Page 290 - General Giuseppe GARIBALDI - english version

272 GENERAL GIUSEPPE GARIBALDI

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On the 21 of July the most important and the most glorious feat of arms
of Garibaldi’s campaign in Trentino took place: the battle that took the name
from Bezzecca, a village in the Val di Ledro, at the outlet of the Concei Valley.
The Austrians advanced in two mobile columns: one (general Kaim), strong
of 6,000 men, was to attack through the Giudicarie the left flank and the cen-
tre of Garibaldi’s army and descend to Val Chiese; the other (Colonel
Montluisant), with 45,000 men and 4 pieces, left in two columns, plunging
through the Val di Concei, between Tiarno and Bezzecca, was supposed to
break through its right flank and then, by converging on Ampolla and Storo
through the high grounds between Val di Ledro and Val Chiese, give a hand
to the first one in Val di Chiese to defeat the volunteers with joined forces.
The columns of Montluisant that had the main burden of the action, were
supported by a detachment that he had order to come out of Riva to attack
Bezzecca from three sides. The attack took Garibaldi’s men by surprise. In
fact, general Haug, that was in command of the brigade and had the order to
stop in Bezzecca, had pushed an entire regiment (the 5 th with Colonel
Chiassi) a bit further on in Locca and this in turn had pushed forward a bat-
talion as vanguard up to Lenzumo, in the Val di Concei, 3 kilometres north
of Bezzecca. This battalion, taken by surprise by the left column of
Montluisant, was in part taken prisoner and in part pushed back in disarray
to Locca, where the entire 5 th regiment was in a short space of time attacked
from all sides by the two Austrian columns and, after a long battle, was also
pushed back, leaving on the way about a hundred of his men dead, wound-
ed or prisoners. In that difficult moment the mighty Chiassi did not lose
heart. He managed to take position at the entry of the village of Bezzecca
and, supported by two pieces of artillery and a band of Bersaglieri from the
Ist battalion (the Genoese men from Mosto), got together an initial defence.
Here it is better to let Guerzoni speak since he after acting in those events he
was also its serene and competent historian.
“In vain. The precision weapons, the dominant positions, the knowledge of
the area, the confusion in Garibaldi’s ranks since the beginning of the action,
gave such an advantage to the enemy that the resistance could not last long.
“The Garibaldians performed great exploits, but fired on from all direc-
tions and forced as usual to watch helpless with arms in hand an almost
invincible enemy that fired on them non stop from higher up killing them in
large numbers” and under constant threat on the road to Bezzecca “ran quick-
ly back inside the houses of the village, on which were already descending the