Asiago War Memorial

"Thanks" to its relatively gentle terrain (in comparison to most of the Alps), the Asiago Plateau (actually consisting of a set of more minor plateaus, interspersed and surrounded by pre-Alpine mountains between 1,200 and 2,200 meters [roughly between 4,000 and 7,200 ft] high), unlike the rest the Alpine front, allowed the use of large masses of infantry, as the Karst. As a result, this area was one of the "hottest" in the Alps during the war; here took place the largest battles fought on the Alpine front.

The strategic importance of the area was already known well before the conflict, therefore, in the fifteen years that preceded the war, both the Kingdom of Italy and the Austro-Hungarian Empire carried out huge fortification works: both countries built a series of forts along the border that passed through the plateau. The main Italian fortresses were Verena, Campolongo, Corbin, Casa Ratti, Campomolon (never completed), Enna, Cornolò, Enna and Lisser; the Austro-Hungarian ones were Belvedere / Gschwendt, Cherle / San Sebastiano, Luserna / Lusern, Verle, Spitz Vezzena, Pozzacchio / Valmorbia (never completed), Doss del Sommo, Sommo Alto. The Italian forts had more powerful artillery, capable of hitting their counterparts beyond the border; the Austrian ones, unable to return fire (the range of their guns was not enough), were however more armored.

The first phase of the war on the plateau was indeed called "war of the fortresses"; it began with the first shot fired by Fort Verena, on 24 May 1915, and continued till the summer of that year. Initially the Italian forts, in cooperation with batteries of heavy howitzers, heavily bombed the Austro-Hungarians fortresses, who suffered serious damage and losses (especially Verle, Luserna and Vezzena); the infantry assaults to conquer these positions, however, were unsuccessful and led to serious loss of life. A tragic example was the attack on Col Basson, launched on 24-25 August 1915: the Italian attack, a frontal assault in the open against barbed wire and machine guns (and under the fire of the surviving guns from the nearby fortresses), ended in complete failure, leaving 1,091 Italian dead for no gain.

As for the "war of the fortresses", after the first few weeks the Austro-Hungarians brought in line their 305 mm heavy howitzers, which quickly silenced the most dangerous Italian forts (Verena and Campolongo). Then followed a long stalemate, characterized by a wearing trench warfare aggravated by the Alpine climate.

On May 15, 1916, after long preparation, the Austro-Hungarian Empire launched its first major offensive on the Italian front: the Spring Offensive, also known as "punitive expedition" (Strafexpedition) or as the "Battle of Asiago". 300 Austro-Hungarian battalions, supported by the fire of 2,000 guns, attacked the positions held by Italian forces (172 battalions and 850 guns) throughout the plateau. The battle raged for weeks; initially the Austro-Hungarian troops advanced rapidly, capturing numerous mountains and fortresses and even the town of Asiago itself (27 May 1916), reduced to a pile of rubble by artillery bombardment. Had they managed to overrun the last Italian positions on the mountains that divided them from the Vicenza plain (Vicenza was only 30 km away), they would have trapped most of the Italian Army in a colossal bag, perhaps marking the end of the war for Italy; the Italian commands battened down the hatches, pouring reinforcements from other sectors (from the Isonzo front, Libya and Albania, as well as by mobilizing new recruits), forming a new army (the Fifth) that was deployed between Vicenza and Treviso, replacing commanders who showed signs of collapse, carefully arranging the retreat of isolated units. On June 2, the Italian counter-offensive began; a new Russian offensive on the Eastern Front was also solicited, which began on June 4 and forced the Austro-Hungarian commands to transfer troops on that front. The battle of Asiago ended on June 10, 1916, with the failure of the Austro-Hungarian offensive, although the Austro-Hungarians remained in the possession of many important positions captured in the initial phase of the battle. 230,000 men of the two sides had become casualties: the Italian losses were 15,453 killed in action, 76,642 wounded and 55,635 missing or prisoners; the Austro-Hungarian losses were 10,203 killed, 45,651 wounded and 26,961 missing or prisoners.

An initial Italian counter-offensive to recover the lost ground, in June-July 1916, did not lead to significant results; the situation switched back to trench warfare till June 1917, when a new Italian offensive began, also aimed at recovering the ground lost during the Strafexpedition. Italian troops enjoyed strong superiority both in men (300,000 against 100,000) and artillery (1641 guns against 500), but had to attack well-fortified positions and an enemy who, unlike the Italians commands a year before, was expecting the attack. The battle, which lastex from 10 to 29 June, was especially focused around Mount Ortigara (2,105 m, 6,906 ft), which gave its name to the battle; its summit was conquered by the Italians at the cost of grievous losses, but further advance was impossible, and a later Austro-Hungarian counter-attack led to the loss of Ortigara. The Italian casualties were 3,067 killed, 16,280 wounded and 4,389 missing and prisoners; the Austro-Hungarian casualties were 992 killed, 6,321 wounded and 1,515 missing and prisoners.

