Spatocco was born in
Chieti on 31 May 1883, the son of Francesco Spatocco, and after enlisting in the
Royal Italian Army he participated in the
Italo-Turkish War with the rank of
lieutenant. He distinguished himself in the
battle of Zanzur (8 June 1912), for which he was decorated with a
Bronze Medal of Military Valour. During the
First World War he distinguished himself in October 1916 on the Veliki Kribak, receiving another Bronze Medal of Military Valour. After the war he commanded the 17th Infantry Regiment "Acqui" with the rank of
colonel. He participated in the
Second Italo-Ethiopian War, fighting in the
battle of Amba Aradam, and after promotion to
brigadier general, on 16 June 1936, he assumed command of the "Sila" Infantry Brigade. In 1937 he was briefly appointed Administrative Director at the Personnel Office of the
Ministry of War in Rome. After promotion to
major general on 1 September 1937, he assumed command of the
63rd Infantry Division Cirene, stationed in
North Africa, which he kept until 19 September 1940, when he was replaced by General
Alessandro de Guidi and took command of the
XXI Army Corps for a brief period. In 1941 he assumed command of the
Tripoli Fortress Area, later renamed
XX Army Corps, and on 1 July of the same year he was promoted to
lieutenant general. On November 29, he assumed command of the
IV Army Corps stationed in
Albania, replacing General
Camillo Mercalli. When the
Armistice of Cassibile was announced, on 8 September 1943, the corps under his command, operating within the
9th Army of General
Renzo Dalmazzo, was deployed in Albania, with headquarters in
Durrës, and consisted of three infantry divisions (
11th Infantry Division Brennero,
49th Infantry Division Parma and
151st Infantry Division Perugia) in addition to various smaller units. The IV Corps was overrun by German forces during
Operation Achse, and on 21 September Spatocco was captured and transferred first to
Germany and then to officer
POW camp 64Z in Schokken (now
Skoki) in
Poland, where most Italian generals and admirals captured during Operation Achse had been imprisoned. In January 1945, with the
Red Army approaching, the camp was evacuated with a
forced march through the snow. Spatocco, unable to keep pace with the other prisoners, was murdered by the
SS on 28 January 1945, along with Generals
Alberto Trionfi,
Emanuele Balbo Bertone,
Giuseppe Andreoli,
Ugo Ferrero and
Alessandro Vaccaneo. ==References==