Rodolfo Graziani Monument in Affile

A mausoleum inaugurated in August 2012 in the town of Affile, located in metropolitan Rome, has been subject to vandalism and protests by various anti-fascist groups. While the local right-wing mayor, Ercole Viri, claims that the publicly funded mausoleum was commissioned to honour Italian war veterans, the structure appears to be a monument to Rodolfo Graziani, a controversial figurehead within the Italian fascist regime and a notorious military leader complicit in Italy’s colonial history in Libya and the conquest of Ethiopia. The controversy surrounding the mausoleum led to the eventual withdrawal of funds by the centre-left regional government and the sentencing of Viri to eight months in prison, albeit his conviction was overturned in 2020. Protests against the mausoleum are ongoing. This case study explores the continuous debate around Italy’s relation with its fascist past.