Ather Capelli (31 October 1902 – 31 March 1944) was an Italian

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

. Capelli joined the

Italian Fascist Party The National Fascist Party (, PNF) was a political party in Italy, created by Benito Mussolini as the political expression of Italian fascism and as a reorganisation of the previous Fasci Italiani di Combattimento, Italian Fasces of Combat. Th ...

as a young man and participated in the

March on Rome The March on Rome () was an organized mass demonstration in October 1922 which resulted in Benito Mussolini's National Fascist Party (, PNF) ascending to power in the Kingdom of Italy. In late October 1922, Fascist Party leaders planned a march ...

. In the 1920s and 1930s he collaborated with numerous newspapers and wrote plays and theatrical works that were staged by the amateur dramatic company Sursumcorda. At this time he also participated in several military operations in eastern Africa, where he was seriously wounded. After the entry of Italy into the

Second World War 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 ...

he requested to be permitted to enlist in the

Italian army The Italian Army ( []) is the Army, land force branch of the Italian Armed Forces. The army's history dates back to the Italian unification in the 1850s and 1860s. The army fought in colonial engagements in China and Italo-Turkish War, Libya. It ...

, but his offer was rejected due to his serious disability. Thus he continued his journalism, ultimately joining the editorial staff of the

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

newspaper''

Gazzetta del Popolo ''Gazzetta del Popolo'' was an Italian daily newspaper founded in Turin, in northern Italy, on 16 June 1848. It ceased publication on 31 December 1983 after 135 years of operation. Italian novelist Alberto Moravia Alberto Pincherle (; 28 Nove ...

''. He supported the Fascist

Italian Social Republic The Italian Social Republic (, ; RSI; , ), known prior to December 1943 as the National Republican State of Italy (; SNRI), but more popularly known as the Republic of Salò (, ), was a List of World War II puppet states#Germany, German puppe ...

after the 3 September 1943

armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from t ...

between Italy and the Allies. On 20 September 1943 he became the editor of the ''Gazzetta del Popolo''. After 17 January 1944 he was also editor of the weekly ''Illustrazione del Popolo'', a supplement to the ''Gazzetta del Popolo''. On 31 March 1944 he was killed by partisans Giovanni Pesce and Giuseppe Bravin, who lay in wait for him near his residence. Pesce, the head of the Patriotic Action Group (GAP) of Turin, recalled the attack in his memoirs, in which he labelled Capelli as "one of the most despicable figures in the Fascist propaganda apparatus" and "the bloodthirsty inciter of reprisals." To retaliate for his killing, on 2 April 1944 in the Via Morghen in Turin, five prisoners were shot: Domenico Binelli, Angelo Caligaris, Domenico Cane, Ferdinando Conti, and Giuseppe Igonetti.Pietro Malvezzi and Giovanni Pirelli, eds., ''Lettere di condannati a morte della Resistenza italiana (8 settembre 1943 - 25 aprile 1945)'' etters from the condemned of the Italian Resistance, 8 September 1943 - 25 April 1945 16th ed., Turin, Einaudi, 2003

952 Year 952 (Roman numerals, CMLII) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Summer – At the Imperial Diet (Holy Roman Empire), Reichstag in Augsburg (assembled by King Otto I (Holy Roman ...

p. 65, . The First Black Brigade, founded in Turin on 19 July 1944 and led by Giuseppe Solaro, was named for Capelli in his honor.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Capelli, Ather 1902 births 1944 deaths Assassinated Italian people Italian male journalists People of the Italian Social Republic 20th-century Italian journalists 20th-century Italian male writers Italian civilians killed in World War II People assassinated in the 20th century