European Resistance Archive/European Resistance Archive (ERA)

Lidia Valeriani, Montecavolo di Quattro Castella 23.01.1923 - Reggio Emilia 17.12.2014. Starting from 1939 she became active in »Soccorso Rosso«. After Mussolini’s fall, on 8 September 1943, she took part in demonstrations and assisted disbanded soldiers. Lidia Valeriani organized the strike in Montecavolo and consequently became a victim of persecution by the fascists. She then fled in the province of Modena, working with the »women support groups«. From March 1944 she joined the »2nd Division Modena lowlands« of the 35th Garibaldi Brigade »Walter Tabacchi« working as a secretary of the headquarters. She took care of both dispatch rider and military tasks until the Liberation. She was awarded a Silver Medal for Military Valour.

He was born on November 16th, 1924 in Warsaw. He joined the scouts from in the mid-thirties. During the siege of Warsaw in October 1939 He helped the troops to move around the city. During the first years of occupation he engaged as a member of the Main Tutelary Council (RGO) and helped the poor and the war prisoners. He often illegally provided food and organized the evasions of Polish officers from German prisons. At the same time he took part in life-saving actions in the ghetto, leading Jews to the Arian side. He was a member of the Armia Krajowa (the Home Army), was arrested in 1942 and put in Pawiak prison. Later he was moved to Majdanek, Buchenwald and Schonebeck concentration camps. He is living in Warsaw today.

She was born on October 12th, 1916 in St. Petersburg. Before World War II her family bought the estate in Orwidów Dolny in the Vilnius county, today Lithuania. On Sept 17th 1939 the Soviet Army invaded the territory, the Vilnius county became a part of Lithuania, and after that of the Soviet Union. In the spring of 1941, her mother was deported to the Soviet Union inland during the surge of repression on Polish people. After the German invasion in the summer of 1941, Stefania started to hide people oppressed by the occupant in the estate where she lived alone. Several refugees from Warsaw, Jews, members of the leftist resistance movement were hiding there. Most of them survived the war. Stefania Dąmbrowska engaged in the works of the Polish Committee of National Liberation (PKWN) in Lublin as well as the committee documenting the Nazi genocide in the Majdanek concentration camp. She was awarder the medal of the Just Among the World’s Nations. She lives in Warsaw.

He was born on February 4th, 1929 in Warsaw. At the beginning of the war he engaged in the scouts’ activities, took part in reconnaissance actions and acts of sabotage. During the Warsaw Uprising he took part as a member of the AK (Home Army) in the unsuccessful attack on the Okęcie airport. Later on he reached the forests near Warsaw and subsequently served in three partisan squads. After the war, for a few years he was imprisoned in communist prison for subversive activity. He lives in Józefów near Warsaw.

Ana Zablatnik was born in 1923 in the village Ludmannsdorf/Bilčovs in the southern part of Carinthia. She belongs to the Slovenian speaking minority. Early, she and her family were confronted with humiliations. The threat of being deported by the Nazis in 1942, from which she and her family luckily stayed unharmed, led to the decision to contact the partisans of the „Osvobodilna fronta“, the Slovenian liberation front. They were active in 1943 near her home village. On May 6th 1944 she was arrested and brought to a Gestapo-prison in Klagenfurt. From the beginning of 1945, she awaited her trial in the notorious court of justice, but it was not realized anymore. She was released in the last days of war (4.-6. May 1945). She kept her resistant attitude against any form of discrimination up to today.

