Francesco Barracca
May 9, 1888 - June 19, 1918
Ace Aviator, and beloved son of Lugo, Italy
the scoop…
Francesco Baracca, beloved son of Lugo
Francesco Baracca was born in Lugo, Italy on May 9,1888. He was the only son of an aristocrat, a wealthy landowner, Count Enrico Baracca and Countess Paolina. Coming from a noble family he lived a priviledged life, which led to an elite education and many opportunites not widely available to other children. He grew up in a protected environment that valued discipline, refinement and traditional values. Over his youth and early adulthood he developed a passion for horses and everything equestrian which led him to attend a private Military Prep School in Florence where he was a serious, introspective and intelligent student who excelled in his studies as well as his equestrian skills. He then attended the Royal Military Academy of Moderna where he rose quickly to the level of calvary office and equestrian instructor of elite riders. Following this, he attended the Military Aviation Corps, (flight school) in Reims, France where once again he stood out, exceeded all expectations and was awarded an international pilots license. He then seriously embarked on his journey in aviation, as a fighter pilot in World War 1. On April 7, 1916 he became the first Italian aviator to shoot down one of Italy’s enemy aircraft. It was Italy’s first aerial victory of WW1 and was his alone. Already a truly remarkable young man, this marked the beginning of his brave and heroic string of aviation flights during WW1. He was credited with 34 aerial victories, awarding him the title of Italy’s leading ace aviator. In the late winter of 1916 as a tribute to his former cavalry regiment, The Piemonte Reale Cavalleria, he adopted the figure of a prancing black horse and had it painted on the fuselage of his fighter planes to reflect their daring, strength and speed in the air. After this, he was called, “The Cavalier of the Skies”.
Then it all ended much too abruptly when he was shot down on June 19, 1918 while engaged in an aerial mission over Montello in Northern Italy. He was only 30 years old at the time. Baracca was a man with bravery beyond comparision, with enduring tactical brillance, and heroism beyond reproach. He was truly iconic, immortalized in Italian memory, culture and art.
In 1923, 4 years after Francesco’s death, his black horse emblem of courage and strength was to become and still remains to this day the symbol of the Ferrari Racing team and their automobiles. This occurred after Francesco’s mother presented the black horse emblem to Enzo Ferrari and suggested that he adopt this symbol for his company as a sign of good luck.
Francesco Baracca, Italy’s top ace fighter pilot of WW1 will always be loved, cherished and remembered as a celebrated hero in his birthplace of Lugo, Italy.
