Page 21 - General Giuseppe GARIBALDI - english version

THE AMERICAN CAMPAIGNS 1836 - 1848 19

ported by his good vanguard commander colonel Texeira, on land, and
Garibaldi by now in the command of a stronger armed fleet on the sea) hav-
ing his base in the port of Laguna with his sights set on the vigilant and pow-
erful imperial fleet that cruised the coast of the ocean, he conducted the
operations with good energy.

The bold sorties of Garibaldi’s fleet, in fact caused frequent battles off the
shore of the port and on the Brazilian coasts, from which Garibaldi, despite
a marked inferiority of resources, always managed to come out of with hon-
our and at times with advantage, thanks to the remarkable efficacy of
manoeuvres and his particular attitude to always act by surprise, both in
engaging in battle and in getting away from it. The most serious of these
battles took place after eight days sailing on the open sea, near the port of
Imbituba, north of Laguna.
The Rio Pardo where Garibaldi and his faithful and brave Anita (this was
in fact a modest merchant schooner with no particular war designation,
apart from a single 9 calibre cannon) clashed with a big Brazilian patacho, a
kind of big war schooner, with square bow and armed with 7 pieces of
artillery whose intention was to take back from the small pirate ship of Rio
Grande the three sumacas captured not long before and that was taking with
it. Garibaldi ordered the sumacas to go quickly to the port of Imbituba and
engage in the unequal battle. The sea was very rough. Very soon the very
close fire of the of the patacho’s artillery caused serious damage to the masts
and the sails of the Rio Pardo, forcing Garibaldi, who was unable to flee to
Laguna because of the bad weather, to also go to the closest small port of
Imbituba. Once there, and predicting that very soon other imperial ships
would arrive to crush him, he took advantage of the enemy’s hesitation to
prepare himself to properly receive the inevitable stronger attack. He placed
the cannon from another of his ships on the promontory that closed the bay
of Imbituba on the east protecting it quickly with a gabionade parapet.
The following dawn thee imperial vessel were reported advancing
towards Imbituba. Garibaldi then concealed the Rio Pardo at the end of the
bay and the battle, very unequal, started under his command with the faith-
ful Anita present, having refused to obey her husband’s order to disembark
to protect her.