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Two years after the end of the Second World War, the Mille Miglia was back on track, and so was Alfa Romeo. Clemente Biondetti and Emilio Romano claimed victory in 1947. Pictured is a Fiat 1100S driven by Antonio Brivio and Aymo Maggi, which finished in 13th place. Aymo Maggi was one of the co-founders of the event, and helped organize the inaugural 1927 race.
Motor sport fans pack the grandstands as cars line up for the start of the 1930 Mille Miglia.
Tazio Nuvolari and co-driver Giovanni Battista Guidotti won the 1930 Mille Miglia in a Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 Gran Sport Spider Zagato.
By 1930, the Mille Miglia was deeply ingrained in the Italian psyche. Alfa Romeo dominated that year's event, with the first four places taken by the Italian car manufacturer.
English racing driver Eddie Hall (center) standing in front of a MG Magnette before the start of the 1934 Mille Miglia. In 1950, Hall became the only driver to successfully complete the full 24 hours of the 24 Hours of Le Mans race solo.
Italian racer Carlo Pintacuda with his co-driver the Marquis Della Stufa after winning the 1935 Mille Miglia in their adapted Alfa Romeo P3, on April 18, 1935.
A fatal accident during the 1938 Mille Miglia led to Mussolini suspending the event the following year. It was reinstated in 1940, the year that saw BMW take top honors. Pictured are German drivers Huschke von Hanstein and Walter Bäumer taking the checkered flag in their BMW 328.
This year marked the 17th Mille Miglia. Many Italians are superstitious about the number 17 because rearranging the Roman numeral XVII can create the word "VIXI"—translated from Latin to mean "my life is over." That year's event was therefore renamed "La Mille Miglia del 1950 per la Coppa Franco Mazzotti" in honor of Franco Mazzotti, one of the founders of the Mille Miglia, who died after his plane was shot down over the Strait of Sicily in 1942. Ferrari took the checkered flag.
His triumph in Italy marked the greatest single achievement in the long career of Stirling Moss.
In 1953, the FIA inaugurated the World Sportscar Championship: the Mille Miglia became one of seven qualifying events. Pictured is Giannino Marzotto, the eventual winner of the race, about to leave Brescia in his 4.1 liter Ferrari. His co-driver was Marco Crosara.
Rain greeted the start of the 1954 event. Pictured are Peter Collins and Pat Griffith in their Aston Martin DB3S at Brescia.
Legendary Italian motor racing driver, entrepreneur, and founder of the Ferrari marque Enzo Ferrari at Brescia in May 1954.
Competing in the 1955 Mille Miglia was Belgian racing driver Gilberte Thirion. Throughout her career in motorsport between 1951 and 1957, she drove Porsche, Gordini, Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz, and Renault in rallies and sportscar races. She won a World Rally Championship event, taking the Tour of Corsica in 1956—one of the few women ever to triumph at competition level.
The mid-1950s saw color photography becoming more widespread, and spectators took full advantage of the new medium. This overview of cars lined up for pre-race scrutinizing in the Piazza Vittoria in Brescia before the start of the 1955 event highlights the red Maserati A6GCS two-liter racers.
Italian racing driver Umberto Maglioli and his navigator, Luciano Monteferrario, on the Futa Pass in the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines, in a Ferrari 118LM, during the 1955 Mille Miglia.
John Fitch seeks shade under the wings of his Mercedes-Benz 300SL in Brescia in 1955. Fitch was the first American to race automobiles successfully in Europe in the post-war era. A class win in the Mille Miglia was the high point of his driving career.
Spectators watching the 1956 Mille Miglia race as it moves through the Radicofani pass to Brescia. The lack of proper safety precautions extended to the complete disregard of crowd control measures.
Judges stopping the car of Luigi Musso, who would eventually finish in third place in 1956.
The 1957 Mille Miglia was marred by tragedy. Spanish driver Alfonso de Portago's front tire exploded at high speed sending his car into a group of spectators. The impact killed nine people, including five children, and injured 20 others. Portago's co-driver/navigator Edmund Nelson also lost his life. Pictured is the remains of their Ferrari.
But it was thick fog that endured throughout the race, which made racing conditions hazardous. Pictured is the Lancia of Gino Valenzano overtaking Reg Parnell's Aston Martin in the early morning.
