Vasco Ferretti

Last updated
Vasco Ferretti
Vasco Ferretti.jpg
Born (1935-08-25) August 25, 1935 (age 88)
Buggiano, Tuscany, Italy
OccupationWriter
Nationality Italian
Citizenship Italian
Genre Historical Novel
Literary movementPost War Romance
Notable worksKesselring (2009), Vip & Stars (1983), Le stragi naziste sotto la linea gotica. 1944: Sant'Anna di Stazzema, Padule di Fucecchio, Marzabotto(2004), Dante Alighieri e la battaglia di Montecatini (2015)
Website
www.vascoferretti.it

Vasco Ferretti (born 25 August 1935) is an Italian novelist, historian, professor and journalist from Buggiano, Tuscany. He has written books in the fiction genres of historical novels and the Romance novel. His most important books are Kesselring (2009), Vip & Stars (1983), Dante Alighieri e la battaglia di Montecatini (2015), Le stragi naziste sotto la linea gotica 1944: Sant'Anna di Stazzema, Padule di Fucecchio, Marzabotto (2004).

Contents

Biography

Montecatini; where Ferretti lived most of his life, and where he currently lives with his wife. Montecatini Alto.jpg
Montecatini; where Ferretti lived most of his life, and where he currently lives with his wife.

Vasco Ferretti was born in Buggiano, Toscana (August 25, 1935). He was born in to a farming family, and obtained his master's degree in 1953, after studying for two years at the Catering College of Montecatini. [1] He then worked as a hotel doorman in Forte dei Marmi. In 1955–1956 he attended the annual course for trade union leaders of the Trade Union CISL (Centro Studi di San Domenico di Fiesole), and emerged with a five-year assignment in Rome as the National Secretary of Tourism Workers in the same CISL. He returned to Montecatini because of his family's economic problems and then studied to obtain a degree in philosophy and science of education in 1970 at the University of Urbino, where he subsequently taught for two years. His victory at the Ministerial Competition allowed him to teach philosophy and history at the Institute of Pescia and Montecatini, until his retirement from teaching in 1992. [2] In 1975 he was listed in the Register of Journalists working in Tuscany. [3] For the past decades he has dedicated himself to historical research by publishing with Mursia (Milan) the following works: "Kesselring" (biography); "Nazi massacres of Marzabotto, Stazzema and marshes of Fucecchio."; "1944, a Red Blood Summer", set in Tuscany under the German occupation during World War II. Ferretti also works with other publishers: "Lager and Gulag" with Amazon (ebook on Kindle).

Influences

Ferretti's works are highly influenced by traces of his philosophical and classical formation. In passages of his books there are multiple references to Franz Kafka in the syntax and in the paragraph structure. [4] His works are influenced by his association with Hermeticism and by his relationship with writers such as Giuseppe Ungaretti, Salvatore Quasimodo, Eugenio Montale [5] and Dante Alighieri, who deeply influenced him and his literature. Hermeticism is a tradition which follows a set of philosophical and religious beliefs.

Works

Kesselring (2009)

Kesselring (Edizioni Mursia, Milano, 2009) is a biography of Albert Kesselring, a German Luftwaffe general, during World War II. The general was born on November 30, 1885, in Marktsteft (German empire) and died in a sanatorium in Bad Nauheim in West Germany, on 16 July 1960 at the age of 74, following a heart attack. [6] He was one of the most skillful and highly decorated commanders of Nazi Germany. [7] The biography focuses on the general's military feats, his imprisonment and his participation to the Nuremberg trials(1946) [8] as a witness, and to the trials in Venice (1947) as an accused. The structure of the biography is a historical-judiciary thriller, which is one of the characteristics that made this novel one of Vasco Ferretti's most relevant works. [9] Author Ovidio Dallera in a review of Kesselring describes General Kesselring as a character who earned his notoriety unlike many historical characters who have obtained an undeserved 'fame'. [10] Vasco Ferretti, has been the first historical researcher that has brought the acts of the process against Albert Kesselring in Italy, from the War Office in Kew (London), from which he also drew the book Vernichten. [11] Kesselring by Vasco Ferretti isn't the only book regarding the general, since other writings about him could also be found, for example: Kesselring's own biography written by himself during his combat years, Albert Kesselring written by P. Paolo Battistelli [12] and Kesselring: the making of the Luftwaffe written by Kenneth Macksey.

