Benito Mussolini Mussolini was rescued from captivity in the Gran Sasso raid by German paratroopers and "Waffen-SS" commandos led by Major Otto-Harald Mors. Adolf Hitler, after meeting with the rescued former dictator, then put Mussolini in charge of a puppet regime in northern Italy, the Italian Social Republic (, RSI), informally known as the "Salò Republic". In late April 1945, in the wake of near total defeat, Mussolini and his mistress Clara Petacci attempted to flee to Switzerland, but both were captured by Italian communist partisans and summarily executed by firing squad on 28 April 1945 near Lake Como. His body was
History of cricket in New Zealand from 1945–46 to 1970 History of cricket in New Zealand from 1945–46 to 1970 This article describes the history of New Zealand cricket from the 1945–46 season until 1970. Domestic first-class cricket in New Zealand during this period centred on the Plunket Shield, which was the State Championship from 1906 to 1975. Between mid-February and early April, while the Australian Test team was touring South Africa, an Australian team captained by Bill Brown played 14 matches, five of which were first-class. They beat Canterbury, Otago and Wellington, and drew against Auckland and New Zealand (not a Test match). Between mid-February and early April an