Galeazzo Ciano
Gian Galeazzo Ciano, 2nd Count of Cortellazzo and Buccari (/ˈtʃɑːnoʊ/ CHAH-noh, Italian: [ɡaleˈattso ˈtʃaːno]; 18 March 1903 – 11 January 1944) was an Italian diplomat and politician who served as Foreign Minister in the government of his father-in-law, Benito Mussolini, from 1936 until 1943. During this period, he was widely seen as Mussolini's most probable successor as head of government.
Galeazzo Ciano | |
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Ciano in 1936 | |
| Ambassador of Italy to Vatican City | |
| In office 5 February 1943 – 25 July 1943 | |
| Preceded by | Raffaele Guariglia |
| Succeeded by | Francesco Babuscio Rizzo |
| Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office 9 June 1936 – 6 February 1943 | |
| Prime Minister | Benito Mussolini |
| Preceded by | Benito Mussolini |
| Succeeded by | Benito Mussolini |
| Minister of Press and Propaganda | |
| In office 23 June 1935 – 11 June 1936 | |
| Prime Minister | Benito Mussolini |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Dino Alfieri |
| Member of the Chamber of Fasces and Corporations | |
| In office 23 March 1939 – 5 August 1943 | |
| Appointed by | Benito Mussolini |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Gian Galeazzo Ciano 18 March 1903 Livorno, Tuscany, Kingdom of Italy |
| Died | 11 January 1944 (aged 40) Verona, Veneto, Italian Social Republic |
| Cause of death | Execution by firing squad |
| Political party | National Fascist Party |
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Parent(s) | Costanzo Ciano (father) Carolina Pini (mother) |
| Profession |
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| Signature | |
He was the son of Admiral Costanzo Ciano, a founding member of the National Fascist Party; father and son both took part in Mussolini's March on Rome in 1922. Ciano saw action in the Italo-Ethiopian War (1935–36) and was appointed Foreign Minister on his return. Following a series of Axis defeats in the Second World War, Ciano began pushing for Italy's exit, and he was dismissed from his post as a result. He then served as ambassador to the Vatican.
In July 1943, Ciano was among the members of the Grand Council of Fascism that forced Mussolini's ousting and subsequent arrest. Ciano proceeded to flee to Germany but was arrested and handed over to Mussolini's new regime based in Salò, the Italian Social Republic. Mussolini ordered Ciano's death, and in January 1944 he was executed by firing squad.
Ciano wrote and left behind a diary that has been used as a source by several historians, including William Shirer in his The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich (1960) and in the four-hour HBO documentary-drama Mussolini and I (1985).