The Pisan Cantos were written during Pound's incarceration in a prison camp near Pisa following his World War II collaboration with Mussolini's fascist regime. Their publication in 1948 coincided with the developing Beat aesthetic, and these poems were esteemed by Allen Ginsberg and others. Mainstream critics were appalled that a war criminal was held in such regard by the younger generation, making The Pisan Cantos all the more popular. In 1967 Ginsberg arrived in Sant'Ambrogio, Italy, to pay homage to Pound. After performing Hari Krishna chants on the sidewalk, Ginsberg and friends were invited inside where Ginsberg told Pound, "you have shown us the way. The more I read your poetry, the more I am convinced it is the best of its time." There is much evidence to suggest that Ginsberg, in many ways, modeled his life after Pound's—both were tireless promoters of their friends' creative works, both brought attention to new unknown talent, both worked hard to remain in the public eye, and both did much to form a sense of community among hitherto disparate groups of artists.