Taganrog and the memory of Garibaldi's meeting with Kuneo: how a Russian port changed the destiny of Italy

In the history of every great person there is a point of departure, a moment that turns their life around. For Giuseppe Garibaldi, the national hero of Italy, the unifier of a fragmented country, this point was not Rome, Genoa, or South America. It was the distant Russian port city of Taganrog. It was here, in one of the port taverns, that the 26-year-old captain of a trading schooner met a man who opened his eyes to the fate of his homeland. This meeting became that turning point after which the sailor turned into a revolutionary, and his name entered history forever. Today Taganrog preserves the memory of this event — in stone, in the names of streets, and in museum exhibits.

Spring 1833: oranges, the port, and a fateful encounter

In April 1833, a small Italian trading schooner called "Clorinda" (in some sources it is called "Larinda") entered the Taganrog port. On board was a cargo of oranges, and the ship was commanded by a young captain, Giuseppe Garibaldi, a hereditary sailor from Nice. He was 26 years old and had seen the world, but his soul still did not know his main passion — the struggle for freedom.

At that time Italy was divided into many small states, part of which was under Austrian rule. Patriots dreaming of a united and independent country had to flee abroad. Many of them settled in port cities, where they conducted agitation among sailors. One of such émigrés was Giovanni Battista Kuneo, who lived in Taganrog and actively propagated the ideas of the secret revolutionary organization "Young Italy" created by Giuseppe Mazzini in the early 1830s.

Garibaldi and Kuneo met in one of the port taverns at the intersection of Petrovskaya Street and Kommerchesky Peredvizhnikov Alley. The passionate speeches of his fellow countryman literally turned the young captain's soul inside out. Kuneo told him about the goals of "Young Italy": liberation from Austrian rule, the unification of the country, and the establishment of a republican government. Later in his memoirs, Garibaldi wrote: "Finally, during my journey, I met a Ligurian youth in Taganrog who first introduced me to the state of affairs with us. Of course, Columbus did not experience as much satisfaction from the discovery of America as I did from finding people dedicated to the cause of liberating our Motherland!"

According to some sources, Garibaldi stayed in Taganrog for eight days — from April 8 to April 16. He lived in a hostel for destitute sailors on Nikolaevskaya Street. During this time, he not only met Kuneo but may have also joined "Young Italy" right in Taganrog. However, there are some discrepancies: Garibaldi himself indicated in his diary that he was 24 years old at the time, while in 1833 he had already turned 26. Nevertheless, it was this meeting that gave that push that changed the course of his entire life.

From Taganrog to the unification of Italy: the beginning of a great journey

Upon returning home, Garibaldi was accepted into the society "Young Italy" at the recommendation of Kuneo and took an oath to dedicate his life to the liberation and reunification of Italy. He remained faithful to this vow until the end of his days.

Initially, he was an ordinary fighter, but very soon he led the revolutionary movement. His legendary march "The Thousand" in 1860 led to the liberation of Sicily and Naples, which became a decisive stage in the creation of a single Italian state. Garibaldi showed not only personal bravery but also outstanding organizational abilities as a military leader. His name resounded throughout the world, becoming a synonym for the struggle for freedom. He also fought for the independence of South American republics and helped France during the Franco-Prussian War.

Memory in stone: the only monument to Garibaldi in Russia

Taganrog did not forget about the role it played in the fate of the great Italian. In memory of the fact that the beginning of Garibaldi's path to glory was connected with this city, a monument to Giuseppe Garibaldi was solemnly opened on June 2, 1961, on the centenary of the liberation of Italy. This is the only monument to the Italian revolutionary in Russia.

The authors of the project were the Taganrog artist Y. S. Yakovenko and the architect M. V. Baranov. The monument is a pedestal in the form of an unfurled flag, enclosed between two slabs. A gypsum bas-relief, toned under bronze, is installed on the facade slab — the profile of a young Garibaldi with a palm branch. A plaque with a quote by Friedrich Engels was mounted on the monument: "In the person of Garibaldi, Italy had a hero of the ancient style, capable of performing miracles and performing miracles."

The pedestal is located opposite the former pier (now a yacht club) — not far from the place where that very tavern once stood, where the meeting between Garibaldi and Kuneo took place. In 1990, a new bronze bas-relief by the Moscow sculptor Lev Matyushin was cast. And on September 12, 2007, on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of Garibaldi, the restored monument was solemnly opened in the presence of his great-granddaughter Anita Garibaldi-Jalle.

Garibaldi Alley and other testimonies

The memory of Garibaldi in Taganrog is not limited to the monument. One of the port alleys bears his name. In 1964, the Second Krepastny Alley was renamed to Garibaldi Alley. The length of the alley is 1304 meters.

Taganrog is the only Russian port mentioned in Garibaldi's memoirs. It was from here, as local historians write, that the great journey of the national hero, who unified Italy, began.

The painting "Garibaldi in Taganrog"

In 1882, the year of Garibaldi's death, the Italian painter ItaloNunziates-Vaiss created the painting "Garibaldi in Taganrog." It depicts the key moment: in a Taganrog tavern, a young Garibaldi, inspired by the speeches of his fellow countrymen, swears to fight for freedom and the unification of Italy.

The original of the painting is located in the Risorgimento Museum in Milan. However, a copy of it is stored in the Taganrog Museum-Reserve. It was created in 2008 at the request of Anita Garibaldi-Jalle, the great-granddaughter of the revolutionary. With the assistance of the Dante Alighieri Center, the copy was transferred to Taganrog and a solemn presentation was held in the Historical and Regional Museum. In the future, it will take its place in the permanent exhibition of the museum.

Conclusion

Taganrog, a small city on the Azov Sea, has forever inscribed its name in the history of Italian Risorgimento. It was here, far from home, in the atmosphere of a port tavern, that the spark was born that ignited the flame of the struggle for the unification of Italy. Today the memory of this meeting lives in the pedestal near the yacht club, in Garibaldi Alley, and in the museum copy of the painting, reminding us of how the meeting of two Italians on Russian soil changed the course of European history.

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