Fra Diavolo
Encyclopedia
Fra Diavolo is the popular name given to Michele Pezza, a famous Neapolitan guerrilla leader who resisted the French occupation of Naples, proving an “inspirational practicioner of popular insurrection”. Pezza figures prominently in folk lore and fiction. He appears in several works of Alexandre Dumas
, including The Last Cavalier: Being the Adventures of Count Sainte-hermine in the Age of Napoleon, not published until 2007 and in Washington Irving
's short story "The Inn at Terracina".
, such as the Ialongo and the Pennachia.
Although little is known with certainty of his early life, Pezza learned to read and write, hardly a common accomplishment at the time, and further indication of some wealth in the family. As a young man he secured employment as a courier for the Neapolitan Royal Mail, making the 240 km (149 mi) round trip between Terracina
and Naples twice a week for 50 ducats a year, a considerable sum, while becoming intimately familiar with the local terrain, which had a reputation for brigandage
, knowledge that would later serve him in good stead. In 1797, while so employed, he vied for the affections of a young woman with another young man. One night his rival and another man ambushed Pezza, intending to do him some harm. Pezza, who reportedly had a "fiery temper," managed to kill both of his attackers. He took to the hills, but was soon caught. Tried, he was convicted of manslaughter, since the slaying had been committed in self-defense, and on October 25, 1797, he was sentenced to a tour in the army in lieu of prison.
On January 20, 1798, Pezza was enrolled in the Reggimento di Messapi, stationed at Fondi
, about a dozen miles north of Itri and perhaps a dozen south of the frontier with the Papal States
. Pezza rose quickly, becoming a sergeant, probably because he was literate and, as a member of the middle class and a former Royal courier, already familiar with firearms. In November of late 1798 Pezza took part in the disastrous attempt of the Neapolitan Army to oust the French from the Papal States.
The French responded quickly to the Neapolitan incursion, forcing them to retreat, and then undertook an invasion of the Kingdom of Naples
. Plagued by cold and heavy rains, the Neapolitans fell back along the Appian Way
. Thousands of troops deserted and many more were captured. Pezza, who was with the rear guard, was almost captured by the French, but escaped by donning peasant dress, and took to the hills above Itri. During the retreat, the Neapolitan Reggimento di Lucania fortified an old Roman villa, the Fortino di San Andrea, located about a mile north of Itri, where a pass carries the Appian Way over the Auruncian Mountains. On December 26, reinforced by some irregulars hastily recruited by Pezza, the regiment ambushed elements of the French "Polish Legion", touching off a three day skirmish. Unable to get through the easily defended defile, some French troops passed down the coast road, along the ancient Via Flacca, from Terracina
to capture Sperlonga
. The weather was foul, very cold with incessant rains that turned to ice. From Sperlonga, the French began working their way overland across the mountains, to outflank the Neapolitans at the old villa, and by dawn on the 29th were in position to attack. But the French movement had been detected by Pezza’s irregulars, who were patrolling the hills, and they guided the Neapolitan troops safely out of the encirclement, so that they could fall back on the great fortress of Gaeta
, about 15 miles down the coast. The French pressed on, and over the next few weeks, despite unusually cold and icy weather, overran the rest of Naples, capturing the city itself on January 22, 1799 and proclaiming the Parthenopaean Republic
. For Pezza, the most critical event of this period occurred on December 30, when French and Polish troops captured Itri. A band of peasants from the vicinity attempted to resist, but were rapidly overcome. The invaders then shot their prisoners, plundered the town a bit, proclaimed a new age of freedom, erected a “Liberty Tree,” and held a ball.
, had little popular support. In addition, French and Polish troops acted abominably, looting and rape were common. French atrocities were so blatant that their commander in Naples, General Jean Étienne Championnet
, was sacked by Guillaume-Charles Faipoult, one of the government Representatives on mission, and subsequently imprisoned.
Irregular resistance had begun almost as soon as the invaders entered the country, and French atrocities only served to send more young men into the hills to join the insurgency. Attacks on French soldiers became common. The French retaliated swiftly and brutally, which only made matters worse. The experience of Itri was typical. On January 15 two French soldiers were killed while patrolling the Appian Way near the town. The next day a mixed force of French and Polish troops inflicted severe reprisals on the town, looting, raping, and murdering, leaving 60 men, women, and children lying dead in the streets; Michele Pezza’s 67-year old father was among the dead.
Meanwhile, although in exile in Sicily, the Neapolitan government, effectively controlled by Queen Maria Carolina, wife of King Ferdinand IV of Naples, appointed Fabrizio Ruffo
, a progressive government minister and one of the last laymen to hold the dignity of cardinal
in the Roman Catholic Church
, to organized a resistance movement. On February 8, 1799, British and Neapolitan ships landed 5,000 troops and volunteers under Ruffo's command in Calabria
. This force soon expanded into an unruly army of laymen and clerics, nobles and peasants, rich and poor, men, women, and children. Dubbed “La Armata cristiana della Santa Fede– The Christian Army of the Holy Faith,” this horde made up for its lack of training and equipment with enthusiasm, ferocity, and suicidal courage.
Pezza had already organized a small band of irregulars in the northern part of the Terra di Lavoro
, and soon became one of Ruffo's principal subordinate commanders. His "massa - band," quickly grew to some 4,000 men, including his three brothers and the scions of a number of the leading families of Itri, such as Pasquale-Maria Nofi, who served as his adjutant with the rank of lieutenant. With these men, he raided French outposts far and wide. On one occasion he slipped into heavily occupied Fondi
in the guise of a priest – thus becoming once again “Fra Diavolo” – to cut down the “Liberty Tree” which the French had planted there, replacing it with a cross that still stands. He even harassed French forces holding Gaeta, the great fortress dominating the northwestern route into the Kingdom of Naples, ambushing supply trains (he once made off with 1,400 sheep) and couriers. Pezza made the Fortino di San Andrea his base of operations, and spread terror against French supporters over a wide area. He soon had a substantial price on his head.
