Romolo Polacchini

Romolo Polacchini (20 May 1897 – 16 October 1968) was an Italian admiral during World War II.

Early life and career

Romolo Polacchini was born in La Spezia in 1897 and attended the Italian Naval Academy in Livorno from 6 November 1911 to 7 June 1914, graduating as an ensign. His first assignment was on the protected cruiser Etna; he then served on the battleships Dante Alighieri and Andrea Doria during World War I, receiving his first a War Merit Cross. In 1918, with the rank of sub-lieutenant, he became the executive officer of the submarine H 3, taking part in some missions in the Adriatic Sea. He remained in the submarine branch after the war; in 1923 he received his first command, the submarine N 3.

Between 1930 and 1931 Polacchini was the commanding officer of the submarine Tito Speri; in 1931 he was awarded the title of Officer of the Order of Ismail by the King of Egypt Fuad I, and in 1932 he was promoted to commander. After promotion to rear admiral, on 18 September 1941, he replaced Vice Admiral Angelo Parona as the commanding officer of BETASOM. During Polacchini's command, BETASOM submarines saw the peak in their activity, successfully participating in Operation Neuland and obtaining their greatest successes. During this period, Polacchini was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Military Order of Savoy by Italy, and the Iron Cross first class and second class by Germany. In January 1943 Polacchini was given command of the Palermo Naval Command; he participated in the organization of supply convoys to North Africa during the Tunisian campaign, receiving a Silver Medal of Military Valor for his efforts while Palermo was subjected to heavy Allied bombings. He narrowly escaped capture by a German motorized unit sent to his house, and then took refuge in the house of friends in Castiglioncello for some time, before joining his family in Venice in January 1944.

In May 1944, in order to avoid being deported to Germany, Polacchini took a formal oath to the Italian Social Republic, but at the same time he began to work secretly with the Northern Italy National Liberation Committee. On 8 August 1944 he was arrested by the fascists and imprisoned in Venice with accusations of "subversive activities against Fascism" and "intelligence with the enemy". He remained in prison for five months; after the intercession of Cardinal Giovanni Urbani, the future Patriarch of Venice and uncle to his brother's wife, he was released with the obligation of signing to the police station every evening. At the end of war in Italy, with the fall of the fascism, on 6 May 1945 he assumed command of the Navy services in Venice, but he was placed in the reserve on 20 February 1946. On 5 May that year he was promoted to vice admiral.

On 19 February 1950, having contracted serious illness to the lungs during the period spent in prison, he was forced to leave the service on health grounds and was placed in an absolute discharge and enrolled to the Roll of Honor of the Navy. He was promoted to full admiral on 27 June 1958. He then retired to live in Venice Lido, where he died in 1968.