Lieutenant-Colonel Ítalo Ángel Piaggi (17 March 1935; San Fernando, Argentina – 31 July 2012, Buenos Aires) was an Argentine Army (1958–1982) commander who was involved in the Battle of Goose Green in the Falklands War.[1]
Career
editThe defending Argentine army forces known as Task Force Mercedes consisted of the Lieutenant-Colonel Italo Piaggi's 12th Infantry Regiment (RI 12) and a company of the 25th Infantry Regiment (RI 25).
The day after the battle Lieutenant-Colonel Piaggi surrendered all Argentine forces, approximately 1,000 men, including 202 men of the Air Force. He was later drummed out of the army in disgrace.[citation needed]
In 1986, he wrote the book Ganso Verde (a calque of "Goose Green", using the colour green to translate [Village] Green), where he makes a strong defence of his decisions during the war and criticises the lack of logistical support from the Argentine commander-in-chief in Stanley.[2] He estimates that Task Force Mercedes only disposed 28 per cent of their intended firepower regarding artillery, mortars and heavy machine guns.[3]
Notes
edit- ^ "Falleció el Veterano de Guerra Ítalo Ángel Piaggi" (in Spanish). El Malvinense. 1 August 2012. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
- ^ Piaggi, pp. 64, 69, 90-91, 102-103
- ^ Piaggi, page 169 (Appendix)
References
edit- Harclerode, Peter (May 1, 1993). Para!: Fifty Years of the Parachute Regiment (Reprint ed.). Arms and Armour. ISBN 1-85409-097-6.
- Fitzgibbon, Spencer (2001). Not Mentioned in Dispatches. James Clarke & Co. ISBN 0-7188-3016-4.
- Kenney Oak, David J. 2 Para's Battle for Darwin Hill and Goose Green. Square Press April 2006. ISBN 0-9660717-1-9. See here
- Falklands War Binderbook - Author Information Pending
- Andrada, Benigno: Guerra aérea en las Malvinas. Ed. Emecé, 1983. ISBN 950-04-0191-6. (in Spanish)
- Piaggi, Italo A.: Ganso Verde. Ed. Planeta, 1986. ISBN 950-37-0186-4. (in Spanish)
  | This biographical article related to the Argentine military is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |