The political parties of the Trentino were stout defenders of Italian national rights. They strove for provincial autonomy and a separation from Tyrol but shied away from irredentist leanings. Alcide De Gasperi more than anyone else personified this attitude. However, after the war years with their forced evacuations and deportations, including the internment of Bishop Endrici, the views of De Gasperi and his followers changed radically. During the last months of the war, they clearly longed for an Austrian defeat and union with Italy.
