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Corsican Guard

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Guardia Corsa
Soldier, officer and high officer of the Corsican Guard in 1656, after "La Corse militaire", by Marquis Paul D'Ornano (1904)
Active1603–1662
CountryPapal States
TypeInfantry
Role
Size600–700
Garrison/HQRome
Commanders
Notable
commanders		Mario Chigi

TheCorsican Guard(ItalianandCorsican:Guardia Corsa) was a military unit of thePapal Statescomposed exclusively ofCorsicanmercenarieson duty inRome,having the functions of an urban militia and guard for thePope.

Preceded by several militias composed of Corsicans since the fifteenth century, the Corsican Guard was formally founded in 1603 underPope Clement VIII.The unit was disbanded in 1662 upon request of the French kingLouis XIV,following an incident between Corsican soldiers and Frenchmen near the French Embassy in Rome atPalazzo Farnese.

History

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Origin and formation of the Corsican Guard

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Map of Corsica (1580–83) byIgnazio Dantiat theGallery of MapsinVatican

The presence of Corsican expatriates in the vicinity of Rome is attested since at least the 9th century, when a small Corsican colony existed inPortonearFiumicinoduring thepontificateofPope Leo IV(r. 847–55); the existence of a Corsicannunneryalong theAppian Wayis known from the same period.[1]In more recent times, Corsicanemigrationto Rome slowly began after the end of theAvignon papacyduring the 15th century, at which point the city again offered job opportunities to immigrants.[1]Previously, the traditional emigration areas of the Corsicans, pushed to leave their country by the poverty and anarchy reigning in Corsica during the Middle Ages, had beenLiguriaandPisa,but during the 15th century Corsicans began to settle inSieneseandLatialMaremma,and from there in Rome.[2]Initially, they were living scattered about in the city'srioni.However, at the onset of 16th century, they were concentrated onTiber Islandand in the part ofTrasteverelying between the harbour ofRipa Grandeand the church ofSan Crisogono.The center of their community was the now disappearedPiazza dell'Olmo( "Elm square" ).[3][4]San Crisogono became thenational churchand cemetery basilica of theCorsican nationin Rome, and over the centuries was used as the burial place of several Corsican military officers.[3][5]Originally, the Corsicans were only able to find humble jobs in the city and its surroundings, mostly in the areas of sheep breeding and wine trading (the island's wines were much sought after during that period). The only exceptions to the aforementioned trades included becoming a priest, a servant in the Vatican palaces, or a soldier in the employ of the Pope or the Romanbaroni;consequently, they did not become well integrated into Roman society.[6]

This situation, together with their fierce character, pushed many Corsican immigrants toward crime; many Corsicans were active as thieves and robbers, both in the city and in theRoman Campagna.[7]Although the Corsicans were certainly not the most turbulent group of immigrants in the city, the reputation they gained in this way was so bad that thePapacyissued numerous laws against them, among them the decree issued in 1475 byPope Sixtus IV(r.1471–84) that forbade Corsicans from settling in the city unless they were able to pay acautionof two hundredducatieach and explicitly promised in advance not to bear weapons, or that issued in 1500 under Pope Alexander VI (r.1493–1503), which ordered the expulsion of all the Corsicans from Rome and thePapal States.[8]

San Crisogono,until1768the national church of the Corsicans inTrastevere,Rome, burial place of several Corsican military officers

In practice, though, all of these decrees went unenforced, and their only effect was to improve group morale of the Corsicans in Rome, which began to integrate successfully into 16th-century Roman society.[8][9]InRenaissance Italy,Corsicans had the reputation of being courageous men; in theGallery of Mapsin theVatican,painted between 1580 and 1583, Italian cartographerIgnazio Dantiwrote in the cartouche above the map of the island: "Corsica has received four major gifts from Nature: its horses, its dogs, its proud and courageous men and its wines, most generous, that princes hold in the highest esteem!". Consequently, it was not difficult for Corsicans to find employ as soldiers in the service of the popes, often attaining officer rank and high social status.[6]These mercenaries formed the nucleus of a Corsican militia that preceded the establishment in 1506 of the better known and still existingSwiss Guard.Between 1468 and 1471, four companies of heavycavalrycomposed of Corsican knights were enrolled by the Pope.[10]During the reigns of Popes AlexanderVI andJulius II(r.1503–13), these companies were reinforced.[10]In 1528, after the rout ofMarshal LautrecinNaples,the remains of the French army moved north through the Papal States. Among them were Corsican bands in the service of France, amounting to 3,000 men.[10]Six hundred of them stopped in Rome, and there took service underClement VII(r.1523–34). Among these troops were thecompagnie di ventura(mercenary bands) ofCondottieriSampiero Corsoand Raffaello Corso.[10]

