Lads of '99

From Infogalactic: the planetary knowledge core
Jump to: navigation, search
Military postcard in memory of the delivery of the flag to the 257th regiment of the Tortona Brigade, which took place on April 8, 1917

In the context of the World War I, the Lads of '99 (Italian: Ragazzi del '99 ) is the name given in Italy to conscripts born in 1899, who in 1917 turned eighteen and were the last class of recruits to be sent to the front lines.

History

Military postcard from the 257th Regiment (Tortona Brigade) emphasizing the young age of the soldiers with a quotation from Dante's Purgatorio: piante novelle. Rinnovellate di novella fronda ("new plants renewed with foliage new")

Drafted before being eighteen years old, the first Italian contingents, about 80,000, were called up in the first four months of 1917, hastily trained, then placed in battalions of the territorial militia. At the end of May, another 180,000 servicemen were called and again in smaller numbers, in July. The first lads of 1899 were sent to the front only in November 1917, in the days following the Battle of Caporetto. Their contribution, together with the experience of the veterans, proved to be essential for the outcome of the war.

The very young 1899 recruits are remembered in particular because after the battle of Caporetto (a moment of serious crisis for Italy and the Royal Army), they strengthened the ranks in Piave, Grappa and Montello, allowing the Kingdom to counter-attack in 1918 (the Battle of Vittorio Veneto) and achieve the signing of the Armistice of Villa Giusti. From the early days of the post-war period, the term "lads of '99" became so widely rooted in Italian historiography and publicity as to enter into common use to refer to all soldiers born in 1899.

Honors and legacy

There are no certain data about the soldiers fallen on the battlefield or decorated, but the memory of these young fighters survives in the popular memory: in Nervesa della Battaglia a tavern is dedicated to the lads of '99 and there is also a small district of Santa Croce del Montello called "city of the lads of '99". In Milan there is a plaque affixed on the wall of a building on the eastern side of Piazza San Fedele behind Palazzo Marino, a step away from the Galleria; in Gorizia a viaduct has been dedicated to the "lads of '99".

In many Italian cities there are also streets or squares dedicated to their memory.

Likewise, many popular songs composed after Caporetto in honor of the lads of '99 are still known today.

Ninety-nine, they called me/ they called me they called me to arms/ and on the front they sent me/ they sent me they sent me to shoot.

Fighting among the bombs/ suddenly suddenly stopped me/ a shiny ball/ in my chest in my chest penetrated.

Four friends nearby/ took me to the hospital/ and the doctor told me/ there's nothing there's nothing to hope for.

Red Cross Red Cross/ please, please, for charity/ give a kiss to my mother/ and to the flag, the tricolor flag/ give a kiss to my mother/ and the tricolor flag will triumph, triumph.

In 1999, the Italian Post dedicated a stamp to the centenary of the "Lads of '99".

The house with the famous patriotic inscription in the hamlet of Sant'Andrea in Barbarana di San Biagio di Callalta during the Great War

The longest-lived "lad of '99" was Alberto Agazzi, born in Piacenza on January 30, 1899, who died at the age of 108 in Alseno on April 13, 2007.

The last "lad of '99" was Giovanni Antonio Carta, born in Mores (Sassari) on December 28, 1899 and died there on June 6, 2007, Corporal of the 151st Infantry Regiment.

The municipalities of Bassano del Grappa, Fossalta di Piave, Mede, Moriago della Battaglia, Nervesa della Battaglia, Treviso and Vittorio Veneto, have, over the years, given honorary citizenship to the lads of '99.

At the end of the World War I, a group of veterans of the class of 1899 decided to create their own association, with the task of honoring and preserving the memory of the lads of '99. Despite the opposition of some who believed it necessary to merge into a single large association of veterans, the first section was opened and established in 1921. The name chosen was "I Ragazzi del '99" Associazione Nazionale fra combattenti della Classe 1899 nella Guerra 1915-1918", using as its symbol the painted reproduction of the famous shattered house of Sant'Andrea di Barbarana in San Biagio di Callalta with the text "Tutti eroi! O il Piave o tutti accoppati!".

The Association is still present in some cities such as Bassano del Grappa, Rome, Milan, Brescia and Novara where it continues the work of custody and collection of testimonies from the children and grandchildren of the famous lads of '99. The national presidency is today entrusted to Benito Panariti. Like other associations of its kind, the National Association "I Ragazzi del '99" is placed under the control of the Ministry of Defense.

Praise

The Lads of '99 had the following Army Commendation (as an Army Order of the Day to be issued up to the Platoon Commands) by the Italian Supreme Military Command of the Royal Italian Army (quoted in the Military Bulletin of November 22, 1917):

The young soldiers of the Class of 1899 had their baptism of fire. Their demeanor was magnificent and on the river that at this moment bars the enemy the ways of the Fatherland, in a superb counterattack, united their ardent enthusiasm with the experience of their older comrades, they triumphed. Some Austrian battalions that had dared to cross the Piave have been annihilated: 1,200 prisoners captured, some guns taken from the enemy have been recaptured and returned to the positions that the bodies of the artillerymen, heroically fallen in a desperate defense, still marked. In this supreme hour of duty and honor in which the armies, with firm faith and sure heart, stem the enemy's wrath on the river and on the mountains, echoing that cry "Long live Italy" that has always been the cry of victory, I want the Army to know that our young brothers of the Class of 1899 have shown themselves worthy of the legacy of glory that descends upon them. War Zone, November 18, 1917 — Army Chief of Staff A. Diaz"

As a result of the Royal Decree of 9 July 1923, by Circular No. 639 of 8 November 1923, the Army Citation was commuted to a Military Cross.

Notable lads of '99

<templatestyles src="Div col/styles.css"/>

References

  • Bernardi, Mario (1998). Di qua e di là dal Piave. Da Caporetto a Vittorio Veneto. Milano: Ugo Mursia Editore.
  • Calcagno, Nuccio (2012). Mio padre, uno dei ragazzi del '99 e i miei voli in parapendio sulle sue trincee. Cesena: Il Ponte Vecchio.
  • Papafava, Novello (2012). Da Caporetto a Vittorio Veneto. Roma: Edizioni di Storia e Letteratura.
  • Rispoli, Tullio (1933). Classe 1899: Al Fronte, in Africa ed a Fiume. Napoli: Guida.
  • Tazzer, Sergio (2012). Ragazzi del Novantanove. «Sono appena nati ieri, ieri appena e son guerrieri». Vittorio Veneto: Kellermann Editore.
  • Vanni Alessandro; Katia Pari (2008). Viaggio nella memoria - I reduci della Grande Guerra 90 anni dopo. Bassano del Grappa: Tassotti Editore.
  • Volpe, Gioacchino (2018). Da Caporetto a Vittorio Veneto. Soveria Mannelli: Rubbettino.

External links

Retrieved from "https://infogalactic.com/w/index.php?title=Lads_of_%2799&oldid=726355087"