A visit to Barga in May of last year (article here) by the Pratt family from the States. James Pratt an economist from the Cornell University accompanied by his wife Mildred (she too a professor at the Cornell University but this time at Rome) brought unexpected results as on their return to the Cornell University they contacted Dottoressa Anne L. Saunders who is a Research Associate for the Department of Classics, College of Charleston who was in the process of publishing a travel guide to World War II memorial sites in central and northern Italy – The Travel Guide to World War II Sites in Italy, a guide book which provides tours of museums, monuments, battlegrounds, and cemeteries that commemorate the Italian campaign – site here
Thanks to the work of Dottoressa Saunders, the book “La Battaglia di Sommocolonia” co written by Lt. Col.Vittorio Lino Biondi from Sommocolonia and telling the story of what happened in the village on the 26th December 1944 will now to be translated into English.
This week Dottoressa Saunders was here in Barga for a more detailed research “on site” along with Lt. Col. Biondi, who expressed his pleasure at the news this morning that the book will now be able to reach a far wider audience.
That wider audience can also probably be reached by the chance meeting the pair had in the office of giornale di barganews with Andrea Giannasi, direttore of Garfagnana Editrice – the new publishing company just about to be launched nationally at the Salone Internazionale del Libro di Torino. He too expressed great interest in the book and the possibility of it being printed and published by his new company.
Anne Saunders has a BA from Wellesley College, MA from Columbia University, USA and PhD from the University of South Carolina, USA She taught for over twenty years at the College of Charleston, where she is now a research associate. A lifelong fan of Italy, she spent four summers here doing research for the guidebook.
(Frank Viviano’s article about this battle can be read here)
It’s not often that one can trace the footsteps of an ordinary man doing an extraordinary deed, but Soldiers and Airmen from Camp Darby, Italy, got a chance to do that during a visit to the site of Lt. John Fox’s last stand in Sommocolonia.
Lieutenant Fox, a Buffalo Soldier with the 598th Field Artillery Battalion, was a forward observer in the Rocca tower and played a key role in the War World II Battle of Sommocolonia, according to Italian Lt. Col.Vittorio Lino Biondi, historian and co-author of La Battaglia di Sommocolonia.
Traversing the steep stone path to the Memorial site honoring Fox, his fellow Buffalo Soldiers and the Italian partisans of the region, Biondi shared his years of research and passion for military history with the Camp Darby troops.
“The battle, called winter tempest, began Dec. 26, 1944, at 4 a.m. when the German troops decided to breach the American line,” said Biondi. “The 92nd Infantry Division Buffalo Soldiers were defending Barga and Sommocolonia in the Serchio valley. The German 148th Division and the Italian 51st Corpo di Armata Alpinos, were very well trained, but the Americans fought with their heart and conviction.”
Biondi explained that with the rain pouring sideways and nail biting wind blowing away umbrellas, Camp Darby troops followed Biondi up to the last remnants of the tower. It was a hard and bloody battle – the largest in this area. Lieutenant Fox served in the high tower and was directing artillery against the advancing Germans.
“Once the Germans penetrated defensive perimeter of the town, much of the fighting has hand-to-hand combat from house to house. At approximately eleven that morning, Fox sent his last set of coordinates. He gave his own position in order to destroy the main body of advancing Germans,” said Biondi.
Fox’s sacrifice allowed the Americans to regroup in the valley below and fight again.
“Fox was a strong leader who understood he needed to do something that he might not live through. One doesn’t often hear about this part of African-American history,” said Chief Warrant Officer Robert Carter, 3rd Battalion, 405th Army Field Support Brigade.
According to the Mayor of Barga, Marco Bonini Dec. 26, 1944, is remembered as “the day of great fear.”
“For us citizens of Barga, Lieutenant Fox is a symbol of resistance the townspeople did against the Germans,” said Mayor Bonini. “Each year, Sommocolonia remembers the fallen and lets the younger generations know what happened and what our history is.”
Biondi added that the Buffalo Soldiers did more than help liberate the town.
“Many of these Soldiers came from farms back in America and with many of the Italian men folk gone, the Soldiers helped the local people work the land and farms along with sharing their food,” said Biondi.
U.S. Army Garrison Livorno Command Sgt. Maj. Felix Rodriguez added, “The trip to Sommocolonia was important in remembering our brother and sisters in arms sacrifices and contributions and learning more about U.S. military history surrounding Camp Darby.”
“I didn’t even know about the 92nd until a few weeks ago when it was mentioned at the African-American Heritage month council,” said Airman 1st Class Takneshia Norris, 731st Munitions Squadron.
Air Force Staff Sgt. Jermaine McCrea, 731st Munitions Squadron, said “It gives me a lot of pride to learn something new about the African-American culture. To see the monument and battle site and visit the private collection museum about the Buffalo Soldiers, to know we’ve done so much – it makes me want to read and learn more.” – source – Joyce Costello
A Travel Guide to World War II Sites in Italy, by author Anne Saunders, outlines tours of over one hundred WWII memorial sites in or near famous Italian cities, including Rome, Florence, Bologna, Ortona, Rimini, and Trieste. This handy book also provides concise historical information, maps, transportation tips, and a list of convenient hotels.
The guide’s first chapter summarizes the events leading up to the Italian campaign and its early months, when the Allies battled German armies in Sicily and southern Italy.
The second chapter focuses on memorial sites in and around the city of Cassino, where German forces blocked the Allies from advancing for five months in early 1944. Visitors may tour the splendid Abbey of Montecassino, which was bombed to rubble in 1944 and has been totally rebuilt. They also can visit Cassino’s war cemeteries and two multimedia museums dedicated to the thousands who died in this area’s intense battles.
The next chapter describes Anzio and Nettuno, charming seaside towns thirty minutes south of Rome by train. Each has a museum devoted to the landings of Allied forces there in January 1944. Anzio also has two British Commonwealth WWII cemeteries, while Nettuno hosts the Sicily-Rome American Cemetery and Memorial, which contains almost eight thousand graves
The largest WWII museum in Italy stands only thirty minutes east of Anzio by car. It displays military vehicles outside and also within some of its ten large buildings. In four buildings, life-size figures and vintage tanks, jeeps, and trucks depict major battles in the Italian campaign.
Two chapters in the guidebook are devoted to memorial sites in Rome. These include the ancient Basilica of San Lorenzo, which was damaged by bombs in 1943 but restored soon after the war. Other locations include an apartment building (now museum) that the Germans used as a prison when they occupied Rome, and the city’s Jewish Museum, which has exhibits about the deportation of Roman Jews to concentration camps in 1943.
The second half of the guidebook describes sites in and around Florence, Lucca, Bologna, and selected cities on the Adriatic. Among the many memorable places is Battle Mountain, where Allied and German troops clashed for over a week in the fall of 1944. Today the top of the mountain contains numerous commemorative plaques and statues.
