Deine Papiere, bitte II (Your papers, please 2)

A little over a year ago, in part 1 of this topic, I discussed the importance of being able to substantiate one's identity in wartime Italy. To Americans this is a rather foreign subject as we are not used to carrying identification as a prerequisite for just being out in public. I'm not sure when carrying an ID became mandatory in Europe, but it was definitely required in Italy some years before the war broke out. Everyone over a certain age needed a Regno d'Italia Carta d'Identità (CdI or Kingdom of Italy Identity Card).

Most blue-collar workers and salaried employees belonged to the local Opera Nazionale Dopolavoro (OND or National Recreation Club), the government-sponsored leisure and recreational organization (read more at Wikipedia). The OND provided all sorts of sports, recreational, and cultural events and opportunities; it was a sort of 'YMCA on steroids.' You needed a separate ID for the OND and could purchase a sticker-stamp that would gain you admission to special cinema or live theater events. These IDs were issued annually.

The situation surrounding Fascist Party membership is a bit confusing. According to Wikipedia, in 1939 approximately 6 million of the 44 million Italians were members of the Partito Nazionale Fascista (PNF or National Fascist Party), yet the same article states that "...from 3 June 1938 those who did not join the party could not work." Did children and home-bound women really make up 86% of the population? Either way, following Mussolini's ouster and the establishment of the Repubblica Sociale Italiana (RSI or Italian Social Republic), the PNF was transformed into the Partito Fascista Repubblicano (Republican Fascist Party).

One characteristic all of these IDs had in common was a photograph of the cardholder. We 'moderns' sometimes forget that in days past, societal conventions tended to be much more formal than they are today. Having collected several vintage Italian IDs (and scans of others from ebay auctions), I've noticed that just about every one bears a photo in which the person made every attempt to look his or her best.


For il signore, this means white shirt, necktie, and usually a suit coat or jacket. Hair was combed and tended to be short (though not always) and beards were sometimes worn. La signora (signorina)typically wore a dark, conservative dress or blouse and skirt. Hair was typically worn up and away from the face.

The photograph was usually glued to the ID, sometimes reinforced with small staples in the corners. As a security measure, the photo on a CdI was sometimes attached with embossed rivets (as seen in the lady's portrait) or small metal grommets. After attachment to the CdI, the photo was almost always embossed to the card; another security measure. You can see the embossing in the lower left corner of the signorina's portrait and on the lower right of the signore's.