- A monument erected in 1932 on the Janiculum Hill in Rome to the memory of Giuseppe Garibaldi’s wife, Anita de Jesus Ribeiro, who died in his arms at 27 during the retreat following the collapse of the “Roman Republic” in 1849, improbably shows the warrior-woman holding a baby in one arm and a pistol in the other hand, while riding into battle side-saddle!
A skilled horsewoman, Anita is said to have taught Giuseppe about the gaucho culture of the plains of southern Brazil, Uruguay, and northern Argentina. One of Garibaldi's comrades described Anita as "an amalgam of two elemental forces…the strength and courage of a man and the charm and tenderness of a woman, manifested by the daring and vigor with which she had brandished her sword and the beautiful oval of her face that trimmed the softness of her extraordinary eyes."
she was actually Brazilian, and died in bed of malaria during a retreat, while pregnant with her fifth child.
I wasn't aware of the South American connections of Garibaldi...
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