In 1543 the members of the Corsican militia living in Trastevere asked the Pope for permission to establish theArciconfraternitadellaMadonna del Carmine,with its seat in San Crisogono.[10][11]Over time, this confraternity became one of the most important in Rome; still existing to this day, it is responsible for one of the most traditional Roman feasts, theFesta della Madonna de noantri( "Feast of our Virgin Mary" inRomanesco), which takes places each year in July in Trastevere.[10][11]

Funerary monument in San Crisogono ofPasquino Corso(d.1532), colonel of the Corsican militia

In 1603Pope Clement VIII(r. 1592–1605) recruited in Corsica six hundred infantrymen.[12]This act marks the official beginning of the Corsican Guard.[9]The soldiers were quartered in the rioneRegola,between thechurch of the Santissima Trinità dei Pellegriniand that ofSan Paolino,[13]not far fromPonte Sisto,and in rionePonte,atVicolo dei Soldati( "Soldiers' Lane" ), which got its name from another barrack occupied by Corsican soldiers.[5][14]Another place frequented by the soldiers wasVicolo dell'Armata( "Army Lane" ), also in Regola, a short side lane connectingVia Giuliawith the shore of theTiber,where there existed an inn, theOsteria dell'Armata( "Army Inn" ), so called because it was attended by Corsican soldiers belonging to the Pope's guard.[5]

According to contemporary diplomatFulvio Testi,the Corsican Guard was reinforced in 1637 when, because of an increase of criminality in the city, PopeUrban VIII(r.1623–44) recruited four hundred Corsican soldiers.[15]However, according to Testi, their arrival did not improve the situation.[15]

Corsicans were notorious in Rome for their tendency to engage in fights and brawls, and the soldiers of the guard were no exception.[12]Under the reign of UrbanVIII, on April21, 1642,Easter Monday,a fight broke out among Corsican soldiers and theCorazze( "cuirasses" ), another Papal corps composed almost exclusively of men fromBologna,who were quartered at the slope ofS. Onofrioon theGianicolohill.[12]Two Corsicans died, and only the intervention ofCardinal-NephewFrancesco Barberini,who approached from nearbySt. Peter's Basilica,put an end to the fight.[12]The Corsicans did not give up, and during the following days fights broke out atVia della Lungara,Tor di NonaandCastel Sant'Angelo.[12]Merchants and shopkeepers inVia dei Coronariand the surrounding lanes of rione Ponte were forced to barricade themselves, fearing the sacking of their homes and shops.[16]In the end, only another intervention by Cardinal Barberini and many soldiers on May2 ended the fights.[16]On the following day,gallowswere set up near the hospital of Santo Spirito, inBorgo,and seven Corsican soldiers were hanged.[16]Another one, who had killed a woundedcorazzawhile a friar ofSant'Agostinowas confessing him, was executed by hitting his head with amallet.[16]

End of the Corsican Guard

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Main article:Corsican Guard Affair
Church of the Trinità dei PellegriniinRome.Between this shrine and that ofSan Paolo alla Regolalay barracks of the Guard.

The end of the Corsican Guard, triggered by an incident that occurred in Rome on August20, 1662, gives an insight into the evolution of the geopolitical situation inEuropeand on the growingFrenchinfluence in Italy. Toward the middle of the 17th century, the presence in Rome of numerous diplomatic missions of the European states ended up creating a paradoxical situation in which the major powers – through over-extension of the concept ofextraterritoriality,the so-called "liberty of quarters" – had in some cases provided their embassies with real military garrisons (whose soldiers were free to bear weapons throughout the city), leading to the transformation of entire areas of the city center into free zones, where criminals and killers could find refuge, untouchable by the law.[17]

Pope Alexander VIIChigi(r.1655–67) tried to limit these excesses and was soon satisfied by the actions of bothSpainand theHoly Roman Empire.In contrast,Louis XIV of France(r. 1643–1715), who was hostile to the Pope, sent to Rome his cousinCharles III, Duke of Créqui,as Extraordinary Ambassador together with a reinforced military escort, in order to antagonize the Roman court and the Pope's family.[18][19]The ambassador's task was apparently to sabotage the pope's effort to create an anti-Ottomanalliance.[13]Regarding the liberty of quarters issue, Créqui demanded that the pope extend it well behind the limit of Palazzo Farnese, includingvia Giulia,which was part of the way along which the Corsican soldiers had to walk each day in order to reach theCarceri Nuove(the state prison) from their barracks at the Trinità dei Pellegrini.[13]The commander of the Guard, Don Mario Chigi, reacted to that by ordering 150 soldiers to patrol the streets of Rome.[18]

