Krystel von Kumberg, "Prince Valerio Borghese and the Two Ita(Lies): Operation Gladio and the Years of Lead."

Italian Prime Minister Giulio Andreotti exposed Gladio on October 24, 1990. He was the first to formally reveal the European-wide network of Stay Behind groups involved in internal subversion. The CIA and SIFAR (Italian Military Intelligence) sketched a plan in November 1956, codenamed Gladio, to form an army capable of guerrilla warfare and espionage to prepare for a Soviet invasion. When the expected war never came, these elements, mainly composed of neofascists and elements of the far-right, engaged in covert operations and what came to be known as the strategy of tension (1969-80) which aimed to manipulate and control public opinion using fear, psychological warfare, and false flag terrorism. Gladio has been labelled a parallel structure of the Interior Ministry, trained to fight against an internal threat: that of the communist and radical leftist extremists known as the Fifth Column (Quinta Colonna) or Red Gladio (Gladio Rossa). The violence that ensued came to be known as the Years of Lead, during which terror attacks and assassinations were committed by far-right and radical leftists, but while the latter’s crimes were condemned and punished, far-right violence continued, unhindered and unnoticed. This paper sheds light on “the coup that never was.” Such was the phrase used to describe the 1970 Golpe Borghese, code named Operation “Tora Tora,” occurring on the anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Prince Valerio Borghese is used to bridge micro and macro-history and shed light on the evolving trends of the far-right in Italy, its relationship with domestic and foreign intelligence as well as its transnational links. Tracing Valerio Borghese's mutating personae: from the Frog Prince during his time as Commander-in-Chief of the clandestine unit Decima MAS during World War II, to the infamous Black Prince after his planned 1970 coup d’état and finally examining the relationship between the Exiled Prince and the “black terrorist international,” shedding light on the impact Borghese had on the future of neo-fascism and the transnational legacy he left behind. Through Borghese, the author argues that we can trace the trajectories of far-right activists and leaders like him. By seeking to reflect the process of change from 1945 to the mid-1970s through Borghese’s experiences and addressing the significance of his 1970 right-wing coup attempt in the overarching timeline of the metamorphosing Operation Gladio and the political violence that erupted during the Years of Lead, the author navigates the forged conspiracy theories and contextual intricacies of this period to break down the narrow conceptualizations of periodization.

Krystel von Kumberg is an independent research analyst focusing on the Cold War, political violence, intelligence, terrorism and the historical power of narratives, recruitment methods and radicalization. She is also a Policy and Practitioner Fellow at Far Right Analysis Network. She graduated from Georgetown University’s Security Studies Program (2020) and Global, International and Comparative History Program (2023). She specializes on Europe, Russia and the roles of non-state actors.

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