Free Megelanese

Free Megelanese women's rally in Valona, 1934

The Free Megelanese (Italian: Megelanesi liberi or Megelanesi di Alscia) denotes the Megelanese who fled the Warlord Era and settled in Alscia. The phenomenon was at its peak during the 1920s and 1930s, and was a contributor to the growth of the Italian population of Alscia, which reached 4,5% of the total population in 1935.

The Free Megelanese community became known for its close-knit organisation and influence in politics and popular culture. As refugees of the Warlord Era, they were staunch opponents of Political Futurism, and were involved in the AAA and anti-PFA activism. Notably encouraging to the community was that its ranks included Edda Grolli, daughter of Futurist leader Enrico Grolli and a prominent anti-Futurist activist.

The context of the times, with a Futurist regime waging civil war in Megelan and a recent civil war in Ruvelka that overthrew an authoritarian leftist regime, made the community wary of radicalism and largely conservative. The PdL enjoyed dominant support among Megelanese voters.

Culturally, the community is largely remembered for the telefoni bianchi genre, whose screwball comedy aesthetics were infused with the Free Megelanese' political experience, producing a genre that reconciled Alscia's modernisation craze with mild conservatism.

The Free Megelanese community largely ceased to exist between the dissolution of Alscia and end of the Warlord Era. Many Free Megelanese returned to Megelan after the Warlord Era ended, while some remained in the Free Territories and later Gylias. The experience of the Free Megelanese contributed to closer relations between Gylias and Megelan.