Monte San Michele.  Welcome to one of the battlefields upon where so many Italians, as well as their opponents from Austria-Hungary, spilled blood during the 1915 to 1916. These campaigns fought in the harsh limestone hills just east off the Isonzo River.  The extreme efforts of that long year and three months remembered by King Vittorio Emanuele III’s proclamation in 1922 of the hill’s inclusion as a zona sacra, a place of special memory to the Italian nation.  At least three zone sacra in Italy relate to World War 1 – Pasubio and Monte Grappa are the other two.  There might be more but those along with Monte San Michele are the big three.

ITALIAN GOALS FOR A NEW WAR

The Italian plan when they joined the side of the Entente at the end of May 1915 was to march first upon Gorizia and Trieste.  From there, a simple march to Laibach-Ljubljana and on to Vienna.  For Italy, it was all about bringing more Italian-speakers in under the umbrella of the House of Savoy: South Tyrol (Trento), the Austrian Littoral (including both Gorizia and Trieste), Istria, Dalmatia and other bits of territory around the Mediterranean.  Italian politicians were confident with Austria-Hungary involved in a fight for survival with the Russian Empire on one side and a stubborn Serbia and Montenegro on the other would not be able to put up much of a fight on the new front.

PROBLEMS FROM THE START

Here is where things became muddled in the first place.  Politicians should know the exact state of their military before committing the nation to a war.  They should know what they can achieve and cannot.  The Army first had to draw up those plans to push eastwards through the Austrian Littoral province.  Before the war, all war plans oriented towards the west and their new partner, France.  As a partner of the Triple Alliance – including both the German and Austro-Hungarian Empires – Italy was going to send troops north to help Germany fight the French along the Rhine River.  Fast forward to May 1915, scrap those plans and create new ones.

An even bigger problem was the ability to mobilize the nation quickly.  The area of northeastern Italy only featured two rail lines with which to bring armies in on creating a huge bottleneck slowing the ability of to bring forces quickly onto the scene.

Italy had just concluded a war with Turkey over who got control over Libya.  There were still many Italian troops tied down in Africa trying to establish Italian rule beyond just the mere coastal strip they did control.  The efforts of that war created great strains on the Italian military situation, especially from a logistical and financial standpoint.

BEGINNINGS

War was declared against Austria-Hungary on 23 May 1915.  A few shells were lobbed the next day. The Italian army present along the border did lurch forward a few kilometers gaining ground mostly abandoned by Austro-Hungarian forces.  It was not until the end of June along the Isonzo was there enough concentration of force present for the Italian commander General Luigi Cadorna to launch the first of an eventual twelve offensives that took place on the front.

By delaying the attack, Austria-Hungary achieved just enough time to bring in more troops from the Eastern Front. Here, Russia was amidst a very long spring and summer suffering a long bout of defeats.  Initially outnumbered along the new 600-mile front – from the Adriatic to Switzerland – on paper 400,000 men facing a mere 25,000 Austro-Hungarians (two divisions).  That changed quickly with soldiers pulled from the Serbian front. Here, things were quiet as the Serbs prepared for the possibility of their second front war with Bulgaria as a new, but old, enemy.

FIRST ISONZO

In the area of the Carso, the Italian Third Army crept forward. Austria-Hungary struggled to both bring in reinforcements. They scrambled to create fortifications and trenches in the limestone heights rising above the eastern shores of the Isonzo River.  Early delays led to a quick relief of command. Cadorna sacked the army lead General Luigi Zuccari on 27 May giving Emanuele Filiberto, Duke of Aosta, a chance to shine.  Cadorna thought Zuccari, whom he did not like, showed up late to his mobilization headquarters. Many others report other reasons led to the early dismissal.

It all added up to more delays.  The Third Army only reached the Isonzo River at the end of May.  Finally, 23 June, the Third Army began the series of offensives aimed at first to clear the heights of the Carso plateau to the east of the river.  Here, on the northern end of the Carso, the battles for Monte San Michele began.

