Born in Montevideo, he was named in honour of Nicola Ricciotti [it] who had been executed during the failed expedition of the Bandiera Brothers against the Kingdom of Naples.

After a failed attempt to create market enterprises in America and Australia, he was a deputy in the Italian Parliament from 1887 to 1890.

In the Turkish-Greek War in 1897, he fought with the Greek Army against the Ottomans with other Garibaldines.

It was reported that in 1900 during the Boer War, he placed his sword at the disposal of the British Government.

[1] Of his six sons, five including Peppino (Giuseppe II.,1879–1950) and Ezio Garibaldi [it] were soldiers in World War I.