100 Years for Italia Scacchistica

100 Years for Italia Scacchistica

“L’Italia Scacchistica” was established in Florence in autumn 1910 by Marquis Stefano Rosselli del Turco and the first issue was edited at the beginning of January 1911, it seems on January 2nd.

Stefano Rosselli del Turco (Florence, 1877-1947) was Italian champion in 1923-28 and 1931-33. “L’Italia Scacchistica” was born as official bulletin of the club in Florence, Viareggio and Bologna,

At the outbreak of the first World War Rosselli was called to arms and Alberto Batori became the editor of the magazine: he was a soldier too, but he was employed in office. Batori was the editor up November 1923, when owing to a nasty illness he passed away: he was not yet forty.

So Rosselli, who in April of the same year had won the title of Italian Champion, came back and gave a great stimulus to the magazine, that starting from march 1927 became fortnightly!

During the Second World War “L’Italia Scacchistica” was able to survive up 1943, when the Government forced the editor to stop: paper had to be used only for military purposes!

At this point Rosselli del Turco resigned as editor, but he did not want that the magazine will definitively stop. So he looked for a new patron and found it in his friend Count Gian Carlo dal Verme (who will be President of the Italian Chess Federation in 1947-48 and from 1958 to 1979). In 1945 the editorial office of the magazine moved from Florence to Milano: Dal Verme found a new editor, Giovanni Ferrantes, an Italian chess master and also arbiter.

Many contributors wrote for the magazine and many were (or will become) very famous also out of Italy; for example Rinaldo Bianchetti (well known for his legal action against Marcel Duchamp and Halberstadt for plagiarism) or Adriano Chicco, the famous historian. Another important contributor was Enrico Paoli (grand master honoris causa in 1996), the ‘father’ of the tournament in Reggio Emilia.

Starting from April 1950 “L’Italia Scacchistica” became the official house-organ of the Italian Chess Federation; this agreement went on up 1970.

Giovanni Ferrantes was the editor for 47 years, may be a record. In the last years he was helped by his son-in-law Vittorio Dina. But in 1992 owing to his age he decided to stop (he was 89 years old and he will die 3 years later). In September 1992 I became the editor.

Actually “L’Italia Scacchistica” edits 8 issues in a year.

1215 issues had been printed in these 100 years, since 1911.

Adolivio Capece

More details may be obtained from the website : http://www.italiascacchistica.com/index.shtml