Figure 1.--Naples even before the War had a prolem with street children--the scugnizzi. Poor families could not afford to care for all of their children, especisally if the father deserted the family. The problem becamne even more severe as aresult of the War.

The problem of War orphans was much more severe in World War II than World War I. The World War II casualties were larger and the numbers of POWs meant that many Italian children were left with only their mother to support them. And in a collapsing economy this was very difficult. When the fighting reached Italy itself, villages and cities were devestated. The whole country all the way up the peninsula became an extended battlefield. The devestation was horific. The Allies bombed German positions which often meant towns and villages. Naples and other msajor cities were badly damaged. Rome was spared when the Germans decided to make their stand to the north. Both sides used artillery and land mines. Many children were killed or wounded and in many cases lost both parents. Large numbers of children were displaced as well as many orphaned. We have very few details on the dimensions of the problem. There must be some statistical estimates, but we hsave not yet been able to find any. The worse situations were in the big cities (Naples, Rome, ect.). Children in the villages were more likely to have extended families to care for them. The problem was allieviated somewhat when POWs began to come back from Allied (American and British) camps. Most of the POWs interned by the Germans also came back, although many died in the Reich. Tragically very few of the Italians taken by the Soviets returned.