Consigliere
Consigliere(/ˌkɒnsɪliˈɛəri/KON-sil-ee-AIR-ee,[1]Italian:[konsiʎˈʎɛːre];pluralconsiglieri)is a position within the leadership structure of theSicilian,Calabrian,andItalian-American Mafia.The word was popularized in English by the novelThe Godfather(1969) andits film adaptation.In the novel, a consigliere is an advisor or counselor to theBoss,with the additional responsibility of representing the Boss in important meetings both within the Boss 'scrime familyand with other crime families.[2]
The consigliere is a close, trusted friend and confidant, the mob's version of an elder statesman. They are an advisor to the Boss in a Mafia crime family, and sometimes their "right-hand man". By the very nature of the job, a consigliere is one of the few in the family who can argue with the Boss, and is often tasked with challenging the Boss when needed, to ensure subsequent plans are foolproof.[2]In some depictions, he is devoid of ambition and dispenses disinterested advice. This passive image of the consigliere does not correspond with what little is known of real-life consiglieri.[citation needed]
The Boss,under Boss,and consigliere constitute the top three positions and a three-man ruling panel, or "administration".[3][4]
Etymology[edit]
In Italian,consiglieremeans "advisor" or "counselor" and is still a common title for members of city councils in Italy and Switzerland. It is derived from theLatinconsiliarius(advisor) andconsilium(advice). The terminology of the American Mafia is taken from that of the Sicilian Mafia, and suggests that an analogy is intended to imitate the court of amedieval Italian principality.For example,Venicewas led by adoge( "duke" ) and aconsigliere ducale(advisor to the doge).[2]
An under Boss will normally move up to Boss when the position becomes vacant, so his position is equivalent to that of anheir to the throne.[citation needed]Consigliere, meanwhile, is analogous to achief ministerorchancellor.In the novelThe Godfather,the word is spelledconsigliori.In the films, it is clearly pronouncedconsigliere.Joe Bonannoexplains in his bookA Man of Honorthat a consigliere is more the voice or representative of the soldiers of the family, and that he may help to mediate in or resolve disputes on behalf of the lower echelons of the family.[2]
American Mafia[edit]
Joe Valachimentions a mysterious "Sandino" arbitrating disputes as theGenovese familyconsigliere in the 1940s.[5]Consiglieri in more recent times have tended to take a more active role in family affairs. In 1971,Colombo familyconsigliere Joseph Yacovelli directed a murder campaign against renegade Colombo family soldierJoseph "Crazy Joe" Gallo.[2]Two decades later, another Colombo consigliere,Carmine Sessa,led a hit team that attempted to assassinate the acting Boss,Victor Orena.[2]
Frank Bompensierowas appointed consigliere of theLos Angeles crime familyin 1976, only to be murdered in a publicphone boothin February 1977.[2]His Boss had promoted Bompensiero so as to induce him to let his guard down.[2]Electronic surveillancein 1979 recorded New England Mafia BossRaymond L.S. Patriarcatalking about appointing his consigliere, so the position need not be chosen as a result of a consensus-seeking process.[2]
When New Jersey consigliere Stefano "Steve the Truck Driver" Vitabile discovered in 1992 that his family's under Boss,John "Johnny Boy" D'Amato,wasbisexual,he ordered him killed.[6]Paul Gulino, a drug dealer and associate of theBonanno crime family,was murdered in 1993 after he allegedly "put hands" on his family's consigliereAnthony Spero.[7]
References[edit]
- ^"consigliere".LexicoUK English Dictionary.Oxford University Press.Archived fromthe originalon May 21, 2020.
- ^abcdefghiCapeci, Jerry.The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Mafia.Indianapolis: Alpha Books, 2002.ISBN0-02-864225-2,p. 9.
- ^"Criminal RICO indictment against Genovese Crime Family".ipsn.org.Archived fromthe originalon 2020-07-22.Retrieved23 January2017.
- ^Garcia, Joaquin "Jack" and Michael Levin, (2008)Making Jack Falcone: An Undercover FBI Agent Takes Down a Mafia Family,p. 133.ISBN1-4165-5163-8.
- ^Maas, Peter,The Valachi papers,p. 158. ( "Sandino was a greaseball, but he had a wise head." )
- ^Mannion, James,101 things you didn't know about the Mafia,p. 91.
- ^"Rick Porrello's AmericanMafia - Mob Hits, Misses, Disappearances, and Deaths In America".AmericanMafia.Retrieved23 January2017.
Further reading[edit]
- Capeci, Jerry.The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Mafia.Indianapolis: Alpha Books, 2002.ISBN0-02-864225-2.