With the defeat of Caporetto and retreat from the Isonzo to Mount Grappa and the Piave river, in October-November 1917, the Asiago plateau became again a crucial position in the Italian defense system. Between 10 and 12 November, the Austro-Hungarian offensive led again to the fall of Asiago, and forced the Italian troops to abandon the most advanced positions on the plateau; new Austro-Hungarian attacks on 14-17 November, 22-23 November and 3-4 December, however, were repelled by the stubborn resistance of the Italian troops, with bitter fighting especially on mounts Fior, Castelgomberto, Miela and Meletta. The end of 1917 also saw the arrival of British and French contingents, who assumed the defense of some sectors of the front.

The arrival of the snow brought an end to the fighting; the losses incurred by the Italian first line, however, led to the order to move back the frontline. Between 28 and 31 January 1918 the battle of the "Three Mountains" was fought; this was the first Italian offensive success after Caporetto, leading to the recapture of Col d'Ecchele, Col Rosso and Monte Valbella, lost during the previous December.

Between 15 and 22 June 1918, the Asiago plateau was affected by the last major Austro-Hungarian offensive of the war, the battle of the Piave river: the last Austro-Hungarian attempt to break through the Italian lines to invade the Po Valley and force Italy to an armistice. The Asiago Plateau was right one of the three designated points of the breakthrough, along with the Tonale and the Piave; but the Austro-Hungarian offensive failed everywhere.

A few months later, in November 1918, the end of the war finally brought peace to the tormented plateau.

In four years of war, more than a million men had fought on the Asiago Plateau; hard to say how many of them died. The two armies had fired at least one and a half million artillery shells. The plateau vegetation had been destroyed and so had been its villages and towns, most of them razed to the ground by artillery fire; its inhabitants, with the few things they had been able to save, were displaced elsewhere in the Veneto or in other parts of Italy. Many, when they returned to what was left of their homes, undertook the job of "recoverers", starting to scour the plateau in search of the many war relics that could be sold to reuse the iron. It was a dangerous job: hundreds were killed by the explosion of unexploded ordnance. Nevertheless, this activity continued for several decades, well into the 1970s.

Asiago had to be rebuilt from scratch. This was done between 1919 and 1922, though, as Mario Rigoni Stern pointed out, the town was never the same as before.

Among those who fought on the plateau were also two great writers, who described their experiences in two memorable works: Emilio Lussu, author of "A Soldier on the Southern Front"; and Ernest Hemingway, who wrote "Farewell to Arms".

At the end of the war, the Asiago plateau was dotted with military cemeteries; a 1923 census listed 41 of them, overall containing the remains of 49,524 fallen: 24,294 Italians, 24,254 Austro-Hungarians, 696 British and 280 French. Thousands and thousands more were lying unburied, scattered among the rocks and the woods of the plateau.

In 1932 it was decided to collect all the Italian fallen in a single monument-ossuary; so it began the construction of the Asiago War Memorial (also known as the Leiten War Memorial), designed by the Venetian architect Orfeo Rossato and built on the Leiten hill, at 1,058 meters (3,471 ft) of altitude, in Asiago. The work was completed in 1936, and in 1938 all the Italian dead buried in the cemeteries were transferred to the War Memorial. More remains, found from time to time on the plateau by "recoverers" or by accident, joined them as years went by.

In the late 1960s, following an agreement with Austria, the remains of the Austro-Hungarians fallen were also transferred to the Asiago War Memorial, except those buried on Mount Mosciagh, which were left where they were at the request of the Austrian government. The French fallen were instead repatriated, whereas the British fallen remained in the five Commonwealth war cemeteries set up on the plateau.

All in all, 51,591 soldiers are buried in the Asiago War Memorial; 33,086 are Italian, and 18,505 Austro-Hungarian. Only 18,945 (12,795 Italians and 6150 Austro-Hungarians) have a name; the others are unknown.

Inside the War Memorial there is also a museum about the war fought on the plateau.

The building seen from outside.

305 mm howitzer shell.

A table summing up the Italian losses in the Battle of Mount Ortigara.

A Schwarzlose machine gun.

The losses and awards of the Alpini Battalion "Sette Comuni", recruited on the Asiago Plateau. 16 officers and 495 soldiers killed in action, 46 officers and 1249 soldiers wounded in action, one Gold Medal of Military Valor, 61 Silver Medals of Military Valor, 88 Bronze Medals of Military Valor, 37 promotions for war merit.

A photo of Asiago in June 1916.

Inside the war memorial.

"3,226 unknown soldiers"

Austro-Hungarian bombard.

Plaque remembering some of the Austro-Hungarian cemeteries whose fallen were moved to the War Memorial in 1969-1970: Gallio (4,288 known dead, 7,759 unknown dead); Stoccareddo (1,361, all unknown); Cesuna (635 known, 1,781 unknown); Canove (552 known, 934 unknown); Marcesina (693 known, 520 unknown).

"88 unknown Italian soldiers"

Altar inside the War Memorial.