Vittorio Cini, Count of

Monselice Monselice (; vec, Monséłexe ) is a town and municipality (comune) located in northeastern Italy, in the Veneto region, in the province of Padua about southwest of the city of Padua, at the southern edge of the Euganean Hills (''Colli Euganei' ...

(20 February 1885 – 18 September 1977) was an Italian industrialist and politician,

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

from 1934 to 1943 and minister of communications of the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to ...

from February to July 1943. He was among the richest people in Italy in his time.

Biography

The son of Giorgio Cini, a

pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist (Commonwealth English) or a druggist (North American and, archaically, Commonwealth English), is a healthcare professional who prepares, controls and distributes medicines and provides advice and instructi ...

from Ferrara, and of Eugenia Berti, he inherited from his father some

trachyte Trachyte () is an extrusive igneous rock composed mostly of alkali feldspar. It is usually light-colored and aphanitic (fine-grained), with minor amounts of mafic minerals, and is formed by the rapid cooling of lava enriched with silica and al ...

quarries in

Veneto Veneto (, ; vec, Vèneto ) or Venetia is one of the 20 regions of Italy. Its population is about five million, ranking fourth in Italy. The region's capital is Venice while the biggest city is Verona. Veneto was part of the Roman Empire unt ...

and some lands in the Ferrara area. After studying economics and commerce in

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

, he was the first to undertake important reclamation works in Italy (Pineta di Destra and Giussago), wrestling land from the erosion caused by the sea. He also carried out canalization works and designed a network for the inland navigation of the

Po Valley The Po Valley, Po Plain, Plain of the Po, or Padan Plain ( it, Pianura Padana , or ''Val Padana'') is a major geographical feature of Northern Italy. It extends approximately in an east-west direction, with an area of including its Venetic ex ...

. In 1918 he married actress

Lyda Borelli Lyda Cini, Countess of Monselice (née Borelli, 22 March 1884 – 2 June 1959) was an Italian actress of cinema and theatre. Her career in theatre started when she was a child, acting on stage with Paola Pezzaglia in the French drama ''I du ...

, who gave him one son, Giorgio (born in 1918), and three daughters, Minna (born in 1920), Yana and Ylda (twins, born in 1924). After fighting in the

First World War 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 ...

, Cini dedicated himself to enhancing his adopted city,

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

, laying the foundations for the construction of the port of

Marghera Marghera is a ''municipalità'' (borough) of the ''comune'' of Venice, Italy. It includes the industrial area known as Porto Marghera (English: Marghera Port) or Venezia Porto Marghera. Etymology The name Marghera is said in popular myth to come ...

. In the period between the two wars Cini, along with his fraternal friend

Giuseppe Volpi Giuseppe Volpi, 1st Count of Misrata (19 November 1877 – 16 November 1947) was an Italian businessman and politician. Count Volpi developed utilities which brought electricity to Venice, northeast Italy, and the Balkans by 1903. In 1911� ...

, was one of the main exponents of the so-called "Venetian group" of businesspeople, of which he was considered the "financial mind". His business activities developed mainly in the financial, steel, electrical, maritime, tourism and insurance sectors. He was later entrusted with the management of the

Ilva ILVA is a Denmark, Danish chain of furniture stores, offering mostly Scandinavian-style bedroom, bed-, dining room, dining- and living room products. The company was founded in 1974, and currently runs eight stores in the Nordic countries. It als ...

steelworks, which was in poor economic conditions. He served on the board of directors of

SADE Sade may refer to: People * Marquis de Sade (1740–1814), French aristocrat, writer, and libertine * Sade (singer) (born 1959, Helen Folasade Adu), British Nigerian musician and lead singer of the eponymous band * Sade Baderinwa (born 1969), WAB ...

from 1924 to 1943, and from 1936 to 1943 he was Commissioner-General of the

Universal Exposition A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition or an expo, is a large international exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specif ...

of Rome, which however never took place due to the outbreak of

World War II 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 ...

. In the same period he also joined 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 ...

