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Corsica
Location of Corsica,
Mediterranean
The incredibly gorgeous island of Corsica is in French hands. Its
capital is Ajaccio.
And speaking of Ajaccio, that's where
Napoleon
Bonaparte was born.
And speaking of speaking, the
Corsicans speak French, but the local dialect is
Corsu, which might
or might not remind you of Italian.
Regarding history, the Corsicans consider in particular three men their heroes,
Sampiero Corso,
Pasquale Paoli, and
Napoleon Bonaparte.
Corsican independence has been, and
actually still is, a hot topic. The rulers over Corsica were...
Corsica's History in a
Nutshell
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1000 |
The Pisans take control of the island |
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1077 |
Pope Gregory VII
decides Corsica is now under the jurisdiction of the
Bishop of Pisa |
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1133 |
Pisa's arch-rival Genoa
manages to get half the island from
Pope Innocent II |
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1284,
August 6 |
The Genoese send the Pisans
packing at the
Second Battle of Meloria and now control the
entire island. |
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1420 |
Alfonso V pops up
with his fleet at the horizon and tries to snatch
Corsica from Genoa. Thanks to some treason, Alfonso takes Calvi. He goes on to
try his luck with Bonifacio but abandons after 4
months of frustrating siege. |
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1553 |
The French, led by their
king Henry II, occupy the island briefly until
1559. |
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1559, April 3 |
Peace of
Cateau-Cambrésis - Henry II restores Corsica to
Genoa and the French leave the island. Sampiero Corso
and his friends stand up for their independence. |
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1567 |
Sampiero Corso dies while
running into an ambush |
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1729 / 1730 |
The Corsicans rebel again against Genoa |
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June 14, 1732 |
Battle of Calenzana
- Corsicans versus the Genoese, the natives win. |
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1735 |
First draft of a
constitution for an independent Corsica |
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1736 |
Theodore I, aka
Theodor von Neuhoff, declares himself king of
Corsica. He sticks around for almost nine months. |
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1750 |
Corsica has approx. 140,000 inhabitants |
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1755, July 15 |
The Corsican Republic is declared. It will last until
1769. Corte is the seat of the government. |
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1768 |
Genoa sells their claim on Corsica to France; France invades
the island; Corsica becomes French |
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1769, May 8 |
The defeat at the Battle of Ponte Novo spells the end of the
Corsican Republic and also marks the end of Corsica's 40 years War of
Independence (1729-1769). Pasquale Paoli flees to
London, England. |
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1769, August 15 |
Napoleon Bonaparte is born at Ajaccio, Corsica |
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1794 |
The Brits claim the island |
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1796 |
The Brits don't claim the island anymore |
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1942 |
The Italians and Germans claim the island. |
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1943 |
The Italians and Germans don't claim the island any
longer; Corsica remains French |
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Politically, and with the help of
Pasquale Paoli, Corsica set some interesting records. Its
constitution of November 1755 was unique.
And this is a quote from Paoli's pen pal, the great
Jean-Jacques Rousseau:
There is still in Europe one country
capable of being given laws — Corsica.
The valor and persistency
with which that brave people has regained and defended its liberty
well deserves that some wise man should teach it how to preserve
what it has won.
I have a feeling that some day that little island
will astonish Europe.
JJRousseau, Social Contract, Book 2, Chapter 10.
More History
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