Capture of Cesare Battisti and Fabio Filzi During the start of expedition of May 1916 the mountain, in Italian territory, was conquered by the troops of the
Austro-Hungarian Empire. The presence of
Cesare Battisti seems to have been known to the Austrians only since July, perhaps following the surrender of two Alpine soldiers who described their commander (Battisti) as a fanatic who would have sent them all to their deaths. In the attack which was known to be imminent, the order was given to capture the Italian soldiers and their officers. The Italian military attempted to liberate the tower and thus return control over its view of Pasubio. As part of this offensive, Major Carlo Frattola and his men from the Alpine Battalion in Vicenza succeeded in seizing the top of the tower. However, they were not able to obtain any reinforcement from the 69th or 71st Infantry Battalions because these regiments were blocked from reaching their objective by the difficult terrain there. Also, during this fighting, Frattola, as well as Cesare Battisti (the commander of the Vicenza company) and Fabio Filzi, were both captured. One person who died there during these battles was Lieutenant Casonato, who has been honored with a monument placed at Selletta Battisti by the National Association of Alpine Sportsmen and the steles of Battisti and Filzi. According to some sources, Bruno Franceschini was in charge of the action by the Austrian troops, but in the Trento trial which was held the following day, those responsible for the capture were found to be lieutenant Vinzenz Braun with the sharpshooters Alois Wohlmuth and Franz Strazligg. It was confirmed that it was the corps of the
KK Landesschützen who carried out the arrest but the circumstances of the recognition of the two irredentists are controversial. The presence of Franceschini in those hours is demonstrated by various sources, and the figure of the soldier born in Trentino and enrolled in the Austro-Hungarian army was immediately the object of propaganda on the Italian side and, later, also on the Austrian side. Both irredentists were tried and sentenced by state court to the death penalty for high treason, just two days after their capture, in the Buonconsiglio Castle in Trento.
Conquest of the mountain on May 10, 1918 On Mount Corno, a system of underground tunnels was dug to blow up enemy positions if necessary. Both armies tried to obtain information from deserters and prisoners, and the Italian commanders planned to move up the Foxi Valley from Raossi, in order to conquer the mountain during the night between May 9th and 10th. The first stage of this operation was partially successful. Italian units were able to gain possession of the top of the mountain, but the element of surprise was lost before they could reach it. The 2nd Company of the 3rd Assault Unit (Austrian) was located on the summit and helped to defend it while unit infantry could not go to their assistance because the difficulties of movement were beyond several of their capabilities due to both the mountain terrain and excessive loads. The Pass was to have been surrounded by Italian forces; this did not occur. Second Lieutenant Fulvio Bottari (Italian) had 4 platoons of Arditi troops, approximately thirty men including 3 sergeants. The observation post was now in Italian control and utilized to observe the activities of the Austrian units. Approximately 20 and many wounded men (unknown number) were from the 20th Austrian troops, as compared with relatively few Italian troops. The communication between the Italian units was inaccurate and confusion occurred at one time, causing doubt about the success or failure of the operation. In the following hours, various reinforcements (the first of which, in the late morning of the 10th, consisted of seven surviving infantrymen from a patrol of about thirty men, coming from Corno Sinistro) were gradually sent to the summit of Monte Corno, despite numerous counterattack attempts subsequently launched by the Austrians. The counterattacks, which took place between May 12th and 15th, are documented in particular in three successive communiqués from the Supreme Command, which confirm that the positions on Corno were by then firmly in Italian hands. During one of these enemy counterattacks, however, a patrol of about twenty Austrians managed to infiltrate a portion of the emplacements. Having overwhelmed the sole lookout, positioned at the mouth of the tunnel leading to the spur of the mountain a position deemed of little use to the defense and therefore partially unguarded the enemy took refuge there, subsequently refusing to surrender.
Reconquest of Monte Corno (13 May) It was this particular position that was then retaken, on May 13, by Lieutenant Carlo Sabatini , in an action quite distinct from the previous one, which had involved the capture of all the Corno Battisti positions. Sabatini's action, made urgent by the announcement of General
Badoglio 's imminent arrival at the base, was announced by Sabatini himself to the commanders, who were therefore able to monitor it with binoculars. It involved climbing a section of the Corno Battisti face in broad daylight, on a slope characterized by loose rock, which nevertheless allowed them to avoid being seen by enemy lookouts. The high risk and visibility of this action contributed to an almost immediate decision to award him a high field honor. Having previously cited the motivation for the silver medal awarded to Second Lieutenant Bottari, it is important to then report the one definitively attributed to Lieutenant Sabatini for the gold medal that was conferred to him on the field. The assault was successful. The lookouts were surprised and overwhelmed, as were most of the Austrians who had barricaded themselves inside some of the observatory's tunnels. However, after the initial assault, it took another five or six hours for the last resistance to be overcome, thanks to the intervention of other soldiers. ==Historiography==