Dante Alighieri e la battaglia di Montecatini (2015)

Dante Alighieri e la battaglia di Montecatini (EDIFIR, 2015) is a historical novel about the Battle of Montecatini, on August 29, 1325 in the Province of Pistoia. The battle was fought in the Val di Nievole by the Republic of Pisa, and the forces of both the Kingdom of Naples and the Republic of Florence.[ citation needed ] The Guelphs and the Capetian House of Anjou hoped the battle represented the showdown for the Ghibellines of Pisa and of Lucca, led by Uguccione della Faggiuola and Castruccio Castracani, [13] but it turned out to be a tragic defeat to the detriment of Florence instead. Niccolò Machiavelli, in his biography of Castruccio Castracani, [14] wrote that the battle only caused thousands of deaths. [15] Due to the ransom of many prisoners, Florence suffered an economic collapse and this situation made complex the conditions of Dante Alighieri, who was returning after thirteen years of exile. Dante himself, as well as all his biographers, desired to go back to Florence to spend the rest of his life. [16] It unfortunately was a life expectancy never assuaged. [17]

Vernichten (1988)

Vernichten (in German = 'annihilate') refers to the order given to the soldiers of the Wehrmacht for the massacre of the Marsh of Fucecchio on August 23–24, 1944. It was run by General Peter Eduard Crasemann and caused 174 victims (men, women and children). [18] The massacre took place in the area between Pistoia and Florence that is called Marsh of Fucecchio. The reasons for the massacre are unclear, but could be related to false intelligence which pointed out the presence of gangs of partisans in the Marsh of Fucecchio.

Le stragi naziste sotto la linea gotica. 1944: Sant'Anna di Stazzema, Padule di Fucecchio, Marzabotto

Max Simon Bundesarchiv Bild 101III-Cantzler-042-16, Max Simon.jpg
Max Simon

Le stragi naziste sotto la linea gotica. 1944: Sant'Anna di Stazzema, Padule di Fucecchio, Marzabotto is an enquire book about the massacres committed by the 16. SS-Panzergrenadier-Division "Reichsführer SS" and the 26 Panzer division commanded by the Corps Commander Max Simon. [19] The book, released in 2004 analyzes the terroristic operations, [20] committed by the nazi in order to intimidate and scare the population of Marzabotto, Sant'Anna di Stazzema and Padule di Fucecchio. [21] The author provides a precise chronicle of the massacres and how they happened. The book also explores the background of those communities before the tragedy and the psychological impact these slaughters had on the population and on the partisan resistance. [22] Due to its relevant historical content for the Italian culture, the book was inserted into the historical series of the Italian editor Mursia [23]

Processo a Moravia (1994)

In a late evening of September 1974 (16 years before his death), Alberto Moravia is the great defendant in a process that takes place in one of the "liberty" rooms of the Tamerici baths in Montecatini. [24] [25] The accuser is Aldo Rossi, the defender of Moravia is Geno Pampaloni, a well known Italian book reviewer. It was more a great opportunity for Moravia to express himself, his ideas and his motives to write rather than the focus on the process itself. He explained so much that it could have been possible to draft his autobiography. He was brought to the process because of his lack of proper interest in the country's affairs. He confesses his thoughts in front of an audience that previously had witnessed at the process of Pier Paolo Pasolini and accept his reasons as well as it did with Moravia's in this trial fiction. Moravia claims he is a disciple of Fëdor Dostoevskij (Fyodor Dostoyevsky): indeed traces of the Russian writer can be recognized in his literature. [26] Alberto Moravia outlines his strong tendency to tell stories and his great curiosity as to illustrate his disengaged literature. Geno Pampaloni deems him to be the most illustrious journalist in Italy; nowadays he is still remembered as one of the greatest journalist. [27]

Vips e Stars, cento personaggi alle terme di Montecatini (1983)

Vips and stars is a unique story of characters that recalls the Belle Époque period and the roaring '60s. Its main characters are divas, geniuses, kings, lords, queens, maraharaja, writers, politicians, musicians, movie producers, actors and actresses. These celebrities are inserted in the scenario of the faboulous and famous city of Montecatini Terme. [28] The main personalities in this story are:

Characters: Divas and Lords

Lina Cavalieri Lina Cavalieri 001.jpg
Lina Cavalieri

Politicians

Writers

Geniuses and Artists

Musicians

Fuoco fatuo. Il lato effimero dell'amore (2014)

Night view of Forte Dei Marmi where most of the book is settled Fortedeimarmi04.jpg
Night view of Forte Dei Marmi where most of the book is settled

