Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein - Written in the landscape

In the second half of the nineteenth century, Sesto/Sexten became a popular and well-frequented tourist resort, gaining a certain prosperity. The Sesto/Sexten Dolomites were quite seductive, boasting an incomparable landscape and, for mountaineers, the opportunity to conquer the peaks with famous local mountain guides. From time immemorial, however, Sesto/Sexten was also a border town with the Kingdom of Italy and was therefore included in the military structures and plans for a possible war action. The barrier of Sesto/Sexten, with the fortresses of Haideck and Mitterberg, was to prevent an Italian advance and breakthrough in Val Pusteria/Pustertal. Built in the 1880s, at the outbreak of the First World War, the fortresses were by then obsolete and hardly able to withstand the fire of modern artillery. Despite this, both were still used by imperial troops, if only to confuse the enemy. Life in an area that suddenly had become the front line was not easy for the inhabitants of Sesto/Sexten. The quartering and military requisitions in Sesto/Sexten and Moso/Moos put a strain on the relationship between the population and the army.
This section intertwines the investigation of the events of Sesto/Sexten and its inhabitants during the years of the war – through the results of historical-archival research – with that of the culture of memory of the First World War in the descendants and inhabitants of Sesto/Sexten – through socio-cultural research that involved local communities in the co-production of a common heritage. (SK)

When the first Italian shells fell on the village in July 1915, it quickly became clear that the inhabitants of Sesto/Sexten were no longer safe in their homes. At the beginning of August came the order to evacuate the village with a nighttime operation conducted under fog. The men were already at war, and it was mainly women, children and the elderly who had to pack up basic necessities and flee the village. Many sought refuge with relatives and friends in nearby villages. At first, few of them thought that their stay would last long. But things changed on August 12, when Italian incendiary bombs hit the village, and several buildings, including the parish church, were destroyed by flames. Some valuables were rescued by the soldiers, but many inhabitants of Sesto/Sexten lost all their belongings. Only a few refugees managed to secure a home and a regular income during the war. Those who soon run out of cash and savings and were unable to provide for themselves and their relatives had to turn to the state authorities. The paper trail of countless requests for support for refugees made to the Austrian state helps us in present times to reconstruct the difficult fate of the poorest of the refugees in exile. Due to the fame of the tourist resort of Sesto/Sexten, especially in Viennese high society, a number of fundraising and aid drives were carried out successfully, benefiting the population of Sesto/Sexten and enabling the town to overcome at least the most difficult moments. However, many of inhabitants had a strong desire to return home as soon as possible. (SK)

The imperial and royal military leadership did not allow individual farmers to return to the hamlet of Außerberg/ Monte di Fuori until the mid-summer of 1917, when they were allowed to return to tend the harvest. These families were also accompanied by the parish priest Heinrich Schwaighofer, and a small chapel was built for them in the woods for mass (Waldkapelle). Only after the shifting of the front following the rout of Caporetto in 1917, were the inhabitants of Sesto/Sexten able to return to the village and begin the first work of evacuation and reconstruction in the spring of 1918. However, in the last year of the war, the difficulties of the population, aggravated by inflation and food shortages, were great and some families were forced to entrust their children to farmers from other communities, as they were unable to procure the bare necessities for themselves. The real reconstruction of the village could only begin when Sesto/Sexten was annexed to the Italian State, which financed the reconstruction work. Finally, in 1923, eight years after the destruction and flight of the population, the reconstruction of the village was celebrated with a party. The village and its inhabitants, after the most difficult period of their history, sought in the following years to restore and expand their status as a popular and appreciated tourist village. (SK)