Alberto Ascari (seen here surrounded by journalists) won the 1954 Mille Miglia, at the wheel of a Lancia D24. Ascari, a twice Formula One World Champion, was killed on May 26, 1955 while test-driving at Monza. His father Antonio, also a racing driver, died on July 26, 1925 in eerily similar circumstances. Both were killed four days after surviving serious accidents and on the 26th day of the month. Both had won 13 championship Grands Prix, and both left behind a wife and two children.
Ferrari team leader Eugenio Castellotti chats with two female motorsport fans in Brescia's Piazza Vittoria before the start of the 1955 Mille Miglia. Castellotti would drive a Ferrari 121LM into an early lead, but would later retire with engine failure.
The Mille Miglia was an open-road motorsport endurance race established in 1927 by a group of Italian noblemen. One of the most famous road races for automobiles, the Mille Miglia, or "Thousand Miles," started and ended at Brescia in Lombardy after following a route that traversed the Italian peninsula all the way to Rome before heading back and chasing the checkered flag. The race ran until 1957, when a series of fatal accidents forced its cancellation. In 1977, however, the Mille Miglia was reinstated as a more serene and far safer classic and vintage car rally, a prestigious event that attracts motorsport fans and celebrities from around the world.
Click through and see how the Mille Miglia motored into life and shifted gear over its 20-year run.
British driver Peter Collins at speed in the Ferrari 860 Monza in the rain during the 1956 Mille Miglia. He is steering using a special Nardi four-spoke wheel preferred by him. Collins finished in second place behind Eugenio Castellotti. Note the woefully inadequate safety considerations—no reinforced cockpit or the wearing of fire-resistant overalls.
Mechanics checking the engine of the car driven by Germans Fritz Riess and Hermann Eger at the 1956 Mille Miglia.
The 1955 Mille Miglia saw Stirling Moss became the first Briton to win the fabled Italian endurance race. He covered 1,599 km (994 mi) in 10 hours, 7 minutes, and 48 seconds with navigator Denis Jenkinson in a Mercedes-Benz 300SLR to set a new record. The pair are pictured taking the checkered flag.
Mechanics refueling the car of Giuseppe Musso, brother of Luigi, at a pit stop during the 1956 Mille Miglia. A refueling stop like this today would be completely unacceptable giving the risk of fire and injury.
Brescia on April 28, 1956. Cars are lined up in Piazza Vittoria for public viewing before the start of the race.
The sleek, streamlined form of an Alfa Romeo 6C 2300, one of the cars that completed in the 1937 Mille Miglia. The race that year was won by Carlo Pintacuda and Paride Mambelli. Incidentally, fourth place was taken by Ercole Borrato and Giovanni Guidotti. From October 1922 to July 1943, Borrato served as Mussolini's personal chauffeur.
Entry 14, an OM 665 Sport driven by Ferdinando Minoia and Giuseppe Morandi, won the inaugural Mille Miglia in Italy on March 27, 1927.
Stirling Moss and navigator Denis Jenkinson celebrate their famous 1955 victory.
Three days after the accident, a shocked Italian government pulled the plug and decreed the end of the Mille Miglia and of all motor racing on Italian public roads. Pictured are two shoes left in the grass after the tragedy.
In 1977, the Mille Miglia was reestablished as an annual regularity race for classic and vintage cars. The route (Brescia–Rome round trip) is similar to that of the original race, and attracts motorsport enthusiasts from around the world. Participants include celebrities such as Jay Leno (pictured).
Sources (1000 Miglia) (Grand Prix History) (Petrolicious) (The Irish Times) (National Geographic) (Historic Racing) (Formula 1) (Autocar)
See also: Stars who drive classic cars
Memories of the Mille Miglia road race
Remembering one of the world's most prestigious motorsport endurance races
LIFESTYLE Motorsport
The Mille Miglia was an open-road motorsport endurance race established in 1927 by a group of Italian noblemen. One of the most famous road races for automobiles, the Mille Miglia, or "Thousand Miles," started and ended at Brescia in Lombardy after following a route that traversed the Italian peninsula all the way to Rome before heading back and chasing the checkered flag. The race ran until 1957, when a series of fatal accidents forced its cancellation. In 1977, however, the Mille Miglia was reinstated as a more serene and far safer classic and vintage car rally, a prestigious event that attracts motorsport fans and celebrities from around the world.
Click through and see how the Mille Miglia motored into life and shifted gear over its 20-year run.