This romance, set in the 60's, is about the story of Alessandro and Denise, two young high school students that meet on the dance floor of a disco in the city of Pistoia. The two immediately fall in love passionately with each other but their passion will make them face the consequences of belonging to different social classes and their different aspirations. As the boy moves to Forte dei Marmi to seek work as a concierge in a luxury hotel, Denise, a rebel soul, decides to escape from the upper class society in order to pursue her desire of success without letting him know about her movements. [29] After all Alessandro doesn't give up and keeps following his love dream, facing rich entrepreneurs, actresses and movie directors. [30] Ferretti shows in this work a snapshot of a period and of the generation of the time. The story is animated by a deep search of the meaning of life and by the never ending search under the surface of existence to get to its most authentic meaning [31]

Bibliography

Contemporary history

Educational Sciences

Poems

Literary criticism

Local History Research

Narrative

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dante Alighieri</span> Italian poet, writer, and philosopher (c. 1265–1321)

Dante Alighieri, most likely baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri and often referred to as Dante, was an Italian poet, writer, and philosopher. His Divine Comedy, originally called Comedìa and later christened Divina by Giovanni Boccaccio, is widely considered one of the most important poems of the Middle Ages and the greatest literary work in the Italian language.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Italian campaign (World War II)</span> 1943–1945 military campaign of World War II

The Italian campaign of World War II, also called the Liberation of Italy following the German occupation in September 1943, consisted of Allied and Axis operations in and around Italy, from 1943 to 1945. The joint Allied Forces Headquarters (AFHQ) was operationally responsible for all Allied land forces in the Mediterranean theatre and it planned and led the invasion of Sicily in July 1943, followed in September by the invasion of the Italian mainland and the campaign in Italy until the surrender of the German Armed Forces in Italy in May 1945.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gothic Line</span> German defensive line in Italy during World War II

The Gothic Line was a German and Italian defensive line of the Italian Campaign of World War II. It formed Field Marshal Albert Kesselring's last major line of defence along the summits of the northern part of the Apennine Mountains during the fighting retreat of the German forces in Italy against the Allied Armies in Italy, commanded by General Sir Harold Alexander.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walter Reder</span> Austrian SS commander

Walter Reder was an Austrian SS commander and war criminal during World War II. He served with the SS Division Totenkopf and the SS Division Reichsführer-SS. He and the unit under his command committed the Vinca massacre and Marzabotto massacre in Italy in 1944. After the war, Reder was convicted of war crimes in Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Montecatini Terme</span> Municipality in Tuscany, Italy

Montecatini Terme is an Italian comune (municipality) of c. 20,000 inhabitants in the province of Pistoia, in the Italian region of Tuscany. It is the most important center in Valdinievole. The town is located at the eastern end of Piana di Lucca and has a strong tourism industry, as well as industrial and commercial industries related to the spa, which in turn has increased the interest in hotel accommodation in the region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Rimini (1944)</span> Battle during the Italian Campaign of the Second World War

The Battle of Rimini took place between 13 and 21 September 1944 during Operation Olive, the main Allied offensive on the Gothic Line in August and September 1944, part of the Italian Campaign in the Second World War. Rimini, a city on Italy's Adriatic coast, anchored the Rimini Line, a German defensive line which was the third such line of the Gothic Line defences.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SS Police Regiment Bozen</span> Nazi German police regiment

Polizeiregiment "Südtirol", later Bozen, and finally SS-Polizeiregiment "Bozen", was a military unit of the German Ordnungspolizei recruited in the largely ethnic-German Alto Adige region in north-east Italy in late 1943, during the de facto German annexation of the region. The ranks were ethnically German Italian draftees while officers and NCOs were Germans.

Events from the year 1944 in Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claudio Kevo Cavallini</span> Italian sculptor

Claudio Kevo Cavallini was an Italian sculptor. His nickname was "Kevo" with which he signed his works. At the age of 50, Claudio discovered that he could make sculptural forms from wood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tiziano Panconi</span> Italian art historian

Tiziano Panconi is an Italian art historian, specializing in Italian painting of the eighteenth century, in particular of Macchiaioli and Giovanni Boldini

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Axis war crimes in Italy</span> Aspect of World War II

Two of the three Axis powers of World War II—Nazi Germany and their Fascist Italian allies—committed war crimes in the Kingdom of Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giovanni Fornasini</span> Italian presbyter

Giovanni Remo Fornasini was an Italian Roman Catholic priest, resistance member and patriot in Bologna. He was murdered by a German Nazi Waffen SS soldier and was posthumously awarded Italy's Gold Medal of Military Valour. He is being investigated by the Catholic Church towards his possible canonisation. His beatification was celebrated in Bologna on 26 September 2021.

