The White House of the Hero of the Two Worlds
The island of Caprera, in the La Maddalena archipelago, connected to La Maddalena by a bridge, is inseparably linked to Giuseppe Garibaldi (1807 to 1882), the "Hero of the Two Worlds", the general who fought for freedom in South America and Europe and led the Expedition of the Thousand in 1860, which brought about the unification of southern Italy with the Kingdom of Sardinia. In 1856 Garibaldi bought part of the island, then almost uninhabited, and settled here, living as a farmer and shepherd, between one military campaign and another, until his death in 1882.
His home, the Casa Bianca, the "White House", a simple farmhouse in the style of the South American "estancias", has become the Compendio Garibaldino, a national museum that preserves the rooms exactly as they were, with his furniture, his bed, facing the sea, where he died, his red shirts, his weapons, the wheelchair donated by the city of Milan and many memorabilia. Around the house are the stables, the windmill, the farm and the large pine tree planted by Garibaldi on the day of the birth of his daughter Clelia. In the garden is his tomb, a large granite block, and the graves of some members of his family. The rest of Caprera is a wild island, covered with pine forests and Mediterranean scrub, with beautiful coves such as Cala Coticcio, known as "Tahiti", and Cala Brigantina.
Tip: the visit to the Compendio is guided and limited, book in advance; Cala Coticcio has limited and reserved access in summer.
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