March 16, 2020

Ponderable Quote: Francesc Tristany in a Letter to His Brother Rafael (From Byron to Bin Laden)

General Rafael Tristany
(March 16, 1814-June 17, 1899),
the hero of Monte Cataldo, Campo de Melle,
and Castello Nuovo in the Abruzzo, while

fighting in the service of King Francis II 
of the Two Sicilies against Garibaldi
We have no aspirations other than to continue to make those sacrifices, to the day we give our lives, if necessary, to defend the cause of our King. The sword that we brandished in Spain, we shall draw again to fight in favor of legitimacy wherever it becomes necessary: the revolutionaries are the same everywhere, and their plans are always iniquitous. The usurpation that has been committed to the detriment of the King of Naples cries out for deserved vengeance, and we consider it a great honor to lend a hand.*
* Francesc Tristany in a letter to his brother Rafael Tristany (pictured right), February 1861. Quoted in From Byron to Bin Laden: A History of Foreign War Volunteers by Nir Arielli, 2018, Harvard University Press, p. 115