Military Votive Brazilian Monument
In Pistoia, a shrine designed by Architect Redig de Campos
The Military Votive Brazilian Monument located in Pistoia is the only Brazilian memorial monument in Italy. It is dedicated to the soldiers of the Força Expedicionária Brasileira (FEB) who fell on the Gothic Line, in the Italian Campaign during World War II. The Monument stands where once was the Brazilian Cemetery, of which remain today the grave of an unknown soldier and marble tiles bearing the names of other fallen soldiers who were buried here and later repatriated.
The votive complex, designed by Redig de Campos, the official architect of the Itamaraty (Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs), was built by Italian engineer Luigi Cafiere between 1965 and 1966. To the left of the main entryway are two marble prisms bearing the words of Olavo Redig de Campos about the monument, while to the right are two more prisms dedicated to the FEB. On a raised level are located the votive flame by the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the Saint Andrew’s Cross, and an aedicule measuring 36 feet (11 meters).
