Page 57 - Adriatico 1848. Ricerca e significato della contrapposizione marittima - Atti 25 settembre 1998

THE AUSTRIAN NAVY IN THE ADRIATIC SEA IN THE REVOLUTIONARY YEAR 1848 47

movement and deserted from Austrian military naval service. This event led to a
major investigation, implemented by the imperial government and independent
from the Austro-Venetian navy commando The results of this independent investi-
gation laid open corruption and a great number of misdevelopments in the navy,
of which I have mentioned only few examples before. The results led to the pen-
sioning of the high-commander of the navy, vice-admiral Paulucd in 1844, who
was mainly held reponsible, and of other Italian officers. The still young archiduke
Friedrich was now appointed vice-admiral and high-commander of the Austrian
navy. In his written appointment he was expressively ordered by the Emperor and
the Minister of War to stop the miselevelopments in the navy with a finn hand and
to create also in the navy the same atmosphere of duty and honour which was
usual in the other parts of the Austrian armed forces.
The new navy-commander and especially his aide, captain von Marinovich,
at the same time director of the arsenal, tried to realise these ordes in a target-min-
ded way. They could in words of today surely be considered as harel-Iiners of a
new discipline in the Austro-Venetian navy, which did not find much under stan-
ding anel appreciation by the Venetian officers, crews and workers in the fleet and
in the arsenal, as it started to change the olel anel beloveellittle customs. It can al so
be saiel, that archieluke Friedrich accumulateel a lot of political hate by not having
interveneel in favour of the deserteel, then imprisoneel, court-matialled anel exe-
cuteel revolutionary brothers Baneliera in Naples Cwhy shoulel he have?) anel of
sodal hate by restructuring the naval services, especially in the arsenal of Venice
but also on the fleet. He also starteel a long range program of an "austrification"
of the Austro-Venetian navy, which founel its acceleration anel full effect only after
the revolution of 1848. Even more hateel than the naval high-commander was
evielently his aiele captain Marinovich, who as elirector of the arsenal personally
investigated ali details anel endeel many of the olel customs, which were so Iittle
of use for the navy and so expensive for the Austrian government. In an amusing, as
not so sincere revolutionary poetry of 1848 he was said "to have Iighted a thousanel
of elevilish fires in the arsenal".
Ali this coulel not anel eliel not find much appreciation in Venice, in the navy,
in the arsenal anel on the fleet, so heavily influenced by a traditional anel now also
nationalistic, republican anel revolutionary feeling of "venezianità".
This was the already tense situation a few month before the beginning of the
revolutionary year 1848, when the high-commaneler of the navy vice-aelmiral archi-
duke Friedrich suddenly fell sick of an intestinal disease beginning of october 1847
and dieel within a few days. The outer circumstances'describeel before, the natu-
re of his disease, the suelelennes of his eleath, the strange accompanying circum-
stances of his autopsy, the criticai anel personal interest of Metternich him-self anel
later reports of independant Austro-German navy officers of that time have lead
myself in my biography about vice-aelmiral Friedrich to the conclusion, that the
young high-commander was poisened by his politica I enemies.