Lucien Ducastel was born on August 28th,1920 in Darnetal. Soon he joins the Communist Youth Movement. As a member of the Communist Party (which was banned along with other Youth organisations and Workers) his activities consist of raising awareness of the French population regarding the occupation by distributing leaflets, especially at the factory gates, and hanging up posters protesting against the occupation and the Vichy government. He is arrested at his parents home in Petit-Quevilly by the French police on October 21st,1941 and taken to the prison in Rouen, from where he is transported to the Camp of Compiègne, a hostages camp, along with a hundred comrades. After eight months of imprisonment in the camp of Compiègne he is deported to Auschwitz on July 6th,1942. This transport will later on be called the convoi of the 45000s, as the deportees of this convoy, essentially political opponents, will be registered in Auschwitz with the numbers 45157-46326. Lucien gets the number 45491. He is one of the few that will ever return to France. Upon his arrival, Lucien Ducastel is transferred to Auschwitz-Birkenau, where he will stay for 8 months before returning to the Stammlager Auschwitz I. From there he will be transferred to Gross-Rosen in August 1944 and afterwards to Dora-Mittelbau, where he will finally be liberated. After a long recovery he returns to his work on construction sites and takes up his political activities in the French Communist Party and the Workers Union as well. He starts a family and moves to Nanterre in the 50s, where he still lives today. He is an active member of a association called « Mémoire vive » (alive memory) and visits school classes to talk about his experience during the war. This activity is extremely important to him.

Fernando Cavazzini was born in Reggio Emilia on 23 September 1923. On 25 July 1943 he took part in public demonstrations in Reggio Emilia, demanding peace and celebrating the fall of the fascist regime. From then on he was involved in the antifascist struggle. After the 8th of September 1943 he assisted soldiers by providing them with plain clothes and helping them to flee. He later became a partisan and left for the mountains, joining the 26th Garibaldi Brigade »Enzo Bagnoli«. His battle name was »Tony«. He took part in the battle of Cerrè Sologno, in the Appennini mountains near Reggio, one of the most significant battles between the partisans of the mountains and fascists and Germans. He later became the head of a sapper unit called »Demonio«, that had to mine and blow up all the bridges in the Province of Reggio. After the war, he was awarded a Bronze Medal for Military Valour.

Giacomina Castagnetti was born in Roncolo di Quattro Castella (RE) on 11 November 1925. She now lives in Castelnovo né Monti (RE). From 1940 she collected contributions in the area of Quattro Castella for »Soccorso Rosso«, an underground Communist network that assisted antifascists who were victims of political persecution during the fascist regime. She joined the Resistance movement after the 8th of September 1943, in the »women support groups«, women organizations set up by the CLN in order to assist the partisans. She operated in the area of San Martino in Rio (RE) until the Liberation, on 24th April 1945.

Anita Malavasi, Quattro Castella 21 May 1921 - Reggio Emilia 27 November 2011. She began supporting the partisan struggle after the 8th of September 1943. From the spring of 1944 she operated as a dispatch rider, transporting weapons from the city to the mountains. Her battle name was »Laila«. She then joined the 144th Garibaldi Brigade »Antonio Gramsci«, taking part in the armed struggle in the Reggio area of the Appennini mountains from 2 January 1945 until the Liberation. In that period she was also one of the few women appointed Detachment Commanding Officer, while at the end of the war she was finally appointed Sergeant-Major.

Pierino Beggi was born on 3 March 1920 and died in Reggio Emilia on 9 January 2015. He was in the military when the fascist regime fell. When the armistice was signed he was in Piemonte, near the French border, and managed to avoid being captured by the Germans. When he returned in Reggio Emilia, in 1943 he enrolled in the GAPs (Patriotic Action Groups). His battle name was »Gigi«. Beggi carried out attacks and sabotages and also took part in the action that lead to the rescue of the valuable curtain of Reggio Emilia’s »Valli« theatre. He contributed to the Liberation of Reggio Emilia on 24 April 1945 and witnessed the arrival of the Allies.

Giovanna Quadreri was born in Carpineti (RE) on 14 July 1928. She now lives in Reggio Emilia. She was involved in the partisan struggle from September 1944 until the Liberation, operating between Reggio Emilia and the mountains near the city. Giovanna Quadreri, whose battle names were »Giorgio« and »Libertà«, acted as a dispatch rider in this area, taking care of communications between the Resistance movement city headquarters, the 284thFiamme Verdi Brigade »Italo« – a catholic unit operating in the area of Toano (RE) – and the central headquarters in the Appennini near Reggio. From the beginning of 1945 she joined a special unit called »Gufo Nero« (Black Owl), which received orders directly from the central headquarters of the mountains and took care of communications with the Allied battalion led by Major Lees, a British officer.

