The ribSon suspender is of square shape, exactly llke the one of the Bronze Star (U. S0), to which, our "star" seems to have taken inspiration, also for the upraised n~rvations above described.
The ribbon is of about 30 mm. and has the colors of Italy and Republican Spain, from left to right: green 5~; white 5 mm; red i0 mm; yellow 5 mm, and violet 5mm,
Needless to say that this medal in an unofficial award and is not recognized in the awards system of the Italian government.
* See : THE MEDAL COLLECTOR, February 1975, Vol. 26, No. 2 - "Polish Volunteers in the Spanish Civil War and their Awards" by Edward S. Haynes. The badge iiiustrated on page 5 shows the triangular "spike" and the reverse of the Polish medal on page 8 shows it again. It would be interesting to establish the fact that this was adopted by all the International Brigades or only by a few. F.v.A.
NOTES ON THE GARIBALDI BATTALION (XII
Frederic von Allendorfer
Randolfo Pacciardi, an Italian Republican emigre - who was never a Communist, proposed to the Spanish government the formation of an Italian Legion, from all the Italian political exiles. However he stipulated that this group, to be recruited in Paris, be free of political parties and ties. This idea was turned down.
Later the recruiting offices of the International Brigade was located in the Rue de Lafayette in Paris. Directing the Italian recruitment were Nino Nanetti and Guiseppe de Vittorio (also know~ as "Mario Nicoletti").
The first group of 500 men, composed mostly of Frenchmen, some Polish and Germans with a sprinkling of White Russians were sent to Albacete where they were soon joined by the German THAE~MANN CENTURIA, the Italian. GASTONE- SOZZI CENTURIA and the French PARIS BATTALION.
In command of this base of operations were Andre Marry (~ Frenchman), Commander, and two Italians, Luigi Longo (also known as "Gallo") as Inspector- General and Guiseppe de Vittorio as Chief Political Commissar.
Albacete becoming too crowded with volunteer-trainees the various language units were stationed at nearby towns - - the Italians went to the pueblo town of Madrigueras. An Italian tailor from Lyon named Captain Alocca commanded the brigades cavalry in the town of La Roda.
In the battles around Madrid the Garibaldi Battalion was commanded by General "Lukacz" (Mata Zalka) a Hungarian, who during World War I had served in the Austrian Army, captured by the Russians and later he joined the Red Army.
When the Republican defence was reorganized along the east bank of the Jarama river the Garibaldi Battalion became the Xllth Garibaldi Brigade and maintained a reserve position. The Battle of Jarama produced 25,000 casualties for the R~publicans and 20,000 for the Nationalist side.
At the battle of Guadaljara the Garibaldi Brigade met the Italian Fascist troops under General Roatta in battle, l~ussolini’s four divisions (30,000 men) were as follows: the Black Shirts under General Rossi; the Black Flames under General Coppi; the Black Arrows under General Nuvolari and the Littorio Division under General Bergonzoli. During this battle Pietro Nennl commanded a company in the Garibaldi Brigade. It was a mechanised battle in which the Italian Fascists lost 2000 killed,’ 4000 wounded and 300 prisoners of war. The whole Republican side suffered similar losses as the Italian Fascists.
During the campaign around Bilbao the Republicans lost about i0,000 men including the commander of the Garibaldi Brigade, General Lukacz" and many of the Italians who served under him. This was "Lukacz" - (~ta Zalka, the author of Doberdo) who at 41 years of age fell at Brunete, who had written the previous year:
"I have been thinking about destiny, about the vicissitudes of life, about past years -- and I am dissatisfied with myself. I have done too little. Too few successes. Too little achieved.
Other Italians who had served in the Gariba&di Brigade were Giorgio Camen, who, while in school learned the lesson of Garibaldi, the hero of freedom, and found himself in Spain. Commandant of the ist Company was Guido Picelli, who had in 1919 joined the Italian Socialist Party. Joining the popular movement against F@scism in the "Ardito del Popolo" he was arrested in 1926 and deported to the island 6f Lipari. After 5 years, he escaped and when the fighting began in Spain he Joined the Garibaldis - he fell outside Madrid on January 5, 1937.
Those Italians who saw service in Spain and gained later prominence in Italy were Palmiro Togliatti and Luigi L6ngo both of whom headed the Italian Communist Party in recent years. Togliatti led the partisans in North Italy in 1943-44.
Guiseppe di Vittorio (1892-1958) was Secretary-General of the CGT in Italy until his death. Randolfo Pacciardi was a leader of the Italian Republican Party and served as Defence Minister under Premier Gasperi. Pietro Nenni was leader of the Italian Socialists.
It has been determined and recorded that Italian volunteers to the Loyalist cause in the Spanish Civil War amounted to 3~354 of whom 1,819 had Communist affiliations.
By a strange and ironic twist of fate Benito Mussolini was captured at Dongo by the 52nd Garibaldi Brigade of partisans. In that unit was one Riccardo Mordini, who had served in the International Brigade in Spain, and on this day was in charge of the firing squad which executed some 15 Fascists who were accompanying the dictator. That day, April 28, 1945, Mordini’s commander, Walter Audisio was ~he one who killed Mussolini and his mistress Clara Petacci.
Of those who published their memoirs of Spain are:
Longo, Luigi - LE BRIGATE INTERNATIONALI IN SPAGNA, Rome, 1956 Nenni, Pietro - SPAGNA, Milan, 1958 Nenni, Pietro - PAGINE DI DIARIO, Rome, 1947
Pacciardi, Randolfo - IL BATTAGLIONE GARIBALDI, Lugano, 1948
and one in biography format:
Ferrara, Marcella & Mauricio - PALMIRO TOGLIATTI, Paris, 1955