Bureaucracy of War

Pietro Lucchesi was born on the 13th October 1907 at Bagni di Lucca (Lucca) Italy. He worked as a Commercial Traveller and lived in Birmingham.  He listed his mother Agria as his next of kin. In 1939 he was living at Highbury Groves Road (?). 

Pietro Lucchesi (NAA:B6531)

Pietro died at the 28 Australian Camp Hospital, Waranga, Victoria on the 25th June 1943. He was 45 years old. He was buried at the Tatura Cemetery on the 26th June 1943.

Over three years later, on the 9th September 1946, his mother wrote to the Department of Enemy Aliens Internment Office in Whitehall kindly asking for the return of her son’s property.

(NAA:A2908 P22 Part 14)

Bureaucracy saw her request and Pietro’s personal effects and money pass through the hands of many authorities in Australia, England and Italy.  On the 25th November 1946, the Australian authorities advised Australia’s Deputy High Commission in London that Pietro’s personal effects had been shipped on the Chitral to the Italian Ministry of Post War Reconstruction (Prisoner of War Bureau) Rome at the end of September 1946. As an Italian national, his personal effects had been sent to Italy.

It had been assumed that the Italian authorities would make necessary arrangements for the return of his items to his next of kin. Regarding his finances, £111/8/3 was held in trust in Australia but arrangements would be made to forward funds to Home Office in London.