Lapide Martiri di Campo di Marte

In the heart of Mugello, where the land speaks of work, effort, and hope, the Circolo 12 Maggio delle Caselle, in the municipality of Vicchio, preserves a plaque that tells a story of sacrifice and struggle. It is not just a piece of marble embedded in a wall, but a warning engraved in the collective memory, a tangible sign of a pain that has never faded. Here, during the Second World War, the Nazi-Fascist occupation left deep wounds. The Caselle area was one of the many scenarios where the resistance clashed with the enemy's violence. The woods, the farmhouses, the paths that cross these hills were the stage for clashes between the partisan brigades and the Nazi-Fascist army, which reacted with ruthless reprisals against the civilian population. It is in this context that the fate of Aleandro Corona, Ottorino Quiti, Antonio Raddi, Adriano Santoni, and Guido Targetti was sealed. Men of the people, young individuals who worked in the fields and workshops, but who did not succumb to fear. Accused of collaborating with the partisans, they were captured, sentenced to death, and shot in March 1944 at Campo di Marte, in Florence. An exemplary execution, an act of terror with which the Nazi-Fascists sought to break the local resistance. However, that violence failed to erase their choice of dignity and courage. The plaque, with its engraved words, is now a testament to this sacrifice. It reminds us that those five men were torn from their loved ones, from their land, but they never betrayed their ideals. Freedom, democracy, peace: simple words that then meant risking one's life. And today, thanks to that sacrifice, they represent a legacy to be preserved. Vicchio does not forget. Every year, the community gathers in front of that stone to pay tribute to those who gave their lives for a better future.

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