Cave in the area of the lower Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. Summer 2021. Photo of the archaeological documentation, Arc-Team and Gianluca Fondriest. © unibz, WiL Archives.
Italian machine gun position at the so-called “Dito Piccolo/Frankfurter Würstl”. Summer 2021. Photo of archaeological documentation, Arc-Team and Gianluca Fondriest. © unibz, WiL Archives.
Cave in the area of the upper Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. Summer 2021. Photo of the archaeological documentation, Arc-Team and Gianluca Fondriest. © unibz, WiL Archive.
Italian fortifications on the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, photographed after the withdrawal of the Italian army from the combat section in 1917. TAP Collection Werkmeister Anton Trixl L273. © Tiroler Archiv für photographische Dokumentation und Kunst (TAP), Lienz-Bruneck.
Italian fortifications on the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, photographed after the withdrawal of the Italian army from the combat section in 1917. TAP collection Werkmeister Anton Trixl L274. © Tiroler Archiv für photographische Dokumentation und Kunst (TAP), Lienz-Bruneck.
Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein with Italian position from the top of Torre di Toblin/Toblinger Knoten. From the summit of Torre di Toblin/Toblinger Knoten, the Austrian soldiers had a good view of the Italian positions below. ZEG Schemfil Kt. 61-72, 66. © Zentrum für Erinnerungskultur und Geschichtsforschung, Innsbruck.
Photograph taken from the Calotta Ovest/Kuppe West, which, starting from the left, shows the Torre di Toblin/Tablinger Knoten, the Sasso di Sesto/Sextnerstein and the monte Paterno/Paternkofel. MGR_243_423. Courtesy of Museo storico italiano della guerra, Rovereto. © MGR.
Panoramic view with Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, Monte Paterno/Paternkofel e Torre di Toblin/Toblinger Knoten, during one of the war winters, photographed from the heights near Pian di Cengia. ISCAG_FOTO_025456. Courtesy of the Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Rome. © ISCAG.
The austrian defensive line on the high plateu of the The Peaks of Lavaredo seen from the Italian trenches on the Forcella Col di Mezzo/Mitterscharte. From the left: Torre degli Scarperi/Schwabenalpenkopf, Caposaldo Kawrza/Kawrza Stützpunkt, Calotta Ovest/Kuppe West, Calotta Est/Kuppe Ost, Torre di Toblin/Toblinger Knoten, Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. Iscag_Foto 025430. Courtesy of Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Roma. © ISCAG.
Picture with Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, Torre di Toblin/Toblinger Knoten and the destroyed Drei Zinnen Hütte.1916 or 1917. MCRR_Album_B1_32. Courtesy of the Museo Centrale del Risorgimento di Roma. © MCRR.
Upper Sesto. Planimetric overview of the cengia/Büllelejoch with the connected entrances to the caves. (Scale 1:400.) Archivio ufficio storico dello stato maggiore dell’esercito, B1 110D 29A, carteggio 1917, I corpo d’armata, genio, sistemazione difensiva. Comparison with 3D reconstruction carried out during the survey campaign of the WiL project in the summer of 2021, highlighting the entrances to the tunnels and machine gun positions. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Roma. © AUSSME & © unibz, WiL Archive.
Particolare del GIS elaborato a partire dai rilievi GPS e dalle ricostruzioni fotogrammetriche in cui sono evidenziati resti delle strutture difensive sul Sextenstein-Sasso di Sesto. Elaborazione Arc-Team & Gianluca Fondriest. © unibz, WiL Archive.
The Sextenstein/ Sasso di Sesto in a photograph after the withdrawl of the Italian troops. To be seen are the construction bars and the entrance to the caves of lower Sesto/Untersexten. Foto: Anton Trixl, ©Archiv Dolomitenfreunde
Upper Sesto. Geometric detail of the place from which to fire artillery and lookout. (Scale 1:400). Archivio ufficio storico dello stato maggiore dell’esercito, B1 110D 29A, carteggio 1917, I corpo d’armata, genio, sistemazione difensiva. Confronto con documentazione fotografica eseguita nel corso della campagna di rilievo del progetto WiL nell’estate 2021. Elaborazione Arc-Team & Gianluca Fondriest. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Roma. ©

Report of August 16, 1917, on the patrol and the difficult recovery of a dead man who had been lying on the ridge of the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein for some time. TLA St.B.Ibk I Fasz. III. © Tiroler Landesarchiv, Innsbruck.

The 1917 issue of “La guerra italiana” contains an article about the Austrian attack on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein on April 21, 1917, based on the report of the High Command. Biblioteca di Storia moderna e contemporanea_Rome_TO00185505.

