Aldo Gastaldi (17 September 1921 – 21 May 1945) was an

Italian Resistance The Italian Resistance ( ), or simply ''La'' , consisted of all the Italy, Italian Resistance during World War II, resistance groups who fought the occupying forces of Nazi Germany and the fascist collaborationists of the Italian Social Republic ...

leader during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Biography

Gastaldi was born in the Granarolo district of Genoa on September 17, 1921. A passionate hiker and hunter, at the age of 13 he hiked alone to the summit of

Monte Antola Monte Antola (in Ligurian language (Romance), Ligurian ''munte Antua'') is a mountain in Liguria, northern Italy, part of the Ligurian Apennines. Geography The mountain is located between the provinces of province of Genoa, Genoa and provinc ...

with a 12-hour walk. In his youth he played in the

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby union: 15 players per side *** American flag rugby *** Beach rugby *** Mini rugby *** Rugby sevens, 7 players per side *** Rugby tens, 10 players per side *** Snow rugby *** Tou ...

team of his high school and was a

rower Rowing, often called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars (called blades in the United Kingdom) are attached to the boat using rowlocks, while paddles are ...

in the Società Canottieri Genovesi Elpis. After graduating from the Galileo Galilei Institute in Genoa, he worked at

Ansaldo Ansaldo Energia S.p.A. is an Italian power engineering company based in Genoa, Italy. The original parent company, Gio. Ansaldo & C., was founded in 1853, and merged with Finmeccanica in 1993 (now Leonardo S.p.A.). In 2024, the company's share ...

Sestri Ponente Sestri Ponente is an industrial suburb of Genoa in northwest Italy. It is part of the Medio Ponente ''municipio'' of Genoa. Geography It is situated on the Ligurian Sea four miles to the west of the city, between Pegli and Cornigliano. Its po ...

and studied

economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...

at the

University of Genoa The University of Genoa () is a public research university. It is one of the largest universities in Italy and it is located in the city of Genoa, on the Italian Riviera in the Liguria region of northwestern Italy. The original university was fou ...

. During

he was called up for military service at age twenty, assigned to the 15th Engineers Regiment with the rank of second lieutenant and stationed in

Chiavari Chiavari (; ) is a seaside comune (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Genoa, in Italy. It has about 28,000 inhabitants. It has a beachside promenade and a marina and is situated near the river Entella (river), Entella. History Pre-Rom ...

as a radio operator. On 25 July 1943, while on public order service with his platoon on the day of the fall of the Fascist regime, he destroyed the symbols of the

Casa del Fascio A ''casa del Fascio'', ''casa Littoria'', or ''casa del Littorio'' () was a building housing the local branch of the National Fascist Party and later the Republican Fascist Party under the regime of Italian Fascism, in Italy and Italian Empire, i ...

in Chiavari. After the

Armistice of Cassibile The Armistice of Cassibile ( Italian: ''Armistizio di Cassibile'') was an armistice that was signed on 3 September 1943 by Italy and the Allies, marking the end of hostilities between Italy and the Allies during World War II. It was made public ...

he hid his weapons from the Germans near the

Chiavari Castle Chiavari (; ) is a seaside comune (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Genoa, in Italy. It has about 28,000 inhabitants. It has a beachside promenade and a marina and is situated near the river Entella. History Pre-Roman and Roman Era ...

, and in the following weeks he was contacted by members of the

Italian Communist Party The Italian Communist Party (, PCI) was a communist and democratic socialist political party in Italy. It was established in Livorno as the Communist Party of Italy (, PCd'I) on 21 January 1921, when it seceded from the Italian Socialist Part ...

(despite him being a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

), who proposed him to create a partisan group. Thus, in the winter of 1943 the first nucleus of what would become the "Cichero" Partisan Division was born in the mountains around Genoa; Gastaldi, with ''

nom de guerre A ''nom de guerre'' (, 'war name') is a pseudonym chosen by someone to use when they are involved in a particular activity, especially fighting in a war. In Ancien régime, ''ancien régime'' Kingdom of France, France it would be adopted by each n ...

'' "Bisagno", became one of its leaders, leading successful raids on German and Fascist garrisons and sabotage actions on Axis fortifications. In November 1944 he managed to persuade an entire battalion of the

4th Alpine Division "Monterosa" The 4th Alpine Division "Monterosa" () was one of four divisions raised by Mussolini's Italian Social Republic. It existed from 1 January 1944 until 28 April 1945. Name ''Monterosa'' is Italian taken from the name of the Monte Rosa, a mountain ma ...

, the "Vestone", to defect to the Resistance. Monumento di Bisagno a Fascia

A fervent Catholic and firmly nonpartisan, Gastaldi, together with the Communist Giovanni Serbandini, established strict rules of behavior for the men of the Division, known as the "Cichero Code", which all members swore to follow: "During actions and operations the orders of the commanders are to be followed, there will always be an assembly to discuss their conduct; the leader is elected by his companions, he is the first in the most dangerous actions, the last in receiving food and clothing, he has the most tiring guard shift; the peasant population is asked, not forced to give, and possibly paid or reciprocated for what is received; women are not bothered; no blasphemy is allowed". He always opposed the politicization of the Division and of partisan formations, which he saw as divisive and weakening the unity of the partisan struggle against the Germans and Fascists. He died on May 21, 1945, falling from the roof of the cabin of a truck near

Bardolino Bardolino is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Verona in the Italian region Veneto, located about west of Venice and about northwest of Verona. Geography Located on the eastern shore of Lake Garda, Bardolino borders the followi ...

, on the Veronese shore of

Lake Garda Lake Garda (, , or , ; ; ) is the largest lake in Italy. It is a popular holiday location in northern Italy, between Brescia and Milan to the west, and Verona and Venice to the east. The lake cuts into the edge of the Eastern Alps, Italian Alp ...

, while he was accompanying home some former Alpini of the "Vestone" Battalion, to keep the promise he had made to them in November 1944. He was posthumously awarded the

Gold Medal of Military Valor The Gold Medal of Military Valor () 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 face of the medal displayed the profile o ...

. In 2019 he was proclaimed a

Servant of God Servant of God () is a title used in the Catholic Church to indicate that an individual is on the first step toward possible canonization as a saint. Terminology The expression ''Servant of God'' appears nine times in the Bible, the first five in ...

.Servo di Dio Aldo Gastaldi
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gastaldi, Aldo 1921 births 1945 deaths Accidental deaths in Italy Accidental deaths from falls Royal Italian Army personnel killed in World War II Recipients of the Gold Medal of Military Valor Italian resistance movement members Italian partisans