Prince Carlo Caracciolo, a pivotal figure in the history of journalism, died just a few days ago.
With Eugenio Scalfaro, another prominent Italian journalist, he founded La Repubblica in 1976, one of Italy’s leading newspapers.
Several years before he had created another famous weekly magazine called L’espresso.
He led an amazing life.
Born in 1925, Mr Caracciolo fought in the Resistance movement; captured was sentenced to death by the Fascists but the night before his execution, he stubbornly refused to clean the toilets and this won him the admiration of his jailers.
Prince Caracciolo succeeded in escaping death and at the end of the war he began a new phase in his life.
As soon as he arrived in Milan he requisitioned a room at the Grand Hotel in via Manzoni (Giuseepe Verdi died there) – the only bed availabe in the whole city, but also managed to save the life of his former jailer.