Page 59 - General Giuseppe GARIBALDI - english version

THE 1848 CAMPAIGN 57

enemy. In fact Vicenza had been taken on the night of June 10, and the same
fate had been experienced a few days later in Padua, Treviso, Rovigo,
Palmanova; only Venice resisted, protected by its lagoon.
In the days after his arrival in Nice, Garibaldi did not have the exact meas-
ure of this tragic situation; his “Memoirs” registered only the joyful welcome
he received by his home town.
But he had total confidence in the Piedmontese Army and, to clearly
establish his position before the parties, on June 25 th he publicly professed
his ideas. Before a group of his fellow-citizens gathered to welcome him, he
said: “You know that I have never been a partisan of Kings; but since Carlo
Alberto has established himself as the defender of the people’s cause I believed
I had to support him together with my comrades”.
Despite this firm and strong declaration, Mazzini’s Italy formed by the peo-
ple of July 1st announced, with enthusiastic words, the arrival of their com-
mander. Mazzini tried in this way to turn him from his purpose of serving
Carlo Alberto; he would have liked to have him in the Lombard Army, that,
in his mind, he saw free from dynastic bonds. We must also take into account
th
that a few days before, on June 25 , the provisional government had declared
the augmentation of armaments and the creation of a reserve army, and
Mazzini greatly hoped that Garibaldi could take command of those new forces.
But on July 2 nd , at the National Club in Genoa, Garibaldi confirmed
what he had said in Nice: “…We must make every possible effort so that the
Austrians could be soon driven out of Italian soil and we are not confronted
with a war that could last two or three years. Now, this purpose can only be
achieved if we are strongly united. We must put aside all political factions;
no discussions must be undertaken on forms of government, no parties must
be awakened. The great, the sole issue of this moment is the driving away of
the foreigners and the war of independence. We must have only this in
mind… I was a republican, but when I knew that Carlo Alberto had made
himself the champion of Italy, I swore I would obey him and faithfully serve
under his flag. In him I saw the hope of our independence: and therefore
Carlo Alberto must be our leader, our symbol”.
th
In fact, on July 7 , he went to the Roverella camp, but experienced the first
disillusion, since the sovereign replied using vague and indecisive words and,
th
complying with institutional rules, sent by him to his ministers. On the 14 ,
in Turin, Marquis Ricci, the Minister of Home Affairs, opposed his request,
and said that the Government had never and never could consider the possi-