First Italian War of Independence Garibaldi returned to Italy amidst the turmoil of the
revolutions of 1848 in the Italian states and was one of the founders and leaders of the
Action Party. Garibaldi offered his services to
Charles Albert of Sardinia, who displayed some liberal inclinations, but he treated Garibaldi with coolness and distrust. Rebuffed by the Piedmontese, he and his followers crossed into
Lombardy where they offered assistance to the provisional government of
Milan, which had rebelled against the Austrian occupation. In the course of the following unsuccessful
First Italian War of Independence, Garibaldi led his legion to two minor victories at
Luino and
Morazzone. After the crushing Piedmontese defeat at the
Battle of Novara on 23 March 1849, Garibaldi moved to
Rome to support the
Roman Republic recently proclaimed in the
Papal States. However, a French force sent by
Louis Napoleon threatened to topple it. At Mazzini's urging, Garibaldi took command of the defence of Rome. In fighting near
Velletri,
Achille Cantoni saved his life. After Cantoni's death, during the
Battle of Mentana, Garibaldi wrote the novel
Cantoni the Volunteer. On 30 April 1849, the Republican army, under Garibaldi's command, defeated a numerically far superior French army at the
Porta San Pancrazio gate of Rome. Subsequently, French reinforcements arrived, and the
Siege of Rome began on 1 June. Despite the resistance of the Republican army, the French prevailed on 29 June. On 30 June the Roman Assembly met and debated three options: surrender, continue fighting in the streets, or retreat from Rome to continue resistance from the
Apennine Mountains. Garibaldi, having entered the chamber covered in blood, made a speech favouring the third option, ending with:
Ovunque noi saremo, sarà Roma ("Wherever we will go, that will be Rome"). The sides negotiated a truce on 1–2 July, Garibaldi withdrew from Rome with 4,000 troops, and ceded his ambition to rouse popular rebellion against the Austrians in central Italy. The French Army entered Rome on 3 July and reestablished the
Holy See's temporal power. Garibaldi and his forces, hunted by Austrian, French, Spanish, and Neapolitan troops, fled to the north, intending to reach
Venice, where the
Venetians were still resisting the Austrian siege. After an epic march, Garibaldi took temporary refuge in
San Marino, with only 250 men having not abandoned him. Anita, who was carrying their fifth child, died near
Comacchio during the retreat.
North America and the Pacific Garibaldi eventually managed to reach
Porto Venere, near
La Spezia, but the Piedmontese government forced him to emigrate again. He went to
Tangier, where he stayed with
Francesco Carpanetto, a wealthy Italian merchant. Carpanetto suggested that he and some of his associates finance the purchase of a merchant ship, which Garibaldi would command. Garibaldi agreed, feeling that his political goals were, for the moment, unreachable, and he could at least earn a living. , Milan The ship was to be purchased in the United States. Garibaldi went to New York City, arriving on 30 July 1850. However, the funds for buying a ship were lacking. While in New York, he stayed with various Italian friends, including some exiled revolutionaries. He attended the Masonic lodges of New York in 1850, where he met several supporters of democratic internationalism, whose minds were open to socialist thought, and to giving Freemasonry a strong anti-papal stance. (the cottage where he stayed is listed on the U.S.
National Register of Historic Places and is preserved as the
Garibaldi Memorial). Garibaldi was not satisfied with this, and in April 1851 he left New York with his friend Carpanetto for Central America, where Carpanetto was establishing business operations. They first went to Nicaragua, and then to other parts of the region. Garibaldi accompanied Carpanetto as a companion, not a business partner, and used the name
Giuseppe Pane. Garibaldi took the
Carmen to the
Chincha Islands for a load of
guano. Then on 10 January 1852, he sailed from Peru for
Canton, China, arriving in April. and in
South Shields on Tyneside for over a month, departing at the end of April 1854. During his stay, he was presented with an inscribed sword, which his grandson
Giuseppe Garibaldi II later carried as a volunteer in British service in the
Second Boer War. He then sailed to
Genoa, where his five years of exile ended on 10 May 1854. ==Second Italian War of Independence==