The defeat of Caporetto and the subsequent flight of the civilian population confirmed that in those years a new figure had emerged within Italian society: women. Even before October 1917 women had taken over in many instances the role of head of the family in the absence of husbands or fathers who were enrolled with the army. With relocation to other regions in Italy, they had to face even more difficult problems. Given the absence of male figures, traditionally more authoritative, women became very vulnerable in many small villages in the centre and in the south of Italy. Many of them found it difficult to qualify for the daily subsidy that was given to war refugees; the suitcases which they took with them when they left very often were lost on the way during their transfer to these localities; and having no money, they had to live for many months with the same clothes with which they had left. Any disease, even the most common one, would become a serious problem since it was not possible to gain access to any healthcare facility.
In this way a vicious circle got under way, as narrated by a woman refugee who reached Cerignola, in the province of Foggia: "fuggita dal mio caro paesello, durante l'invasione nemica, senza aver potuto portare con me neppure il necessario per cambiarmi, fui menata qui, in questa città delle Puglie […]. Qui non si può avere neppure l'acqua per lavarsi e devo pagarla a caro prezzo, diffalcando la spesa dall'esigua paga di lire due al giorno. Con l'enorme crescente rincaro dei viveri devo pensare a tutto con sole due lire; né posso andare in cerca di decorosa occupazione, vergognandomi di uscire dal mio ricovero così malandata e indecentemente vestita." (Having left my dear small home town, during the invasion by the enemy, without even having been able to take with me a change of clothes, I was brought here, to this town in Puglia, […]. Here you cannot even find water to wash and I have to pay a high price for it, meeting this expense from my small daily wage of two liri. With the huge increase in the price of food, I have to see to all my needs out of these two liri; I cannot even go out from my shelter to look for a decent job since I am ashamed to look so shabby and to be so badly dressed." (Daniele Ceschin, La condizione delle donne profughe e dei bambini dopo Caporetto in DEP - Deportate, Esuli, Profughe, Rivista Telematica di studi sulla memoria femminile, no. 1, 2004, page 28).
Without any money there was not even the possibility to search for work. To this could also add the racism shown by the residents of these places who saw in these refugees from the north a real threat both with regard to the small number of job opportunities that were available as well as the rumours that were spread on a large scale. A woman from San Pietro del Natisone who was transferred to a small town near Catania recalls that "siamo abbastanza mal visti che questa giente e peggio delle bestie. Ci guardanno male anoi e noialtri non potiamo più soportare […] Siamo qui come i zingari anche peggio tutti straciati." (we are very unpopular among the people here and worse than animals. They look suspiciously at us and we cannot take it any more […] we are here like gypsies and even worse, we are all in rags." Daniele Ceschin, La condizione delle donne profughe e dei bambini dopo Caporetto in DEP - Deportate, Esuli, Profughe, Rivista Telematica di studi Sulla memoria femminile, no. 1, 2004, page 29). Often many refugees were forced to ask for alms and, in very extreme cases, even to abandon their own children.