Outnumbering their enemies two to one, the Third Army pushed forward more than ten divisions with five infantry and three cavalry divisions behind waiting for the breakthrough that did not come.  An impressive start to the offensive heralded by shelling of 700 Italian guns blasting away for a week prior to the two week-long battle.  The bombardment had not focused upon specific sites.  Wire obstacles left hardly touched left the way for attacking Italian defenders to become caught up as Austrian machine guns ripped them apart.  As two new Austro-Hungarian divisions settled into the lines atop the Carso, Cardona ended the first offensive 7 July.  Losses counted over 15,000 on the Italian side while 10,000 casualties rose up from those atop the hills.

SECOND ISONZO

Two weeks later, the Third Army was at it again. They pushed at Monte San Michele and Monte Kosich further to the south out of Monfalcone.  The highpoint for the Italians was on 25 July. After occupying Cappucio Wood just west of the summit of Monte San Michele, the peak itself briefly fell.  Counterattacking Austro-Hungarians regained the summit, however and the battles fizzled out by 3 August due to lack of ammunition.  The second offensive ended costing 43,000 Italians and 48,000 Austro-Hungarians over the three weeks.

THIRD AND FOURTH ISONZO

Guns resupplied; Cardona sent his armies forward again on 18 October in the Third Isonzo. This time, he concentrated on smaller objectives.  The peak again approached but did not fall.  Over the three weeks of the offensive, 67,000 Italian casualties resulted with almost 42,000 on the opposite side.

A week to refit and the Fourth Isonzo began 10 November. It ran for the rest of the month. Then winter and lack of munitions put a halt to the first year on the Carso.  Five assaults failed to budge the defenders on Monte Sei Busi above where the Redipuglia ossuary lies today.  The butcher’s bill ran to another 49,500 on the Italian side and just over 32,000 on the Austro-Hungarian.

HISTORY REPEATS – FIFTH ISONZO

For the new year, a short six-day offensive – Fifth Isonzo – was launched, more with the intent to try and take the attention of the Central Powers away from Eastern Front and Verdun.  Just under two thousand more casualties on each side was the main result of the fighting here on the Carso.

Attacks on the Isonzo planned for later in the spring became temporarily shelved as the Austrians, themselves, turned to the offensive for the first time in the conflict.  Their push out of the mountains east of Pasubio and across the Asiago altiplano coming close to cutting off the Italians along the Isonzo. 

Judicious transfer of troops away from the Carso and the devastating results of the Brusilov Offensive in Russia put an end to Austro-Hungarian hopes placing them back on the defensive in a more weakened state through the summer of 1916.

VICTORY AT LAST – SIXTH ISONZO

The Sixth Offensive showed a bit of learning on the Italian side.  By attacking in the Tyrolean mountains, the Austrians suffered greater loses. These losses made much worse by the catastrophe on the Russian Front which almost ended the empire two years before finality.  Fresh off of stopping the Austrians, Cadorna massed his troops. With more rail lines now led than before the war – back on the Isonzo for a new fresh and heavier offensive than those launched earlier.

This time, the bombardment was heavier than those earlier – heavy caliber guns effectively used missing the previous year – with effects more deleterious to the Austro-Hungarian defenses than in the past offensives.  The Second Army attacked Gorizia – 6 August – directly managing to carry the summit of Monte Sabotino.  This stubborn piece out of the way, the rest of the Austrian defenses on the west side of the river quickly fell – Monte Calvario, Oslavia.  The door to Gorizia finally opened.

At the same time, the Third Army attacked on Monte San Michele again – 4 to 16 August.  The bombardment had knocked down the wire in enough places for the Italian troops to gain the summit.  There would be no counterattack this time to knock the Italians off.  All of the Austro-Hungarian reserves had already sent to Monte Sabotino, too late to remedy the situation there.

