Alessandro Pertini
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Alessandro "Sandro" Pertini (; 25 September 1896 – 24 February 1990) was an Italian socialist politician who served as the president of Italy from 1978 to 1985.


Early life

Born in
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(
Province of Savona The province of Savona ( it, provincia di Savona; Ligurian: ''provinsa de Sann-a'') is a province in the Liguria region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Savona, which has a population of 61,219 inhabitants. The province has a total populatio ...
) as the son of a wealthy landowner, Alberto, he studied at a Salesian college in Varazze, and completed his schooling at the "''Chiabrera''" lyceum (high school) in
Savona Savona (; lij, Sann-a ) is a seaport and ''comune'' in the west part of the northern Italy, Italian region of Liguria, capital of the Province of Savona, in the Riviera di Ponente on the Mediterranean Sea. Savona used to be one of the chie ...
. His philosophy teacher was Adelchi Baratono, a reformist socialist who contributed to his approach to socialism and probably introduced him to the inner circles of the Ligurian labour movements. Pertini obtained a law degree from the University of Genoa. Aged 19 when Italy entered World War I on the side of the Triple Entente, Pertini opposed the war, but nonetheless enlisted in the army where he served as a lieutenant and was decorated for bravery. After the armistice in 1918, he joined the Unitary Socialist Party, PSU, then he settled in Florence where he also graduated in political science with a thesis entitled ''La Cooperazione'' ("Cooperation"; 1924). While in the city, Pertini also came into contact with people such as Gaetano Salvemini, the brothers Carlo and
Nello Rosselli Sabatino Enrico 'Nello' Rosselli (Rome, 29 November 1900 – Bagnoles-de-l'Orne, 9 June 1937) was an Italian Socialist leader and historian. Biography Rosselli was born in Rome to a prominent Jewish family. His parents were Giuseppe Emanuele "Joe ...
, and
Ernesto Rossi Ernesto Rossi may refer to: * Ernesto Rossi (actor) (1827–1896), Italian actor * Ernesto Rossi (politician) (1897–1967), Italian politician and anti-fascist activist * Ernesto Rossi (gangster) (1903–1931), Italian-American gangster {{hndis, ...
. Pertini was physically beaten by Fascist squads on several occasions, but never lost faith in his ideals.


Resistance to Fascism

After the assassination of PSU leader Giacomo Matteotti by Fascists in 1924, Pertini became even more committed to the struggle against the totalitarian regime. In 1926, he was sentenced to
internment Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simpl ...
but managed to go into hiding. Later, together with
Carlo Rosselli Carlo Alberto Rosselli (Rome, 16 November 1899Bagnoles-de-l'Orne, 9 June 1937) was an Italian political leader, journalist, historian, philosopher and anti-fascist activist, first in Italy and then abroad. He developed a theory of reformist, ...
and Ferruccio Parri, he organized and accompanied the escape to France of Filippo Turati, who was the most prominent figure of the PSU. Pertini remained in the country until 1926 working as a mason. According to the Italian historian of Freemasonry
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, during that period Pertini had relationships with exponents of the Grand Orient of Italy who were in exile in France. This hypothesis seems unsupported by known documents from archives. On his return to Italy, he was arrested in
Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the cit ...
, tried, and sentenced to ten years' imprisonment. In 1935 he was interned on Santo Stefano Island, Ventotene (LT), Pontine Islands, an island in the Tyrrhenian Sea, where he remained through Italy's entry into World War II and until 1943. There he saved the famous diaries of
Antonio Gramsci Antonio Francesco Gramsci ( , , ; 22 January 1891 – 27 April 1937) was an Italian Marxist philosopher, journalist, linguist, writer, and politician. He wrote on philosophy, political theory, sociology, history, and linguistics. He was a ...
. Although he had begun suffering from severe illness, Pertini never demanded
pardon A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the ju ...
. He was released a month after
Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...
's arrest and joined the
Italian resistance movement The Italian resistance movement (the ''Resistenza italiana'' and ''la Resistenza'') is an umbrella term for the Italian resistance groups who fought the occupying forces of Nazi Germany and the fascist collaborationists of the Italian Social ...
against the Nazi German occupiers and Mussolini's new regime – the
Italian Social Republic The Italian Social Republic ( it, Repubblica Sociale Italiana, ; RSI), known as the National Republican State of Italy ( it, Stato Nazionale Repubblicano d'Italia, SNRI) prior to December 1943 but more popularly known as the Republic of Salò ...
. Arrested by the Germans, he was sentenced to death but freed by a
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raid. Pertini then traveled north to organize partisan war as an executive member of PSI (alongside Rodolfo Morandi and
Lelio Basso Lelio Basso (25 December 1903 – 16 December 1978) was an Italian democratic socialist politician, political scientist and journalist. Early life Lelio Basso was born in Varazze (in the province of Savona) into a Liberal bourgeois family. In 19 ...
). He had a primary role in the Milan uprising of 25 April 1945, which led to the execution of Mussolini.


