Food supplies - Written in the landscape

The war at high altitude required considerable logistical and material effort for the care of the wounded and sick. In the high mountains there were only first aid structures, while intermediate structures, more spacious and organized, were located in the valley floor. For the most serious cases, transfer to military hospitals in territories even farther away from the front was organized. In addition to historical photographs, there remain recollections of the health infrastructure and biographies of doctors who worked at the front or who visited it.
For many, religiosity played an important role in making the harshness of war bearable. The private one, of the individual soldiers, can be reconstructed with extreme difficulty through some objects or personal diaries. The rites of official religiosity, on the other hand, are well documented by photographs, drawings and written sources. These sources show that religiosity itself was often exploited for propaganda purposes and to support the war effort. Parish priests and chaplains, such as Feldkurat Josef Hosp on the Austrian side and Don Pietro Zangrando on the Italian side, supported with conviction the causes of their respective staffs, to the extent that they intervened at times: on the front, faith and patriotism were closely intertwined.
The general staff prepared numerous cemeteries for the fallen. At high altitude, there were emergency cemeteries, in some cases located near the front lines. Time has left barely visible traces of these places. On the Austro-Hungarian front, the cemetery of Toblingerdörfl and that of Zirbenboden are known, both well documented by photographs of the time. Between the two wars, the remains of the soldiers were exhumed and moved to the large cemeteries dedicated to the fallen, in ossuaries or in village tombs, partly for ideological and political reasons. (GF, SK)

The landscape that characterizes the area on which the research of the Written on the Landscape project focused is the Dolomite medium and high mountains, upon which military structures and infrastructures were grafted. From a naturalistic point of view, a monographic report of the Italian I Army Corps of 1917 proves to be particularly revealing, in which we read: “The region in question is part of the Dolomite Alps, of which it forms the extreme eastern edge, and, in this region, the characters of the Triassic formation are very marked, with local tectonic disturbances […]. The phenomena of erosion have acted intensely on dolomite, a constituent element of these rocks, so as to form irregular and steep slopes, furrowed by deep gullies. The typical example of the intensity of this erosion is given by the Tre Cime di Lavaredo; and where erosion has manifested itself most, shales and sandstones have been laid bare.”
The report is very detailed and also focuses on the intricate situation of water: “From the orographic complexity of the region results, by natural consequence, a corresponding hydrographic complexity, and it is noteworthy that in a relatively small area there are watercourses unfolding in different and opposite directions. Thus, while the Rio Marzon, the Rio Cengia and the Rio Giralba all have the general north-south direction, the Bacher Bach goes from south to north; and while the Boden Bach runs from west to east, the Schwarze Rienz [Rienza Nera] descends from east to west.” This is followed by climatic considerations, in which the minimum winter temperatures that have been recorded can drop to -30° C, and insights on the vegetation, ranging from coniferous forest, to mountain forest, to rhododendron.1Archivio dell’Ufficio storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Roma, Monografie del I Corpo d’Armata – Genio – Sistemazione difensiva, AUSSME_B1_110D_23A.
A complex natural landscape, therefore, that did not make life at high altitude easy for the hundreds of men who faced each other for twenty-nine months, summer and winter, in the Dolomites. (GF)

For the soldiers who found themselves fighting on the Three Peaks Plateau, winters were long and snowy. The snow fell from October to April and could last until late June in the shaded areas of the highest peaks. The minimum temperature often dropped to -30°C at night, hovering around 0°C during the day.
Frostbite and avalanches soon became familiar dangers. To help the soldiers survive in such conditions, both staffs provided detailed equipment and instructions. Each Italian soldier, for example, received two sets of woolen garments and three heavy blankets. The troops in the trenches also received coats and shoes lined with fur, clogs, balaclavas, leg wraps, socks, waterproof clothing and sleeping bags. To avoid frostbite, antioxidant fat was distributed to spread on the feet. To limit the damage caused by avalanches, officers from both armies had maps at their disposal showing the points most likely to cause snow loss. Despite this, the winter at high altitude resulted in hundreds of victims.
As time went on, the general staffs began to take advantage of winter conditions. The attack on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein on 21 April 1917 is a clear example of this. The approach of members of the Austro-Hungarian army to the Italian lines took place through a tunnel dug hundreds of meters in the snow. This tunnel made it possible to catch the sentinels by surprise and temporarily conquer the position. It also required the training of departments specialized in the use of winter equipment, including skis used for stealth and surprise attacks as well as sleds for the transport of materials. (GF)

