Battle of Milazzo (1860)

The Battle of Milazzo was fought on 17–24 July 1860 between Giuseppe Garibaldi's volunteers and the troops of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies at Milazzo, Sicily, then part of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies.

Battle of Milazzo
Part of The Expedition of the Thousand
Contemporary reconstruction of the battle.
Date 17–24 July 1860 Location Milazzo, Sicily Result Garibaldine victory
Belligerents
Sardinia	Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
Commanders and leaders
Giuseppe Garibaldi	Col. Bosco
Strength
4,500	4,500
Casualties and losses
800+ casualties	300 casualties

The main clash began on the morning of the 20 July on an open field leading to the cape on which Milazzo is located. In the afternoon, after seven hours of combat, the battle moved towards the town itself. Here on a bridge, surrounded by the Neapolitan cavalry, Garibaldi was saved by an assault from Sicilian volunteers. The Garibaldines, after the initial setbacks, gained confidence from this success. Giacomo Medici, Giuseppe Sirtori and Enrico Cosenz attacked the Neapolitan troops, but were pushed back by General Beneventano's men.

Then came from Palermo the armed ship Tukory, which bombarded the Neapolitans, who retreated to Milazzo's fortress. Here they capitulated on 24 July. Garibaldi lost more than 800 troops, the Neapolitans c. 300.

This victory allowed Garibaldi an unimpeded passage to Messina.

References

• Cesari, Cesare (1928). La campagna di Garibaldi nell'Italia Meridionale. (1860). Rome: Libreria dello Stato..

See also

• Risorgimento
• Expedition of the Thousand