The 4th of November is a particular day here in Italy. It’s the anniversary of the end of the I World War, and it has been celebrated for a long time as the “Day of victory”. Recently, the original meaning of this celebration, so closely related to war and death, has faded.
These days while commemorating all the people who lost their lives during wars, or serving the nation, they now generally reflect about the issue of maintaining the country united and in peace.
Just to add to that change most celebrations no longer take place on the 4th but on the following Sunday but not this year – the Associazione nazionale Alpini were not available for duty this Sunday due to other engagements and so the commemoration was held in Barga today, the 4th November 2015
Wreaths were laid at the plaques to commemorate Leo Giuliani and Fratelli Lombardic in Barga Giardino and at the Monumento ai Caduti where a final wreath was laid and the 153 names of all those from this area killed or missing in the first world war were read out loud with at the assembled crowd responding “presente” after each name.
Marco Bonini, the Mayor of Barga talking (in Italiano) about the importance of the Festa dei Caduti
“At the beginning of World War I Italy remained neutral, claiming that the Triple Alliance had only defensive purposes, and the war was started by the Austro-Hungarian Empire. However, both the central empires and the Triple Entente tried to attract Italy on their side, and in April 1915 the Italian government agreed (London Pact) to declare war on the Austro-Hungarian Empire in exchange for several territories (Trento, Trieste, Istria, Dalmatia). In October 1917, the Austrians, having received German reinforcements, broke the Italian lines at Caporetto, but the Italians (helped by their allies) stopped their advance on the river Piave, not far from Venice. After another year of trench warfare, and a successful Italian offensive in autumn 1918, the exhausted Austro-Hungarian Empire surrendered to the allies on November 4, 1918, soon followed by the German Empire.”
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