The spirit of the Blessed Virgin Mary appeals to heaven, as Italian soldiers fire from the rocky elevation they hold.
Sacra e la lotta per la santita del diritto, per la redenzione degli oppressi. Gloria e Vittoria ai prodi intrepidi con l'Italia nel cuore.Holy is the struggle for the sanctity of law, and for the redemption of the oppressed. Glory and victory to the fearless warriors who hold Italy in their hearts.Reverse:Message dated May 21, 1917
". . . On 13 September [1916], the skies cleared; that afternoon, with the sun at their backs, the Italians sighted their targets. With the help of aerial observers, the heavy batteries reduced much of the Austrian front line to rubble, blowing broad holes in the wire, shattering their communications. Cadorna took heart; he believed the Austrians were packed into their front-line bunkers. In fact they had left only a token force in the front lines, so their losses were relatively slight; their men were nearby, and ready. So were their skilfully disguised batteries."
In an attempt to build on the success of his Sixth Battle of the Isonzo, Italian Commander in Chief Luigi Cadorna launched his Seventh on September 13, 1916. General Svetozar Boroević's Austro-Hungarian troops mimicked the defensive tactics of German troops, lightly defending a front line supported by machine gun nests, so that casualties would be relatively light during the bombardment that typically preceded an infantry assault. Cadorna thought the Austro-Hungarians had two defensive lines; they had four.
The White War: Life and Death on the Italian Front, 1915-1919 by Mark Thompson, pp. 219–220, copyright © 2008 Mark Thompson, publisher: Basic Books, publication date: 2009
1916-09-13, 1916, September, Cadorna, Luigi Cadorna, Seventh Battle of the Isonzo, Seventh Isonzo, Battle of the Isonzo, Isonzo, Isonzo battle
