Italy in the early 1950s was a very poor country. During World War Two, Italy - ruled by the Fascist Mussolini - had initially fought alongside Nazi Germany. Yet the Italians became increasingly anxious about their role in the war and about Fascism, and in 1943, Mussolini was deposed by Victor Emmanuel III, the king of Italy.
Italy then switched sides in the war and supported the British allies, but suffered huge loses in northern towns and villages as the Nazis tried to take revenge. After the war, following a referendum, the monarchy was abolished and a republic was established.
Italians of the 1950s saw an economic explosion that resulted in the rise of living standards. Despite this rise, many southern Italians remained in poverty necessitating moves to the more prosperous north.
A selection of color slides belonging to Fraser Pettigrew's grandfather James Halley, from one or more his trips to Italy, that show everyday life of Italy in the late 1950s.
Italy then switched sides in the war and supported the British allies, but suffered huge loses in northern towns and villages as the Nazis tried to take revenge. After the war, following a referendum, the monarchy was abolished and a republic was established.
Italians of the 1950s saw an economic explosion that resulted in the rise of living standards. Despite this rise, many southern Italians remained in poverty necessitating moves to the more prosperous north.
A selection of color slides belonging to Fraser Pettigrew's grandfather James Halley, from one or more his trips to Italy, that show everyday life of Italy in the late 1950s.
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| Vicenza |
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| Vicenza. Giuseppe Garibaldi statue |
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| Acquapendente. Oxen on the street |
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| Aquileia. Basilica di Aquileia |
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| Assisi. Santa Maria degli Angeli |
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| Assisi |
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| Assisi |
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| Brenner. Beppe Sello |
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| Capri. On a small boat |
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| Capri. Somewhere in the village down by the harbour |
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| Capri |
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| Capri |
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| Castellammare di Stabia. Hotel Miramare |
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| Castellammare di Stabia |
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| Cortina d'Ampezzo |
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| Desenzano del Garda |
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| Desenzano del Garda |
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| Florence. Outside the Uffizi |
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| Florence. Piazza and Basilica di Santa Croce |
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| Florence. Piazza di Santa Croce |
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| Limone sul Garda |
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| Limone sul Garda |
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| Milan. Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II |
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| Milan. Milan Cathedral |
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| Milan. Milan train station |
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| Pisa |
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| Riva del Garda. Via Florida |
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| Rome. Altare della Patria |
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| Rome. Capitoline Hill |
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| Rome. Lateran Obelisk |
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| Rome. Piazza Colonna |
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| Rome. Trevi Fountain |
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| Sorrento. On the Corso Italia |
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| Sorrento. Piazza San'Antonino |
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| Sorrento. Piazza Tasso |
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| Sorrento. Piazza Tasso |
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| Trieste. Looking down from the Parco della Rimembranza (or the steps leading down from the obelisk fountain) towards the Piazza Carlo Goldoni |
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| Trieste. On the via Roma, looking towards the Sant'Antonio Nuovo |
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| Trieste. Piazza Carlo Goldoni |
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| Trieste |
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| Vatican City. St Peter's |
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| Vatican City |
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| Venice. Cafe Florian at Piazza San Marco |
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| Venice. On the lagoon, Mazzorbo |
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| Venice. Palazzo Ducale |
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| Venice. Piazza San Marco |
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| Venice. Piazza San Marco |
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| Venice. Piazza San Marco |
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| Viareggio. Fruit street vendor |
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| Viareggio. People at the beach |
