Scuola di Pace di Monte Sole

During the initial work with perpetrator biographies, various, sometimes strong emotional reactions can occur. For example, in the initial confrontation, attempts are made to explain the motives of the perpetrators within their own contexts and thus to make their decisions and actions more bearable from today's perspective. Simplistic explanatory patterns are often used to build up emotional distance to the perpetrators.

However, this stands in the way of a discussion that is as objective as possible without relativising or justifying their thought patterns and deeds. In order to come as close as possible to this goal, it is helpful to accept the gaps in the perpetrators’ biographies and the open questions that arise as a result, and not to fill them with one's own expectations or speculations out of a need for explanation.

The sources available to us today can only provide insights into the attitudes and backgrounds of the perpetrators and can never fully break them down.

The various disciplines of historical research are not only dedicated to the biographies of well-known people, but also to those of ordinary people within their historical references and contexts. This also applies to commemoration and the implementation of commemorative structures and events.

In Italy, the focus of research on the massacres and their commemoration has long been on the victims. With the perpetrator research that is developing in Germany, these considerations can be expanded to include the dimension of those responsible, their backgrounds and patterns of legitimisation. Viewing the perpetrators as persons in their own contexts helps to recognise and name their actual roles and responsibilities.

The results of the research presented here were gathered by working with various sources. Closer examination of these documents and artefacts reveals the temporal and spatial contexts as well as the types of communication and exchange from which they emerged.