The Vinca massacre was a massacre carried out near Fivizzano, Tuscany, by the German 16th SS Panzergrenadier Division from 24 to 27 August 1944 in which 162 Italian civilians were killed.

The Italian partisan brigades were armed formations involved in the Italian resistance during the World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marco Filibeck</span>

Marco Filibeck is an Italian lighting designer.

Giancarlo Dughetti was an Italian miniature painter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piazzale Loreto massacre</span>

Piazzale Loreto massacre was a Nazi-Fascist massacre that took place in Italy, on 10 August 1944 in Piazzale Loreto, Milan, during the World War II.

Gherardo Pantano was an Italian military officer and writer. He spent decades in Italy's African colonies and also fought on the Italian front during World War I.

References

  1. Ferretti, Vasco (2009). Kesselring. Milano: Ugo Mursia Editore. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  2. "Fuoco fatuo Il lato effimero dell amore". Italy Book. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
  3. "Vasco Ferretti". Giovane Holden Edizioni. Giovane Holden Edizioni. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
  4. "Vasco Ferretti" . Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  5. "Hermeticism". Encyclopædia Britannica. The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  6. von Lingen, Soldat bis zum letzten Tag? Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring, p. 220
  7. "Kesselring". Sezione Storia Contemporanea. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  8. Focardi, Filippo (March 2006). "La questione dei processi ai criminali di guerra tedeschi in Italia: fra punizione frenata, insabbiamento di Stato, giustizia tardiva (1943-2005) Indice dell'articolo". Annali dell'Istituto la Malfa. 2. doi: 10.12977/stor533 .
  9. http://www.mursia.com/index.php/it/storia/kesselring-detail [ dead link ]
  10. Innocenti, Marco. "Libri / Kesselring". Il Sole 24 Ore. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  11. "Nazismo : Ferretti V.: Kesselring". www.mursia.com. Archived from the original on 2018-01-16.
  12. "Albert Kesselring". Osprey Publishing. Retrieved 25 November 2016.
  13. Meek, Christine E. "DELLA FAGGIUOLA, Uguccione". Treccani. treccani.it. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
  14. Antelminelli, Coreglia. "Vita di Castruccio Castracani: tiranno magnanimo e crudele". loSchermo. loSchermo. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
  15. "Battaglia montecatini2 dep". issuu. Comune di Pisa. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
  16. "Dante Alighieri e la battaglia di Montecatini. 29 agosto 1315". Unilibro. Edifir. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
  17. "Dante Alighieri e la battaglia di Montecatini. 29 agosto 1315". Internet Bookshop Italia. EDIFIR. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
  18. "Vasco Ferretti- Autore - Vernichten".
  19. "1944 – Settembre 29.30 – Strage di Marzabotto". A.n.p.i. Reggio Emilia. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
  20. (it) La Gazzetta della Spezia, Strage di Sant'Anna, riaperte le indagini. Per il tribunale spezzino fu puro terrorismo
  21. "Le stragi naziste sotto la linea gotica. 1944". Comune di Monsummano. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
  22. McMahon, Barbara. "10 former Nazis convicted of Tuscan massacre". The Guardian. Online. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
  23. "Ferretti V.: Le stragi naziste sotto la linea gotica". UGO MURSIA EDITORE. Retrieved 28 November 2016.
  24. "Il Liberty a Montecatini Terme". Oltre Pistoia - Andare oltre per vedere altro. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
  25. "Processo a Moravia". Vasco Ferretti- Autore - Home. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  26. "I gusti letterari di Alberto Moravia". Rai Cultura Letteratura. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  27. "Quando il giornalismo in Italia lo faceva Moravia". l'Occidentale-Orientamento quotidiano. 25 November 2007. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  28. "VIPS E STARS". Vasco Ferretti - Ricerche di storia locale. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  29. "Fuoco fatuo Il lato effimero dell amore". Italy Books. Italy Books. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
  30. "Fuoco fatuo. Il lato effimero dell'amore". Internet Bookshop Italia. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  31. Ferretti, Vasco (2014). Fuoco fatuo. Il lato effimero dell'amore. ISBN   9788863965605 . Retrieved 5 December 2016.