Page 140 - General Giuseppe GARIBALDI - english version

138 GENERAL GIUSEPPE GARIBALDI

Cut off from Como, he did not hesitate: as Prince Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen
says of him, he had written on his flag the motto of the great Napoleon
“action, action, swiftness”, so, wasting no time, he directed the Brigade
through the Valcuvia and in the evening stopped in Cuvio with two regi-
ments, pushing the Medici regiment until Cassano. The day after, deter-
mined to attack the enemy in Varese, continued with the two regiments
though the path that from Brinzio turns north of the mountain of Campo
dei Fiori and comes down to Varese east of S. Maria del Monte and stopped
across from this last locality, while Medici from Cassano went to Valganna
and then near Induno Olona.
The day after, June 2, he advanced towards Sant’Ambrogio, about four
kilometres northwest of Varese, with the idea of attacking the enemy who had
occupied the high grounds of Giubiano, southeast of the city and did not
dare, strong as he was, to confront the weak army of Garibaldi, in an
unfavourable position, and with the Swiss border on the side and the rear.
However, the situation of the volunteers was very critical because apart
from the great inferiority in terms of numbers and weapons, the morale and
the patriotic spirit of the population was also affected by the failure of
Laveno, the threatening return of Urban and the exodus from Varese of the
best and most compromised citizens, while at the same time, all the roads
seemed to be closed to the Brigade.
The general, in the habit of seeing things with his own eyes, had observed
from high ground the enemy’s positions, that he estimated to be occupied by
12-15,000 men, believed that a retreat of Urban was neither imminent nor
probable, instead of attacking, he decided to go round the positions to
Como, that was asking for help as soon as possible following the threat of
Urban to restore the imperial government. This request for help delivered by
a courteous messenger, Giuseppina Raimondi, daughter of a marquis, coura-
geously arrived from Como through the Swiss mountains: a meeting that was
ominous for the hero, because it had a thankless epilogue near the end of
January of the following year.
With a very courageous march on the flank, almost challenging the
enemy, who limited himself to spying on his movements with some patrols,
he travelled through Induno, S. Fermo, Ródero, Uggiate, under a very heavy
thunderstorm that lasted until the evening, and reached Como at 22:00 to a
rejoicing crowd.
Garibaldi, with the initiative of the operations, had made completely sure