Page 137 - General Giuseppe GARIBALDI - english version

THE 1859 CAMPAIGN 135

towards S. Andrea where he stopped pushing the outposts until Gemonio, 15
kilometres from Varese and 6 kilometres from Laveno. Here he learned that
the garrison of Laveno consisted of 600 men, about eighty of which were in
the fort, on the promontory of S. Michele, overlooking the town and the
lake. With his characteristic ability to make decisions quickly, the General
decided to surprise the fort at night. For this operation he appointed the
Cosenz regiment only, in order to have at his disposal enough troops to pro-
tect his rear from Urban, who according to information had returned near
st
Varese. The 1 regiment, together with the artillery, advanced to 3 kilome-
tres from Laveno, in Cittiglio; the 2 nd occupied Brenta, on the road of
Cassano Valcuvia, and the 3 rd Gemonio and Azzio on the road of Cuvio, so
that they kept guard on the direct road to Varese and the roads to the moun-
tains through Valcuvia and Valganna.
Despite the constant rain that blocked the visual, he wanted to see, in per-
son and as much as possible, the positions from the hillock of Mombello,
south of Laveno, accompanied by colonel Cosenz and other officers and
guided by local people. Afterwards, he ordered Cosenz to advance, at mid-
night, to about a few hundred metres from the village and then to detach
three companies with Major Marocchetti who, after immobilising, with few
men, an enemy guard at the eastern exit of Laveno, near the church of
S.Maria was to go round a path behind the village, on the slopes of the Sasso
del Ferro – that overlooked it from the north – to the road leading to the fort.
Once arrived, the major was to detach two companies - Bronzetti and Landi
–to surround and attack the fort, breaking in through the gunports from the
north and the south. A small column with two howitzers was to follow the
mule-track along the western slope of the Sasso del Ferro and, through Vararo
and Monteggia, descend on the fort and defeat it from northeast. In the
meantime, Bixio and Simonetta were sent to the Sardinian shore of the lake,
to Intra, to get together those people who were armed and ready to attempt
with them to take by surprise the enemy steamboats across the lake in the
anchorage of Laveno.
The very courageous undertaking failed due particularly to the deep dark-
ness and the inability of the local people who served as guides. Since the idea
of a surprise on the sentry post of S. Maria was unsuccessful, and the alarm
was sounded to the garrison of Laveno who were on their guard having wind
of Garibaldi’s intentions, the result of the action was no doubt compromised.