Garibaldi Brigades

shock partisan detachments organized in the rear of Hitler’s army by the Italian Communist Party during the period of the Resistance Movement in 1943-45. They were named in honor of G. Garibaldi.

The first Garibaldi Brigades appeared in November 1943; in April 1945 there were 575. Each brigade consisted of 40 to 50 members, divided into four or five groups which in turn were divided into two units of five or six combatants in each. The backbone of the Garibaldi brigades were the Communists. The brigade’s chief commander was L. Longo. The Garibaldi brigades made up about half of the armed forces of the partisan army; they were the best organized part and the most fit for battle. In the summer and fall of 1944 the Garibaldi Brigades led the sweeping offensive of the partisan army in central and northern Italy. They were the shock force of the liberating April Uprising of 1945.