Rome (IT), National War-Fighters Institute (ONC) [deleted] - 1928
The
inscription (1928) was carved on a plaque fixed at entrance of the seat of the
National Association of Combatants (Opera Nazionale Combattenti; ONC) in
Via Ulpiano 11 in Rome. It was authored by Nazareno
Capo. The inscription is no longer extant as it was probably
destroyed after the Second World War.
The
text praises Mussolini, calling him dux unicus and optimus
patronus, and uses a rather clumsy explanatory phrase to denote the ONC,
repeating patro- in the space of two lines. The inscription was
unveiled during Mussolini’s visit to the ONC headquarters on 5 March 1928, as
evidenced by photographs preserved in the
Archivio Storico Istituto Luce.
For this event, Nazareno Capo also authored a Latin
text written on a parchment, which was
given to Mussolini.
The National
Association of Combatants was established in 1917 after the defeat at the
Battle of Caporetto. Its purpose was to assist veterans in finding work and
land for cultivation. In the Italian name of the organization, the word
‘combattenti’ literally means ‘fighters’ and does not specifically refer to war
veterans who have completed their military service. While the term reflects
that the ONC was founded during the war, for Fascism, it also suggested
rhetorically that the battle was never over and that veterans were engaged in a
never-ending fight.
Under
Mussolini, the ONC became the main instrument in the Battle of Land, which
aimed to drain marshlands. The ONC was abolished in 1977. Since 1982, its
former headquarters has housed the government’s Civil Protection
Department.
Bibliography
Capo, Nazareno. 1929. Carmina
selecta, solutae orationis exempla et frustula varia. Grottaferrata: Scuola
Tipografica Italo-Orientale ‘S. Nilo’, 125.
Antonino
Nastasi