, becoming a Senator in 1934. On 16 May 1940 he was awarded the title of Count of

. In February 1943 Cini was appointed minister of communications by

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 ...

, but he resigned after six months due to profound differences with the dictator (on 19 June 1943, during the last cabinet meeting, he had confronted the ''Duce'' and told him that it was necessary to find a time and a way to withdraw from the war). After the

armistice of Cassibile The Armistice of Cassibile was an armistice signed on 3 September 1943 and made public on 8 September between the Kingdom of Italy and the Allies during World War II. It was signed by Major General Walter Bedell Smith for the Allies and Brig ...

he was arrested by the Germans in Rome and imprisoned in the

Dachau concentration camp , , commandant = List of commandants , known for = , location = Upper Bavaria, Southern Germany , built by = Germany , operated by = ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) , original use = Political prison , construction ...

; his son Giorgio, having sold the jewels of his mother, bribed the SS commanders and secured his release, after which he escaped to Switzerland, where he was reunited with Volpi, who had also fled there. While in Switzerland, Cini and Volpi became friends with members of the future

Christian Democracy 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 ...

. After the death in a flight accident of his son Giorgio in 1949, Cini withdrew completely from business and politics for a few years, dedicating his life to works of philanthropy. He obtained a concession from the state for an entire island,

San Giorgio Maggiore San Giorgio Maggiore ( vec, San Zorzi Mazor) is one of the islands of Venice, northern Italy, lying east of the Giudecca and south of the main island group. The island, or more specifically its Palladian church, is an important landmark. It ha ...

, in front of the shore of

Piazza San Marco Piazza San Marco (; vec, Piasa San Marco), often known in English as St Mark's Square, is the principal public square of Venice, Italy, where it is generally known just as ''la Piazza'' ("the Square"). All other urban spaces in the city (exc ...

, and after having financed the important necessary restoration work, he established the

Cini Foundation The Giorgio Cini Foundation (''Italian: Fondazione Giorgio Cini''), or just Cini Foundation, is a cultural foundation founded 20 April 1951 in memory of Giorgio Cini, an Italian entrepreneur who died in August 1949. History The Foundation is loca ...

, a center of art and culture, home to institutes for professional preparation and training of young people for life on the sea. Following the profound spiritual crisis due to the death of his son, he moved away from the

Freemasonry Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

of Ferrara, which he had frequented for a long time, and approached the

Jesuit order , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders = ...

. In 1953, after the death of the president of SADE Achille Gaggia, a close and faithful collaborator of Volpi and of the "Venetian group", Cini assumed the presidency of the company, which was nationalized in 1962-1963, and held it until the incorporation of Sade into Montecatini, decided in August 1964 and carried out in 1966. As president of SADE from 1953 to 1964, during the period of the design and construction of the

Vajont dam The Vajont Dam (or Vaiont Dam) is a disused dam in northern Italy. It is one of the tallest dams in the world, with a height of . It is in the valley of the Vajont River under Monte Toc, in the municipality of Erto e Casso, north of Venice. ...

and the subsequent

Vajont disaster The Vajont Dam (or Vaiont Dam) is a disused dam in northern Italy. It is one of the tallest dams in the world, with a height of . It is in the valley of the Vajont River under Monte Toc, in the municipality of Erto e Casso, north of Venice. ...

, he was called to testify during the trial that followed. In the trial, however, he was recognized as having no responsibility in the disaster, due to his purely financial role within SADE. He died in Venice on 18 September 1977 and was buried in the

monumental cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...

of the

Certosa di Ferrara Ferrara Charterhouse ( it, Certosa di Ferrara), of which the present Church of San Cristoforo alla Certosa was previously the monastic church, is a former Charterhouse (monastery), charterhouse or Carthusian monastery built in Renaissance architect ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cini, Vittorio 20th-century Italian businesspeople 1885 births 1977 deaths Government ministers of Italy Mussolini Cabinet Italian military personnel of World War I Members of the Senate of the Kingdom of Italy Counts of Italy National Fascist Party politicians