Armistice Day 2011.
Lest we forget all those that have paid the ultimate price for our freedom.
~S~ to them all.
“They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old.
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them”.
~S~
It was November the 4th, for us Ities.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNALt6__Oe4
Every year, the City Hall Band used to come on that day under my Grandfather’s home to play the famous “Il Piave” song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YA4towvthMo
He was a Sgt.Major gunner, Blue Ribbon Hero of the Italian resistance along the last defence line, along the Piave River, being the only survivor of a Heavy MG platoon on the Fagarè sand island, hammering enemy barges trying to cross the waters.
Bomb-shrapnels, besides cutting off a couple of his fingers, caused the FIAT machine gun cooling-water reservoir to leak…and he kept topping it up with wine!! :eek:
Last war that we won, and last time (hopefully), out of many centuries of efforts, that Austria tried to definitely conquer Italy. 
After the disastrous (for us) Caporetto defeat in 1917, led by a quite young Erwin Rommel (yes, the Germans DID help significantly the Austro-Hungarians!), a change in tactics led by the new Commander Gen. Diaz, together with 4 French, British and American Volunteer’s Divisions, brought Italy to re-take lost terrain, plus the already Italian-in-heart Venezia, Trieste, Trento, Bozen, etc…
As far as casualties are concerned, maybe it’s worth noting that we suffered far less military and civilian losses when we lost, in WW2 (450.000 instead of nearly 800.000, the bitter price of victory)…go figure!