Italian Armistice 80th Anniversary commemoration at PG59 Servigliano and its surroundings

**Save the date: 8-11 September 2023**

Next year is the 80th Anniversary of the Italian Armistice which precipitated the escape of 50,000 Allied PoWs into the Italian countryside, many of whom were then sheltered by the Italian contadini (peasant farmers) for up to 18 months, who were risking their lives by doing so. The Monte San Martino Trust, which exists to recognise the Italians’ courage and sacrifice, is planning to commemorate this anniversary in Servigliano, Le Marche, home of PG59 which housed up to 4,000 Other Rank prisoners, including the Trust’s founder, Keith Killby. Activities will include visits to the camp (now a Peace Park and Italian National Monument), symposium and walks to historical locations together with social events including wine tasting, dinners and a musical extravaganza. Visits to the nearby camps of PG53 Sforzacosta and PG70 Monte Urano can also be facilitated. This is a joint enterprise together with the Escape Lines Memorial Society and the local Casa della Memoria and you are welcome to take part in as much or as little as you wish.

Altogether there were over 20,000 PoWs in these three camps, of many different nationalities. If your forefather was one of those, or a prisoner in another of the Italian camps and you would be interested to learn more, why not make a date for a holiday in Le Marche and join us for 8th-11th September 2023 in Servigliano.

If you would like to know more, leave a comment below or write to info@msmtrust.org.uk and ask to be put on the supporters’ email list (it’s free) so that you can be kept up to date as things develop.

And for those who don’t know the “undiscovered” region of Le Marche, attached is a flyer to whet your appetite.

 

I remember something similar mentioned in the book The 21 escapes of Alastair Cram by David M. Guss