Eusebio Bava
Eusebio Bava (6 August 1790 in Vercelli – 30 April 1854 in Torin) was an Italian general who fought in the First Italian War of Independence.
Biography
Born in
During the
When
After an armistice was signed on 9 August, Bava, believing that King Charles Albert had proved himself as an unequal commander in chief, remained de facto the head of the Piedmontese army, and was duly named Generale in Capo (General in Chief) on October 22. However, when Wojciech Chrzanowski was appointed by the King as the army's Chief of Staff, Bava, seeing this as yet another sign of the King's meddling in the army, and seen by a portion of the public opinion as responsible for the unsuccessful campaign, published a scathing report on it to exonerate himself and declaring that Charles Albert's indecision had been the biggest factor in the defeat. This led to the King and the government to agree on Bava's dismissal, and on 16 February 1849, he was formally removed from his position, and replaced by Chrzanowski (albeit ambiguously as Charles Albert's chief of staff).
Appointed Senator in 1848, Eusebio Bava died in Turin in 1854.
Assessment
Italian military historian Piero Pieri observed about Bava that, despite his flaws, he was the best army commander available to Sardinia-Piedmont during the Risorgimento.
Sources
- Page at Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani (in Italian)
- Piero Pieri, Storia Militare del Risorgimento, 1962, Giulio Einaudi Editore, Torino