Hi my mother in laws first husband (Harry Thomas Golding)died near Florence on the 5th September 1944. We go every couple of years to pay our respects and tend the grave, which is in the Florence War Graves Cemetery. We know that Harry was reburied there on the 9th March 1945 having laid in another cemetery for several months after his death. My mother has a photograph of the original grave and an account that it was in a lovely spot. For several years now we have tried to match this photograph with likely spots but time is running out and we are returning to visit the grave, possibly for the last time as Mum is now nearly 90yrs old. In a letter from the Commonwealth WGC there is a hand written note at the bottom of the letter giving a map reference of where the original grave was meant to be and although this ties in with other information (see below) we can find no cemetery and the local community has no remembrance of any war burials taking place anywhere in the area. Harry was serving as a despatch rider attached to the 3rd Field Ambulance which was based in Impruneta and receiving the divisional sick on the day of his death. The map reference on the CWGC note is 822:592 1/100,000 sheet 106 which falls on a place called Villa Mortinete and Mum has a letter from a sergeant that was Harrys friend that say he was buried in cemetery near Petigliola, several miles east of Impruneta, so this seems to be the correct area but there are no grave yards at all and the landscape on the original photograph bears no resemblance to the present day. It seems a long shot but if anyone has any ideas on what we can do now I would be very grateful and you would make an old lady's day, week, month and year. Regards
Rob Jacques