{"id":6404,"date":"2014-12-05T18:27:14","date_gmt":"2014-12-05T17:27:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.archiviodellamemoriacivitellavaldichiana.it\/civitella-2\/"},"modified":"2015-04-14T14:51:14","modified_gmt":"2015-04-14T12:51:14","slug":"civitella","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.archiviodellamemoriacivitellavaldichiana.it\/en\/civitella\/","title":{"rendered":"Civitella"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/1″][vc_single_image image=”6536″ alignment=”center” border_color=”grey” img_link_target=”lightbox” img_size=”large”][vc_text_separator title=”The History” title_align=”separator_align_left” color=”grey”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

The events of\u00a029 June\u00a0’44 – Civitella<\/strong><\/p>\n

The breadth of the operation and the number of units involved in the events of Civitella does not allow to establish exactly the time, but all the surviving witnesses agree in identifying the arrival of the German soldiers at around 5.30 am, when the families were preparing to go to Mass on the day of St. Peter and Paul. Among the aims of the operation there was certainly also the intent to slow the advancing of the Allied army, while the Germans were building in the Apennines the Gothic Line in defense of northernItaly.<\/span><\/p>\n

The first to be killed were the inhabitants of the hamlets around Civitella. The houses of Palazzina, Querciola, Maest\u00e0 Tonda were raided by the German soldiers and in each place were killed the men, women and children who had remained at home. The German soldiers entered Civitella from Porta Senese, walking the streets of the village and pushing towards the church those who were captured along their way. The German soldiers then arrived at the old age home and killed eight guests who were inside.<\/span><\/p>\n

In front of the church, where the inhabitants had gathered, they found the door locked. The parish priest, Don Alcide Lazzeri, probably realizing what was happening, had blessed the people and closed them inside the building. The soldiers threw a hand grenade to open the door and dragged out the people who were locked up hoping to save themselves. It seems then that don Alcide had shouted: “I’m responsible for what happened, kill me.” The attempt was futile. The men were taken to the church in groups of five, and killed. The same Don Lazzeri died in the slaughter. After the executions, the German soldiers continued to kill the remaining inhabitants into their homes. Finally, they set fire to the houses of Civitella, killing even those who had tried to escape by hiding in cellars or attics. Only a few men managed to escape the massacre.<\/span><\/p>\n

The background<\/strong><\/p>\n

On the evening of June 18th, 1944, Sunday, nine German soldiers, perhaps paratroopers of “Hermann G\u00f6ring” division, approached a farmhouse at the Madonna, near Civitella. After having dinner, they headed for the recreational club of the village and sat at a table, with their weapons on the ground. A group of partisans, learning that some German soldiers had entered the village, decided to disarm them. At about 9.00 pm, they entered the club. Here the versions diverge: some say that the partisans immediately opened fire, others instead favour an intimation of surrender, whereupon the Germans would react. In any case, there was a firefight and three Germans fell to the ground. One of them, unharmed, was able to escape. In the recreational club the confusion was at its highest, the civilians were fleeing from everywhere and someone had also been wounded. Two German soldiers were dead and one woundedAt about 11.00 pm, a German soldier arrived to the farmhouse of the Madonna. He was carrying on his shoulders a comrade, the soldier wounded at the recreational club, who was washed and treated until his companions took him away on a truck. In the village, meanwhile, when the day broke, the population fled in terror fearing a retaliation. Meanwhile, the archpriest Don Alcide Lazzeri, learned of the incident and decided to wash the two dead Germans and organize their funeral with the few women he managed to find.<\/p>\n

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But the Germans still didn\u2019t react. On June 20th<\/sup>, a German officer arrived, perhaps a doctor, to examine the two bodies that were still lying in the club. With the aid of an interpreter, he listened to Don Lazzeri, who recalled the stages of the attack and said that the civilians weren\u2019t guilty of what had happened. The officer accepted, as a sign of good will, that the two soldiers would be buried in the local cemetery, and so happened, with the participation of a picket of German soldiers. But still the intentions of the soldiers were not clear, and the villagers were afraid to return. After a series of investigations, the Germans went away. Indeed, some said to the inhabitants of Civitella to be calm, because there would be no reprisals. But instead, on the morning of June 29th, 1944, when for the feast of St. Peter and Paul many people had returned home, units of paratroopers of the armored division “Hermann G\u00f6ring”, flanked by other soldiers, some of them Italians, surrounded the village at dawn. All men were captured in their homes and taken to the town square, among them don Lazzeri, who offered his life in exchange for that of the civilians. He wasn\u2019t listened to: he was killed with a gunshot to the head as all the other 149 victims, including two priests. Then, the bodies were thrown into the houses of the village to which the Germans set fire.<\/span><\/p>\n