THE LINES MOVE EAST FOR THE MOMENT

The fall of Monte San Michele forced the Austrians to give up their defenses on the rim of the western Carso. These included Monte Sei Busi Doberdo del Lago and Monte Cosich to the south.  The Austro-Hungarians withdrew across the Vallone to the east. Here they took up new positions – prepared in advance for just such a situation – along the eastern rim of the eastern Carso.  With Gorizia, Monte Sabotino and Monte San Michele finally conquered, Italian morale lifted high.  Italy finally decided, in the wake of the good results, to declare war on Germany 28 August.  The cost of the battle was high on both sides:  over 51,000 casualties for Italy and over 37,000 for Austria-Hungary.

Monte San Michele fell, but at great cost and in six great offensives taking place over a year in length.  The mountain would serve the Third Army as an artillery and command bastion during the next five offensives aimed at pushing the Austrians out of the eastern Carso.  The battles there would continue for just over a year and thousands of more casualties.  With the collapse of the Second Army further north at Bovec and Kobarid-Caporetto, the Italian army was forced to withdraw over 100 kilometers to the west to the Piave River.  Monte San Michele again became a Austro-Hungarian peak until the final collapse of the Empire in October 1918.

VISITING THE ZONA MONUMENTAL

THE SUMMIT

Today, the mountain top – there are four actually peaks to the relatively level summit – still shows wounds from the battles fought here over a century ago on the karstic slopes.  The north side of San Michele is its steepest side reaching up 270 vertical meters over about 900 horizontal meters.  There is a museum on top which tries to give the visitor an all-immersive venture into the battles.  You also get entrance into the tunnel leading to and the gun embrasures used by Italian artillery after the Sixth Isonzo.

A wartime monument remembers the efforts of the 7^th Infantry Regiment of the Common Army of Austria-Hungary – Imperial and Royal or Kaiserliche und Königche (KuK).  The regiment called the province of Carinthia ‘home’ before the war.  Other newer monuments remember the efforts of both Italians and Hungarians – the 20^th Honvéd Division defended here long and hard.  You can find various Italian artillery pieces here arrayed around the summit.

THE MUSEUM AND WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN

PATIO OF MONUMENTS

Across from the museum is a large concrete patio overlooking the Isonzo as it makes its turn coming from the north to the west around the mountain and the Carso plateau.  Several monuments erected attest to the efforts of various brigades and elements of the Italian army in overcoming the summit.

TUNNELS AND VIEWS

On the west side of the summit is the entrance to what is known as General Lukachic’s Tunnel.  Austrian positions centered on trenches found just downhill of the road coursing the summit – Via Sacra.  Various tunnels lead to those positions giving some shelter for those going to a from the frontlines.  Another couple of tunnels are found further east towards Cima 2 – Peak 2.  None of the tunnels open today, only the entrances restored by volunteers.

Beyond the summit memorials and far-reaching views over the Isonzo Valley and the Carso, there lie many other monuments dedicated to various Italian brigades sited near where they fought during the long struggles here.  There are even a couple of monuments to Austro-Hungarian regiments erected originally in 1918 during the short year the peak returned to Austrian control.

ITALIAN GRIT AND PENANCE ATOP SAN MICHELE

But the main story atop Monte San Michele remains of Italian sacrifice and valor.  Stories within stories lie hidden among the monuments.  One trail circles the four peaks of the mountain with monuments dedicated to units of the Third Army.  Along the Sentiero dei Cippi – Path of the Monuments, 53 different concrete monuments erected on the path. The monuments stand dedicated to various brigades, divisions, specialized units and even a couple memorializing the sacrifices of individuals here on top of the Carso.  Some of the monuments are hard to read today, the effects of years of weathering. 

At first, I thought they were placed near where the units fought, but while that may certainly account for some, probably not all.  Along the path you pass by a couple of Austro-Hungarian tunnels restored by local volunteers. The most famous is the Schönberg Tunnel. Built in 1915 by men of the 7^th Feldjäger Battalion. They dedicated it to Alois von Schönberg Hartenstein, commander of the 6^th Infantry Division.  The monumental entrance to the tunnel was rebuilt by a local cave exploration group in 1996.