Report of April 27, 1917, on the fighting that took place on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein on April 21 and 22. The report was sent to the Supreme Army Command (Austrian attack and Italian counterattack). AUSSME_E14_busta17_fasc24_sottofasc3_ins4.Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.

Report of artillery action for the retaking of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, April 27, 1917. The report shows the difficulties encountered by the Italian artillery in the action of retaking Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein; it contains a map with the firing trajectories to Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. AUSSME_E6_busta30_fasc129. Courtesy of Archives Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
Report of artillery action for the retaking of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, April 27, 1917. The report shows the difficulties encountered by the Italian artillery in the action of retaking Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein; it contains a map with the firing trajectories to Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. AUSSME_E6_busta30_fasc129. Courtesy of Archives Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
Report of artillery action for the retaking of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, April 27, 1917. The report shows the difficulties encountered by the Italian artillery in the action of retaking Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein; it contains a map with the firing trajectories to Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. AUSSME_E6_busta30_fasc129. Courtesy of Archives Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
Report of artillery action for the retaking of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, April 27, 1917. The report shows the difficulties encountered by the Italian artillery in the action of retaking Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein; it contains a map with the firing trajectories to Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. AUSSME_E6_busta30_fasc129. Courtesy of Archives Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
Report of artillery action for the retaking of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, April 27, 1917. The report shows the difficulties encountered by the Italian artillery in the action of retaking Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein; it contains a map with the firing trajectories to Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. AUSSME_E6_busta30_fasc129. Courtesy of Archives Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.

On these pages (pp. 6-13) of the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment we find the very first description of the battles around Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein on April 21 and 22, 1917, with a wealth of details (names of Italian officers and Austrian prisoners, e.g. the capture of Zwanick August, an officer of the Innsbruck Tyrolean Landsturm). Finally, there is a handwritten note by Colonel Zoppi, the regiment’s commander, emphasizing that he had not received a counterattack order from the high command (as he had read in other documents), but had initiated the recapture operations on his own initiative. The assertion that the command should have urged him to counterattack – according to the colonel – “is not historically truthful in the slightest.” Note also that in the diaries of the services each day the weather conditions and temperature are cited. AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
On these pages (pp. 6-13) of the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment we find the very first description of the battles around Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein on April 21 and 22, 1917, with a wealth of details (names of Italian officers and Austrian prisoners, e.g. the capture of Zwanick August, an officer of the Innsbruck Tyrolean Landsturm). Finally, there is a handwritten note by Colonel Zoppi, the regiment’s commander, emphasizing that he had not received a counterattack order from the high command (as he had read in other documents), but had initiated the recapture operations on his own initiative. The assertion that the command should have urged him to counterattack – according to the colonel – “is not historically truthful in the slightest.” Note also that in the diaries of the services each day the weather conditions and temperature are cited. AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
