Shrine to Italians slain by Nazis.

Shrine to Italians slain by Nazis. Two Italian police kneel in the Ardeatine caves on the outskirts of Rome, where the Germans massacred 320 hostages in retaliation for the killing of 26 Nazis by the explosion of a bomb in the Italian capital, March 23, 1944. The Germans drove the civilians to the caves, marched them inside and mowed them down with machine guns. To block the noise in the machine guns, the Nazis kept the motors of their trucks going full blast, and later, to prevent pilgrimages to the caves, they placed mines over the bodies. After the liberation of Rome by American forces June 3, 1944, Italians streamed into the caves to burn candles and place flowers for the martyred victims. The Carabenieri are placing a wreath for one of their officers who was a victim.