The breadth of the operation and the number of units involved in the events of Civitella does not allow to establish exactly the time, but all the surviving witnesses agree in identifying the arrival of the German soldiers at around 5.30 am, when the families were preparing to go to Mass on the day of St. Peter and Paul. Among the aims of the operation there was certainly also the intent to slow the advancing of the Allied army, while the Germans were building in the Apennines the Gothic Line in defense of northern Italy.
\nThe first to be killed were the inhabitants of the hamlets around Civitella. The houses of Palazzina, Querciola, Maest\u00e0 Tonda were raided by the German soldiers and in each place were killed the men, women and children who had remained at home. The German soldiers entered Civitella from Porta Senese, walking the streets of the village and pushing towards the church those who were captured along their way. The German soldiers then arrived at the old age home and killed eight guests who were inside.
\nIn front of the church, where the inhabitants had gathered, they found the door locked. The parish priest, Don Alcide Lazzeri, probably realizing what was happening, had blessed the people and closed them inside the building. The soldiers threw a hand grenade to open the door and dragged out the people who were locked up hoping to save themselves. It seems then that don Alcide had shouted: “I’m responsible for what happened, kill me.” The attempt was futile. The men were taken to the church in groups of five, and killed. The same Don Lazzeri died in the slaughter. After the executions, the German soldiers continued to kill the remaining inhabitants into their homes. Finally, they set fire to the houses of Civitella, killing even those who had tried to escape by hiding in cellars or attics. Only a few men managed to escape the massacre.<\/p>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/1″][vc_text_separator title=”The Victims” title_align=”separator_align_left” color=”grey”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/3″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Don Alcide Lazzeri, 57\u00a0years old
\nAgrippi Giorgio, 60\u00a0years old
\nBacconi Angelo, 45\u00a0years old
\nBalucani Italo, 52\u00a0years old
\nBartolucci Armando, 58\u00a0years old
\nBernardoni Zelindo, 61\u00a0years old
\nBernini Basilio, ?\u00a0years old
\nBonichi Azelio 36\u00a0years old
\nBonichi Eliseo, 52\u00a0years old
\nBozzi Conforto, 48\u00a0years old
\nBozzi Pietro, 18\u00a0years old
\nBozzi Fernando, 21\u00a0years old
\nBozzi Bernardo, 28\u00a0years old
\nCaccialupi Federigo, 80\u00a0years old
\n<\/span>Caccialupi Giuseppe, 34\u00a0years old
\n<\/span>Caldelli Adolfo, 44\u00a0years old
\nCaldelli Virgilio, 53\u00a0years old
\nCaldelli Ibo, 39\u00a0years old
\n<\/span>Cardini Antonio, 75\u00a0years old
\n<\/span>Cetoloni Egidio, 39\u00a0years old
\n<\/span>Cetoloni G. Battista, 63\u00a0years old
\n<\/span>Coradeschi Rosa, 61\u00a0years old
\n<\/span>Crespignani Crespino, 80\u00a0years old
\n<\/span>Falsetti Francesco, 77\u00a0years old
\nFalsetti Giovanni, 46\u00a0years old
\nFalsetti Luigi, 70\u00a0years old
\nFalsetti Settimio, 49\u00a0years old
\nFabianelli Carlo Ottavio, 68\u00a0years old<\/span><\/p>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/3″][vc_column_text]Fracassi don Sebastiano, 74\u00a0years old
\nForni Fedele, 63\u00a0years old
\nFranci Caterina, 8\u00a0years old
\nFranci Giuseppe, 47\u00a0years old
\nGiovanetti Egisto, 68\u00a0years old
\nGiuliani Lorenzo, 62\u00a0years old
\nGualdani Cesare, 42\u00a0years old
\nGualdani Luigi, 75\u00a0years old
\nGuerrini Luigi, 70\u00a0years old
\nIacomoni, 63\u00a0years old
\nLammioni Maria, 2\u00a0years old
\nLammioni Giuliana, 5\u00a0years old
\nLammioni Alessandro, 57\u00a0years old
\nLammioni Dante, 50\u00a0years old
\nLammioni G. Battista, 48\u00a0years old
\nLisi Gregorio, 68\u00a0years old
\nMagini Rinaldo, 53\u00a0years old
\nMarchetti Gino, 36\u00a0years old
\nMarsili Azelio, 40\u00a0years old
\nMarsili Giustino, 48\u00a0years old
\nMenchetti Torquato, 27\u00a0years old
\nMilani Francesco, 67\u00a0years old
\nMorfini Carlo, 79\u00a0years old
\nMucciarini Alfredo, 67\u00a0years old
\nNardi Elena, 70 years old
\nNocentini Arturo, 30\u00a0years old
\nPaggi Gastone, 37\u00a0years old
\nPasqui Alfredo, 49\u00a0years old[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/3″][vc_column_text]Pasqui Giuseppe, 18\u00a0years old
\nPasqui Settimio, 57\u00a0years old
\nPoltri Angiola, 82\u00a0years old
\nPoltri Luigi, 76\u00a0years old
\nPolvani Giuseppe, 74\u00a0years old
\nRossi Andrea, 72\u00a0years old
\nSabatini Paolo, 54\u00a0years old
\nSandrelli Maria, 34\u00a0years old
\nMandrini Penelope, 77\u00a0years old
\nSalvatori Assunta, 43\u00a0years old
\nScaletti Dario, 77\u00a0years old
\nSensini Francesco, 80\u00a0years old
\nTavarnesi Agostino, 66\u00a0years old
\nTiezzi Angiolo, 67\u00a0years old
\nTiezzi Bruno, 21\u00a0years old
\nTiezzi Leonello, 58\u00a0years old
\nTiezzi Pilade, 54\u00a0years old
\nTozzi Silvio, 39\u00a0years old
\nTrippi Quinto, 30\u00a0years old
\nVannucchi Silvio, 54\u00a0years old
\nVenturini Alfredo, 52\u00a0years old
\nVerdelli Emilio, 62\u00a0years old
\nZelli Antonio, 20\u00a0years old
\nZelli Nello, 16\u00a0years old[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/1″][vc_text_separator title=”Media Gallery” title_align=”separator_align_left” color=”grey”][vc_video link=”https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ErbU0kuZxYI”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/1″][vc_text_separator title=”Monuments and memorial stones” title_align=”separator_align_left” color=”grey”][vc_gallery type=”image_grid” interval=”3″ images=”6370,6371″ onclick=”link_image” custom_links_target=”_self” img_size=”thumbnail”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/1″][vc_text_separator title=”The scene of the massacre” title_align=”separator_align_left” color=”grey”][vc_column_text]