Very few people know about the importance that the castle of Montegufoni has had in the rescue operation of hundreds of Medieval and Renaissance masterpieces during the Second World War. Actually, the third episode of National Geographic’s “Nazi World War” program describes and examines this fact in depth and I suggest you to check the TV schedule of your country to watch it!
In 1942 war had already started since two years and Italy was facing the most problematic and arduous period. Allied air raids over the main cities became a real and serious threat so authorities began to consider the necessity of saving the works of art stored in the most important museums, especially those in Florence. They decided to move the most valuable masterpieces to the castles and villas found in the countryside, in order to put them in safe places, away from military or bombing targets. This choice was tough and ambitious, there was no certainty about the achievement of the operation and this worried the directors of the museums and the other authorities.
As the Castle of Montegufoni had an isolated position 20 kilometers away from Florence, it was chosen as one of the main destinations. In November 1942, more than 260 masterpieces were moved in the building from the Uffizi, the Accademia, the Bargello, the Palatine Gallery, the San Marco and the Santa Maria Novella museums. Some of these works were the ”Annunciazione” by Filippo Lippi, the ’”Adorazione dei Magi” by Ghirlandaio, the “Maestà di Ognissanti” by Giotto and the “Primavera” by Botticelli.They were stowed in the castle’s rooms and some old black-and-white photographs portray them leaned against the walls, next to the ordinary furniture.
Everything was fine until summer 1944, when the front passed from Montegufoni: the German army in withdrawal was rising the peninsula destroying everything it found, damaging properties, goods and committing crimes against the Italian population. A unit of German paratroopers occupied the castle in order to use it as a defensive fortress. The Commander needed space and he ordered to clear the corridors from all the works of art they had been filled with, demanding to the farmer (who had assumed the responsibility to safekeep the works) to set them on fire in the castle’s inner court. It could turn into a tragedy causing the loss of a humanity heritage, but the farmer didn’t lose his courage: he used the famous Chianti wine to get the German soldiers drunk, so that they forgot to destroy the masterpieces and left the castle some days later.
When the Allied arrived, they realized how important the paintings were and a group of “Monuments Men” came along: these soldiers were designated to protect and safeguard the works of art from Nazi wrath and they’ve been represented in a recent film starring George Clooney. The important discovery even encouraged General Alexander, an important senior British Army officer, to visit the castle.
A few months later all the works were repositioned in the museums they came from and where millions of visitors see them every year. Unfortunately, few of them are aware of the significance of the Castle of Montegufoni, which has allowed to save such a beauty from the past destruction.
