On 24th September over 150 distinguished guests were welcomed by the Lord Mayor of London, Alderman Michael Mainelli, to Mansion House for a celebration of Anglo-Italian Friendship. The event, jointly organised by the Monte San Martino Trust and Kensington Wade (an award-winning, immersive, bilingual nursery and prep school in west London for children aged 3-11) was also a book launch for To the River by Hugo de Burgh, the chairman of Kensington Wade and a long-time supporter of MSMT.

After enjoying a drinks reception and canapés, guests made their way to the Egyptian Hall where the Lord Mayor commented in his opening remarks that “both the Monte San Martino Trust and Kensington Wade school are similarly focused on creating connections and building cross-cultural understanding”.

This was followed by an address from Lord David Willetts, co-chair of the Pontignano Conference, a discussion forum between the UK and Italy. Delightfully, he connected MSMT and Kensington Wade by posing the question “Didn’t Marco Polo bring noodles to Italy from China?”, much to the amusement of the numerous guests with Italian origins.

We were then treated to a wonderful concert performed by students of Kensington Wade, introduced by Headmaster Huw May and Music Master Eddie Giffney. The students thrilled us with their talents by singing in several languages and presenting two beautifully-played pieces on the harp.

Hugo de Burgh then explained how a plate of pasta with some old soldiers 40 years ago gave rise to Kensington Wade School and his novel To the River. He noted that “the man they had really wanted to invite was dead. He was my father, who had managed, with the help of a very brave Italian officer, Eugenio Vicedomini, to get 600 of them out of that camp and out of the way of Nazi troops who were on the way to nab them after Italy had left the war”. Hugo’s book is testament to the bravery of his father and many others that served with him. Hugo has generously donated all funds from the sale of his book to MSMT.

The speeches were rounded off with an address by our chairman, Sir Nick Young, who steps down from the role on December 31st after 20 years in the post. Nick warmly welcomed Chair-elect, Professor Phil Cooke, who was present, and also Angela Treves, the widow of Vanni Treves who worked tirelessly to raise funds for the Trust.

The night was especially poignant for Angela as the first recipient of the Vanni Treves Bursary, Lorenzo Gallorini from Florence, was also in attendance. Nick movingly concluded his speech with the words “the actions of the Italian people after the Armistice were the greatest act of kindness in modern history”.

The Trust gained over 40 new supporters from this event, many of whom have direct links to Italy and business within the City of London.

The evening was kindly sponsored by Ian Laing, a MSMT trustee.