On August20, 1662, a serious brawl at thePonte Sistoerupted between Corsican soldiers controlling the bridge and Frenchmen belonging to the retinue of the French ambassador.[14]The affront must have been particularly serious (many more such incidents are reported since 1661, but without serious consequences), because even the soldiers at rest in the barracks of the Guard at the Trinità dei Pellegrini nearPalazzo Spadacame to besiege the nearbyPalazzo Farnese,residence of the French ambassador, demanding the delivery of the Frenchmen responsible for the clash.[14]A shootout followed, triggered by the casual return to Palazzo Farnese, under heavy French military escort, of the wife of the ambassador.[14]Apageof Lady Créqui was mortally wounded, and Louis XIV took advantage of the incident to escalate the confrontation with theHoly See,already started under the government ofCardinal Mazarin.[14]

Ponte Sisto.Here on August 20, 1662, started the fight that initiated the disbanding of the Corsican Guard.

The Pope and the Governor of Rome,CardinalLorenzo Imperiali,acknowledged the gravity of the incident at once, and dismissed the Corsicans immediately, nominating a commission to decide the amount of the indemnity to France.[19]However, the Duke refused any accommodation and on September1 left Rome forTuscany,accompanied by the Cardinals of the French faction.[18][19]

The reaction of the King of France and the claims he made against the Pope give an indication of his power, but also of his personality and of the methods he was willing to use. After the withdrawal of his ambassador from Rome, he expelled the papalnuncioin France, proceeded to annex the French papal territories ofAvignonwith theComtat Venaissin,and threatened to invade Rome if AlexanderVII failed to apologize and bow to his wishes.[14]

Etching representing a medal minted under LouisXIV to commemorate the disbanding of the Corsican Guard; the "pyramid of infamy" is in the background

These included the immediate dissolution of the Corsican Guard, the issuing of ananathemaagainst Corsica, the hanging in retaliation of a number of soldiers and condemnation to service in galleys as rowers for many others, the removal of Cardinal Imperiali from his office of Governor of Rome, the banishment of the commander of the Guardia Corsa, Mario Chigi, brother of the Pope, and the erection near the barracks of the Guard by the Santissima Trinità dei Pellegrini of a "pyramid ofinfamy"which would curse forever the Corsicans who had dared to challenge French authority.[14][20]

The Pope at first opposed the terms and tried to prevaricate, but the threat of a descent of the French army onto Rome gradually persuaded him to accede to the king's will.[19]With the humiliating Treaty of Pisa signed on February12, 1664, the Corsican Guard was disbanded forever and some soldiers hanged, the pyramid of infamy was erected, and Mario Chigi was exiled from Rome.[14][20]In exchange, the seized papal territories were returned, but in July, inFontainebleau,the Cardinal-nephew and son of Mario,Flavio Chigi,was forced to humiliate himself and present the apologies of Rome to the King of France, who four years later gave permission to demolish the monument of infamy.[14][19]

During the negotiations, Louis XIV had taken the opportunity to expand his influence in Italy, portraying himself as the protector of the Italian principles. Because of that, he forced the Pope, always in the context ofrepairsfor the Corsican Guard affair, to returnCastroandRonciglionetothe Duke of Parmaand to compensateFrancesco II d'Este,Duke of Modena, for his rights overComacchio.[20][21]

See also

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References

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  1. ^abEsposito (1986), p. 608
  2. ^Esposito (1986), p. 607
  3. ^abPecchiai, Pio (1937)."I Corsi sepolti nella basilica di S. Crisogono in Roma".giancarlo.photos.club-corsica.com(in Italian). Livorno: Chiappini. Archived fromthe originalon 21 January 2015.Retrieved21 January2015.
  4. ^Esposito (1986), p. 614
  5. ^abcDelli (1975),sub voce
  6. ^abEsposito (1986), p. 616
  7. ^Esposito (1986), p. 618
  8. ^abEsposito (1986), p. 619
  9. ^abEsposito (1986), p. 621
  10. ^abcdefGuardia Corsa
  11. ^ab"Arciconfraternita del Carmine".www.arciconfraternitadelcarmine.it(in Italian).Retrieved16 January2015.
  12. ^abcdePaita (1998) p. 88
  13. ^abcVon Pastor (1940) p. 94
  14. ^abcdefghiCeccarelli (1940) pp. 25–26
  15. ^abPaita (1998) p. 262
  16. ^abcdPaita (1998) p. 89
  17. ^Paita (1998) p. 294
  18. ^abcMuratori, Ludovico Antonio (1838).Annali d'Italia(in Italian). Tipografia de' F.lli Ubicini. p.605.
  19. ^abcdeStumpo (1986)
  20. ^abcRosa (1960)
  21. ^Von Pastor (1940) p. 106

Sources

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