Vincenzo Magliocco (1 January 1893 – 27 June 1936) was a Sicilian

general A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

and aviator of the Italian Royal Air Force and former soldier of the Royal Italian Army.

Biography

Magliocco was born on 1 January 1893 in Palermo,

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. He would study in his home town and achieve a degree in

legal theory Jurisprudence, or legal theory, is the theoretical study of the propriety of law. Scholars of jurisprudence seek to explain the nature of law in its most general form and they also seek to achieve a deeper understanding of legal reasoning ...

. In 1915 Magliocco enlisted in the Royal Italian Army as an artillery officer, joining the 29th Field Artillery

Regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscript ...

. Later that year he was promoted to Sub-lieutenant, and would join a

mountain artillery Mountain guns are artillery pieces designed for use in mountain warfare and areas where usual wheeled transport is not possible. They are generally capable of being taken apart to make smaller loads for transport by horses, humans, mules, tractor ...

unit stationed on the Col di Lana, with whom he would fight during the outbreak of

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 ...

. Due to his merits in the war, Magliocco was promoted to Lieutenant in 1917, and, upon his request, was sent to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

where he studied aviation in Centocelle for three months. He would return to combat in May as an "Airplane Observer," and earn one Bronze and two

Silver Silver is a chemical element with the symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical ...

Medals of Military Valor. In June of 1923, Magliocco was promoted to Captain and assigned to a Reconnaissance Aviation Center stationed in

Parma Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, music, art, prosciutto (ham), cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 inhabitants, Parma is the second mos ...

. In November of that year, he would join the Regia Aeronautica, the newly established Italian Royal Air Force. He would later be promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1929, and later, in 1932, he became a

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

. In 1934 Magliocco, a fascist supporter, was sent by the Italian government to

Italian East Africa Italian East Africa ( it, Africa Orientale Italiana, AOI) was an Italian colony in the Horn of Africa. It was formed in 1936 through the merger of Italian Somalia, Italian Eritrea, and the newly occupied Ethiopian Empire, conquered in the S ...

to manage air bases in the colony due to worsening relations with the

Ethiopian Empire The Ethiopian Empire (), also formerly known by the exonym Abyssinia, or just simply known as Ethiopia (; Amharic and Tigrinya: ኢትዮጵያ , , Oromo: Itoophiyaa, Somali: Itoobiya, Afar: ''Itiyoophiyaa''), was an empire that histori ...

. While there, Magliocco became a close collaborator of General

Rodolfo Graziani Rodolfo Graziani, 1st Marquis of Neghelli (; 11 August 1882 – 11 January 1955), was a prominent Italian military officer in the Kingdom of Italy's '' Regio Esercito'' ("Royal Army"), primarily noted for his campaigns in Africa before and durin ...

who would elevate him to the rank of

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

and make him a knight of the

Military Order of Savoy The Military Order of Savoy was a military honorary order of the Kingdom of Sardinia first, and of the Kingdom of Italy later. Following the abolition of the Italian monarchy, the order became the Military Order of Italy. History The origin o ...

. His role during the

Second Italo-Ethiopian War The Second Italo-Ethiopian War, also referred to as the Second Italo-Abyssinian War, was a war of aggression which was fought between Italy and Ethiopia from October 1935 to February 1937. In Ethiopia it is often referred to simply as the Itali ...

, would become infamous for his use of mustard gas against the Ethiopians.

Death

On 26 June 1936 Magliocco, serving as Deputy Chief of the Italian Royal Air Force and Deputy Viceroy of

Italian Ethiopia Italian Ethiopia ( it, Etiopia italiana), also known as the Italian Empire of Ethiopia, was the territory of the Ethiopian Empire which was occupied by Italy for approximately five years. Italian Ethiopia was not an administrative entity, but the ...

, flew out of the airbase at

Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the 2007 census, t ...

, leading two

Caproni Ca.133 The Caproni Ca.133 was a three-engined transport/bomber aircraft used by the Italian ''Regia Aeronautica'' from the Second Italo-Abyssinian War until World War II. Originally developed as a civilian airliner and successor to the Ca.101, the ...

bombers and a IMAM Ro.1 reconnaissance aircraft, in order to meet with local leaders at Lechemti. The squadron, which contained thirteen Italian officials, including the general, was charged with ensuring the loyalty of the town. After landing the Italians set up camp around the aircraft, but were then ambushed on the night of 27 June 1936 by the

Arbegnoch The Arbegnoch () were Ethiopian resistance fighters in Italian East Africa from 1936 until 1941. They were known to the Italians as shifta. Organisation The Patriot movement was mostly based in the rural Shewa, Gondar and Gojjam provinces, ...

, Ethiopian guerilla fighters while in the Welega district. Magliocco died alongside the other members of the squadron, which included Antonio Locatelli. The only survivor of the Italian representatives was Father Borello, a

catholic priest The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers only ...

who joined them to serve as a

guide A guide is a person who leads travelers, sportspeople, or tourists through unknown or unfamiliar locations. The term can also be applied to a person who leads others to more abstract goals such as knowledge or wisdom. Travel and recreation Ex ...

. Following what would become known as the "Lechemti Massacre," a retaliatory bombing campaign of the area for these losses, several of the men who died were posthumously awarded the

Gold Medal of Military Valour The Gold Medal of Military Valour ( it, Medaglia d'oro al valor militare) is an Italian medal established on 21 May 1793 by King Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia for deeds of outstanding gallantry in war by junior officers and soldiers. The fac ...

, including Vincenzo Magliocco.

Legacy

The

bombers were burned in the aftermath of the attack. The next day it was decided that one of the bombers would be converted to serve as a

war memorial A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war. Symbolism Historical usage It has ...

for the fallen men. In the same year of Magliocco's death, 1936, the Magliocco Aerodromo was dedicated and named in his honor as the first Sicilian to become a general officer in the

Italian Air Force , colours = , colours_label = , march = (Ordinance March of the Air Force) by Alberto Di Miniello , mascot = , anniversaries = 28 March ...

. It would serve as a major airfield during

WWII World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

until allied bombing rendered it unusable. The airport would be renamed on 7 June 2014 after

Pio La Torre Pio La Torre (; 24 December 1927 – 30 April 1982) was a leader of the Italian Communist Party (''Partito Comunista Italiano'', PCI). He was killed by the Mafia after he initiated a law that introduced a new crime in the Italian legal system, maf ...

. There are also streets in Palermo and

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

named after Magliocco that have drawn criticism due to his support of

fascism Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy an ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Magliocco, Vincenzo 1893 births 1936 deaths Military personnel from Palermo Italian military personnel of World War I Military aviators Italian fascists Italian military personnel of the Second Italo-Ethiopian War Italian Air Force generals Brigadier generals Recipients of the Bronze Medal of Military Valor Recipients of the Silver Medal of Military Valor Recipients of the Gold Medal of Military Valor Knights of the Military Order of Savoy