Prominence

After the war ended in Italy on 25 April 1945 and the monarchy was abolished through the
1946 Italian constitutional referendum An institutional referendum ( it, referendum istituzionale, or ) was held in Italy on 2 June 1946,Dieter Nohlen & Philip Stöver (2010) ''Elections in Europe: A data handbook'', p1047 a key event of Italian contemporary history. Until 1946 ...
, Pertini was elected to the Constituent Assembly (''La Costituente''), the body that prepared the new republican Italian Constitution. In the postwar era he was a prominent member of the directive board of the Italian Socialist Party (the PSI, which the PSU had rejoined). In spite of his intransigent attitude toward the Italian Communist Party, Pertini was suspicious of many policies enforced by the PSI. He criticized all forms of colonialism, as well as corruption in the Italian state and within the socialist party, where he kept an independent political position. He was elected president of the Italian Chamber of Deputies in 1968.


President (1978–1985)

In 1978, the 81-year-old Pertini was elected President of the Italian Republic, the highest office in the nation. Despite his advanced age, he displayed considerable energy and vigor, playing a major role in helping restore the public's faith in the government and institutions of Italy, as well as maintaining an active schedule of traveling and meeting foreign dignitaries. During the Brigate Rosse terrorism period of the '' Anni di piombo'', Pertini openly denounced the violence. He also opposed organized crime in Italy, South African apartheid, Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet and other dictatorial regimes, as well as the
Soviet invasion of Afghanistan The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
. In 1981, Pertini presided over the formation of the government by
Giovanni Spadolini Giovanni Spadolini (21 June 1925 – 4 August 1994) was an Italian politician and statesman, who served as the 44th prime minister of Italy. He had been a leading figure in the Republican Party and the first head of a government to not be ...
, the first non
Christian Democratic Christian democracy (sometimes named Centrist democracy) is a political ideology that emerged in 19th-century Europe under the influence of Catholic social teaching and neo-Calvinism. It was conceived as a combination of modern democratic ...
Italian government since the time of
De Gasperi Alcide Amedeo Francesco De Gasperi (; 3 April 1881 – 19 August 1954) was an Italian politician who founded the Christian Democracy party and served as prime minister of Italy in eight successive coalition governments from 1945 to 1953. De Gas ...
. In 1985, he stepped down from the presidency, becoming automatically senator for life. The only official role he accepted in his retirement was President of the "Filippo Turati" Foundation for Historical Studies of Florence inaugurated in 1985 and dedicated to recording and preserving the history of the socialist movement in Italy. In December 1988 Pertini was the first person to be awarded with the Otto Hahn Peace Medal in Gold by the United Nations Association of Germany (Deutsche Gesellschaft für die Vereinten Nationen, DGVN) in Berlin, "for outstanding services to peace and international understanding, especially for his political ethics and practical humanity." Pertini died in February 1990 at the age of 93 and was mourned across the nation.


