Family tragedy

Luigi Di Ciacca was born in Picinisco (Frosinone) Italy on the 14th May 1894.  He lived with his wife Emilia and family at 32 Rutherglen Road, Glasgow, Scotland when he was arrested on the 11th June 1940. Luigi’s occupation was ‘shopkeeper’.

He had served in the Italian army during WW1 and in the summer of 1916, he had been taken 'prisoner' by the Austro-Hungarian Army.

The tragedy of the sinking of the Arandora Star was also a very personal tragedy for Luigi and Emilia. Their son Aristide, 19 years old perished at sea as did Luigi’s older brother Cesidio, 39 years old.

Aristide, noted researcher Gaetano de Angelis-Curtisa was a musician who had already obtained various recognitions in Scotland as a pianist.

Luigi’s permission to return to the UK to appear before the Italian Advisory Committee was granted on the 23rd January 1942.  At the time Luigi was in Loveday Camp 10, but departed on the 30th June 1942 and returned to Tatura Camp via Broadmeadows Military Camp on the 9th July 1942.  Luigi departed Tatura Camp on the 17th July 1942 with 16 other UK Italian internees. They embarked the SS Themistocles in Sydney and disembarked in Liverpool, England on the 17th  October 1942.

On the 14th December 1942, Luigi release authorisation was granted as a special case.

(Ancestry.com. UK, World War II Alien Internees, 1939-1945 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2019)