“Comune siglato ai margini della linea “Gustav” ed a pochi chilometri da Cassino, occupato dalle truppe tedesche, subiva violenti saccheggi, devastazioni e continui bombardamenti che causavano la morte di numerosi cittadini, nonché la quasi completa distruzione del patrimonio edilizio. La popolazione, costretta a rifugiarsi nei paesi vicini, seppe resistere con fierissimo contegno agli stenti e alle dure sofferenze, per intraprendere, poi, la difficile opera di ricostruzione morale e materiale.” 1943/1944 – Atina (FR)
“A town situated on the edge of the “Gustav” line a few kilometres from Cassino, occupied by German troops, suffered violent looting, devastation and continuous bombardment that caused the death of many citizens, as well as the almost complete destruction of the housing stock. The population, forced to take refuge in neighbouring towns, was able to resist with fierce demeanor the hardships and the harsh suffering, to undertake, then, the hard work of moral and material reconstruction.”
The destruction, bloodshed, hardship and poverty caused by the war’s catastrophic and tragic events lead to a new wave of emigration overseas.
Thanks to Louise Shapcott