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The post-war period and the birth of the Park

The area's landscape was also devastated by the war. During the massacre, the Germans burnt down the houses and barns and killed or confiscated the animals. The Monte Sole - Monte Caprara area was then transformed by the occupying army into a network of trenches and surrounded by landmines. The area was finally liberated by the Allies between April 16 and 17 1945 following heavy bombardments.

Returning to these areas after the war was extremely difficult: on top of all the destruction and devastation were the painful memories of the loved ones who had perished. Many areas were abandoned and nature began to take over. People returned to live solely in the lower valley areas, whereas the locations at the foot of Mount Sole were only frequented occasionally or in relation to special celebrations. It wasn't until the 1970s that the idea of revitalizing the area began to take shape.

The Comitato Regionale per le Onoranze ai Caduti di Marzabotto (Regional Committee to Honor the Fallen of Marzabotto) was created in 1982 to pay tribute to the victims and to promote the ideals of liberty, peace and democracy. In 1989 the Emilia Romagna regional authorities established the Monte Sole Historical Park on the sites of the Resistance and the Nazi-Fascist massacres to serve as a memorial to the events that took place there during World War II, to preserve the surrounding environmental conditions, which had improved over time, and to offer young people a lesson on peace. In 2012 the park became part of the Macroarea per i Parchi e la Biodiversità dell'Emilia Orientale.