At dawn on 23 September 1943, the Wehrmacht launched in Campania what could be considered as the first but also the largest roundup of civilians in the entire period of occupation. In the space of a few days, according to German sources, almost 20,000 men were captured in the territory of what was then the province of Naples (today partly falling within the province of Caserta), with smaller numbers in the provinces of Benevento and Salerno, and also in a strip of Southern Lazio between Gaeta, Formia, Minturno and Castelforte. The rounding up of men took place alongside operations to…
