General Antonio Cesaretti report to the RE General Staff 1944

Important original document of the time, it is the defensive report of Brigadier General Antonio Cesaretti,
 Commander of the MACERATA Brigade, stationed in Yugoslavia during the war, for his behavior during
 the infamy of 8 September 1943.

It is very interesting to read his defense, follow the facts and the events and orders received by 
the General before and after September 8th.

First of all, between the lines, it is clear that some high ranks of the Army were aware of what 
was about to happen .... in fact, General Cesaretti writes that before 8 September General Gardina Vincenzo
 had sent very precise provisions to some Commands such as :

- lighten the Corps of the Army, the departments, so that the departments could be months in condition
 to move for "campaign operations" and give "with regular reports" materials and works not transportable
 to the Croatian Army .... and fall back to Delnice, from Ogulin where the brigade was stationed, in practice
 a half retreat to have the troops then in Trieste and then in Italy.

From the day 8 September when the General receives the first phone call at 19.00 in the evening the 
situation evolves and the General organizes a sort of resistance, on the 9 September the first curious 
fact happens, the General receives the order to make contact with the Yugolsavi partisans and consider
 them "friends and allies".

From 10 September the situation becomes complicated as the General no longer knowing who to relate to,
 finds himself having to defend the Brigade from the Germans, from the Ustashas and in practice also from
 the partisans who pretend to be armed with the same Italians from whom they ask for rifles, ammunition. ,
 bombs etc etc.

From here the relationship continues until his arrival in Fiume on 13 September where he meets 
General Gambara who appoints him Intendant of the Piaza di Fiume for the reorganization of the 
5th Army Corps as all the other Commanders had vanished into thin air.

In Rijeka, the German Command actually took the situation into account and proclaimed that all the
 generals who had consgenated their arms to the Croatian partisans would be shot and arrested 
General Gardina Vincenzo.

From here begins the Italian-style drama, where the Germans ask the Italians, the Commanders, to join
 the river defense but "ours" decline and ask to be repatriated to Trieste, which General Cesaretti
 also did.

From Trieste the report describes his troubles in reaching the southern Italian front to reunite 
with the Monarchists.