Giovanni Berta (August 24, 1894 – February 28, 1921) was an Italian fascist militant of the Florentine ''

Squadrismo ''Squadrismo'' () was the movement of ''squadre d’azione'' (literally ‘action squads’), the fascist militias organized outside the authority of the Italian state and led by local leaders called ''ras'' (a title given to the Abyssinian headmen ...

'', later killed by communist militants during the Pignone clashes in

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

Biography

Giovanni Francesco Berta, known as Gianni, was the son of a small Florentine metallurgical industrialist, Giuseppe, owner of the . He participated in the

Italian-Turkish war The Italo-Turkish or Turco-Italian War ( tr, Trablusgarp Savaşı, "Tripolitanian War", it, Guerra di Libia, "War of Libya") was fought between the Kingdom of Italy and the Ottoman Empire from 29 September 1911, to 18 October 1912. As a result o ...

in 1911 and in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he was also part of the

Fasci Italiani di Combattimento The ''Fasci Italiani di Combattimento'' ( en, Italian Fasces of Combat, link=yes, also translatable as ''"Italian Fighting Bands"'' or ''"Italian Fighting Leagues"'') was an Italian Fascism, Italian Fascist organization created by Benito Mussolin ...

. On February 28, 1921, one day after the anarchist attack at the

Palazzo Antinori Palazzo Antinori is a Renaissance palace located at the north end of Via de' Tornabuoni, where it makes an odd corner with Via dei Pecori, Via del Trebbio, and converts into Via dei Rondinelli, in Florence, region of Tuscany, Italy. History The pa ...

against a nationalist

procession A procession is an organized body of people walking in a formal or ceremonial manner. History Processions have in all peoples and at all times been a natural form of public celebration, as forming an orderly and impressive ceremony. Religious ...

, which had caused the death of the student Carlo Menabuoni and the

carabiniere The Carabinieri (, also , ; formally ''Arma dei Carabinieri'', "Arm of Carabineers"; previously ''Corpo dei Carabinieri Reali'', "Royal Carabineers Corps") are the national gendarmerie of Italy who primarily carry out domestic and foreign polic ...

Antonio Petrucci, and which had culminated then with the murder by the ''Squadrismo'' of the communist leader

Spartaco Lavagnini Spartaco Lavagnini (born 6 September 1889 in Cortona; died 27 February 1921, Florence) was an Italian communist syndicalist and activist Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political ...

, Berta was riding his bicycle on a bridge, where he was identified by a fascist pin that he wore on his jacket, then he was surrounded by members from the

Italian Socialist Party The Italian Socialist Party (, PSI) was a socialist and later social-democratic political party in Italy, whose history stretched for longer than a century, making it one of the longest-living parties of the country. Founded in Genoa in 1892, ...

and

Communist Party of Italy The Italian Communist Party ( it, Partito Comunista Italiano, PCI) was a communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current ...

and, after being stabbed, he was thrown across the parapet of the bridge into the

Arno The Arno is a river in the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the most important river of central Italy after the Tiber. Source and route The river originates on Monte Falterona in the Casentino area of the Apennines, and initially takes a s ...

river, according to the version provided by

Roberto Farinacci Roberto Farinacci (; 16 October 1892 – 28 April 1945) was a leading Italian Fascist politician and important member of the National Fascist Party before and during World War II as well as one of its ardent antisemitic proponents. English histo ...

. Giovanni Berta was buried at the

Cimitero delle Porte Sante Cimitero delle Porte Sante (''The Sacred Doors Cemetery'') is a monumental cemetery in Florence located within the fortified bastion of the Basilica of San Miniato al Monte. History The idea of a burial site near San Miniato was conceived ar ...

, in the family chapel, and is also still remembered among the "martyrs" in the .

Legacy

After his death, Berta was awarded the title of "Martyr of the Fascist Revolution" by the

National Fascist Party The National Fascist Party ( it, Partito Nazionale Fascista, PNF) was a political party in Italy, created by Benito Mussolini as the political expression of Italian Fascism and as a reorganization of the previous Italian Fasces of Combat. The ...

. Commemorative postcards, songs, streets, and public buildings were dedicated to him. In addition, a Libyan town was named after him, currently known as

Al Qubbah Al Qubbah or El Gubba ( ar, القبة) is a town in eastern Libya. Once capital of Quba District (Libya), Quba District. It is the largest populated place between Derna, Libya, Derna, and Bayda, Libya, Bayda. History It was named after Giovanni ...

Stadio Artemio Franchi The Stadio Artemio Franchi is a football stadium in Florence, Italy. It is currently the home of ACF Fiorentina. The old nickname of the stadium was "Comunale." When it was first constructed, it was known as the ''Stadio Giovanni Berta'', after ...

, when it was first constructed in early 1930s, was known as Stadio Giovanni Berta.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Berta, Giovanni Italian fascists 1894 births 1921 deaths Military personnel from Florence