1982 World Cup Final

Pertini attended the 1982 World Cup Final in Madrid for a match between Italy and West Germany just two days after the fourth anniversary of his inauguration. After Italy scored their third goal, he wagged his finger to either the German delegation or King
Juan Carlos I Juan Carlos I (;, * ca, Joan Carles I, * gl, Xoán Carlos I, Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias, born 5 January 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who reigned as King of Spain from 22 Novem ...
, and said "they
he German team He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...
will not catch us any more". Memorable images from the event are Pertini standing on his chair at Santiago Bernabeu stadium, exulting in the Italian victory, and the card game on the return flight, between the president and three team members (trainer Bearzot and players Causio and Zoff), the world cup trophy next to them on the table. Paolo Rossi, Italy's and the tournament's top scorer, later said: "I remember that when he welcomed us at the Presidential Palace after our win, he rose and said: 'This is my best day as President.'"


Relationship with Pope John Paul II

Sandro Pertini had a close friendship with Pope John Paul II, with whom he met often both for official and private occasions, and had frequent phone conversations. In "Accanto a Giovanni Paolo II", he is known to have referred to his mother looking over him in heaven, moved that her atheist son was friends with the Pope. On 13 May 1981 he went to the
Gemelli Hospital The Gemelli University Hospital ( it, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Agostino Gemelli) is a large general hospital in Rome, Italy. With 1575 beds, it is the second-largest hospital in Italy, the largest hospital in Rome and one of the lar ...
as soon as he heard that the Pope had been shot, and stayed until late in the night when he was told that the Pope was not in danger anymore. He recalled the event later that year in the annual
New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve, also known as Old Year's Day or Saint Sylvester's Day in many countries, is the evening or the entire day of the last day of the year, on 31 December. The last day of the year is commonly referred to ...
Presidential Address to the Italian People.


Honours and awards

In 1986 he received the Freedom medal.


In popular culture

*In the 1975 film '' Last Days of Mussolini'', by Carlo Lizzani, there is a character inspired to Pertini, performed by Sergio Graziani. *In early 1980s Andrea Pazienza created the comic book series ''Il Partigiano Pert'' ("The Partisan Pert"), a comedy strip portraying Pertini during World War II with the same cartoonist as his helper. *Pertini has been mentioned in some verses of several Italian songs, as in ''Sotto la pioggia'' ("under the rain", 1982) by Antonello Venditti, ''Babbo Rock'' ("Daddy Rock", 1982) by the Skiantos, '' L'Italiano'' ("The Italian", 1983) by Toto Cutugno, ''Caro Presidente'' ("Dear President", 1984) by
Daniele Shook Daniele is an Hebrew male given name, the cognate of the English name Daniel. Danièle is a French female given name, an alternative spelling of Danielle. Men with the given name Daniele * Daniele Bracciali (born 1978), Italian tennis player * ...
, ''Pertini Dance'' (1984) by the S.C.O.R.T.A., ''Pertini Is A Genius, Mirinzini Is Not Famous'' (2007) by the Ex-Otago."Sandro Pertini, our president ever, historical figure and man"
(quotidianpost.it)


Electoral history


References


External links



* ttp://www.fondazionepertini.it ''Fondazione Sandro Pertini'' , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Pertini, Sandro 1896 births 1990 deaths People from the Province of Savona Unitary Socialist Party (Italy, 1922) politicians Italian Socialist Party politicians Presidents of Italy Members of the National Council (Italy) Members of the Constituent Assembly of Italy Senators of Legislature I of Italy Presidents of the Chamber of Deputies (Italy) Deputies of Legislature II of Italy Deputies of Legislature III of Italy Deputies of Legislature IV of Italy Deputies of Legislature V of Italy Deputies of Legislature VI of Italy Deputies of Legislature VII of Italy Italian life senators Politicians of Liguria University of Genoa alumni Italian anti-capitalists Italian anti-fascists Italian resistance movement members Recipients of the Gold Medal of Military Valor Recipients of the Silver Medal of Military Valor Recipients of the Four Freedoms Award Exiled Italian politicians