Raffaele Marcenaro
Raffaele was Genoese, born in the district of Pegli in 1924. He moved to Sesto San Giovanni in 1938 with his parents and sister and, after escaping military conscription, was hired in 1942 at Breda (Section IV) as an administrative clerk. After September 8, 1943, the situation became more critical for everyone. A comrade recounts:
"During that period at Breda, there were many alarms and we had the chance to talk, to exchange ideas; after a while, we understood that we had to do something, to form a partisan group. The older workers were already distributing flyers, and so we began our partisan training."
Raffaele thus joined the 55th Rosselli Brigade. He was captured near Lecco by the German SD (Sicherheitsdienst) of Como on October 21, 1944; these were the first arrests against the newly formed partisan groups. He entered San Vittore prison, and on November 20, he was handed over to the German wing for deportation; the following day, he was in the Italian transit camp of Bolzano.
He wrote several notes to reassure his family: "As you can see, I am not leaving you without news of me, especially because I know how anxiously you wait for it. Slowly, I am getting used to this new life, and my health is excellent." Instead, on December 14, he departed for Mauthausen. In early January, he was transferred to Melk, one of the largest satellite camps of Mauthausen, used for the underground production of weapons. Nearly 5,000 prisoners lost their lives there: Raffaele, at only 21 years of age, died there on March 15—after only three months—from "heart failure."
"During that period at Breda, there were many alarms and we had the chance to talk, to exchange ideas; after a while, we understood that we had to do something, to form a partisan group. The older workers were already distributing flyers, and so we began our partisan training."
Raffaele thus joined the 55th Rosselli Brigade. He was captured near Lecco by the German SD (Sicherheitsdienst) of Como on October 21, 1944; these were the first arrests against the newly formed partisan groups. He entered San Vittore prison, and on November 20, he was handed over to the German wing for deportation; the following day, he was in the Italian transit camp of Bolzano.
He wrote several notes to reassure his family: "As you can see, I am not leaving you without news of me, especially because I know how anxiously you wait for it. Slowly, I am getting used to this new life, and my health is excellent." Instead, on December 14, he departed for Mauthausen. In early January, he was transferred to Melk, one of the largest satellite camps of Mauthausen, used for the underground production of weapons. Nearly 5,000 prisoners lost their lives there: Raffaele, at only 21 years of age, died there on March 15—after only three months—from "heart failure."