Rodolfo Graziani: Story of an Italian general

Rodolfo Graziani, Marshal of Italy, Viceroy of Ethiopia and one of Mussolini's most valued generals remains to this day a divisive figure in his homeland. Revered by some Italians as a patriot and vilified by others a murderer, his reputation abroad remains one of infamy. To the people of Libya, he's the man who hanged Omar al-Mukhtar. In Ethiopia, the one behind the poison gas bombings. To the British, he is the buffoon-like Italian general whose troops surrendered en masse. But what is the true story of Rodolfo Graziani? This rigorously researched biography draws on private letters and secret communications to reveal a fascinating portrait of Fascist Italy's most notorious military leader. What emerges is a man of glaring contradictions. A doting family man and a violent soldier. Graziani was a key figure of Italy's momentous 1930s, enjoying widespread popularity during the height of Mussolini's dictatorship, his exploits in Libya and Ethiopia captured the public's imagination. After his death he was largely forgotten. But in 2012, the mausoleum erected in his honor has sparked fresh controversy.Table of Contents1 Disaster in the desert2 A home in the mountains3 Postcards from Libya4 Ethiopia and the use of poison gas5 Marquis of Neghelli and executioner of Addis Ababa6 Twenty months on Lake Garda7 A sentence which is more like an acquittal8 What remainsPostscript 2021EndnotesBibliographyIndex Read more