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]

Lieutenant-Colonel Ítalo Ángel Piaggi

Career

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The 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

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  1. ^ "Falleció el Veterano de Guerra Ítalo Ángel Piaggi" (in Spanish). El Malvinense. 1 August 2012. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
  2. ^ Piaggi, pp. 64, 69, 90-91, 102-103
  3. ^ Piaggi, page 169 (Appendix)

References

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