Benito Mussolini (in the middle) with his “liberators” on 12 September 1943 at Gran Sasso in the Apennine mountains. Major Harald Mors, the German officer who played a key part in the raid, is the man next to Mussolini in the light uniform and dark cap. Wikimedia/German Federal Archives

The rescue of Benito Mussolini: the real story and its Swiss connection

On 12 September 1943, a German commando raid liberated deposed dictator Benito Mussolini from the hotel in the Italian mountains where he was being held. The SS claimed the credit for the momentous operation, however it was actually a German major with Swiss roots who led the mission.

Raphael Rues

Raphael Rues is a historian and specialises in Ticino and the German-fascist presence in Northern Italy.

Numerous myths still abound today regarding certain operations conducted during the Second World War. One of the more fanciful of these tales surely relates to an event that occurred on 12 September 1943 in central Italy: fascist dictator Benito Mussolini was allegedly liberated by an SS commando squad led by SS Captain Otto Skorzeny from his captivity at a hotel on the Gran Sasso in the Apennine mountains. The notorious Skorzeny became a legend on the back of this ‘courageous’ act, a reputation that endures to this day. With the benefit of 80 years of hindsight, the story of the Gran Sasso operation has changed markedly. It also has a distinct Swiss aspect to it: Major Harald Mors, the German officer who really led the operation to free Mussolini, had Swiss roots. He was the grandson of a famous politician from the canton of Vaud, grew up in Prilly, also in the canton of Vaud and attended school in Lausanne until the age of 12.

**Harald Mors, photo undated.** tracesofwar.com

Let’s start at the beginning. The 12 September 1943 operation was a response to the events of 25 July 1943, the day when the Fascist Grand Council issued the Ordine Grandi deposing Benito Mussolini as head of state. Mussolini was only partially in control of his party in 1943, and the military and economic situation was already desperate by July. The Allies were in complete control of North Africa and had landed in Sicily. Moreover, the Italian troops in Russia had either been in retreat or full flight since the slaughter of Stalingrad, if not before. The outcome of these events was the rapid overthrow of Mussolini’s fascist regime in the summer of 1943. The military and economic situation continued to deteriorate fast. The Allies stepped up their campaign and, following a heavy bombardment of northern Italy, especially Milan and Turin, in August 1943, Sicily was entirely liberated by the end of August and Allied troops landed in southern Calabria and Salerno (Campania) at the start of September. During this summer the Italian fascist movement melted like snow in the sun. Their members went into hiding or, in a few cases, fled to Switzerland. Following his arrest in Rome, Benito Mussolini was taken to different places, ending up in the Hotel Campo Imperatore at 2,130 metres altitude, in Gran Sasso mountain range, a remote and hard to access mountainous region in the Apennines, about 80 kilometres northeast of Rome. Events took a tragic turn on 8 September 1943 following the announcement of Marshal Pietro Badoglio’s government of an armistice as Italy was divided into two parts. Those who were able to, followed King Viktor Emanuel III and Pietro Badoglio south to Allied protection. However, a large section of the Italian army, about 800,000 soldiers, was immediately arrested by the Germans and deported to the Third Reich or shot in some cases. Chaos reigned during these dark September days, especially in central and northern Italy, which was occupied by German troops. Badoglio’s government was evidently also in disarray as Mussolini was left behind at Gran Sasso.

**Four of the ten military gliders that landed on Gran Sasso. Hotel Campo Imperatore is in the background.** Wikimedia / German Federal Archives

It didn’t take the Germans long to discover where Mussolini was being held. Luftwaffe General Kurt Student entrusted the planning and execution of Mussolini’s rescue to Major Harald Mors, the German paratrooper with Swiss roots. Although in reality it was more of a kidnap than a rescue. ‘Swiss’ Major Mors’ bold plan was shaped by the topography of the Gran Sasso massif in the Apennine mountains. Taking the cable car to the Hotel Campo Imperatore was not an option, as they would lose the element of surprise. The only alternative for the battle-hardened paratroopers was a two-pronged attack: to occupy the cable car station in the valley and approach from the air with ten military gliders. On landing, Mors was able to take Mussolini quickly before the Italian soldiers realised what was happening. Mussolini was not exactly overjoyed at his ‘rescue’ as can be seen from the photos taken at Gran Sasso. He had grown world weary, having been deeply affected by the betrayal of his party colleagues on 25 July. The Nazis, especially Himmler and Goebbels, presented the rescue/kidnap mission, codenamed “Operation Oak” to the media as an heroic act and gave all the credit to Otto Skorzeny, who had in fact been at best a peripheral figure. It was a classic piece of propaganda to make the SS look good in the press. Meanwhile the German paratroopers spent years trying in vain to claim credit for their part in the mission.

