The book gives an account of an important part of the history of the City of Rijeka, in which the city was left without a state by the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy and was conquered on behalf of the Kingdom of Italy by Gabriela D’Annunzio.
The book deals with the chronological and historical scientific method of the period of Rijeka’s history from the end of 1918 and the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy until Bloody Christmas in 1920, and the departure of Gabriele D’Annunzio in January 1921. In this turbulent period, Rijeka is a city left without state by the dissolution of Austria-Hungary, and in the period of peace negotiations, Italian writer and soldier – Gabriele D’Annunzio conquers it on behalf of the Kingdom of Italy like some sort of mediaeval warlord and independently governed the city in which the postulates of impeding totalitarian regimes were being experimented with.
The author, Tea Perincic PhD (HR), curator at the Maritime and History Museum of the Croatian Littoral of Rijeka, builds her narrative by analysing other authors’ publications on Rijeka’s history, using contemporary writings and newspaper articles, as well as unpublished sources such as Zora Blažić’s diary and some personal letters.
Historical data and excerpts from the sources are intertwined with the narrative to give a dynamic account of what happened. In the end, the author concludes that this period is a tragic “theatrical performance” by the main character Gabriele D’Annunzio, who did nothing good for the city or the rest of the world. There is nothing humane or poetic in D’Annunzio’s acts. The text, illustrated by numerous photographs from that period of Rijeka’s history, represents a publicist and scientific contribution to commemorating the 100th anniversary of the D’anunciada.