On these pages (pp. 6-13) of the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment we find the very first description of the battles around Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein on April 21 and 22, 1917, with a wealth of details (names of Italian officers and Austrian prisoners, e.g. the capture of Zwanick August, an officer of the Innsbruck Tyrolean Landsturm). Finally, there is a handwritten note by Colonel Zoppi, the regiment’s commander, emphasizing that he had not received a counterattack order from the high command (as he had read in other documents), but had initiated the recapture operations on his own initiative. The assertion that the command should have urged him to counterattack – according to the colonel – “is not historically truthful in the slightest.” Note also that in the diaries of the services each day the weather conditions and temperature are cited. AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
On these pages (pp. 6-13) of the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment we find the very first description of the battles around Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein on April 21 and 22, 1917, with a wealth of details (names of Italian officers and Austrian prisoners, e.g. the capture of Zwanick August, an officer of the Innsbruck Tyrolean Landsturm). Finally, there is a handwritten note by Colonel Zoppi, the regiment’s commander, emphasizing that he had not received a counterattack order from the high command (as he had read in other documents), but had initiated the recapture operations on his own initiative. The assertion that the command should have urged him to counterattack – according to the colonel – “is not historically truthful in the slightest.” Note also that in the diaries of the services each day the weather conditions and temperature are cited. AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
On these pages (pp. 6-13) of the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment we find the very first description of the battles around Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein on April 21 and 22, 1917, with a wealth of details (names of Italian officers and Austrian prisoners, e.g. the capture of Zwanick August, an officer of the Innsbruck Tyrolean Landsturm). Finally, there is a handwritten note by Colonel Zoppi, the regiment’s commander, emphasizing that he had not received a counterattack order from the high command (as he had read in other documents), but had initiated the recapture operations on his own initiative. The assertion that the command should have urged him to counterattack – according to the colonel – “is not historically truthful in the slightest.” Note also that in the diaries of the services each day the weather conditions and temperature are cited. AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
On these pages (pp. 6-13) of the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment we find the very first description of the battles around Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein on April 21 and 22, 1917, with a wealth of details (names of Italian officers and Austrian prisoners, e.g. the capture of Zwanick August, an officer of the Innsbruck Tyrolean Landsturm). Finally, there is a handwritten note by Colonel Zoppi, the regiment’s commander, emphasizing that he had not received a counterattack order from the high command (as he had read in other documents), but had initiated the recapture operations on his own initiative. The assertion that the command should have urged him to counterattack – according to the colonel – “is not historically truthful in the slightest.” Note also that in the diaries of the services each day the weather conditions and temperature are cited. AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
On these pages (pp. 6-13) of the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment we find the very first description of the battles around Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein on April 21 and 22, 1917, with a wealth of details (names of Italian officers and Austrian prisoners, e.g. the capture of Zwanick August, an officer of the Innsbruck Tyrolean Landsturm). Finally, there is a handwritten note by Colonel Zoppi, the regiment’s commander, emphasizing that he had not received a counterattack order from the high command (as he had read in other documents), but had initiated the recapture operations on his own initiative. The assertion that the command should have urged him to counterattack – according to the colonel – “is not historically truthful in the slightest.” Note also that in the diaries of the services each day the weather conditions and temperature are cited. AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.

