Monument to the Fallen of Africa

Designed in 1938 by Romano Romanelli, this monument was intended for the city of Addis Ababa, in memory of the Italian colonial campaign of 1935-36. Described as a mission of civilisation and economic expansion, the colonial war was accompanied by the application of the racist laws and military violence perpetrated by the soldiers of Generals Rodolfo Graziani and Pietro Badoglio.

The monument, made of Carrara marble and white stone, takes the shape of a ship. The names of locations in the Horn of Africa where the fighting took place are engraved on the back. Six bronze statues represent the Italian military corps that participated in the colonial war, the àscari (indigenous troops), and the Italian workers in Africa.

The events of the war and the subsequent loss of the colonies meant it could not be transported to Addis Ababa. It was left abandoned for many years in depots and warehouses and suffered looting and partial destruction. In 1952, the decision was made to relocate it to Siracusa, which had been a strategic port for operations in East Africa. Romanelli himself identified the appropriate site, Piazza dei Cappuccini, a square overlooking the sea, and decided to position the monument with the ship’s bow facing East Africa.

A symbol of Italy’s colonial past, the monument, which has been defaced and vandalised several times, finds itself at the centre of conflict and a heated debate, and politicians of the extreme right have committed to its protection and preservation, a campaign rich in political significance.