Did Churchill kill Mussolini?
The week's news at a glance.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Rome
Winston Churchill was behind the 1945 assassination of Benito Mussolini, according to a documentary that aired in Italy this week. The show said that the British wartime prime minister was trying to make sure that secret letters he wrote the Italian dictator wouldn’t be made public. The letters allegedly offered Italy a separate peace with the Allies, in defiance of President Roosevelt’s insistence that the war could end only with the capitulation of all Axis powers. In the documentary, a former Italian partisan, Bruno Lonati, says that he helped a British agent kill the Italian dictator and that the agent retrieved the letters. Historians, who have always held that two Italian partisans killed Mussolini, were skeptical. “It’s just a love of conspiracy,” said World War II expert Christopher Woods.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
The Gallivant: style and charm steps from Camber SandsThe Week Recommends Nestled behind the dunes, this luxury hotel is a great place to hunker down and get cosy
-
The President’s Cake: ‘sweet tragedy’ about a little girl on a baking mission in IraqThe Week Recommends Charming debut from Hasan Hadi is filled with ‘vivid characters’
-
Kia EV4: a ‘terrifically comfy’ electric carThe Week Recommends The family-friendly vehicle has ‘plush seats’ and generous space