Inaugurated on October 2, 1970 on the occasion of the centenary of the plebiscite for Rome capital, the Central Museum of the Risorgimento is located on the left side of the Vittoriano, the monument dedicated to Vittorio Emanuele II. It collects documents, paintings, sculptures, weapons and curiosities about the historical period from the second half of the 18th century to the First World War. Very touching are the relics of the Spielberg prison and the Bandiera brothers. Particularly rich are the collections relating to the Roman Republic of 1849, Mazzini and Garibaldi whose letters to his wife Anita, the embroidered velvet cap, the trousers worn during the landing in Marsala and the boot with the bullet hole that wounded him in Aspromonte.
Among the curiosities is the Enrico Serra Collection, made up of 3383 toy soldiers representing uniforms, weapons and deployments of the Italian army, as it was in 1866.
In the room dedicated to the Great War there is a display of the cannon on which the body of the Unknown Soldier was transported. On the life of the trench as well as considerable photographic documentation, it is possible to view films from the Istituto Luce’s Historical Archive.
