Guiseppe Garibaldi

Guiseppe Garibaldi (1807–82) sought to liberate his people and succeeded, which the Jesus did not accomplish in his day, even though liberation was what Jews wanted a Messiah for.

For his masterly military victories, Garibaldi is called the father of Modern Italy. After his last military actions he retired into private life on the Caprera island.

Garibaldi was a child of parents who were involved in the fishing industry, and he himself was a sailor for more than ten years. In 1832 he acquired a master's certificate as a merchant captain. Years later, after an escape to France and an exile in South America from 1836 to 1848, his fame reached Europe: He had got a thoroughly good reputation in various rebellions as an honest and able man, a master of guerilla tactics, and he was daring.

In Spring 1848 Garibaldi returned to Italy with sixty men to fight for Italian independence. But he was not too welcome there, not in the start. The Pope refused him, and so did the king of Piedmont-Sardinia. Even the regular army despised this self-taught Sicilian guerilla leader and patriot.

After a long row of set-backs, manoeuvres and retreats Garibaldi was in exile a second time, first at Tangier, then on Staten Island, then in Peru, where he returned to his trade as a ship's captain. In 1854 he was allowed to return to Italy. Next year he bought part of the island of Caprera off the Sardinian coast. He settled there, eventually.

From 1858 Garibaldi was occupied in freeing Italian provinces, in part one by one. In Spring 1860 he set out on the venture that was to result in the conquest of Sicily and Naples. The seizure of Palermo was one of Garibaldi's most outstanding military successes.

Somewhere around 1860 he made advances to form a united Italian Republic. Among other things he fought against a French comment: "Italians don't fight": [◦A Garibaldi speech]

As it turned out, his army of volunteers in bright red shirts fought boldly. His legions took over nearly all formerly separate states, refused to surrender and even took over Rome for a month. But the pope never liked the idea and got help from the French president Louis Napoleon, who sent troops to battle.

"Garibaldi was rescued by the local peasantry and smuggled away, eventually to America", writes Colin McEvedy in a place.

In 1861, the states joined together to become one country called Italy. The new Italy was ruled by Victor Emmanual II, til then King of Sardinia. He was the first King of Italy. And nine years later, Venetia and Rome joined the other states and the unification was complete. Rome became the capital of Italy in 1871.

At that time and during the last ten years of lis life, the politically innocent Garibaldi had been crippled by rheumatism and his many wounds. The man who was responsible for most of the military victories of the Risorgiment had been a man who asked little for himself.

Many Jews hoped Jesus would be a sort of Garibaldi hero against oppressors, but it didn't turn out that way. Jesus wasn't rescued by locals, either. They cried for a Barabbas instead, they did.

"Night brings out the stars (American)." Guiseppe Garibaldi succeeded in keeping himself alive, and his country was united so that it could help itself. Besides, Gustav Wasa (Gøsta Jerksson, 1496-1560) of Sweden did something similar for Sweden too, in his days, liberating Sweden from Danish rule. He is referred to as both a liberator and as a tyrannical ruler, though. Gustav liked to compare himself to Moses. Ruthless Gustav remained the king of Sweden from 1523 till his death.

Who is wise, who is favoured and successful?