WHAT SHOULD YOU CERTAINLY VISIT  IN REDIPUGLIA?

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THE MILITARY SANCTUARY OF REDIPUGLIA

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Impressive and overwhelming, in other words I can not express it. The Sacrario Militare di Redipuglia - Military Sanctuary of Redipuglia - is a very large monument made completely out of karst stone and has been built against the side of the hill 'Monte Sei Busi' (the mountain of the six holes) site of heavy battles during the Great War.

The monument was inaugurated in 1938 by none other than Mussolini. It is the final resting place of as many as 100,000 soldiers who died in this area during the First World War.

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Above every name is written "presente" which means "present". As if the soldiers could still reply to the question of their commander the Count d'Aosta who led the "Terza Armata" - the Third Army - the Army that fought so much on this hill 'Monte sei Busi' against which the sanctuary is built. At the foot of the monument you see the tombs of the commander the Count d'Aosta and two other generals.

 

THE TWELVE BATTLES

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This monument is located in a hilly area where from 1915 until 1917 12 different battles took place. To be precise, especially here at the 'Monte Sei Busi' but also on the higher situated 'Monte San Michele'. The third Army wanted to liberate Gorizia from the hands of the Austrians in order to march towards the important port city of Trieste, which was still in the hands of the Austrians. They succeeded in liberating Gorizia but it costed huge amounts of human lives and Gorizia was completely  devastated. Therefore the soldiers called  it the doomed city "città maledetta". Trieste was only to be released in November 1918 when it was clear that the Austrians and Germans had lost the war.

 

THE FIRST CEMETERY,  MONTE ST. ELIA

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Right in front of the Sanctuary is located the original and much smaller cemetery on the hill of St. Elia. Here was built the first cemetery right after the end of the Great War.  The people put objects such as guns, helmets ecc. on the graves to remember their loved ones. Today you can find on the St. Elia cemetery a total of thirty tombstones with bronze reproductions of the original objects that were left on the graves.

 

THE WAR MUSEUM

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Next to the cemetery St. Elia is located the War Museum. The several exhibition halls give you a good idea of how was fought here.  You can see a video, many maps,photos, war objects and weapons. 

For those interested in World War One it is possible to book me for a detailed tour. After visiting the museum, I can take you to the hill 'Monte Sei Busi' where you can walk through the trenches and see several carved stone relics made by the soldiers themselves.