It is a well-known fact that in World War II, units of foreign soldiers fought on the side of the Italian army. Moreover, this took place both before the overthrow of Mussolini on July 25, 1943, and after, as part of the troops of the Italian Social Republic, an ally of Hitler’s Germany. One of the most remarkable and unusual cases in the history of these formations was a detachment of young French citizens of Italian origin - children of Italian immigrants . When the Italian king and the government of Marshal Badoglio suddenly went over to the side of the Allies and announced this on September 8, 1943, these young Italians decided to reopen fascist clubs in various French cities, and then join the army of the Italian Social Republic to fight against the Anglo-American troops . After a period of uncertainty and bureaucratic turmoil, they found themselves in one of the most renowned units of the armed forces of the Italian Social Republic - the 10th Flotilla MAS (Decima Flottiglia MAS). Its commander was Prince Junio Valerio Borghese, the famous hero of the submarine war waged by the Italians in the Mediterranean Sea. The 3rd company of the Fulmine battalion was formed from French volunteers of Italian origin. They fought in northern Italy, from Piedmont to the dark forests of Tarnova in the Venezia Giulia region, where they defended Gorizia from the advancing communist troops of Tito's army's Slovenian 9th Corps. In these battles, the French volunteers suffered heavy losses.

This is their story, told without political rhetoric, based on the memories of those who survived.