What happened in the Years of Lead, when Italy was caught in the grip of terrorism

Those that are defined “Years of Lead” are included between the late 1960s and early 1980swhen they developed in Italy phenomena of political terrorism both neo-fascist and far left. More specifically, far-right terrorists, associated with “deviant” sectors of the secret services, carried out massacres with the aim of promoting the restoration of a fascist dictatorship, as part of the so-called tension strategy. Far-left terrorists, in turn, did so targeted killings of politicians and other people to destabilize institutions. The overall victims of the Years of Lead were around 400. In the 1980s, terrorism decreased until it almost disappeared.

Why are they called “Years of Lead”

The definition “Years of Lead” derives from1981 film of the same name directed by Margareth von Trotta, on terrorism in West Germany: the lead in question is, naturally, that of the bullets. In Italy they years of lead they are included, approximately, between the end of the 60s and the beginning of the 80s. The period was characterized by the presence of terrorist movements, which carried out both massacres and targeted killings. The terrorist groups had different ideological origins. Far-right terrorism, linked to sectors of the state apparatusput into place a strategy of tension: carried out bomb attacks, killing dozens and dozens of people, with the aim of destabilizing the country, make democratic government appear weak and thus encourage the restoration of an authoritarian fascist government. THE far-left terrorist groupson the other hand, generally did not carry out bomb attacks, but targeted individuals: company executives, law enforcement officers, political figures. The overall victims of the Years of Lead were around 400, to which must be added numerous injured and disabled people, including those legs, that is, shot in the legs.

The national and international context

The period of the Years of Lead was a time of growing political tensions. The economic boom of the 1950s had ended, but had produced lasting consequences: Italy had become an advanced country, in which agriculture no longer represented the main occupation, and the population enjoyed a discreet well-beingfrom which however the poorest groups were excluded. By the end of the 1960s the movement of ’68that is, the vast youth protest, which in 1969 was linked to the workers’ protests of the “warm autumn”.

1968 had favored the politicization of the population and, in particular, of the youth. Many young people joined extremist movementsboth right and left, not recognizing themselves in traditional parties. During the 1970s several were therefore born extra-parliamentary groups: on the left, Continuous Struggle, Workers’ Power, Workers’ Autonomy; on the right New Order, Third Position and others. On an institutional level, the Christian Democracy continued to dominate the political scene, remaining in power without interruption since the end of the Second World War. Meanwhile, the Communist Party of Enrico Berlinguer was constantly growing and, during the 1970s, he tried in vain to enter the government through the so-called historical compromise with the Christian Democrats.

The international context was also full of tensions. The Cold War had entered a phase of relative détente, but in many countries it political conflict had become more heated. The two superpowers (USSR and United States), for their part, had no scruples in intervening in the internal affairs of individual states: the United States operated in various countries, especially in Latin America, favoring the rise of right-wing dictatorships to counter the advance of left-wing parties; the Soviet Union in turn tightened its grip on the allied countries and in 1968 promoted the invasion of Czechoslovakia. Furthermore, during the 1970s terrorist phenomena occurred also in other European countriessuch as Western Germany and, for different reasons, Spain and the United Kingdom.

Right-wing terrorism: the strategy of tension

Far-right terrorism developed through a series of bomb attacks. The first is considered that of Piazza Fontana: on 12 December 1969 a bomb placed in the National Agricultural Bank of Milan killed 16 people (although we cite this as the first attack, some scholars consider it to belong to the strategy of tension also previous episodes).

The extreme groups included the Revolutionary Armed Nuclei, Ordine Nuovo, Terza Position and others. Right-wing terrorists found support from some “deviant” sectors of the secret serviceswho shared the aim of promoting the establishment of an authoritarian government and countering left-wing parties. Furthermore, some neo-fascist coup attempts took place, the best known of which – excluding the Piano Solo from 1964 – it was the coup of 1970 led by Junio ​​Valerio Borghesea former soldier of the Italian Social Republic.

In the context of tension strategy several massacres were carried out. Among the main ones:

• There Gioia Tauro massacrewhich occurred on 22 July 1970, when a bomb exploded on the tracks as the Syracuse-Turin train passed, killing 6 people;
• There Piazza della Loggia massacre in Brescia in 1974, with the death of 9 people;
• There Italicus train massacrethat is, the explosion of a bomb on a wagon of the Rome-Brenner train, in a tunnel in the province of Bologna, on 4 August 1974, with 12 victims;
• There Bologna massacre of 2 August 1980, when a bomb exploded at the station causing 85 victims: it was the most serious massacre to occur in Italy after the Second World War.

Some scholars also consider it part of the strategy Rapido 904 massacrewhich occurred on 23 December 1984 in the same area as the Italicus massacre, which caused the death of 17 people. Furthermore, far-right groups also committed murders, armed robberies and other crimes.

Left-wing terrorism: the Red Brigades and other armed groups

Parallel to right-wing terrorism, it developed far-left terrorismwho generally did not carry out indiscriminate massacres, but targeted killings and woundings. The best known group was that of Red Brigadesborn in the early 1970s. After carrying out demonstrative actions against company executives, from the middle of the decade the Red Brigades began killing. The best known victim was Aldo Morokidnapped on March 16, 1978, after the murder of five escort agents, and killed after 55 days of captivity.

The other people killed included numerous policemen and carabinieri, journalists such as Carlo Casalegno and Walter Tobagi, judges such as Francesco Coco, intellectuals such as Vittorio Bachelet, even a worker such as Guido Rossa.

Other far-left terrorist groups were First Linehimself responsible for numerous murders, ei Armed proletarian nuclei. The armed groups were not linked to deviant state apparatus, but sought a connection with the broader one protest movement which developed in those years, particularly in 1977, finding the solidarity of some sectors.

The reaction of the State and the return to the private sector

Republican democracy succeeded resist terrorism without resorting to special laws. During the 1970s, some measures were issued to tighten penalties and control the territory more effectively, such as the Royal Act 1975but no laws were passed that limited the freedom of citizens, as some political leaders requested. In the 1980s, after the Bologna massacre, the attacks progressively decreaseduntil it disappears. During the decade, moreover, the so-called “return to private life”that is, a sort of depoliticization of Italian society and young people. The Years of Lead ended definitively.