World War I history: Alpine warfare and recovered soldier diaries

Historical accounts from World War I highlight the extreme conditions of the White War in the Alps and the recovery of personal military records. Between 1915 and 1918, Italian and Austro-Hungarian forces engaged in high-altitude combat across the Adamello massif and Brescian mountains, facing severe frost, avalanches, and isolation at altitudes exceeding 3,000 meters.

Significant logistical feats included the transport of the 149/G cannon, nicknamed “Ippopotamo,” to heights of over 3,200 meters. Key engagements involved the conquest of the Corno di Cavento and the Lobbia Alta ridge. Today, these mountain sites serve as open-air museums for hikers.

In a separate historical discovery, the diary of Gaetano Algarotti, an Italian infantry corporal, was recovered following a burglary. Algarotti, who served in the 259th Infantry Regiment, was deployed to the Carso front before being captured by Austrians and imprisoned in Mauthausen. His diary, titled “La mia vita militare. La prigione,” provides a firsthand account of his experiences through the end of the war.