Today, Sunday 2 November, the Italian Ambassador-designate to Kenya, Vincenzo Del Monaco, will attend, together with members of Comites Kenya (Committee of Italians Abroad), religious and military authorities, and other compatriots who wish to remember our fallen soldiers from World War II in Africa, the ceremony in honour of Italian prisoners in Kenya and Duke Amedeo d'Aosta, held at the Nyeri memorial.
The celebration takes place every year in conjunction with, or shortly after, the national holiday of our Armed Forces.
The Italian Military Memorial, located in a town just over two hours from the capital Nairobi, was built by the Italian government between 1950 and 1952 on land granted by the Consolata Missions.
It not only houses the remains of Duke Amedeo D'Aosta, commander of the troops who surrendered to the British army in the Ethiopian mountains of Amba Alagi, but also those of 700 other Italian prisoners who, from 1941 to 1946, were detained in 15 camps in East Africa, mainly in Kenya, and had already been buried in 25 war cemeteries scattered throughout the country.
Inside the memorial, you can read the names of the soldiers who lost their lives during their imprisonment, after being deported and forced into hard labour and conditions that were almost unbearable, with poor hygiene, infectious diseases, insects and animals, and rationed food that was often inedible.
The Duke of Aosta himself, although held in a special prison, Macmillan Castle near Thika, already suffering from tuberculosis, died of malaria.
The Nyeri Memorial, in addition to preserving and displaying the Duke's tomb inside the church and the tombstones of the fallen prisoners, houses part of a monument carved and decorated by Italian prisoners, which the Comites transported from Thika a few years ago, as well as the tombs commemorating the Muslim ascari who were taken prisoner together with the Italians and deported.
From 10 a.m. this morning, the Italians, with their highest diplomatic representative, will attend Mass for the fallen, followed by refreshments for those present in the adjacent rooms of the Consolata missions.