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Giuseppe wows Tyneside
The Italian patriot and revolutionary Giuseppe Garibaldi, already a living legend and symbol of radical politics arrived on board of the ship Commonwealth in South Shields this week, Garibaldi had already participated in a revolutionary uprising in Piedmont in 1834 and was forced into exile in South America. There, he participated in revolutionary wars in Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina, commanding whole fleets and armies, he was cheered as a hero when he arrived in Newcastle when he made his last visit to the city, when he sailed from South Shields for Italy he was appointed commander-in-chief of the freedom fighters of the new Roman republic. But Austrian and French iron fist policies saw him forced to , Garibaldi had to flee his home again. For the past few years he has alternated his home between Newcastle and New York.
This month he arrived back in Newcastle as part of planned visits to the major European countries to advocate the unification of Italy. He was enthusiastically welcomed by the local population and hosted by the local radical politician and newspaper proprietor Joseph Cowen Jr in his manor in Tynemouth meeting local industrialists and politicians. He has been scheduled to speak at a public meeting in the Lit and Phil in Newcastle. Cowen Jr organised a public subscription of one penny per head via the Evening Chronicle to purchase a gift for the Italian revolutionary. He is expected to stay in the “toon” until April.