To the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment, Commander Zoppi attaches a copy of a report with a critical analysis of the actions of April 21 and 22 on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, which sets out a review of the defensive systems (he tries to understand what did not work, e.g., the searchlight on the Paternkofel hardly worked throughout the action due to cable defects; the telephone connection between “Sesto alta” (upper Sesto) and “Sesto bassa” (lower Sesto) was interrupted). The report also includes a count of Italian and Austrian human casualties, as well as material taken from the enemy (p. 30). AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
To the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment, Commander Zoppi attaches a copy of a report with a critical analysis of the actions of April 21 and 22 on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, which sets out a review of the defensive systems (he tries to understand what did not work, e.g., the searchlight on the Paternkofel hardly worked throughout the action due to cable defects; the telephone connection between “Sesto alta” (upper Sesto) and “Sesto bassa” (lower Sesto) was interrupted). The report also includes a count of Italian and Austrian human casualties, as well as material taken from the enemy (p. 30). AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
To the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment, Commander Zoppi attaches a copy of a report with a critical analysis of the actions of April 21 and 22 on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, which sets out a review of the defensive systems (he tries to understand what did not work, e.g., the searchlight on the Paternkofel hardly worked throughout the action due to cable defects; the telephone connection between “Sesto alta” (upper Sesto) and “Sesto bassa” (lower Sesto) was interrupted). The report also includes a count of Italian and Austrian human casualties, as well as material taken from the enemy (p. 30). AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
To the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment, Commander Zoppi attaches a copy of a report with a critical analysis of the actions of April 21 and 22 on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, which sets out a review of the defensive systems (he tries to understand what did not work, e.g., the searchlight on the Paternkofel hardly worked throughout the action due to cable defects; the telephone connection between “Sesto alta” (upper Sesto) and “Sesto bassa” (lower Sesto) was interrupted). The report also includes a count of Italian and Austrian human casualties, as well as material taken from the enemy (p. 30). AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
To the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment, Commander Zoppi attaches a copy of a report with a critical analysis of the actions of April 21 and 22 on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, which sets out a review of the defensive systems (he tries to understand what did not work, e.g., the searchlight on the Paternkofel hardly worked throughout the action due to cable defects; the telephone connection between “Sesto alta” (upper Sesto) and “Sesto bassa” (lower Sesto) was interrupted). The report also includes a count of Italian and Austrian human casualties, as well as material taken from the enemy (p. 30). AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
To the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment, Commander Zoppi attaches a copy of a report with a critical analysis of the actions of April 21 and 22 on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, which sets out a review of the defensive systems (he tries to understand what did not work, e.g., the searchlight on the Paternkofel hardly worked throughout the action due to cable defects; the telephone connection between “Sesto alta” (upper Sesto) and “Sesto bassa” (lower Sesto) was interrupted). The report also includes a count of Italian and Austrian human casualties, as well as material taken from the enemy (p. 30). AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
To the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment, Commander Zoppi attaches a copy of a report with a critical analysis of the actions of April 21 and 22 on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, which sets out a review of the defensive systems (he tries to understand what did not work, e.g., the searchlight on the Paternkofel hardly worked throughout the action due to cable defects; the telephone connection between “Sesto alta” (upper Sesto) and “Sesto bassa” (lower Sesto) was interrupted). The report also includes a count of Italian and Austrian human casualties, as well as material taken from the enemy (p. 30). AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
To the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment, Commander Zoppi attaches a copy of a report with a critical analysis of the actions of April 21 and 22 on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, which sets out a review of the defensive systems (he tries to understand what did not work, e.g., the searchlight on the Paternkofel hardly worked throughout the action due to cable defects; the telephone connection between “Sesto alta” (upper Sesto) and “Sesto bassa” (lower Sesto) was interrupted). The report also includes a count of Italian and Austrian human casualties, as well as material taken from the enemy (p. 30). AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
To the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment, Commander Zoppi attaches a copy of a report with a critical analysis of the actions of April 21 and 22 on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, which sets out a review of the defensive systems (he tries to understand what did not work, e.g., the searchlight on the Paternkofel hardly worked throughout the action due to cable defects; the telephone connection between “Sesto alta” (upper Sesto) and “Sesto bassa” (lower Sesto) was interrupted). The report also includes a count of Italian and Austrian human casualties, as well as material taken from the enemy (p. 30). AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
To the diary of the 23rd Italian Infantry Regiment, Commander Zoppi attaches a copy of a report with a critical analysis of the actions of April 21 and 22 on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, which sets out a review of the defensive systems (he tries to understand what did not work, e.g., the searchlight on the Paternkofel hardly worked throughout the action due to cable defects; the telephone connection between “Sesto alta” (upper Sesto) and “Sesto bassa” (lower Sesto) was interrupted). The report also includes a count of Italian and Austrian human casualties, as well as material taken from the enemy (p. 30). AUSSME_B1_131D_223-224-225d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.

