The War

The Senio Valley was a dramatic scenario during the last months of the second world war.
The Gothic Line was the extreme deutsche line of defence against the allied army on the italian front and was running along the valley during the 1944/45 winter.

British 8th Army of General Alexander was collecting a variety of units and ethnic groups coming from the whole Commonwealth: it was including polish units and Italian units (the Friuli Brigade has its war cemetery not far from Rio Manzolo, near the village of Zattaglia). On the other side the Wermarcht deutsche divisions of General Kesselring, near to the end but still pugnacious, were drawn.

During those months Rio Manzolo was in the contended zone between the opposite forces and witnessed bloody fights, ambushes, tank storming and bombing. On the north front of the owner's building signs of a grenade is still visible. A small exposition of 2nd World war finds of the area is shown