A Farewell to Arms begins "[i]n the late summer of" 1915 (FTA 3), placing the novel's opening during or soon after the Second Battle of the
Isonzo (17 July - 10 August), which resulted in 42,000 Italian fatalities (Massignani).
The book is organized into twelve chapters, each of which focuses on a battle or campaign (Gallipoli, Verdun,
Isonzo, Jutland, and the Somme); a country (Ireland, USA, and Russia); or a larger area (Eastern Front, Asia, Africa, Eastern Mediterranean, and the Balkans).
Pope Francis would not be the pontiff had his grandfather, Giovanni Bergoglio, perished when he fought in World War I in a bloody campaign along the
Isonzo River, near the graveyard where the pontiff visited.
From humble beginnings - he inherited just five hectares of vines - he now owns the largest vineyard in
Isonzo, the wine region in which Pieris is set, with over 150 hectares of vines on two prime sites.
During September/October 1917 the Regiment spent some weeks on the notorious
Isonzo front before returning to South Tyrol.
Sauvignon
Isonzo del Friuli DOC 1998 (pounds 4.49): Delicately fragrant and zesty Sauvignon.
One of the most notable is Miracle at Verdun (1931) by Austrian writer Hans Chlumberg, who fought in Italy, including the last battle of the
Isonzo. The idea of the play occurred to him suddenly in the form of a question: "What if the soldiers who died in the World War were to rise from their graves and return to the world they died to redeem?" The play begins at a military cemetery in the Argonne Forest composed of a large burial ground of crosses--so many they "continue out of sight." In the center of the cemetery resides a mass grave of both French and German dead, identified by a stone cross rising to the height of an average man.
Quattrocchio, Via
Isonzo 51, 15100 Alessandria, Italy +39 131 445361 23
Born in Piedmont (September 28, 1871); commissioned in the artillery (1890), he first saw action in the Italo-Ethiopian War (1895-1896); survived the disaster of Adowa (March 1, 1896); served in the Italo-Turkish War in Libya (1911-1912); involved in the
Isonzo battles (1915-1917), he first served as chief of staff for the 2d Army; later, as commander of II Corps, he gained distinction for the capture of Monte Sabotin (near Gorizia) (August 6, 1916); still in command of II Corps during the battle of Caporetto (October 24-November 12, 1917), he extracted his forces with difficulty; appointed chief of staff to Gen.
Principal battles:
Isonzo River (1915); Trentino (1916); Piave River (1918).
Principal battles: Zamosc-Komarow (1914); Gorlice-Tarnow (1915);
Isonzo I-Isonzo XI (1915-1917); Caporetto (Kobarid) (1917); Piave River, Vittorio Veneto (1918).
