Monte San Michele () is a hill on the Karst Plateau, in the Italian province of Gorizia, on the border between the municipalities of Sagrado () and Savogna d'Isonzo (). It is located eight kilometres southwest of Gorizia, on the left bank of the Isonzo,Storia e memoria di Bologna and has four peaks, the highest two of which ( and ) have an elevation of 275 meters above sea level, while the lowest () has an elevation of 271 meters, and stands at 264 meters.Atlante dizionario del 1915 in Friuli-Venezia GiuliaEnciclopedia TreccaniCentenario 1914-1918
Due to its commanding position over the lower Isonzo valley and the plain of Gorizia, it was the theatre of heavy fighting during the First World War; along with Sabotin and Podgora, the San Michele was one of the main bulwarks of the Austro-Hungarian defense of Gorizia during the early battles of the Isonzo, heavily fortified with multiple trenches, barbed wire, heavy artillery, tunnels and machine-gun posts. It was one of the most bitterly contested heights on the Karst during the first six battles of the Isonzo; during the second battle of the Isonzo, in July 1915, it was twice captured by Italian troops, and twice recaptured by Austro-Hungarian counterattacks.Atlante dizionario del 1915 in Friuli-Venezia Giulia Partial gains were made during the third and fourth battle of Isonzo.Enciclopedia Treccani
On 29 June 1916 the San Michele was the location of the first use of poison gas on the Italian Front, when the Austro-Hungarian released a mix of chlorine and phosgene which killed 2,700 Italian troops and poisoned another 4,000 (additionally, some 250 Austro-Hungarians were killed, and 1,500 poisoned, due to a change in the wind that blew some of the gas back towards the Austro-Hungarian lines).L'azione Austriaca coi gas venefici sul monte San Michele e a San Martino del CarsoL’attacco chimico col fosgene sul Monte San Michele29 giugno 1916, il giorno dei gas The San Michele was finally secured by the Italian XI Corps (General Giorgio Cigliana) in August 1916, during the sixth battle of Isonzo.Atlante dizionario del 1915 in Friuli-Venezia GiuliaStoria e memoria di BolognaEnciclopedia Treccani
Poet Giuseppe Ungaretti fought on the San Michele, which he mentioned in some of the poems collected in Allegria di naufragi.Fare letteratura
In 1922 the San Michele was declared a "monumental area", and turned into an open-air museum.Monte San Michele – Zona sacra monumentaleZona monumentale di Monte San Michele A World War I museum is located near Cima Tre.Museo del Monte San MicheleMuseo all’aperto del Monte San Michele e San Martino del Carso References