail traffic and the movement of troops and supplies.  After operating for months, the radio transmissions were eventually detected, leading to the capture of Morandi and fellow partisans.  Although tortured for days, the captives apparently did not reveal anything.

For his actions, Luigi Morandi was awarded Italy's Gold Medal for Military Valor.  The citation roughly translated reads:

He devoted his daily and untiring activity to one of the most delicate sectors of clandestine life, transmitting important news to the allies by radio.  Though he was constantly hunted by the enemy who was trying, by all means, to seize the information about his military activity and to identify his source, he remained steadfast in his place of combat to fulfill the task he had among the most serious and toughest difficulties. Surprised by the SS Germans while transmitting secret messages, he managed with cool blood to destroy the ciphers and alert the receiving station.  He then fired at the enemies until after he had killed three and was repeatedly hit.  He was overwhelmed but saved the service which he himself had organized with his heroic sacrifice.
- Florence, June 7, 1944.

The memorial is located in the park directly across the street from the building where the partisans operated the clandestine radio.

Piazza Massimo D'Azeglio, 12

Luigi Morandi, and many other partisans, lived by the partisan motto soffrire, morire, ma non tradire (suffer, die, but do not betray).