Rome: City in Terror

[Auld-Yin]

A very detailed look at the goings on in the City of Rome from just before the Italians changed sides and the Germans occupied the majority of Italy. The Germans were not best pleased about the Italians ‘treachery’ as they saw it so life was not easy for Italians, both military and civilian.

While the book concentrates on Rome, the author does go off on some tangents which affected life in Rome itself. For instance, the rescue by Skorzeny of Mussolini, although Skorzeny did not lead the...

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[Effendi]

Looks to be a fascinating read, thank you.

Can I just comment: Father Hugh O'Flaherty, of the Vatican, was responsible for saving the lives of many Allied troops by channeling them through the Vatican. His exploits should probably put him in the Ally thread.

A dramatisation of his activities was made into a movie and the part of the good father is played by Gregory Peck.

Hugh O'Flaherty - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

The Scarlet and the Black (TV Movie 1983) - IMDb

Directed by Jerry London. With Gregory Peck, Christopher Plummer, John Gielgud, Raf Vallone. Vatican efforts, lead by Monsignor Hugh O'Flaherty, to save Allied P.O.W.s and downed Allied airmen as the Nazis invade Rome.

www.imdb.com

 

[Auld-Yin]

Looks to be a fascinating read, thank you.

Can I just comment: Father Hugh O'Flaherty, of the Vatican, was responsible for saving the lives of many Allied troops by channeling them through the Vatican. His exploits should probably put him in the Ally thread.

A dramatisation of his activities was made into a movie and the part of the good father is played by Gregory Peck.

Hugh O'Flaherty - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

The Scarlet and the Black (TV Movie 1983) - IMDb

Directed by Jerry London. With Gregory Peck, Christopher Plummer, John Gielgud, Raf Vallone. Vatican efforts, lead by Monsignor Hugh O'Flaherty, to save Allied P.O.W.s and downed Allied airmen as the Nazis invade Rome.

www.imdb.com

I tried to stay away from names, as there are so many in the book, but Father Hugh's efforts are well noted. He seemed quite a character.

 

[par avion]

Apparently a lot of allied POW's were told by their senior officers to stay put in their camps when the Italians surrended and were threatened with disciplinary action if they disobeyed. Many ignored this order and made their way south. The ones who obeyed the order expecting to be released were sadly disappointed when the Germans got there first.

I suppose the Vatican escape network came in handy after the war in getting all those top wanted Nazis to South America like Dr Mengele.

Ardeatine massacre

Richard Burton played the part of the SS Colonel who ordered the massacre in the 1973 film 'Massacre in Rome'.