tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-186272137180441104.post6402195011148660566..comments2024-03-21T07:18:51.686-07:00Comments on The London Dead: Martha Gall-Bianchi (1897-1936), Hampstead Cemetery and Cesare Bianchi (1898-1945), City of London Cemetery David Binghamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09520734437016132336noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-186272137180441104.post-54872670578584603652024-02-08T03:30:46.734-08:002024-02-08T03:30:46.734-08:00Hi Gary, sorry for the late reply; I have had a re...Hi Gary, sorry for the late reply; I have had a recent bereavement and haven't been keeping on top of messages, emails etc. It sounds very much to me like you are closely related to the Bianchis, your information sounds very accurate. You can contact me directly on binghamd@ymail.comDavid Binghamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09520734437016132336noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-186272137180441104.post-21750471407425258522024-01-07T04:41:27.399-08:002024-01-07T04:41:27.399-08:00Hi David, Very interesting read, thank you for pro...Hi David, Very interesting read, thank you for providing this. I have come across this due to my gran passing. I wasn't aware until recently, but I have started to look more into this. We have an old picture of the Bianchi grave that my gran parents had. I presume it was taken around the time it was first laid in Hampstead. You might be interested for a copy to add this or pass it on to family. It still has the gate and metal works before they were sadly stolen.<br />My gran had mentioned to my mother, that one of her sisters died while giving birth. She was married to Cesare Bianchi. With the little information we know, and this may not be accurate. Bob and Patty, would be niece and nephew to my mothers gran parents and cousins to to my gran parents. <br />I would be happy to provide more information to add to this if you wanted to discuss. Please let me know how is best to contact you. Many thanks Gary.<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-186272137180441104.post-66375033015589659242023-11-02T14:46:32.366-07:002023-11-02T14:46:32.366-07:00Hi Patrick, thank you for sharing this. There are ...Hi Patrick, thank you for sharing this. There are some stories which really resonate with us; I think Cesare's tragic history would move anyone. Even more so if you share some of his background. Best wishes to you and thank you again for taking the trouble to comment.David Binghamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09520734437016132336noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-186272137180441104.post-38912938835206263122023-11-01T08:06:17.563-07:002023-11-01T08:06:17.563-07:00Thank for this story. I know this monument very we...Thank for this story. I know this monument very well, it is often one of my initial destinations on my way to work (I work nearby). I've read the story before... somehow it is an important monument to me. Back then I could have been internated myself, so really makes me reflect a lot on the destiny of my fellow compatriot. I absolutely love the choices Cesare made for the grave. Even though it contains some fascist-like architecture, similar to what you can find in some cities like Forli', the beauty of the angel is just impressive. It's like no other angel I have seen in cemeteries. It's an angel of tremendous hope and strength, not of tears and despair as can often be seen in cemeteries. An angel that says with great confidence that she is fully alive in heaven. Just beautiful and powerful (and romantic). As soon as I saw it from far away for the first time, I thought about life and spiritual strength - it's the first (and only) time I have experienced something like that in a place of death. Patricknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-186272137180441104.post-88630926924085810192023-02-28T10:12:10.306-08:002023-02-28T10:12:10.306-08:00Thank you! I agree that it is one of the great 20t...Thank you! I agree that it is one of the great 20th century monuments (not that there has been too much competition over the last 100 years or so) but I I don't know much about it. I read somewhere that it was imported from Italy, which seems likely, but other than that I know nothing. It has one of the most heartbreaking back stories though. David Binghamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09520734437016132336noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-186272137180441104.post-68913724511228640202023-02-25T09:37:33.154-08:002023-02-25T09:37:33.154-08:00Thank you David for another great post. This is a ...Thank you David for another great post. This is a very poignant story and I had no idea of the Arandora Star episode either. One of the great 20th century cemetery monuments in Britain, surely. Black Brunswickerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15551527105624667309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-186272137180441104.post-61157910757623913652022-11-02T03:17:13.065-07:002022-11-02T03:17:13.065-07:00Great post, David. I'm working on a project on...Great post, David. I'm working on a project on Italian immigrants in the UK and Cesare Bianchi has a role to play in my research. Might you be able to put me in contact with Robert Bianchi? I can be contacted at selena [dot] daly [at] ucl [dot] ac [dot] uk Thank you!Selena Dalyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07001290213301728739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-186272137180441104.post-58008430421303437342022-05-20T06:07:50.843-07:002022-05-20T06:07:50.843-07:00I lived in West Hampstead in the 1980's and so...I lived in West Hampstead in the 1980's and sometimes on a fine Sunday I would visit the tranquil cemetery in Fortune Green Road and sit and read. I was fascinated by the Bianchi Memorial and could never pass it without stopping to admire it's sad beauty and often wondered about its back story. I was so moved by it I wrote down the inscription poem "To My Mattie in Heaven" and still have it today.<br /><br />Finally, I know the history and how heartbreakingly tragic it is. God bless Mattie and Cesare - reunited forever.<br /><br />Thank you David.<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-186272137180441104.post-85972537919701792662020-12-20T04:52:43.872-08:002020-12-20T04:52:43.872-08:00Thank you Kay. This is a story I've always fou...Thank you Kay. This is a story I've always found particularly moving. David Binghamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09520734437016132336noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-186272137180441104.post-19445247204436417742020-12-18T05:38:14.966-08:002020-12-18T05:38:14.966-08:00My God, what a story. That poor man, to have endur...My God, what a story. That poor man, to have endured so much for so long, and then to die in the horrific bombing. And the children! One never knows all the stories behind the monuments or tombstones. Thank you for sharing this one. Most moving.Kay G.https://www.blogger.com/profile/07228498846814735537noreply@blogger.com