Lake Garda Tragedies: Princess Disappearance and 1921 Sailing Accident

The island of Garda has also experienced the tragedy of a princess’s disappearance, as recently happened to Francesca Vacca Agusta. On November 25, 1924, while planting oak seeds, Anna Maria De Ferrari Borghese fell into the waters. No one saw her fall. According to some, she was pushed by one of the Maremma dogs that still today protect the tranquility of the area from the Sunday weekend crowd. The divers conducted searches for about ten days, but the seabed in that area reaches depths of up to 300 meters. Gabriele D’Annunzio arrived to scatter rose petals over the lake’s surface.

The tragedies on the lake

Another tragedy occurred in 1921 when wind gusts capsized a sailing cutter, which carried Marquis Nicola Degli Albizzi of Modena (who during the war 1915-1918, in the Battle of Cavento on Adamello, commanded the platoon that blew up the Austrian position with hand grenades, and was decorated for military valor) and his American wife Maris Bona Kifer. Despite the intervention of Prince Scipione’s men, the woman was never recovered.