The Sentiero winds in and out of the forest which has reclaimed the mountain today.  The monuments seemed spaced out in places while in others, they can come fast and furious.  Quiet nature rules the trail today, a huge contrast to the tragedies of a century ago.

MEMORIAL TO THE FANTE ON THE MOUNTAIN

Eugenio Baroni, a sculptor of some repute in Italy before the war, served in the army earning a Silver Medal for bravery for actions he took on Mont Grappa.  Baroni designed Monument to the Thousand in Genoa, famously inaugurated by Gabriele D’Annunzio in the spring of 1915.  Unlike D’Annunzio, Baroni did not see war as the illuminating experience the Vate did. 

At the end of the war a committee met in Milano to push for the construction of a large ossuary monument atop Monte San Michele dedicated to the simple soldier who personally experienced war’s brutal horrors for over two years in the harsh karst landscape of the Carso.  A call for competition to design the monument brought in eighty different projects.  Baroni’s project won the approval of the committee.  His project became popularly acclaimed when his sketch was exhibited in May 1922.

THE PROJECT – A BIG WHAT IF

Baroni proposed a giant cross-shaped staircase climbing to the top of the mountain.  Eight sculptural groups planned to sit along the staircase describing the life of the soldier, from the call to arms to death in combat.  On top of the monument, sons of the Fallen watched over the victory.  His message through his works, war is pain and suffering.  This message ran counter to the Fascist idea of sacrifice in war being an ideal for emulation.  Margherita Sarfatti, sometimes mistress of Mussolini, an art critic and author of an early biography of the Duce, accused the project has having “too much mother” and too “little victory”.

Baroni’s project eventually was shot down by Mussolini in 1922 after his successful March on Rome.  His idea of a titanic staircase climbing to the slopes of the Carso gained incorporation to the gigantic ossuary nearby at Redipuglia.  Here, stairways flank the tombs of the dead as rank after rank reach up the slopes.  The ossuary eventually was built there since there was already a huge concentration cemetery across the street at Colle Sant’Elia.  That left the actual summit of Monte San Michele as a bit of an afterthought to the huge celebration of sacrifice and duty further to the southwest.

Learning desires of your clients is an important part of life. Baroni seems to have absorbed some of the new Fascist mythology which he lived as a part of. His last project in Torino celebrated the life of the Duke of Aosta who commanded the Italian Third Army as it fought and bled on the Carso.

ACCESS TO THE ZONA SACRA

To get up to Monte San Michele you need your own transportation – a car, bicycle – the Carso is very popular as a relatively easy mountain bike region, or feet.  A good map of the Carso can be quite helpful to piece together the approach route.  Easiest access seems to be east from Sagrado on the road to San Marino del Carso.  A couple hairpin turns gains the Parco Ungaretti.  This park and restored villa is dedicated to the memory of Giuseppi Ungaretti, a solider and one of Italy’s best known poets of the war.  At the turnoff to the village of San Martino del Carso, follow the signs to Monte San Michele.  The road to the summit is Via Zona Sacra covering about two kilometers.

An alternate route comes up from Poggio Terzarmata.  You have to navigate a sharp narrow one-way turn through a very tight railway tunnel off Provincial Highway 8. This, the highway running from Sagrado to Gorizia along the Isonzo starts this approach route.  You must look closely to catch the beginning.  This route climbs just east of the Bosco Cappucio. It was one of the main venues Italian soldiers fought and died in the yearlong struggles to capture the peak.

Another route comes up the northeast side of the mountain from Pateano.  This route is memorable for the1915 struggles faced by the Lazio Brigade. They fought here against soldiers of the 4^th Honvéd – both units have monuments along the way.  You can also reach the mountain top from Doberdo del Lago and the Vallone – south and east.