The Battle of Valle Giulia (battaglia di Valle Giulia) is the conventional name for a clash between Italian militants (left-wing as well as right-wing) and the Italian police in Valle Giulia, Rome, on 1 March 1968. It is still frequently remembered as one of the first violent clashes in Italy's student unrest during the protests of 1968 or "Sessantotto".[1]
| Conflict: | Battle of Valle Giulia |
| Place: | University "La Sapienza", Rome, Italy |
| Date: | 1 March 1968 |
| Result: |
|
| Combatant1: | Far-right militants |
| Combatant2: | Italian police |
| Combatant3: | Far-left militants |
| Commander1: | Stefano Delle Chiaie |
| Commander2: | Unknown |
| Commander3: | Unknown |
| Strength1: | Around 4,000 |
| Strength2: | 1,000 |
| Strength3: | Unknown |
| Casualties1: | Extremely heavy |
| Casualties2: | 272 arrested 478 wounded |
| Casualties3: | 148 wounded |
On Friday 1 March, about 4,000 people gathered in the Piazza di Spagna, who began marching through the Sapienza University of Rome campus; some had the intention of occupying the school. When they arrived, the students found themselves in front of an imposing cordon of police, and during the coping that followed, a small group of policemen broke away to deal with violence of an isolated student; the protesters responded with throwing stones and sharp objects.[2] The leaders of the attacks against police were neo-fascist members of the National Vanguard Youth.[3] Left-wing and right-wing students occupied different buildings.[4] [5] In the brawl, 148 injuries were recorded to police, 478 injuries to students, 4 were detained, and 228 were arrested. Eight police cars were destroyed, and five guns were stolen from officers.[6]