“To be masters of ourselves we need to be vigilant.

We need to be vigilant.”

We have always considered the values of the Resistance and the Partisan Liberation Movement as foundational elements of our Republic, whence our decision to research, study and conserve local memories—those of the inhabitants, and of all the men and women who courageously opposed nazi-fascist barbarity at the risk of their lives.

It is incumbent on us never to forget the hundreds of human lives, often those of civilians, which were lost in the Casentino, in towns and villages like Vallucciole, Moggiona, Partina, Moscaio, Quota, Castel Focognano, Cetica, Montemignaio, Chiusi della Verna… and many others.

In this panorama of death and oppression, of the annihilation of human life and dignity, numerous events transformed the Casentino from a simple and humble valley of the Arno into an obstacle to nazi-fascist hatred.

The first partisan to fall in the province of Arezzo was at the Molin di Bucchio. It was on the slopes of Mount Falterona that patriots and partisans began to gather. In the mountains of Pratomagno preparations were made for the future liberation of Florence.

This is the historical and cultural background that has animated and inspired the district of the Casentino. But it is a heritage now compromised by the wear and tear of time and the widespread neglect of the precious human, political and social contribution of its men and women to the values of Republican Italy.

This portal sets out to reconstruct the dramatic events of killings and massacres during the nazi-fascist occupation of the Casentino. Through the voices, viewpoints and memories of witnesses, it aims to piece together a collective testimony which we cannot afford to lose. Moreover, it aims to give recognition to the value and dignity of personal histories, to the tales of women and men who have patiently recounted moments in their lives—shocking, atrocious memories that we now hand down to the collective memory of the future.