Marion Cave Rosselli and the Transnational Women's Antifascist Networks

In July 1929, Marion Cave Rosselli was arrested by the Italian fascist police after the spectacular escape of her husband Carlo Rosselli from the prison island of Lipari. Her arrest unleashed a powerful campaign in Great Britain by feminist and antifascist groups who succeeded in obtaining her release. This campaign offers us the opportunity to study the particular forms taken by women's antifascist activities at a time when they were not accepted as equal political partners by the male-dominated antifascist organizations in exile. From Marion Cave's entry into Florentine antifascism to the formation of several women's antifascist networks in Britain, this article highlights women's agency in the fight against Mussolini and broadens our understanding of the antifascist struggle.