The journey ends in Rome 7 stages, which lasted over 100 hours of travel, crossed 730 stations and involved 270 railway workers arrived at 8 today, 4th November, at platform 1 of the Termini station in Rome. The convoy was greeted by the CEO Luigi Ferraris, together with the Ministry of Defence, with Minister Guido Crosetto and other civil and military authorities to celebrate the Day of National Unity and the Armed Forces.
The Train of Memory, also this year, has crossed Italy. He left on October 6th from Trieste to then transit through the cities of Trento, Milano, Torino, Aosta, GenoVa, Ancona, Perugia, L'Aquila, Campobasso, Bari, Potenza, Catanzaro, Cagliari, Palermo, Napoli and arrive on November 4 in Rome. An almost month-long journey born from the initiative of the Ministry of Defense, in collaboration with the Italian State Railways Group, with the support of the FS Foundation and the Mission Structure for the enhancement of national anniversaries and the participatory dimension of the new generations.
The "Unknown Soldier"
It was 1921 when the body of the "Unknown Soldier" was chosen by an Italian mother who had lost a son in the First World War. Maria Bergamas, her name, representing all the orphaned women of children killed in war, chose her among 11 unidentified bodies. The body, transported on a special convoy, left Aquileia to arrive in Rome.
Ferraris (Fs): "This train prompts us to reflect on the fragility of peace and freedom"
“I am proud – he said Luigi Ferraris at the opening of the ceremony – to represent the FS Group Italians at the arrival of the Memory Train. The history of the country and the history of the railways have always walked together to contribute to national unity, to which the railways have given their significant contribution. Today, while we are here to celebrate those values with the Armed Forces, we are also remembering the suffering and loss caused by all wars, past, present and future. The events of recent months, with the war at the gates ofEurope, are a vivid and tragic testimony to it. This train therefore also pushes us to reflect on the fragility of peace and freedom, and on how important it is to defend them, day after day, without ever taking them for granted".
Crosetto: “An event that celebrates the end of a conflict”
“November 4th is an anniversary that celebrates the end of a conflict, and therefore peace. Also in this area, the role of the Armed Forces is of primary importance: indeed, a future of harmony is based on your efficiency and ability to deterrence. It must be remembered, above all in an international context characterized by irresponsible and continuous threats to peace between nations; such as, for example, the dramatic and illegitimate aggression against Ukraine, to which we are trying, as a country and alongside our Allies, to respond, with every effort, to reach an end to the conflict that protects the mandatory rights of the attacked person" , he has declared Guido Crosetto, Ministry of Defense.
Abrodi: "Understanding the value of freedom"
“Days like this – said the Minister for Sport and Youth Andrea Abodi – they are a training in consciousness and knowledge. The commitment of the FS Group has helped ensure that all of this can be a dissemination tool for today's kids, who will understand even more the value of freedom”.
