Comacchio. 5:00 PM. Garibaldi and his patriots arrive at the Podere Zanetto, owned by the Patrignani family, where Teresa De Carli, wife of Antonio Patrignani (Colonel of the National Guard and Gonfaloniere of Comacchio), is tending to the very precarious condition of poor Anita, who is now dying. Her faithful servant Cinti Zeffirillo, who was on lookout at the lagoon landing stage, raises the alarm: he has spotted boats heading toward the Podere Zanetto.