Diary of the Command of III Subsector Cadore, containing a brief report on the actions of 21 and 22 April on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. AUSSME_B1_130S_87e. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
Diary of the Command of III Subsector Cadore, containing a brief report on the actions of 21 and 22 April on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. AUSSME_B1_130S_87e. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.
Diary of the Command of III Subsector Cadore, containing a brief report on the actions of 21 and 22 April on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. AUSSME_B1_130S_87e. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.

The page from the diary of the 151st Company of the “Zappatori” (Pioneer Battalion) of October 1916 contains a note on the work in progress on the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein: covering a running trench to the gun with sheet metal, continuing the tunnel excavations and placing nets to protect it from enemy invaders. AUSSME_B1_145e_89d. Courtesy of Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome. © AUSSME.

The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.
The diary of the Alpino soldier Paolo Barzan describes the moment of the Italian attacks in August 1915 that lead to the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein from his personal point of view. Barzan was charged with supplying the troops at the front with rations from the Forcella Lavaredo/Patternsattel. ADN_MG/T3. Courtesy of the Archivio Diaristico Nazionale, Pieve Santo Stefano (AR). © ADN.

An observer’s sketch of the Italian positions by Richard Heuberger, Standschütze Baon Innsbruck I on Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, dated April 11, 1916, with precise details of all dugouts and important structures. TLMF, NL 260 6, Sketches 1915-1916, No. 22. © Tiroler Landesmuseum, Bibliothek, Innsbruck.

Map attached to the two-week work report of July 16, 1917, showing the places where the Italian Corps of Engineers is carrying out its work. Among others, the Forcella di Toblin/Toblinger Scharte, the Torre di Toblin/Toblinger Knoten and the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein appear. ISCAG_cart_725_f071. Courtesy of the Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Rome. © ISCAG.

On June 20, 1917, two months after the Austrian attack, the Italian Corps of Engineers prepared this map showing all the new defenses at Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein with positioning of the barbed wire barriers and the map showing the underground galleries, etc. ISCAG_cart_725_f048. Courtesy of the Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Rome. © ISCAG.

Military map of the Italian Corps of Engineers (detail) from the summer of 1917, showing the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein defenses in relation to the other Italian defenses, the connecting systems (cable cars), the tunnels (e.g. the Paternkofel connecting tunnel), and the artillery and machine gun emplacements. ISCAG_cart_678_f150. Courtesy of the Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Rome. © ISCAG.

Sketch of the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein defenses with a detail of the gun on “Sexten alta” (Sesto), October 15, 1916. ISCAG_cart_673_f004. Courtesy of the Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Rome. © ISCAG.

Legend to the sketch of October 15, 1916 with detailed descriptions of the defense installations on the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein in October 1916. ISCAG_cart_673_f017 and f018. Courtesy of the Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Rome. © ISCAG.
Legend to the sketch of October 15, 1916 with detailed descriptions of the defense installations on the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein in October 1916. ISCAG_cart_673_f017 and f018. Courtesy of the Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Rome. © ISCAG.

360° panoramic photo of a machine gun loophole that protected the access path to the tunnels of “Sexten Alto”, just below the summit of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. Elaboration by Arc-Team and Gianluca Fondriest. © unibz, WiL Archive.
Three-dimensional reconstruction of the interior of the west gallery of “Sexten Alto”, just below the summit of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. Elaboration by Arc-Team and Gianluca Fondriest. © unibz, WiL Archive.
360° panoramic photograph of the interior of the eastern tunnel of “Sexten Alto”, just below the summit of the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. Elaboration by Arc-Team and Gianluca Fondriest. © unibz, WiL Archive.
Three-dimensional reconstruction of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. The entrances to the galleries and positions in concrete with loopholes for riflemen and machine guns are visible. Elaboration by Arc-Team and Gianluca Fondriest. © unibz, WiL Archive.
Three-dimensional reconstruction that transparently shows the tunnels carved into Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein. Elaboration by Arc-Team and Gianluca Fondriest. © unibz, WiL Archive.

The battles on the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein

After the strategic retreat of the imperial and royal troops at the beginning of the war with Italy, the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein fell without a fight in the face of the advancing Italian troops, who expanded their positions and trenches a few hundred meters from the Austrian lines and built a labyrinth of caves in the rock for the accommodation of the troops. The elevated observation point was ideal for directing Italian artillery fire towards Austrian positions, which is also why the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein became a recurring target for Austrian troops. A first major action against the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein took place on the night between 29 and 30 of October in 1915 by the 59 infantry regiment “Erzherzog Rainer”. Although the attack was initially successful, the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein could not be held for long due to lack of men. The next day, the Italian Bersaglieri regained their positions. A last major attempt to conquer Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein by the Austrians took place after mid-April 1917. With immense labor, a tunnel was dug in the snow a few meters from the Italian positions. Initially, the attack of 21/22 April seemed to be successful again, but this time the Italians managed to launch a counterattack that drove the Austrian troops out through their tunnel. The Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein remained in Italian hands until the withdrawal of the army from the Dolomite front in 1917, despite the numerous failed attempts of the Imperial and Royal Army.

(GF, SK)

Kübler, Peter and Hugo Reider (1997). Kampf um die Drei Zinnen. Das Herzstück der Sextener Dolomiten 1915-1917 und heute. Bozen: Athesia.

