Francesco de Martini (; 9 August 1903 – 26 November 1981) was an Italian officer of the Military Information Service (''

Servizio Informazioni Militare The Italian Military Information Service (, or SIM) was the military intelligence organization for the Royal Army (''Regio Esercito'') of the Kingdom of Italy (''Regno d'Italia'') from 1925 until 1944. The SIM was Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini ...

'', or SIM) in

Eritrea Eritrea, officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa, with its capital and largest city being Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia in the Eritrea–Ethiopia border, south, Sudan in the west, and Dj ...

, when the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

invaded

Italian East Africa Italian East Africa (, A.O.I.) was a short-lived colonial possession of Fascist Italy from 1936 to 1941 in the Horn of Africa. It was established following the Second Italo-Ethiopian War, which led to the military occupation of the Ethiopian ...

during World War II. He enlisted as a private in the

Royal Italian Army The Royal Italian Army () (RE) was the land force of the Kingdom of Italy, established with the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy. During the 19th century Italy started to unify into one country, and in 1861 Manfredo Fanti signed a decree c ...

in 1923, and left active service as brigadier general and the most decorated soldier of the

Royal Italian Army during World War II The Royal Italian Army ( Italian: ''Regio Esercito'') was the land forces of the Kingdom of Italy during World War II, it was active from 1940 until the end of the war in 1945. During the war, a total about 2.56 million conscripts and volunteers ...

Historical background

Many Italians fought a guerrilla war in Italian East Africa after the surrender at

Gondar Gondar, also spelled Gonder (Amharic: ጎንደር, ''Gonder'' or ''Gondär''; formerly , ''Gʷandar'' or ''Gʷender''), is a city and woreda in Ethiopia. Located in the North Gondar Zone of the Amhara Region, Gondar is north of Lake Tana on ...

of the last regular Italian forces in November 1941. They fought in the hope of an Italian victory with the help of

Rommel Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel (; 15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944), popularly known as The Desert Fox (, ), was a German ''Generalfeldmarschall'' (field marshal) during World War II. He served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of N ...

in Egypt and the Mediterranean, which would originate a possible return of the

Axis An axis (: axes) may refer to: Mathematics *A specific line (often a directed line) that plays an important role in some contexts. In particular: ** Coordinate axis of a coordinate system *** ''x''-axis, ''y''-axis, ''z''-axis, common names ...

in Eastern Africa.

Early life

De Martini was born in

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

, which was then part of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

, son of Antonio de Martini, an Italian engineer who worked at the construction of the never completed Berlin-Baghdad railway line and Sofia Mokadié. He accomplished his studies at the National College in Lebanon.

Enlistment in Italian army

In 1923 he was conscripted by the Italian army and sent to Rome to train in the newly created tank regiment. In 1927

Prince Luigi Amedeo, Duke of the Abruzzi Prince Luigi Amedeo, Duke of the Abruzzi, (29 January 1873 – 18 March 1933) was an Italian mountaineer and explorer, briefly Infante of Spain as son of Amadeo I of Spain, member of the royal House of Savoy and cousin of the Italian King Vic ...

sent as a gift an Italian tank

Fiat 3000 The Fiat 3000 was the first tank to be produced in series in Italy. It became the standard tank of the emerging Italian armored units after World War I. The 3000 was based on the French Renault FT. History Although 1,400 units were ordered, with ...

Ras Tafari Haile Selassie I (born Tafari Makonnen or '' Lij'' Tafari; 23 July 189227 August 1975) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. He rose to power as the Regent Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia (') under Empress Zewditu between 1916 and 1930. Wide ...

. De Martini had the task to deliver and train the Ethiopians in the use of it. After defending with his tank

from a '' coup d'etat'' organised by the followers of Empress

Zewditu Zewditu (, born Askala Maryam; 29 April 1876 – 2 April 1930) was Empress of Ethiopia from 1916 until her death in 1930. She was officially renamed Zewditu at the beginning of her reign as Empress of Ethiopia. Once she succeeded the throne af ...

, he was appointed as commanding officer of the imperial guard. On request of the Italian High Command, he spent 8 years in

Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; ,) is the capital city of Ethiopia, as well as the regional state of Oromia. With an estimated population of 2,739,551 inhabitants as of the 2007 census, it is the largest city in the country and the List of cities in Africa b ...

