´óÏó´«Ã½

I am Brazilian, and I would like to tell the story of my grandfather in the Second World War. Although his parents were from Italy, he was born in Brazil, and he still lives here (he is 83 years old now). Along with some other thousands of Brazilian soldiers, he went all the way to Europe to fight the Nazis. His name is Oswaldo Saragiotto.

He was called up in 1942, and had some training in Brazil. By that time, Brazilian people knew about the war through the radio, but they saw it as something far from their reality. Because of that, during the training, my grandfather never even dreamed about going to Europe.

One day, my grandfather and many other soldiers were ordered to pack their things, and get ready to leave. They were not told where to. They were all boarded in a train, which was then completely closed. All the windows were shut, there were no seats, and there was an armed officer guarding each exit.

After 2 hours, the train stopped, and the doors opened. They were standing before a huge ship — most of them had actually never seen one. Brazil is a big country, and many soldiers lived away from the sea. They all got into the ship, 3500 men, and yet, they had no idea about their destiny.

In the ship, there were some American officers. Within some days, almost all the soldiers were seasick — including my grandfather. They speculated about where they were being taken, but no information had been officially given.

At some point, the soldiers were finally told they were going to arrive in Napole, Italy. Of course, they all got excited and afraid at the same time. It was announced, in the ship, that they would land at 18:00hs. Thereto, the soldiers were amazed when they disembarked 4 hours earlier. Later on, they found out the reason: At the precise hour announced for the landing, the Nazis bombed the port. Somehow, they had obtained that information.

At the landing point, there were many Italian civilians waiting. The Brazilian soldiers did not understand why such civilians were offending and spitting on them. Soon, the misunderstanding was clarified: Brazilian uniforms were similar to the German’s, and the Italians thought the soldiers were actually German prisoners.

Once in Italy, the Brazilians received some final trainings from the Americans, and were sent to face the enemy. Quickly, they got used to the horrors of war: death was all around them. My grandfather used to carry the tube of the mortar, and to deal with such weapon. The tube weighted 18 kilos, and he also carried a sub-machine gun. He was involved in many battles throughout Italy, including the fight for Monte Cassino.

On one night, his company was climbing a hill, knowing that the Germans were positioned on the top of it. It was raining lots, and the weather was very cold. Thus, after some hours marching, the soldiers were ordered to stop. My grandfather and some mates, including some officers, found shelter inside an empty house. It was a big house, with three levels. Since it was placed on the hill, one could entry it through the first floor (coming form below) and through the third floor (coming from above).

Unfortunately, though, during the night, that was very noisy, due to the storm, a German garrison posted itself just 100 meters above the house. When the day was born, a fierce shooting began, between the Germans outside the house, and the Brazilians inside it. Eventually, the Germans, who highly outnumbered the Brazilians, got into the house. Some Brazilians — including my grandfather, managed to escape by jumping out of a window, and rolling down the hill, under enemy fire. My grandfather lost some friends on that episode, and 22 Brazilians were taken prisoners.

Eight days before the war was over in Europe, my grandfather’s company, counting 2000 men, faced a battle that went on for a wholly night. By dawn, the Germans finally surrendered: they were 15000 men.

My grandfather was preparing to move to France, when the war was officially over. He stayed then in Italy for some months, after what he was on the first ship to Brazil. The soldiers landed in Rio de Janeiro, where an enormous crowd received them as heroes. Although he was invited to stay in the army, he preferred not to. Today, despite his age, he still works performing marriages, as Justice of the Peace.

© Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.