Image of the Inauguration (17 February 1944)

The propaganda images of the inauguration stored in Rome's Luce Archives reveal how German diplomacy intersected with military interests. In the image, among the 70 guests, the front is filled with diplomats who co-financed the German Institute, high-ranking Italian ministers, and other Italian officials. However, the second half of the room is filled with members of the German occupation force and intelligence apparatus wearing their uniforms. Their presence reveals how, from the beginning, the Institute was not intended as an exchange among equals, but to give legitimacy to a National Socialist and pan-German European vision.