Kriegsarchiv Wien, Neue Feldakten, Artillerieabschnittskommando GUA 10b, 3349, Feldpost 526, 20 April 1917 Sextnerstein-Unternehmung.

The tunnels and defenses of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein

In August 1915, after the occupation of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, the Italian army began the fortification of the position, considered strategically fundamental. The top of the hill, exposed to artillery fire, was continuously reinforced with barbed wire, sandbags and Frisian horses. Moreover, both in the upper and lower parts of the hill, during the following two years, a complex system of caves and tunnels was constructed that could serve as a deposit for weapons, ammunition, food and equipment, as well as a shelter for troops and communication between the posts. Reading the department diaries of some Engineer Corps of Miners and Sappers, one can follow the work on the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein:
“On the Sextenstein [Sasso di Sesto] the excavation of the tunnels continues. Walkways and stairs have been made to give access from the lower part to the top. Inside the tunnel, a material transport service has been set up for the Decauville rail. Barbed wire and Frisian horses were placed externally”.1Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Roma, Diario 16° Compagnia Minatori, AUSSME_B1_146-4_152f, 11 giugno 1916.
“The excavation that leads from Sexten alta [the top of the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein] up to the gunboat continues and its arrangement with the installation of sheet metal for roofing. The cave-shelter under the first Blockhaus has been completed, measuring 2.5 meters long by 2.20 meters high and 2.20 wide”.2Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Roma, Diario 151° Compagnia Zappatori, AUSSME_B1_145e_89d, 29 ottobre 1916.
The situation is also highlighted in a map dating back to October 1916, which shows the defenses of the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, with a detail of the gunboat placed on the upper part of the hill.3Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Roma, Ordinamento a difesa del Sextenstein, regione Toblin, Forcella Lavaredo, ISCAG_cart_673. A report of the Engineers of December 1916 states that, on the Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein, there were shelters that could accommodate up to 600 men and 15 covered positions towards the enemy lines for riflemen or machine guns.4Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Roma, Relazione lavori in data 1 ottobre 1917, ISCAG_cart_0677.
A map made in June 1917 and updated in the following months testifies to how the defenses of Sasso di Sesto/Sextenstein had been improved after the Austrian attack in April, showing the lastest adjustments.5Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Roma, Ordinamento a difesa del Sextenstein, ISCAG_cart_725. The detail of a map of the summer of 1917 demonstrates the situation of the Sasso di Sesto in relation to the other Italian defenses in the area, in particular Forcella di Toblin/Toblinger Riedl and Monte Paterno/Paternkofel.6Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Roma, Sistemazione difensiva Sextenstein-Paterno, ISCAG_cart_678. A report then lists all the defensive mechanisms: trenches, three lines of barbed wire and Frisian horses, a blockhouse, a bomb launcher post, four caves with shelters for 60 men, two cave positions for machine guns, a wire mesh station to defend trenches and walkways discovered against the launch of hand grenades, a covered walkway, dug into rock two meters deep, with 350 meters of development up to the Forcella di Toblin/Toblinger Riedl, a cave ambush for mountain artillery piece, a 20-meter shaft that descended from the gunboat placed on top to a communication tunnel.7Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Roma, Monografie I Corpo D’Armata, AUSSME_B1_110D_23A, marzo 1917.

(GF, SK)

Ordinamento a difesa del Sextenstein, ISCAG_cart_725, Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Rome.

Ordinamento a difesa del Sextenstein, Toblinger Riedel, Forcella Lavaredo, ISCAG_cart_673, Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Rome.

Sistemazione difensiva Sextenstein-Paterno, ISCAG_cart_678, Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Roma.

Relazione lavori in data 1 ottobre 1917, ISCAG_cart_0677, Istituto Storico e di Cultura dell’Arma del Genio, Roma.

Diario 16° Compagnia Minatori, AUSSME_B1_146-4_152f, Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome.

Diario 151° Compagnia Zappatori, AUSSME_B1_145e_89d, Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome.

Monografie I Corpo D’Armata, AUSSME_B1_110D_23A, March 1917, Archivio Ufficio Storico dello Stato Maggiore dell’Esercito, Rome.

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