Spike Lee and the Gothic Line

While we were touring the Garfagnana and the Versilia coast we heard that Spike Lee was in town.

His visit surrounded the Gothic Line, a defense built by the German forces during the Second World War anticipating the northern push of the Allies from south Italy.

It was basically a concrete wall which stretched from Marina di Carrara all the way across the peninsular to Pesaro in Le Marche.

Sections are still visible in Massa including a piece sticking out of the beach and a longer stretch heading towards the marble quarries

It reaches a height of 25 feet in places and is an impressive site, but no more impressive than the U.S. troops who surpassed the wall and liberated the town of Castelnuovo Garfagnana back in 1944.

Castelnuovo looks fairly disappointing today compared to many medieval towns in the valley as it suffered some the most fierce fighting in the zone.

It has been more or less completely rebuilt and a plaque remembers the bravery of the soldiers of the all black 92° 'Buffalo Soldiers' Division.

These soldiers will be further remembered in a forthcoming film, by Spike Lee called Miracle at St'Anna from a novel by James McBride.