Fighting Women: the Case of the Italian Social Republic 1943–45
224 Ciavattone
Chapter 10 Fighting Women: The Case of the Italian Social Republic 1943–45
Federico Ciavattone
On 23 September 1943, Mussolini—having been liberated by the Germans— established the Italian Social Republic (RSI). Il Duce wanted to continue to fight total war alongside Nazi Germany to achieve a New European Order. The RSI committed all available human resources to the war, women included. In fact, women supported the cause of Republican Fascism in numerous ways, giving rise to a vast phenomenon of all-female voluntarism. First, women could join the Women’s Auxiliary Service (Servizio Ausiliario Femminile, or SAF). In the SAF, women were militarized and carried out missions of an auxil- iary nature (working as typists and nurses, or giving assistance to combatants at the front, for example). Other women fought directly against the enemy. Some took on the counterinsurgency, infiltrating the partisans and carrying out espionage activities; others joined the ranks of the Fascist Resistance, con- ducting intelligence, espionage, and sabotage operations behind enemy lines, such as the Volpi Argentate (Silver Foxes) Group; some even fought as snipers, defending their cities to the bitter end.
The Fascist Choice
The armistice on 8 September 1943 was a dramatic moment for Italy and its armed forces. Why did the Fascists choose to continue to fight alongside Germany? An analysis of the sociopolitical climate, and an understanding of the emotional state of many Italians at that time, show that Fascist choice had both remote and contemporary origins. In the remote causes are considered those apparatuses, institutions, and groups that have contributed to make the sense of national pride. All those institutions that played a role in education, both of individuals and of groups, focused on this concept. During the Ventennio, these included the family, the Fascist Party, and the schools. Each had a different role and influence in creating a sense of belonging to the nation. In the case of the family, for example, a deep love of country and a strong sense
© Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2018 | doi 10.1163/9789004363762_012 Fighting Women: The Case of the Italian Social Republic 225 of honor—embodied by family members who had served in the wars for inde- pendence or the First World War—were fundamental. Similarly, the National Fascist Party participated in building a national patriotic consciousness through its educational structures. The aim of the rec- reational activities encouraged during the two decades of Fascist rule was, first and foremost, that of shaping the future generations who would one day have to defend the homeland, lead Italy, and ensure continuation of the regime. Finally, schools at any level played a crucial role. Teachers summoned up grand visions of the past, with particular attention to the Roman Empire, of which Fascism declared itself the heir. They penetrated young people’s imaginations and succeeded in making them believe they were the direct descendants of Roman civilization.1 On the opposite side of the emotional coin, a national sense of betrayal and shame arising from more recent events also pushed Italy into collaboration with Germany. These are the contemporary causes of the fascist choice. These elements form a platform on which the militance in the RSI was built. The focus on recent betrayal and shame drove both young and not-so-young to sup- port the Social Republic, considering it the sole path to follow and show their “honor” and “fidelity” to the homeland—and to the promise given to the Germans.2 Supporting the RSI thus took on, from the Fascist perspective, the nature of a revolt. Veterans of the RSI still define it today as a true generational revolt.3
The Women’s Choice
Like much of the Italian population, most women interpreted the armistice as the end of the war. A small minority, however, decided to pursue voluntarism and militancy—but not all in the same way. On one hand, some opted to
1 Jürgen Charnitzky, Fascismo e scuola. La politica scolastica del regime 1922–1943 (Roma: La Nuova Italia, 1999); Mariella Colin, I bambini di Mussolini. Letteratura, libri, letture per l’infanzia sotto il fascismo (Roma: La Scuola, 2014); Antonio Gibelli, Il Popolo bambino, Infanzia e nazione dalla grande guerra a Salò (Torino: Einaudi, 2005); Ivan Tognarini, Il vecchio libro. La scuola del ventennio fascista: Balilla e piccole italiane, soldati e massaie (Torino: Polistampa, 2009); George L. Williams, Fascist Thought and Totalitarianism in Italy’s Secondary Schools: Theory and Practice, 1922–1943 (New York: Peter Lang, 1994). 2 Federico Ciavattone, “La memoria della guerra civile nei reduci della RSI.” (M.A. diss., University di Pisa, 2005), pp. 43–97. 3 Luigi Ganapini, La repubblica delle camicie nere. I combattenti, I politici, gli amministratori, i socializzatori (Milano: Garzanti, 1999), pp. 20–22.