In the heart of the Mantuan plain, along the ancient Cremonese road, unfolds a route that spans a century of Italian history, from the First War of Independence to the Resistance. As highlighted by Professor C. Benfatti in his study, this artery is not merely a means of communication, but a true “Road of Freedom” — both an ideal and physical journey that connects three pivotal moments in the struggle for the country’s independence and liberty.
This route links three symbolic sites in the territories of Curtatone and Mantua: the battlefield of Curtatone and Montanara (Quattro Venti area), where in 1848 Tuscan students and volunteers sacrificed their lives for a united Italy; Valletta Aldriga, scene in 1943 of the massacre of ten Italian soldiers by Nazi troops; and Belfiore, site of the martyrdom of eleven patriots hanged by the Austrians between 1851 and 1855.
These three sites form an ideal arc spanning nearly a century of history, demonstrating how the desire for freedom and dignity has transcended generations, changing the faces of oppressors but never the yearning for justice. As inscribed on the plaque in the Palazzo della Provincia of Mantua, quoting Piero Calamandrei, these places and these men represent a continuum in the history of Italian liberty.