The Consulate General of Italy in Edinburgh organised, on Sunday 11 October 2026 in Glasgow, a commemoration of the first National Day in memory of the 446 Italians who were interned and deported from the United Kingdom as a result of the war, and who perished when the British steamship Arandora Star was torpedoed by a German naval vessel in the Atlantic Ocean on 2 July 1940. The Day was established by Law No. 132 of 16 July 2026.
The event was organised in collaboration with the Honorary Consul in Glasgow, Cav. Ronald Patrick Convery, and the ‘Italian Scotland’ Emigrants’ Association, and was attended by the city’s highest-ranking official, the Lord Provost of Glasgow, Rt Hon Jacqueline McLaren.
The choice of Glasgow for this first commemoration holds particular symbolic significance, given the city’s deep connection to the Arandora Star tragedy and the memory of its victims. In fact, dozens of fellow Italians set sail from Glasgow and lost their lives in the shipwreck, a tragedy whose memory is still cherished today by their descendants and the local Italian community, not least through the monument dedicated to the victims. The town was also the final home of Rando Bertoia, the last survivor of the shipwreck, who passed away on 11 October 2013 – the date chosen by the legislature for the annual commemoration.
