Luigi Marchesi (soldier)
Luigi Marchesi (Turin, 16 July 1910 – 16 June 1997) was an officer in the Royal Italian Army during World War II, most notable for his involvement in the events surrounding the Armistice of Cassibile. Biography Marchesi was born in Turin in 1910, the son of a colonel of the Royal Italian Army. After entering the Military Academy of Modena in 1928, he graduated in 1931 with the rank of second lieutenant of the Alpini corps, and served for several years as ski instructor in the "Fenestrelle" Battalion of the 3rd Alpini Regiment in the Western Alps. In 1937 he enrolled at the Army War School in Turin, being the youngest officer to be ever admitted to its courses, becoming part of the Army General Staff in 1940. In the spring of the same year, thanks to his knowledge of German, he served as liaison officer attached to the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht in Berlin during the battle of France; he was present on the front of the German First Army as it breached the Maginot Line, witnessing the capture of a French outpost by German tanks near Metz. Returning to Italy, with the rank of captain he briefly served at