History of Italy History of the Caprotti and Venosta families

Gianni Albertini: The Arctic Expedition in Search of the Missing of the Noble Expedition (1929)

Gianni Albertini had experienced at first hand, as a member of the expedition, the tragedy of the airship Italia, which had crashed into the North Pole pack in the spring of 1928, and of six crewmen who had remained in the airship’s envelope, disappeared in the fog and were never found again. He feels obliged to search for the missing, encouraged by their relatives. The expedition is prepared with an organisational speed that is astonishing even by today’s standards, less than three months, and according to criteria of particular efficiency and intelligence.

History of Italy History of the Caprotti and Venosta families

Gianni Albertini: supporting the Dirigibile Italia expedition (1928)

In the spring of 1928, the airship ‘Italia’ expedition, commanded by Colonel Umberto Nobile, set off. The aim was to fly over the North Pole for the first time with a precise programme of geographical exploration and scientific research. Unfortunately, the enterprise ended in a dramatic shipwreck, which mobilised a gigantic chain of rescue operations in which Gianni Albertini, one of the most experienced mountaineers and mountain guides, also took part. He experienced the drama first-hand and knew the Arctic for the first time.

History of Italy History of the Caprotti and Venosta families

Gianni Albertini: mountaineer, explorer and husband of great-aunt Ida Quintavalle

Gianni (Gianni) Albertini graduated in engineering at a very young age and became such an expert in rock, mountains and snow that he opened several new routes to the summit of Mont Blanc in the 1920s. An adventurous flyer (he tried to break the record for flying between London and Cape Town in 1938), he owes his fame to the Heimen-Sucai Arctic expedition of 1929, set up to search for those missing from the Nobile expedition the year before. He married Ida Quintavalle, twin sister of my maternal grandmother Luisa Quintavalle.

History of Esselunga History of Italy History of the Caprotti and Venosta families People say about me Press & Events Reviews

“Le Ossa dei Caprotti”: the difference between journalistic reporting and history

In my view, the difference between journalism, political non-fiction and history lies in the research, which, in the case of history, is much more in-depth and is based, first and foremost, on the study of documents and archives. But the added value of this book also lies in the contributions from people who worked for or were close to Esselunga, a company with a much broader entrepreneurial spirit than one might think

History of Italy History of the Caprotti and Venosta families Local History

Bernardo Caprotti of Giuseppe and contributions for Giuseppe Garibaldi

Bernardo’s irredentist sympathies can be confirmed by the receipt of the Italian Unitarian Association to which, on 16 November 1859, he paid 100 lira to purchase rifles proposed by Giuseppe Garibaldi for the ‘national cause’. The sum, however, while certainly not low, is prudent: only 100 lira. The money, the real money, is destined for business.