Francesco Maria Taliani de Marchio

Francesco Maria Taliani de Marchio (22 October 1887 – 16 March 1968) was an Italian diplomat who was most notable for his role as ambassador to China (1938–1946) during World War II. In this capacity he was accredited to the Japanese puppet state of the Reorganized National Government of China, under Wang Jingwei. In 1943, he refused to pledge loyalty to the Italian Social Republic and was briefly imprisoned by the Japanese. After the war he subsequently was made first Italian ambassador to Spain (1951–1952) since the countries broke relations in 1946. Taliani was married to Archduchess Margaretha of Austria.

Biography Early career He was born in Ascoli Piceno in 1887. After studying law at the Sapienza University of Rome in 1910 he entered the foreign minister and was first posted to Berlin in 1912, before being transferred to Constantinople in 1913. There Taliani helped protect Italian citizens in the Ottoman Empire and spent the early part of World War I. In 1916 was transferred to the Italian embassy in Petrograd, Russian Empire, throughout the October Revolution until 1919. Taliani then worked at the foreign minister's office before being posted in London from 1921 to 1923, and then returning to Constantinople until 1928. Back in Rome he was appointed the head of the ceremonial office. In 1932 Taliani was at The Hague and in 1938 he was made head of the Italian diplomatic mission in the Republic of China. Initially he was accredited as the ambassador to Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalist government in the early stages of the Second Sino-Japanese War, which was later forced to move to Chongqing as Nanjing, the capital, fell to the advancing Japanese forces.

Taliani was married to Archduchess Margaretha of Austria (a member of the House of Habsburg) on 27 November 1937, and she accompanied him to China, becoming imprisoned with him in 1943. The couple had no children.

Ambassador to Spain In 1951, Taliani became the first Italian ambassador to be appointed to Spain since Italy broke off relations with the Falange government in 1946. Taliani met with Francisco Franco and the two discussed both the restoration of Italian–Spanish relations as well as the international situation, particularly in regards to Spain joining NATO. In his position he continued to play an important role in the reestablishment of relations between the two countries. He was replaced as ambassador in 1952 and forced into retirement.

Later life Taliani went on to publish multiple books throughout his life, most of them dealing with his experiences throughout his diplomatic career, including He Died in China, Italy and Spain, Postwar in Shanghai, and Petersburg 1917: Memories of an embassy secretary at the Italian embassy in Russia, 1917–1918. The former ambassador died in 1968.

Publications Pietrogrado, 1917, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, Verona, 1935. Petersburg 1917: herinneringen van een gezantschaps-secretaris in dienst bij de Italiaansche ambassade in Rusland in de jaren 1917 en 1918, Van Kampen & Zoon, Amsterdam, 1936. Vita del Cardinal Gasparri. Segretario di Stato e povero prete, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, Verona, 1938. È morto in Cina, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, Verona, 1949. Muriò en China, Sucesores de Rivadeneyra, Madrid, 1952. Vida del Cardenal Gasparri, Editora Nacional, Madrid, 1952. Dopoguerra a Shangai, Garzanti, Milano, 1958. Veli stracciati, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, Milano, 1966.

Honors