Place:

Montebenichi (Bucine)

Province:

Arezzo

Region:

Toscana

Assistance provided:

Food, shelter, and medical care

Prisoners helped:

Frank Unwin Liverpool Territorial Army, Royal Artillery and other unidentified English escapees
Leggi la storia di Frank Unwin

Start date:

September 1943

End date:

Spring 1944

Other helpers involved:

Famiglia Pieraccini, Vittorio Sbardellati, Valentino Giovannini

Description:

The Landi family, in collaboration with other local families, took care of Frank Unwin, who had escaped from PG. 82 in Laterina, until the spring of 1944. During his stay in Montebenichi, from where he travelled daily to visit nearby villages, the English soldier became a keen observer of the community’s customs and traditions, actively participating in village life and avoiding several encounters with Germans who occasionally came to the area searching for escaped prisoners. After the war, Frank returned several times to visit those who had helped him.

Bibliography:

A. Copley, The Girl with a Peach. Courage and compassion in wartime Italy,Monte San martino Trust, London, 2024 - F. Unwin, Escaping has ceased to be a sport, Pen & Sword, Barnsley, 2018

Archival sources:

NARA, Records of Allied Operational and Occupation Headquarters, World War II Claim, Series (RG. 331), Claim n° 32.165