80th Anniversary of the Italian Armistice

Servigliano in Le Marche, 8th September 2023

80 years after my father was released from POW Camp PG 49 at Fontanellato near Parma, I was fortunate to attend this 80th Anniversary, held in Servigliano in Le Marche, organised by the Monte San Martino Trust, in conjunction with the World War II Escape Lines Memorial Society (E.L.M.S.) and the Casa Della Memoria Society.

It was an extremely hot autumn day in Europe, for someone recently arrived from the southern hemisphere winter! But while the occasion was based around the stories of those Allied POW’s from this Camp (one of hundreds all over Italy) after they were released into the Italian countryside, it nonetheless gave me an insight into the difficulties and hardships these men faced after finding themselves as free men behind enemy lines.

Amongst the many dignitaries who started proceedings were, on the left, the British Ambassador to Italy, His Excellency The Honourable Lord Edward Llewelyn OBE, and, on the right, Sir Nicholas Young (Chairman and Trustee).

Whilst we were all heading off to be given a tour of the site of PG 59, I managed to introduce myself to Nick, whose father had written a diary during his travels through Italy after the prisoners were released into the Italian countryside, with a short and very brief statement entered on Saturday 18th September 1943, “Willis and another passed through….”

One of the more poignant moments for me, was seeing the hole in the wall through which our great benefactor, Keith Killby had escaped at the time of the Armistice. Keith is recognised as being the one person who cared for and collated information about, not only the stories of all these Allied soldiers, but also the Italian families who sheltered, fed and sustained these men as well as helping them reach Allied lines to the south and safety to the north.

Also attending the Anniversary were many people who I had communicated with over the last couple of years, including Anne Copley, John Simkins and his wife Maggie and of course Dennis Hill from the USA, the very man who had helped and encouraged me to write this Blog, having been so impressed with his own site, now some 15 years in the making – Camp 59 Survivors