Propaganda documentary from September 1943 on the rescue of Benito Mussolini. Harald Mors appears in it several times. Archivio Luce / YouTube

Returning to Mors himself, what was his connection to the canton of Vaud in Switzerland? His mother Louise Mors-Paschoud came from Lutry near Lausanne. Mors was born in Egypt in 1910. On the outbreak of the First World War, Mors’ mother, who was married to a German officer, fled to Switzerland with some of the family to avoid being interned by the British. Mors lived in Lausanne until 1923 and attended French-speaking primary school and also became fluent in Italian. He showed an outstanding talent for sport from a young age. Mors’ grandfather David Paschoud (1845-1924) was a well-known politician in Vaud who held several offices: Mayor of Lutry (1880-1885), State Councillor (1885-1889), member of the Grand Council (1893-1908) and President of the Grand Council in 1907. Although he trained as a notary, he was mainly involved in economic matters at cantonal level. For example, Paschoud was instrumental in introducing the Progressive Tax Act in the canton of Vaud. He was also appointed head of the Vaud mortgage fund in 1889 and remained in charge of the fund until his death in Lutry in 1924. In 1923 the Mors family moved to Berlin. In 1934, Mors decided to join the Luftwaffe at the age of 24. He rose through the ranks and was in command of a battalion of paratroopers by 1943. Besides his role in the Gran Sasso operation, Mors served on the eastern front, in Italy and Greece as well as other places. He received the German Cross in gold in recognition of his commitment and leadership qualities.

**Benito Mussolini in front of Hotel Campo Imperatore with Otto Skorzeny (light uniform, binoculars) and Major Harald Mors (dark cap).** Wikimedia/German Federal Archives

Mors survived the war and opened a dance school in Ulm in 1949. He also published his memoirs in French in which he told the real story of what happened on Gran Sasso. The Swiss media picked up on the publication, although it was not until 1954 that the realisation emerged that Mors was the grandson of David Paschoud from Lutry. The income from Mors’ dance school was so modest that he enlisted in the new Federal Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) in 1956. However, documents from the Swiss archives show that this was purely for appearance’s sake. Mors had other skills, mainly due to his linguistic ability, that were needed in the new Federal Republic of Germany. Mors served in the German Foreign Intelligence Service (Bundesnachrichtendienst). In the midst of the Algerian war of independence, he resurfaced in Switzerland. However, he could not remain incognito as he had been on the radar of the federal prosecutor since 1957 as a German “secret service agent”. It was Mors who worked with the group ‘Main Rouge’ (Red Hand) within the French terror organisation Organisation Armée Secrète (OAS) to organise attacks on German arms suppliers to the Algerian National Liberation Front, who visited Switzerland on a number of occasions and in 1960 even attempted to organise a meeting between Algerian freedom fighters and German investigators in Lausanne. He left the forces in 1965 and died in Bavaria in 2001. Mors never acquired Swiss nationality, but he kept his Swiss French accent throughout his life.

**Police-General Fernando Soleti (left) with Major Harald Mors (middle).** Wikimedia / German Federal Archives

Mors played a key role in the Gran Sasso operation. He was in charge of planning the attack, selecting the paratroopers for the mission and had command of the second group, which secured the cable car station at the bottom of Gran Sasso. He was also responsible for coordinating all the German troops involved in the attack. However, you won’t find anything about that in the history books, which claim Skorzeny was the mastermind and man in charge. In fact, Otto Skorzeny’s role in the operation seems to have been a subordinate one at best.

**Benito Mussolini in a Fieseler Fi 156 Storch airplane. The dangerous flight in which the plane was heavily overloaded, took him to Rome and then on to meet Adolf Hitler in Munich.** Wikimedia/German Federal Archives

Mussolini was to return to power in Italy with Hitler’s backing. However, his first broadcast from Munich on 15 September 1943 sounded highly apathetic. Some months later, on 1 December 1943, Mussolini officially announced the founding of the neofascist Italian Social Republic. The legacy of “Operation Oak” impacted the course of the war. A complex civil war ensued that lasted twenty months until the end of April 1945. The number of dead in Italy between September 1943 and 25 April 1945 is estimated at about 500,000, including approximately 300'000 civilians, 150'000 partisans and 50'000 from the armed forces.

More of: 20th / 21st century Politics War/battle

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