, joining again the Italian army in

, just before the invasion of Ethiopia. He fought in the

Second Italo-Ethiopian War The Second Italo-Ethiopian War, also referred to as the Second Italo-Abyssinian War, was a war of aggression waged by Fascist Italy, Italy against Ethiopian Empire, Ethiopia, which lasted from October 1935 to February 1937. In Ethiopia it is oft ...

with the "Banda irregolare di Beilul", an irregular colonial band, and was awarded with a silver medal for bravery on the field and promoted officer by war merit.

Service during World War II

After being commissioned as a lieutenant, De Martini was again assigned to Ethiopia as part of the XI Colonial Brigade to fight against the Ethiopian guerrillas and was awarded with a bronze medal. Immediately after the start of the war, the Italian Military Information Service called him back since he could fluently speak Arabic, Turkish and

Amharic Amharic is an Ethio-Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amhara people, and also serves as a lingua franca for all other metropolitan populati ...

In the first months of 1941, he fought in the East African Campaign in

Assab Assab or Aseb (, ) is a port city in the Southern Red Sea Region of Eritrea. It is situated on the west coast of the Red Sea. Languages spoken in Assab are predominantly Afar language, Afar, Tigrinya language, Tigrinya, and Arabic. After the Ita ...

and Dankalia (southern Eritrea), where he was captured when severely ill with

malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...

by a British patrol, but a week later he managed to escape from the hospital of the Dessié. He decided, in accordance with his commander Colonel Alessandro Bruttini to go to Saudi Arabia in order to report the situation to Rome through the Italian consulate in Jeddah. Returning to Eritrea, on 1 August 1941 Lieutenant De Martini blew up a British ammunition dump in

Massaua Massawa or Mitsiwa ( ) is a port city in the Northern Red Sea region of Eritrea, located on the Red Sea at the northern end of the Gulf of Zula beside the Dahlak Archipelago. It has been a historically important port for many centuries. Massaw ...

(Eritrea). After crossing the Red Sea in the motorboat ''Zam Zam'', De Martini fled to

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

. He made contact with the Italian consulate in that country, and from the

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

i coast organized a group of Eritrean sailors (with small boats called ''sambuco'') in order to identify, and notify

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

with his radio, of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

movements throughout the

Red Sea The Red Sea is a sea inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. Its connection to the ocean is in the south, through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden. To its north lie the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and th ...

. Major Max Harari, head of British intelligence, offered a reward for his capture. On 1 August 1942, while attempting to come back to Eritrea, De Martini was captured on Dahlak Island by sailors from HMS ''Arpha'' and imprisoned in Sudan.

After the war

De Martini returned to Italy on 19 January 1946 after almost four years in a British POW camp, and rejoined the SIM. His first task was to contact the Ethiopian Ambassador in Washington, during a brief visit to

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

, with the purpose of reestablishing diplomatic relations between Italy and Ethiopia. After the end of World War II, Lieutenant Francesco De Martini received the

Gold Medal of Military Valour 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 ...

, was also awarded with "Ordine Militare d'Italia" and received a second promotion to captain for war merits.Goggiam settentrionale (Etiopia). Aprile-dicembre 1940, Decreto del Capo provvisorio dello Stato 18.12.1947. Registrato alla Corte dei Conti il 30.12.1947, reg. n°27 foglio 91 He died in

Grottaferrata Grottaferrata () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, situated on the lower slopes of the Alban Hills, southeast of Rome. It has grown up around the Abbey of Santa Maria di Grottaferrata, founded in 1004. N ...

in 1981, aged 78.

Notes

Bibliography

* * * Ilari, Virgilio. "Francesco Di Martini. La resistenza italiana in AOI e il mancato appoggio all'insurrezione iraqena (1941)", in Virgilio Ilari (ed.), ''Italy on the Rimland. Storia militare di una Penisola eurasiatica''. Vol. II. Rome. Società Italiana di Storia Militare-Nadir Media. 2019. pp. 225–234. {{DEFAULTSORT:Martini, Francesco De De Martini People of Italian Eritrea Ethiopia in World War II De Martini 1903 births 1981 deaths Military personnel from Damascus Italian expatriates in the Ottoman Empire