A House in the Mountains: The Women Who Liberated Italy from Fascism / Caroline Moorehead.

By:

Moorehead, Caroline [author]

Material type: Text

TextPublication details: London : Vintage Publishing, 2019.Description: 390 pages ; 23 cm illustrationsContent type:

text

Media type:

unmediated

Carrier type:

volume

ISBN:

9781784741419
1784741418

Subject(s):

Genre/Form:

History.

DDC classification:

940.5345 MOO 23

Summary: In the late summer of 1943, when Italy changed sides in the Second World War, breaking with the Germans and joining the Allies, an Italian Resistance was born. Ada, Frida, Silvia and Bianca were four young Piedmontese women who joined the Resistance, living secretively in the mountains surrounding Turin. They were not alone. Between 1943 and 1945, as the Allies fought their way north against the German invaders and Mussolini's rump Fascist state, thousands of men and women throughout occupied Italy rose up and fought to liberate their country from the German invaders and their Fascist collaborators. What made the partisan war all the more extraordinary was the number of women in its ranks. The bloody civil war that ensued across the country pitted neighbour against neighbour, and brought out the best and worst in Italian society. The courage shown by the partisans was exemplary, and eventually bound them together as a coherent fighting force. But the death rattle of Mussolini's two decades of Fascist rule - with its corruption, greed and anti-Semitism - was unrelentingly violent and brutal. Drawing on a rich cache of previously untranslated sources, prize-winning historian Caroline Moorehead tells the little-known story of these four brave women as they fought for freedom against Fascism in all its forms - as Europe collapsed in smouldering ruins around them.

Holdings
Item type	Current library	Call number	Status	Date due	Barcode
Standard Loan	LSAD Library Main Collection	940.5345 MOO (Browse shelf(Opens below))	Available		39002100712091

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

'Moorehead paints a wonderfully vivid and moving portrait of the women of the Italian Resistance.an excellent book. She depicts a tragic fate that is timeless, of dreams forged in adversity, shattered by collisions with practical politics' MAX HASTINGS, SUNDAY TIMES

A Spectator Book of the Year

The extraordinary story of the courageous women who spearheaded the Italian Resistance during the Second World War

In the late summer of 1943, when Italy changed sides in the War and the Germans - now their enemies - occupied the north of the country, an Italian Resistance was born. Ada, Frida, Silvia and Bianca were four young Piedmontese women who joined the Resistance, living clandestinely in the mountains surrounding Turin. They were not alone. Between 1943 and 1945, as the Allies battled their way north, thousands of men and women throughout occupied Italy rose up and fought to liberate their country from the German invaders and their Fascist collaborators.

The bloody civil war that ensued across the country pitted neighbour against neighbour, and brought out the best and worst in Italian society. The courage shown by the partisans was exemplary, and eventually bound them together as a coherent fighting force. The women's contribution was invaluable - they fought, carried messages and weapons, provided safe houses, laid mines and took prisoners. Ada's house deep in the mountains became a meeting place and refuge for many of them.

The death rattle of Mussolini's two decades of Fascist rule - with its corruption, greed and anti-Semitism was unrelentingly violent, but for the partisan women it was also a time of camaraderie and equality, pride and optimism. They had proved, to themselves and to the world, what resolve, tenacity and, above all, exceptional courage could achieve.

Includes Bibliography, Index and Notes

In the late summer of 1943, when Italy changed sides in the Second World War, breaking with the Germans and joining the Allies, an Italian Resistance was born. Ada, Frida, Silvia and Bianca were four young Piedmontese women who joined the Resistance, living secretively in the mountains surrounding Turin. They were not alone. Between 1943 and 1945, as the Allies fought their way north against the German invaders and Mussolini's rump Fascist state, thousands of men and women throughout occupied Italy rose up and fought to liberate their country from the German invaders and their Fascist collaborators. What made the partisan war all the more extraordinary was the number of women in its ranks. The bloody civil war that ensued across the country pitted neighbour against neighbour, and brought out the best and worst in Italian society. The courage shown by the partisans was exemplary, and eventually bound them together as a coherent fighting force. But the death rattle of Mussolini's two decades of Fascist rule - with its corruption, greed and anti-Semitism - was unrelentingly violent and brutal. Drawing on a rich cache of previously untranslated sources, prize-winning historian Caroline Moorehead tells the little-known story of these four brave women as they fought for freedom against Fascism in all its forms - as Europe collapsed in smouldering ruins around them.

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Caroline Moorehead is the biographer of Bertrand Russell, Freya Stark, Iris Origo and Martha Gellhorn. Her books include Human Cargo: A Journey among Refugees, Dancing to the Precipice, A Train in Winter, and Village of Secrets: Defying the Nazis in Vichy France.

(Bowker Author Biography)