The interviewee is Paola Rinaldi, born in Pistoia on 2 June 1937, social worker. The interview was conducted by Claudio Rosati 04 August 1983, in his house in Pistoia. Paola Rinaldi was evacuated multiple times, along with her brother and mother. Her father was a non-commissioned officer: after the armistice he was arrested and taken to Campo di Marte.
While evacuated at Ponte alle Tavole, Paola saw aggressive German soldier (identified as SS) who broke their horses’ knees to avoid them being sent to the frontline. Then she moved to Piteccio, as her mother considered it to be a secure location. Following its bombing, they moved to Florence where her uncles lived; she remembers scant food and poor sanitation. One of the uncles worked as doorman at the Railwaymen’s Recreation Club where 200 evacuees were temporarily housed. In the post-war period, the main issues were lack of money and food. Paola’s mother took in a US soldier as lodger and sent the children begging for food from American and British troops. When they returned to Piteccio her father, initially, struggled to find work.
The interviewee is Raffaella Sorsini, born at Vicchio (Florence province) on 25 May 1919, retired clerical worker. Present Marianna Galardini, born on 18 May 1897. The interviewer is Claudio Rosati, the interview took place in Pistoia on 12 July 1983, in his house.
During the first bombing of Pistoia, Raffaella Sorsini went with her mother to the Piazza della Resistenza [Piazza d’Armi] shelter. Marianna Galardini claims that the death toll of the first bombing was 120 people and that many detached homes in Via Pratese were destroyed. Following the move of her office to Villa Giacomelli, Raffaella Sorsini was evacuated to the countryside at Case Nuove, near San Rocco. Many times she fled to the Sant’Agostino area, at the time still rural. She says that she never feared being sexually harassed by Germans, but conversely, she was scared by US Marines at Villa di Celle: while she had to walk past, she was accompanied by her fiancée.
The interviewee is Gerardo Bianchi, born in Pistoia the 14 December 1905, Professor of economics and Member of Parliament (lower house) with the ‘Democrazia Cristiana’ party. The interview was conducted by Claudio Rosati in his house in Pistoia, on 19 August 1983.
When Pistoia was bombed for the first time, Gerardo Bianchi was evacuated to Campiglio di Tizzana and remembers the many aircraft flying over the place. The following morning, he went back to Pistoia to get a sense of damage: Via dei Gelli was severely hit, among the ten children of the Zanzotto family, five died; people were killed in the San Vitale area, including Professor Giuseppe Camposampiero.
Until early 1944, the air-raid siren spurred people to run into the countryside at Sant’Agostino, near the cemetery, huddling in ditches. Gerardo mentions seeing Commander Albert Kesselring at Villa agli Imbarcati and at Grotta Giusti; he tells how some offices of the Officine San Giorgio (his employer) were relocated to Viale Pacinotti.
]]>The interviewee is Giancarlo Savino, born in Trieste 2 June 1933, university lecturer. The interview is conducted by Claudio Rosati in his house in Pistoia on 25 August 1983.
Giancarlo Savino tells how the 24 October 1943 bombing didn’t initially cause any alarm when the sirens on the Duomo bell tower and at Officine San Giorgio wailed at noon.
For the first time ever, aircraft flew over Pistoia, and the same night flares lit up the city. He recalls the bombing and how his aunts and brother bolted to the Via delle Mura, below a sawmill. Five bombs hit it. The morning after he was evacuated to Casalguidi, then between Capraia Fiorentina and Limite sull’Arno at the home of some relatives. Their villa was then commandeered by Germans, so he settled with some peasants. He witnessed the Empoli bombing on 10 April 1944, the day after Easter.
]]>The interviewee is Clara Dei, born in Prato on 19 May 1927, primary school teacher. Also present was her friend Annalia Galardini. The interview is conducted by Claudio Rosati in Pistoia on 5 September 1983, in his house.
The night of the first bombing on Pistoia, Clara Dei ran with her family to the Via Franchini shelter. She was afraid because of the proximity of Officine San Giorgio, a military target. Clara was evacuated to Gello, where she witnessed the bombings and strafing of Piteccio and Pistoia. Then she moved to Vinacciano where she took lodging at the home of some peasants: Clara saw civilians being rounded up and witnessed the arrival of South African troops. She remembers two aircraft: Pippo and the Fieseler Fi 156 Storch. Father was captured by the Germans who took him to the Marini gym: he was then set free, thanks to the intervention of an acquaintance who was on good terms with local SS.
Finally, she describes the time when she was privately tutored by Aristide Benedetti; there she had frequent catchups with Silvano Fedi and Emiliano Panconesi. It was widely believed that the place was the headquarter of a Resistance cell.
]]>The interviewee is Ada Breschi, clerical worker, born in Pistoia on 22 September 1917. The interview was conducted by Claudio Rosati in Pistoia on 22 September 1983, in his house. After the 8 September 1943 armistice, Ada Breschi helped many servicemen who had deserted their barracks. She witnessed the Piazza San Lorenzo execution by firing squad. During the first bombing, she was at home with mother and sister, in the San Marco neighbourhood. When they didn’t make to Fortezza Santa Barbara shelter, they took refuge in the cellar of a nearby evangelical church. Then she spent eleven months at Cignano, as an evacuee. When the Manufacturers’ association - then headquartered in Piazza Garibaldi – moved to Capostrada she commuted there by tramway. Strafing was frequent in the Viale Adua district, probably aimed at German vehicles which tried to reach the Apennines. Bombings mostly took place between noon and one o’clock. Reminisces how her brother-in-law was almost arrested by the Germans, the strafing at Cignano, and the difficulties to source bread and flour.
]]>The interviewee is Giuliana Menichini Pereira, born in Pistoia on 31 January 1928. Her father Pietro Menichini edges in, her husband Miguel Pereira is in the room. The interview was conducted by Claudio Rosati in Pistoia on 6 October 1983, in his house. During the first bombing, Giuliana Menichini Pereira was in Via Monte Sabotino – she saw the city lit up by flares and ran to the countryside with her family. This and the last bombing made a lasting impression on her; the last also because of the many aircraft waves. She remembers the death of the five Zanzotto brothers. Giuliana was evacuated near Torbecchia. Her father, Pietro Menichini, remembers the Officine San Giorgio in ruins and tells about the arrival of Germans near the place where they were evacuated. The partisans were alerted with shouts, he and some neighbours got ready to fight with rifles, guns and pitchforks. Giuliana Menichini Pereira, together with the village inhabitants, cheered the first British soldiers
]]>The interviewee is Mario Galardini, employment consultant, born at Castel di Casio (BO) on 15 August 1923. His brother Raffaello edges in, Lory Galardini and Annalia Galardini are also in the room. The interview was conducted by Claudio Rosati on 12 September 1984 at his house in Pistoia. During the first bombing of Pistoia, Mario Galardini was at home with his family and took shelter under the bed. Raffaello remembers the havoc wreaked on the city and the terror caused by the reconnaissance aircraft Pippo. Then, they were evacuated to Case Nuove and eventually to Case Vecchie. Mario Galardini was forced by Germans to clear up rubble in the heart of the city, with the fear of being deported to Germany. One day, at San Quirico, he saw a group of Germans looking for a place on top of the mountain.
A 35-second passage starting at 00:17:15 was removed at the interviewee’s explicit request.