Luigi Mercantini (20 September 1821 – 17 November 1872) was an Italian poet and writer, who took part in the movements for the Italian unification in the late 19th century. He is better known for his poem ''"La spigolatrice di Sapri"'', depicting the ill-fated expedition led in 1857 by

Carlo Pisacane Carlo Pisacane, Duke of San Giovanni (22 August 1818 – 2 July 1857) was an Italian patriot and one of the first Italian socialist thinkers. He argued that violence was necessary not only to draw attention to, or generate publicity for, a c ...

against the Kingdom of Naples, which was also translated into English by Henry W. Longfellow with the title ''The Gleaner of Sapri''. Mercantini is also known for writing the lyrics of the patriotic hymn ''Canzone Italiana'', better known as the ''Garibaldi Hymn'', since it was commissioned in 1858 by

Garibaldi Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as ''Gioxeppe Gaibado''. In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as ''Jousé'' or ''Josep''. 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, pat ...

himself to the poet, as the official battle song of his ''" Cacciatori delle Alpi"'' volunteer corps who joined in the

Second Italian War of Independence The Second Italian War of Independence, also called the Franco-Austrian War, the Austro-Sardinian War or Italian War of 1859 ( it, Seconda guerra d'indipendenza italiana; french: Campagne d'Italie), was fought by the Second French Empire and t ...

the following year. The hymn's music was composed by his musician friend Alessio Olivieri, and proved hugely popular among Italians at home and abroad, famously being recorded by Enrico Caruso around the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and again used as battle hymn of some brigades of the Italian resistance movement during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

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''"The Gleaner of Sapri"''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mercantini, Luigi 1821 births 1872 deaths Italian poets Italian male poets 19th-century poets 19th-century Italian male writers

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