In addition to military operations in the narrowest sense, the supply of provisions was also particularly complicated in a high mountain context such as that of the Three Peaks. Efficient transport systems were indispensable, as well as the constant supply of depots for food. Regarding this, a report of the Italian I Army Corps of 1917 says:
“Food is taken partly in Val Marzon and partly in Auronzo, depending on the location of the troops. In Auronzo there is a food and fodder distribution warehouse with an ordinary capacity of 5-6 days, with its slaughterhouse and bakery (3800 daily rations). Another bakery is located in Pause (17,000 daily rations). In each position there is then a quantity of reserve and comfort food of up to 8 days in case it is not possible to refuel with fresh food”.1Archivio dell’Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Roma, Monografie del I Corpo d’Armata – Genio – Sistemazione difensiva, AUSSME_B1_110D_23A.
The term “comfort” usually meant coffee, sugar, tobacco, or, in special cases, chocolate.
A dispatch of the summer of 1915, entitled “Operation of services during the attack against the Toblinger region [of the Forcella di Toblin]”, shows the difficulties in planning supplies in the preparation phases of the attack that will lead to the conquest of the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein: “Given the nature of the terrain in which it operates, the regular supply of the ordinary food ration may encounter some difficulties. It is therefore essential that everyone has their individual rations of spare food and in good condition. The region is poor in water: take care that the troop leaves with a full canteen; bins, if they are already in delivery to the departments, and those other containers that will be distributed are made to be filled up in order to build a water reserve at the back of each operating group. As a rule, it is noted that in each of the regions Lavaredo and Cengia [Büllelejoch ] there is a deposit of ordinary food (less meat and bread) and cans of preserved meat… In Longere a certain quantity of oats was also deposited; to Cengia, oats and hay”.2Archivio dell’Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Roma, Diario Brigata Marche, AUSSME_B1_133S_583c, 10 agosto, 1915.
The 1917 report shows a more efficient organization:
“Before the end of autumn, winter food and wood depots must be established to enable the occupying troops to live independently and without supplies during periods of possible communication disruptions. The extent of these food deposits (canned meat, biscuits, rice, pasta, coffee, sugar, marsala, cognac, dried fruit, tobacco) can be sufficient to cover 8-15 days, except for the highest and most impervious positions on which the deposits themselves may have greater durability (even thirty days)”.3Archivio dell’Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Roma, Monografie del I Corpo d’Armata – Genio – Sistemazione difensiva, AUSSME_B1_110D_23°.
Only in case of extreme necessity, if the field kitchens were not able to operate, on the orders of the officers, were the soldiers allowed to consume emergency rations. In some parts of the territory you can still see hundreds of metal relics of canned meat, fish and cheese. On the Italian territories, you often read the names of the brands, such as Cirio and Galbani, while on the Austrian ones the most prevalent language on the tins is Norwegian, which indicates the Scandinavian origin of the content, ie sardines, which Norway, as a neutral country, sold to both sides.4Dalle Fusine and De Menego, La Grande Guerra di Latta.

(GF)

Dalle Fusine, Giovanni and Gianluigi De Menego (2013). La Grande Guerra di latta. Gli alimenti consumati tra le trincee del primo conflitto mondiale. Menin.

Monografie del I Corpo d’Armata – Genio – Sistemazione difensiva, AUSSME_B1_110D_23A, Archivio dell’Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Roma.

Diario Brigata Marche, AUSSME_B1_133S_583c, Archivio dell’Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome.

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