.jpg)
Community hub
Recent from talks
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Battle of Aspromonte
The Battle of Aspromonte, also known as the Day of Aspromonte (Italian: Giornata dell'Aspromonte), was a minor engagement that took place on 29 August 1862, and was an inconclusive episode of the Italian unification process. It is named after the nearby mountain of Aspromonte in southern Italy. Giuseppe Garibaldi's army of volunteers was attacked by the Royal Italian Army while marching from Sicily towards Rome, capital of the Papal States, which it intended to annex into the newly created Kingdom of Italy. In the fighting, which took place a few kilometers from Gambarie, Garibaldi was wounded and taken prisoner.
When Victor Emmanuel II became the King of Italy on 17 March 1861, the newly created Kingdom of Italy did not include Veneto and Rome. These "unredeemed" cities, as they would be called a few decades later, were a constant cause of friction in Italian politics. The dispute concerning Rome, specifically known as the "Roman Question", had arisen after the Italian Parliament had declared Rome capital of the kingdom on 27 March 1861. This conflicted with Pope Pius IX's intent to maintain his temporal control of the city.
Members of the government of the Kingdom of Italy had different perspectives on this issue, and the internal tensions that followed caused Prime Minister Bettino Ricasoli to resign in 1862. While his successor, Urbano Rattazzi, was known for his disrespectful attitude towards the Holy See, the Kingdom of Italy maintained a low profile on the Roman Question after Rattazzi's election.
Meanwhile, General Giuseppe Garibaldi reached Sicily and began to form an army, with the intent of marching on Rome. The intransigent reaction of France (which was, at the time, the most influential ally of Italy) and the Pope caused the Italian government to intervene. On 3 August, Victor Emmanuel II officially condemned Garibaldi's "guilty impatience", and Rattazzi sent the Royal Army, at the orders of general Enrico Cialdini, to stop Garibaldi.
Garibaldi was known and respected as a hero by most Italians, including most soldiers in the Royal Army and Navy. Several actions that occurred reveal that neither Garibaldi nor his opponents were willing to enter open combat, or cause too much damage to their opponent.
Although Garibaldi's ships had likely been detected by the Royal Navy while they were crossing the Strait of Messina to reach land in Calabria, the Royal Army only attacked when Garibaldi's army had actually reached land, possibly to keep losses to a minimum. Garibaldi himself did not immediately counter-attack the Royal Army, instead trying to circumvent it by crossing the Aspromonte mountains.
Garibaldi's army marched for three days; on 28 August 1862, the leading regiment, led by Garibaldi, camped near Gambarie, where the rest of his army was expected to arrive in a few days. On 29 August, before Garibaldi's army was reunited, Bersaglieri from the Royal Army reached Garibaldi's camp and attacked.
Garibaldi ordered his army not to open fire "on our brothers", and some Bersaglieri changed sides during the battle, joining Garibaldi's volunteers. However, despite Garibaldi's order, one wing of his regiment mounted a counter-attack against the Bersaglieri. During the altercation, two bullets hit Garibaldi's hip and malleolus. A cease-fire was declared shortly thereafter, and Garibaldi surrendered.
Hub AI
Battle of Aspromonte AI simulator
(@Battle of Aspromonte_simulator)
Battle of Aspromonte
The Battle of Aspromonte, also known as the Day of Aspromonte (Italian: Giornata dell'Aspromonte), was a minor engagement that took place on 29 August 1862, and was an inconclusive episode of the Italian unification process. It is named after the nearby mountain of Aspromonte in southern Italy. Giuseppe Garibaldi's army of volunteers was attacked by the Royal Italian Army while marching from Sicily towards Rome, capital of the Papal States, which it intended to annex into the newly created Kingdom of Italy. In the fighting, which took place a few kilometers from Gambarie, Garibaldi was wounded and taken prisoner.
When Victor Emmanuel II became the King of Italy on 17 March 1861, the newly created Kingdom of Italy did not include Veneto and Rome. These "unredeemed" cities, as they would be called a few decades later, were a constant cause of friction in Italian politics. The dispute concerning Rome, specifically known as the "Roman Question", had arisen after the Italian Parliament had declared Rome capital of the kingdom on 27 March 1861. This conflicted with Pope Pius IX's intent to maintain his temporal control of the city.
Members of the government of the Kingdom of Italy had different perspectives on this issue, and the internal tensions that followed caused Prime Minister Bettino Ricasoli to resign in 1862. While his successor, Urbano Rattazzi, was known for his disrespectful attitude towards the Holy See, the Kingdom of Italy maintained a low profile on the Roman Question after Rattazzi's election.
Meanwhile, General Giuseppe Garibaldi reached Sicily and began to form an army, with the intent of marching on Rome. The intransigent reaction of France (which was, at the time, the most influential ally of Italy) and the Pope caused the Italian government to intervene. On 3 August, Victor Emmanuel II officially condemned Garibaldi's "guilty impatience", and Rattazzi sent the Royal Army, at the orders of general Enrico Cialdini, to stop Garibaldi.
Garibaldi was known and respected as a hero by most Italians, including most soldiers in the Royal Army and Navy. Several actions that occurred reveal that neither Garibaldi nor his opponents were willing to enter open combat, or cause too much damage to their opponent.
Although Garibaldi's ships had likely been detected by the Royal Navy while they were crossing the Strait of Messina to reach land in Calabria, the Royal Army only attacked when Garibaldi's army had actually reached land, possibly to keep losses to a minimum. Garibaldi himself did not immediately counter-attack the Royal Army, instead trying to circumvent it by crossing the Aspromonte mountains.
Garibaldi's army marched for three days; on 28 August 1862, the leading regiment, led by Garibaldi, camped near Gambarie, where the rest of his army was expected to arrive in a few days. On 29 August, before Garibaldi's army was reunited, Bersaglieri from the Royal Army reached Garibaldi's camp and attacked.
Garibaldi ordered his army not to open fire "on our brothers", and some Bersaglieri changed sides during the battle, joining Garibaldi's volunteers. However, despite Garibaldi's order, one wing of his regiment mounted a counter-attack against the Bersaglieri. During the altercation, two bullets hit Garibaldi's hip and malleolus. A cease-fire was declared shortly thereafter, and Garibaldi surrendered.