Efisio Cugia di Sant'Orsola (

Cagliari Cagliari (, also , , ; sc, Casteddu ; lat, Caralis) is an Italian municipality and the capital of the island of Sardinia, an autonomous region of Italy. Cagliari's Sardinian name ''Casteddu'' means ''castle''. It has about 155,000 inhabitant ...

, 27 April 1818 –

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, 13 February 1872) was an Italian general and politician.

Military career

Born into a family of Sardinian nobility, he embarked on a military career. After completing his studies at the :it: Accademia Reale di Torino, he was appointed Second Lieutenant in the artillery. In 1848 he participated in the

first Italian War of Independence The First Italian War of Independence ( it, Prima guerra d'indipendenza italiana), part of the Italian Unification (''Risorgimento''), was fought by the Kingdom of Sardinia (Piedmont) and Italian volunteers against the Austrian Empire and other ...

and on May 30, in the

battle of Goito The Battle of Goito was fought between the Piedmontese and the Austrian army on 30 May 1848, in the course of the First Italian War of Independence. The Piedmontese army won the battle, as the Austrians were unable to break through to relieve the ...

, he was wounded, which earned him a silver

medal of military valor The Medal of Military Valor (Italian language: ''Medaglia al valor militare'') is an Italian medal, originally established as a Sardinian award. It is awarded to military personnel, units above the level of company, and civilians for excepti ...

. He went on to earn a second at the

battle of Novara Battle of Novara may refer to: * Battle of Novara (1500), a battle between France and Milan during the Second Italian War * Battle of Novara (1513), a battle between the Holy League and France, within the War of the League of Cambrai * Battle of No ...

. During 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 ...

. he fought alongside General

Enrico Cialdini Enrico Cialdini, Duca di Gaeta (8 August 18118 September 1892) was an Italian soldier, politician and diplomat. Biography He was born in Castelvetro, in the province of Modena. In 1831 he took part in the insurrection at Modena, fleeing afterw ...

in the IV division, earning the knight's cross in the Military Order of Savoy for his bravery at the

battle of Palestro The Battle of Palestro was fought on 30–31 May 1859 between the Austrian Empire and the combined forces of the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont and France. The Franco-Piedmontese forces were victorious. It was fought just south to Palestro, a town i ...

. After the armistice of Villafranca, he was assigned by king

Vittorio Emanuele II Victor Emmanuel II ( it, Vittorio Emanuele II; full name: ''Vittorio Emanuele Maria Alberto Eugenio Ferdinando Tommaso di House of Savoy, Savoia''; 14 March 1820 – 9 January 1878) was Kingdom of Sardinia, King of Sardinia from 1849 until 17 Marc ...

to organize the military college of Milan. General in 1860, he was chosen as chief of staff of the army corps; appointed on 12 December of the same year as director for war affairs in southern Italy, relinquishing this post to

Genova Giovanni Thaon di Revel Count Genova Giovanni Battista Thaon di Revel (Genoa, 21 November 1817 – Como, 3 September 1910) was an Italian nobleman, soldier, politician, diplomat and historian. He took part in the Unification of Italy, Risorgimento campaigns and the Crim ...

when Vittorio Emanuele II, assigned him instead the position of extraordinary commissioner in Sicily, which he held until 21 August 1862. In 1866 he commanded the VIII Division at the Battle of Custoza as a lieutenant general. Subsequently, up to his death in 1872, Cugia held the office of first aide-de-camp to the then crown prince, and later king,

Umberto I Umberto I ( it, Umberto Rainerio Carlo Emanuele Giovanni Maria Ferdinando Eugenio di Savoia; 14 March 1844 – 29 July 1900) was King of Italy from 9 January 1878 until his assassination on 29 July 1900. Umberto's reign saw Italy attempt colo ...

Political career

During the fifth legislature of the Subalpine Parliament he was elected to represent the constituency of

Lanusei Lanusei (; ) is a town and ''comune'' in Sardinia in the Province of Nuoro The province of Nuoro ( it, provincia di Nuoro; sc, provìntzia de Nùgoro) is a province in the autonomous island region of Sardinia, Italy. Its capital is the city of ...

, which renewed his mandate also in the sixth. In the seventh he represented

Senorbì Senorbì is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Cagliari in the Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Cagliari. It is the main center of Trexenta, located in an area traditionally devoted to the cultivation of cereals. The ...

. In the eighth legislature - the first of the new Kingdom of Italy - he returned to Lanusei, while in the ninth, tenth and eleventh he chose

Macomer Macomer ( sc, Macumère) is a town and ''comune'' of Sardinia (Italy) in the province of Nuoro. It is situated on the southern ascent to the central plateau (the Campeda) of this part of Sardinia, at the junction of narrow-gauge lines branching fro ...

, although he was also re-elected several times in Lanusei. He was Prefect of

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...

, in charge of infantry and cavalry weapons during the ministry led by

Manfredo Fanti Manfredo Fanti (23 February 1806 – 5 April 1865) was an Italian general; he is known as the founder of the Regio Esercito. Biography Manfredo Fanti was born at Carpi (Emilia-Romagna) and educated at the military college of Modena. In 1831 he w ...

. He held the position of Minister of the Navy in the

first Minghetti government The Minghetti I government of Italy held office from 24 March 1863 until 28 September 1864, a total of 554 days, or 1 year, 6 months and 4 days. Government parties The government was composed by the following parties: Composition References ...

from 20 April 1863. As Navy Minister he instituted a school of cannonry on board the frigate

Partenope ''Partenope'' ("Parthenope", HWV 27) is an opera by George Frideric Handel, first performed at the King's Theatre in London on 24 February 1730. Although following the structure and forms of opera seria, the work is humorous in character and li ...

and commissioned two armoured gunboats, later named the ''Alfredo Cappellini'' and the ''Faà di Bruno''. He then served as

Minister of War A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

in the second Ricasoli government from 22 August 1866. Under his administration, the War School was established in Turin. He also established a commission of enquiry into the reasons for the poor military performance in the

Third Italian War of Independence The Third Italian War of Independence ( it, Terza Guerra d'Indipendenza Italiana) was a war between the Kingdom of Italy and the Austrian Empire fought between June and August 1866. The conflict paralleled the Austro-Prussian War and resulted in ...

. Cugia died in Rome on 13 February 1872. He was buried in the family chapel in the

monumental cemetery of Bonaria The Monumental Cemetery of Bonaria is located in Cagliari, Sardinia. In use between 1829 and 1968, this monumental cemetery originally occupied an area at the base of the hill of Bonaria, and over time expanded upwards. The main entrance is lo ...

in Cagliari.

Honours

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cugia, Efisio 1818 births 1872 deaths People from Cagliari Italian generals Italian Ministers of Defence Members of the Chamber of Deputies (Kingdom of Italy)