The slaughter of Marzabotto took place in the fall of 1944 during World War II in the area around the village of Marzabotto in the mountainous area south of Bologna. It was the worst massacre on civilians committed during the war by the Waffen SS in Italy. Blood bath
As soldiers from the 16th SS-Panzergrenadier division "Reichsführer-SS" (led by SS-Sturmbannführer Walter Reder) soldiers to the partisans and resistance movement sold between 29 September and 5 October 1944 hundreds of people in Marzabotto and in the neighboring places killed Grizzana Morandi and Monzuno. The area, in the mass of the Monte Sole (part of the Apennines in the province of Bologna), was destroyed systematically.
There is some confusion about the number of victims: some sources report to 1830 victims, others report sources estimated to kill 955 people. Today, the Foundation for Peace Monte Sole reports 770 victims. This number is quite close to the official report written by Sturmbannführer Reder, stating the "execution of 728 bandits". Among the victims were 45 children under 2 years, 110 children under 10 years, 95 children under the age of 16, 142 people over 60 years, 316 women and 5 Roman Catholic priests.
Don Giovanni Fornasini, a pastor and member of the resistance, risked his life in the massacre to protect the vulnerable population from the suppression of the Nazis. Due to his courageous actions, Giovanni saved the lives of many of his parishes and managed to escape to death for a long time. However, during the burial of the dead bodies of those killed in the massacre (forbidden by the Nazis), he was discovered by an SS officer accusing him of crimes committed in the Marzabotto area. Giovanni had known to help the villagers to prevent Nazi executions and was immediately shot down. Beatification
On October 18, 1998, Cardinal Biffi opened in Bologna the process for the salvation of Don Fornasini and two other priests (Ferdinando Casagrande and Ubaldo Marchioni), which are regarded as the "martyrs of Sonnenberg". Today, Don Giovanni Fornasini is reminded of "the Angel of Marzabotto". In the cemetery of San Martino di Caprara, a memorial commemorates him and the other four priests killed by the SS in the vicinity. Film
A movie was made in 2009 about this slaughter, L'uomo che verrà - the person who will come. Director is Giorgio Diritti, starring there are Maya Sansa and Alba Rohrwacher, but especially for a little girl. The girl is remotely witness of resistance killings and German actions and she eventually knows her newborn brother and rescues herself from the slaughter.
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