D’Annunzio’s Holocaust

The Italian poet and proto-fascist Gabriele D‘Annunzio called Rijeka the 'City of the Holocaust' during his brief rule of the city from September 1919 to January 1921. The word Holocaust meant something rather different to D’Annunzio than it does now: he pictured the city as an eternally suffering woman, saved from further torment by the boldness and gallantry of his inspired leadership. This exhibition, set to open on the centenary of D’Annunzio’s march on the city, will focus on the fate of women in Rijeka during the D’Annunzio period – both his supporters and those who struggled to survive a tumultuous period. Exhibits will be set out in the White Salon of the former Governor’s Palace, where D’Annunzio once held court.