Barletta massacre

Barletta massacre
Part of the Italian campaign
Corpses on the ground after the massacre
Location	Barletta, Apulia, Italy
Coordinates	44°20′N7°33′E / 44.333°N 7.550°E / 44.333; 7.550
Date	12 September 1943
Target	Italian civilians
Attack type	Massacre
Deaths	12
Injured	1
Perpetrators	Soldiers of the Fallschirm-Jäger-Division
Motive	Reprisal for the strong resistance by civilians

The Barletta massacre (Italian: Eccidio di Barletta), was a German war crime that took place on 12 September 1943 in the city of Barletta in Italy. The event took place following the Italian surrender on 8 September 1943. Twelve Italian civilians were killed and several hundred houses were destroyed by artillery fire of the Waffen-SS under the command of Hart Gloocke. The massacre was captured by numerous photos and video by Germans. ^[1]

The Barletta massacre is referred to^{[ by whom? ]} as one of the first German World War II massacre on civilians in Italy, from the Italian surrender of 8 September.

History

The massacre of Barletta was conceived as a Nazi retaliation for the strenuous resistance found in the Italian city, both by civilians and by the military. In the days preceding the massacre, in fact, there had been clashes in the city between Italian and German armed forces, which saw the Italians as victorious. ^[2] The Germans were thus forced to ask for reinforcements and to attack civilian buildings, thus forcing the Italian soldiers to surrender. Surrender that occurred on September 10, 1943, two days before the massacre. ^[1]

Subsequent events

Between 8 and 25 september 1943 a further 35 civilians and soldier were killed. The Germans were only put to flight by the Allies in mid-September. On 25 September 1943 the Third English Army entered Barletta. ^{[3] [4]}

References

1. Colaprice, Giacomo. "La Resistenza "dimenticata" del Sud Italia: i fatti di Barletta".{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
2. "Massacre at Barletta Italy 1943". WW2Talk. Retrieved 2025-01-21.
3. "British troops near Barletta during the 8th Army's advance towards Foggia, September 1943 | Online Collection | National Army Museum, London". collection.nam.ac.uk. Retrieved 2025-01-21.
4. Occupying Puglia 1943-1946