Alenka Gerlovič se je rodila 1919 v Ljubljani.Tu tudi živi že celo povojno obdobje. Pred 2.svetovno vojno je študirala v Zagrebu na Akademiji za likovno umetnost.Leta 1941 je diplomirala in postala slikarka. V času nemškega napada na Kraljevino Jugoslavijo, 6.aprila 1941, je bila v Ljubljani na počitnicah. Za Alenko je bila kapitulacija Kraljevine Jugoslavije po sedemnajstih dneh ogromno razočaranje. Ljubljana, ki jo je okupiral italijanski okupator, je bila središče odporniškega gibanja in sedež osrednjega vodstva Osvobodilne fronte in partizanskih enot. Po aretaciji očeta v začetku leta 1944, je morala preiti v strogo ilegalo. Po štirih mesecih skrivanja je s ponarejenimi dokumenti zapustila Ljubljano in se poleti 1944 pridružila partizanom. Delala je pri partizanskem tisku in grafiki.Tu je oblikovala letake, posterje in skrbela za propagando. Kot kulturna delavka je tudi ustvarjala scenografije za različne dramske uprizoritve. V partizanih se je poročila s partizanom Vitom Globočnikom, ki pa je kmalu po vojni zaradi bolezni umrl.Vrnitev v osvobojeno Ljubljano, 9.maja 1945, ji predstavlja najlepši dan v njenem življenju.Do upokojitve je poučevala likovno vzgojo. Od takrat pa se posveča svojemu osnovnemu poklicu-slikanju krajin.

rojen 4. julija 1925, Ponikve na Krasu, Slovenija. Že kot otrok je zato, ker je bil pripadnik slovenske manjšine v Italiji, doživljal fašistično raznarodovanje, saj je moral obiskovati italijansko šolo in v javnosti ni smel govoriti slovensko. Ko je bil star trinajst let, je napisal prvo pesem, ki jo je občutil tudi kot demonstracijo svoje pripadnosti slovenstvu. Leta 1941 je bil izključen iz gimnazije v malem semenišču v Kopru, ker so odkrili, da piše pesmi v slovenščini. Leta 1942 je postal aktivist Osvobodilne fronte slovenskega naroda, v začetku naslednjega leta je bil mobiliziran v posebne bataljone (politična konfinacija za mladoletne primorske Slovence), ob razpadu Italije septembra 1943 se je vrnil domov in se pridružil partizanom. Bil je borec, politični delegat, minerec, kurir, obveščevalec, ustanavljal je slovenske šole po Krasu, poučeval, predaval na partizanski ljudski univerzi. Po vojni je nadaljeval študij v Ljubljani, diplomiral na slavistiki, se zaposlil kot novinar in urednik. Je pesnik, pisatelj in prevajalec. En mandat je bil predsednik zveze pisateljev Jugoslavije. Na prvih večstrankarskih volitvah l. 1990 je bil izvoljen v predsedstvo prve samostojne slovenske države. Je redni član Slovenske akademije znanosti in umetnosti. Objavil je več pesniških zbirk, dva romana in pet knjig esejev in publicistike. Osemnajst njegovih knjig je prevedenih v tuje jezike. Prejel je več domačih in tujih literarnih nagrad.

Moški, rojen 19. april 1924 v Šentjanžu (Rečica ob Savinji), Slovenija, katolik. Pred 2. svetovno vojno je bil član Skoja, organizacije mladih jugoslovanskih komunistov. Po nemški okupaciji Spodnje Štajerske je bil leta 1942 prisilno mobiliziran v nemško vojsko in poslan na rusko fronto. V kraju Bakaleja so ga ujeli pripadniki Rdeče armade. Decembra 1943 je bil kot Slovenec izpuščen iz taborišča za vojne ujetnike v Kolomini in se je priključil Jugoslovanskemu bataljonu, ki je takrat odšel v Jugoslavijo. Kot partizan se je nato vse do osvoboditve maja 1945 boril na raznih bojiščih v Jugoslaviji.

