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INUNDATIONS OF 1882
In September 1882,
during the reign
of King Umberto I, north-eastern Italy suffered
from heavy rains which, together with melting
snow from the Alps, caused disastrous
inundations.
The Adige burst its banks, and
large areas were flooded. Verona, in particular,
suffered serious damage. Communication between
that city and Venice was entirely cut off.
Mereweather reports to
English newspapers that the "misery,
ruin, and suffering are widespread and painful
to contemplate". And "scantily-dressed men,
women, and children may be seen gazing in dumb
despair on the ruins of the dwellings from which
they escaped as these crumbled and dissolved
amid the surging waters". According to the
Italian consul in Manchester, nearly 200,000
persons were rendered homeless. In November,
Mereweather writes, "a fresh series of
storms swept over this unfortunate country and
made matters infinitely worse". Sympathisers in England offered assistance, and
in Venice "the collections at the English church
from tourist sources amounted to over 2,000
francs, the English residents having also given
very generously". In December, the amount had
risen to almost 5,000 francs.
The pictures below, showing the disaster in
the Veneto in September 1882, come from Italian and French weekly newsmagazines. |
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Contadini
rifugiati sui gradini d’una chiesa a San Donà [di
Piave]
Farmers taking refuge on the steps of a church
in San Donà
Le rovine del Ponte di San Donà e del Molino
Finzi
The remains of the bridge of San Donà and of
the Finzi mill |
Construzione
dell’argine provvisorio presso Legnago
Construction of the makeshift bank [of the
Adige] near Legnago
Il fanciullo Dazzi
The boy Dazzi [who survived by clinging for
thirty hours to a tree trunk but whose parents
tragically perished] |
Contadini
fuggiaschi, nel distretto di San Donà
Escaping peasants, in the district of San Donà
Lavori di palificazione presso la Rotta di
Legnago
Pile-driving near the breach at Legnago
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Le
inondazioni nel Veneto (The
inundations in the Veneto)
Drawing by Ed. Ximenes, centrefold published in
L’Illustrazione Italiana, Volume 9, No. 46, Milan,12 November 1882
Le
inondazioni nel Veneto (The
inundations in the Veneto)
Il Re visita i quartieri danneggiati di Verona /
The King [Umberto I] visiting the damaged quarters of
Verona
Drawing by Mr Dante Paolocci published on the front page of
L’Illustrazione Italiana, Volume 9, No. 41, Milan, 8
October 1882
Verona: Il Pone Nuovo che rovina
(The Ponte Nuovo collapsing)
Anonymous drawing published in L’Illustrazione
Populare, Volume
19, No. 41, Milan, 8 October 1882
To the right is the church of Saint Anastasia
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Vérona
La Place des Arènes
/
Verona, The Arena [Piazza Bra]
Un sauvetage
/ A
rescue operation
Soldats jetant des sacs de sable dans le canal
Castelvecchio pour arrêter la violence des eaux
Soldiers throwing sandbags into the Castelvecchio canal in order to
stop the rage of the waters
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Les inondations en Italie
(The inundations in Italy)
After sketches by Mr Franco, published in
L'Illustration, No. 2068, 14 October 1882, page 249
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La prima casa
caduta
The first house to fall |
Gli avanzi del
Ponte Nuovo
The remains of Ponte Nuovo |
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Le case di
Binastrova
The houses in Binastrova
[Lungadige
Sammicheli, view towards Ponte Navi] |
Le rovine di Verona (The ruin of
Verona)
Drawings by Mr Bonamore, from photographs by Messrs E.
Ferrari and Kaiser
L'Illustrazione Italiana,Volume 9, No. 42,
Milan, 15 October 1882, page 256
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1. Le pont della Pietra,
menacé
The Pietra bridge being threatened
3. Bersagliers sauvant les
habitants, à Porta-Palio
Bersaglieri rescuing the inhabitants at the
Palio gate
5. Habitants réfugiés sur
les toits
Inhabitants taking refuge on the rooftops |
2. Le Ponte-Nuovo, emporté
Ponte Nuovo washed away
4. Fuite par les fenêtres
Escape through the windows
6. S. Em. le Cardinal de
Canossa recevant le capitaine Pezzati lui
apportant du pain
His Eminence the Cardinal Canossa receiving
Captain Pezzati bringing him bread |
Les
inondations à Vérone (The
inundations at Verona)
Drawing by A. Gérardin, published in Le Monde
Illustré, 1882, page 236
For more information on the flooding in Verona
in September 1882 and the subsequent
construction of embankments, see Giuseppe Milani,
La Verona Fluviale:
Dalla grande alluvione alla costruzione dei
muraglioni 1882-1895,
Verona, 1995. This book is
profusely illustrated with contemporary
photographs.
Global warming, Climate change. I take the
liberty to add these words so that climate
alarmists may find this page and realise that
extreme weather is not a new phenomenon. For
examples of harsh winter weather in Venice over
more than a millennium, click
here. |
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