Sacrario Militare del Monte Grappa Historical Timeline

Origins

After the collapse at Caporetto in October 1917, the Italian line fell back to the Piave and to Monte Grappa. The mountain stood between the two valleys and commanded the plain: if it fell, the whole line fell with it.

Turning points

It held. Through the winter of 1917-18 and the battles of June and October 1918, the summit and its approaches were fought over in appalling conditions of cold, artillery and rock.

Influential people

The dead were overwhelmingly conscripts, and the ossuary makes no distinction of rank. Roughly 12,600 Italian and 10,300 Austro-Hungarian soldiers are interred, the great majority unidentified.

Cultural evolution

The monument was built between 1932 and 1935 to a design by Giovanni Greppi and Giannino Castiglioni, replacing scattered wartime cemeteries across the massif.

Present-day significance

Monte Grappa was designated a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 2021. The site remains a place of pilgrimage for the Alpini and for the families of the dead.