Italian Alpini seize Monte Nero (Mount Krn) from the Austro-Hungarians, June 16, 1915. From the painting 'Avanti Savoia' by A.D. Campestrini.
Reverse:A.D. Campestrini - 'Avanti Savoia'La conquista del Monte Nero - Giugno 1915A.D. Campestrini - Forward Savoy!The conquest of Monte Nero [Mount Black] - June 1915Logo: M.P.M.Proprietà artistica riservata.Artistic ownership reserved.
"The Italians had done much better further north. Krn [Monte Nero] itself, which soars like a shark's fin 2,000 metres above Caporetto, was taken in a daring pre-dawn attack by the 3rd Regiment of Alpini on 16 June [1915], with their boots swaddled in sacks of straw to reduce noise. It was a glorious success, the first of the war, presaging others that never materialized."
The Entente Allies hoped Italy's May 23, 1915 entry into the war against an Austria-Hungary which had been defeated by Serbia and badly wounded by Russia in 1914 would quickly drive Germany's ally from the war. But with the Serbian front quiet through June 1915, and Russia retreating before the German and Austro-Hungarian Gorlice-Tarnow Offensive, Italy was able to mount an effective defense against Italy. The capture of Krn on June 16, 1915, was a bright moment in Italy's initial war effort. The song Monte Nero — Black Mountain — commemorating the battle, beginsSpunta l'alba del quindici giugno comincia il fuoco l'artiglieria Terzo Alpini è sulla via Monte Nero a conquistar Terzo Alpini è sulla via Monte Nero a conquistarDay breaks on June 15;The artillery fire begins.The Third Alpini is on the wayTo conquer Monte Nero.Third Alpini is on the wayTo conquer Monte Nero.The song ends with a mountain red with blood, the loss of the narrator's 20-year-old friends, and a colonel weeping at the slaughter.
The White War: Life and Death on the Italian Front, 1915-1919 by Mark Thompson, pp. 72, 73, copyright © 2008 Mark Thompson, publisher: Basic Books, publication date: 2009
1915-06-16, 1915, June, Monte Nero, Krn, Italy, Italian front
