Italy’s most important region from a socio-economic point of view, Lombardy was recorded as having a working population involved in industrial production of over one million people, in the last statistical survey prior to the war. In addition to this marked industrial connotation, the region also boasted thriving agricultural production, especially in the irrigated area of the lower Po valley, as well as significant natural riches such as large forests and various mining centres. This territory, offering considerable material resources, could also count on a large, variously specialised workforce, which constituted a precious source of manpower for the war needs…
