Page 293 - General Giuseppe GARIBALDI - english version

THE 1866 CAMPAIGN 275

and Garibaldi quickly brought forward his line in the Val di Concei, setting his
headquarters in Cologna and beginning the investment of fort Lardaro. In this
way he got closer to Riva, while General Medici, on the other side, arrived
almost in sight of Trento with the brilliant battles of Borgo and Levico.
But on the morning of the 25 th July, while everything was ready for the
bombardment of Lardaro and to advance in Val di Sarca, the news arrived of
the first armistice of 8 days before. This is not the place to touch on the
painful topic of the missed conquest of Trentino in part occupied by our reg-
ular and volunteer troops, of the influence that the dark shadow of Lissa had
on the long negotiations; but historic justice demands that we remember the
generous proud efforts of Baron Ricasoli, Prime Minister, to save the
Trentino for Italy and the patriotic hesitations of our military negotiators at
the Conference of Cormons. Unfortunately, on the 9 th August, giving in to
the inevitable, the Italian government, in the agreements of the armistice, had
to concede the leaving Trentino. On the same day, general La Marmora sent
Garibaldi this telegram: “Political considerations strongly demand the con-
clusion of the armistice for which it is required that all our forces must retreat
from Tirol, by order of the King. You will therefore dispose that by 04:00am
of the day after tomorrow, the 11 th August, your troops will have left the bor-
ders with the Tirol. General Medici has already started the moves”.
“What shock this was for the heart of the Hero – writes Guerzoni – can
be guessed by the historian, but cannot be said for certain…Garibaldi made
no mention of his internal turmoil not even to closest friends. Calmly he
picked up the pen and personally answered La Marmora with the famous
telegram” the literal text of which is: “I received telegram No. 1073. I obey.
G. Garibaldi”.
“He closed the campaign with this last victory on himself”.
A really great victory, that concurred to elevate even higher the moral fig-
ure of Garibaldi, soldier and commander. The politician that had prevailed
in him, with the act of disobedience to the King, before Aspromonte and
that, in similar conditions, brought him later to Mentana, was silent, then,
when facing the man-soldier and the sacred laws of discipline.
This act appeared as the morally higher act of his shiny and heroic life.

Garibaldi’s campaign in Trentino was judged in different ways.
Already in the course of the operations newspapers of any political colour,