Lipej Kolenik was born on the 22.9.1925 in Margarethen near Bleiburg/Šmarjeta pri Pliberku. He had his first contact with partisans in spring 1943. He did courier jobs. In August 1943, he had to go to the Wehrmacht; firstly, to be trained, but soon he was transtered to Slovenia and in the end of 1943 to the Italian front. Here he got heavy frostbites on his feet and was moved to several military hospitals, in the end to Klagenfurt. On the occasion of a visit on the farm of his parents, he deserted to the partisans. He was active in various units. In March, he was severely wounded and witnessed the liberation hidden in a bunker, with hardly any medical support. After war he was unemployed and stayed politically active. He was repeatedly arrested and imprisoned. He is chairman of the Carinthian partisan association.

Vincent grows up in the Communist working class, his father soon takes him along to different demonstrations. As soon as he can, he joins the Communist Youth Movement. After the defeat (la débâcle) in June 1940 he returns to Nanterre. Upon his return to Nanterre he participates in political actions, as the reproduction and distribution of leaflets and posters. He is part of the « Forces unies de la jeunesse patriotique (FUJP) », the United Forces of the Patriotic Youth, a youth movement of political and religious orientation. In 1942 he goes underground, as he refuses to leave for forced labour in Germany. The character of his activities change, he becomes part of the Francs-Tireurs et Particants (FTP) (snipers and participants) and is responsible for the safety of the comrades that have public appearances. As an FTP-FFI he is responsible for the safety of the Communist mayor, Raymond Barbet, during the liberation of Nanterre on August 21st, 1944 and then assists during the fall of the fortress Mont Valérien. Vincent is demobilised in June 1945. After the war he returns to Nanterre and takes up his former profession as a mechanic in the Simca factory. But he is fired in 1947. From 1954 to 1966 he is head of the department childhood and physical education. In 1966 he begins to work in the office of the Sports and Gymnastics Labor Federation (FSGT) until his retirement in 1980. Throughout this time he keeps up his activities as a local representative in the municipality.Today he is the president of the ANACR section in the Hauts-Seine department. He visits schools together with former deportees to relate his experience as a former resistance fighter.

Carlo Porta was born in Gavasseto di Reggio Emilia on May 18, 1919, into a large family of farm workers who followed the socialist ideas of Camillo Prampolini. At the age of sixteen he was already an active member of the Socialist Party, taking part in the International Red Relief by collecting small amounts of money or goods for the Republican fighters in Spain. After being employed as a factory worker at Officine Meccaniche Reggiane, an engineering plant that manufactured armaments during Mussolini’s regime, in 1938 he is called up for military service. While in the Army, authorities find out about his antifascist militancy: he is arrested and imprisoned in Civitavecchia, Regina Coeli (Rome), Reggio Emilia and Castelfranco Emilia. Perfunctorily judged by the Special Tribunal for National Security, he is sentenced to three years’ confinement in the farming penal colony of Pisticci (Matera), in the region of Basilicata. While in confinement, he meets chief figures of the Italian Communist Party, whose teachings would contribute to mould his political beliefs. At the end of the three years of confinement he returns to Reggio Emilia, but a few months later he is called to the Army again and sent to Albania with the Italian occupation forces. He is in Albania on the 8th of September of 1943, the day of the Armistice: captured by the Germans, he is sent to internment camps in Germany in stock wagons. He reaches his first destination after sixteen days and is interned as a IMI (Italian Interned Soldier) in the marshalling camp of Neubrandenburg. His identification number was 108 481. He is freed only two years later, while in the Wickede camp, near Dortmund.