"Italian Ambassador Del Monaco Honors WWII Fallen at Nyeri Military Shrine" di Carlo Coppola
NAIROBI – On the occasion of National Unity and Armed Forces Day, Italy's newly appointed Ambassador to Kenya, Vincenzo Del Monaco, chose to pay tribute to fallen compatriots from the Second World War at the Military Church and Shrine of Nyeri, in the heart of central Kenya. The site serves as the final resting place for 676 Italian soldiers and African askaris who perished in prisoner-of-war camps across Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania between 1941 and 1946.
The commemorative ceremony, marking eighty years since the deaths of these fallen servicemen, brought together Mr. Kinaniri Waroe, Deputy Governor of Nyeri County, Captain Antonino Mazzocca of the Italian Navy, carabinieri in full dress uniform, Consolata missionaries who serve as devoted custodians of the shrine, members of the Italian community, and Kenyan citizens. His Grace Archbishop Antony Muheria of Nyeri celebrated Mass, during which a message from Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto was read.
At the heart of the military church rests His Royal Highness Amedeo of Savoy, Duke of Aosta and Viceroy of Ethiopia—the hero of Amba Alagi who led the final Italian resistance in East Africa with such military honor that he earned the respect of his British adversaries. Following his surrender in May 1941, he was captured by the British and interned in Kenya as prisoner number 11590. The harsh conditions of captivity, combined with malaria and tuberculosis, devastated his health until his death on March 3, 1942, at just 43 years of age. He remains an enduring symbol of the Italian presence in Africa.
Ambassador Del Monaco's poignant gesture of remembrance upholds the Italian diplomatic tradition of honoring fallen servicemen, representing both an act of respect toward those who sacrificed their lives and a moment of reflection on the complex historical relationship between Italy and East Africa. Following the ceremony, COMITES Kenya (the Committee of Italians Abroad, which serves as an advisory body to Italian authorities in the country) hosted a communal lunch at the mission premises, reaffirming the importance of historical memory as a foundation for relations between peoples and as a reminder that the horrors of war must never be repeated.
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