The city of Naples was liberated from the French in June, Gaeta was recaptured at the end of July by royal troops and Pezza's men, aided by the British fleet. By late September the French had largely been driven out of the kingdom, and a Neapolitan Army had gone on to liberate Rome. The Neapolitan insurrection had probably cost the lives of 50,000 or 60,000 people in the kingdom.
A hard, tough leader, Pezza gave no quarter. His men committed “most monstrous misdeeds,” torturing and murdering hundreds of prisoners of war, including a French general; He was so ferocious that for a time Cardinal Ruffo placed him under arrest for his many atrocities. Nevertheless, for his services, Pezza was made a colonel in the army, ennobled as the Duke of Cassero, granted an annual pension of 2,500 ducats, making him one of the richest men in the district, and was even given a lock of the queen’s hair. He settled down near Itri with his wife, Fortunata Rachele Di Franco, a local beauty whom he had married in July 1799, when she was just 18, and he was en route to the liberation of Rome. For the next few years they lived quietly, while producing two sons.
In 1806 Napoleon, Emperor of the French, decided to place his brother Joseph Bonaparte
on the Neapolitan throne. Some 32,000 French troops invaded Naples in January, in three columns under General Laurent de Gouvion-Saint-Cyr, later a Marshal of France
; about 12,000 men marched down the Adriatic coast, 15,000 more attacked down the Apennines, which form the spine of Italy, and General Jean Louis Reynier, later a Marshal of France
, led about 10,000 troops, down the Appian Way. The Neapolitan Army, with barely 13,000 men available for mobile operations, fell back on Calabria
as the French quickly occupied frontier areas and pressed on. By February Reynier's column had captured Fondi
and continued on towards Itri. Some Neapolitan troops were garrisoned at Pezza's old base, the Fortino di San Andrea, but they fled south to Itri when the French turned up. The French pursued. There was a short skirmish at Itri, which hardly impeded the French advance. Reynier sent a regiment ahead to seize Gaeta
by a coup de main, but the fortress, commanded by the Prince of Hesse-Philippstead, resisted stoutly; he would hold out until July 18. But if Gaeta stood against them, the French found the rest of Naples easier prey. The capital fell on February 14 as the king and queen once more fled to Sicily, and the French soon overran most of the rest of the kingdom.
When the French invaded, Pezza was recalled to active duty, and ordered to organize a guerrilla column to resist the attackers. But the French moved so fast he was barely able to escape, and fled with his brothers to Sicily. He soon returned, however, and on March 23, 1806, he clashed with the French near Itri. Shortly afterwards, Pezza was recalled to Sicily to gather more forces, and in April joined an expedition to reinforce Gaeta that was led by the British admiral Sir Sydney Smith
, one of Napoleon’s most inveterate foes.
Hesse-Philippstead gave Pezza command of a band of irregulars who were landed along the coast near the mouth of the Garigliano River, about 20 miles southeast of Gaeta, with instructions to stir up guerrilla resistance in the French rear. Pezza conducted several raids against French outposts, but then undertook an ill-advised attack against a substantial French force. Defeated, he fled back to Gaeta, assuming a disguise so as to con a French officer into giving him a pass through the siege lines. To Hesse-Philippstead this smacked of treachery, and he decided that Pezza was secretly in league with the French. Pezza was arrested and sent in chains to Palermo in May 1806. Sir Sidney quickly cleared Pezza’s name, however, and for a few weeks he conducted seaborne raids against French outposts along the coast from Ponza
and the other islands in the Gulf of Gaeta
.
On June 4, a small British army inflicted a stunning defeat on the French in the Battle of Maida
, in Calabria. Hoping to follow-up this victory, Pezza and a band of followers landed at Amante, in Calabria, on the 26th. Pezza proved to be the most effective of the many guerrilla leaders who had sprung up in the aftermath of the invasion, and soon attracted considerable local support. The French were soon closely invested at Cosenza
. Given time the guerrillas might have taken the city. But Gaeta had fallen to the French on July 18, after twelve days of heavy bombardment, during which Hesse-Phillipstread had been gravely wounded. This released some 10,000 French troops, most of whom were promptly sent into Calabria. The various guerrilla leaders unwisely attempted to make a stand at Lauria
. There, on August 8 Marshal Massena defeated them, virtually annihilating their forces in a no quarter fight. Although on August 14, with the support of Sir Sydney’s ships, Pezza managed to capture Fort Licosa from the enemy, that very same day the French relieved Cosenza
. As by this time enormously superior French forces were on the march, the British decided to withdraw their expedition; this withdrawal arguably prevented the Neapolitan insurgency from developing into an "ulcer" such as the Peninsular War
in Spain
beginning in 1808.
Despite the withdrawal of the British, for a time the guerrilla fighting in Calabria intensified. It was a horribly bloody affair, with the French often slaughtering whole villages, and the people massacring French prisoners. Surprisingly, Pezza proved far less ferocious than he had been in 1799. He even turned French prisoners over to the British in return for money and supplies, and once proved enormously courteous to the some French officers’ wives whom he had captured. Nevertheless, the French posted a 50,000 ducat reward for anyone who killed or captured him, a sum equivalent to millions of dollars today.
With the remnants of his band, Pezza fled eastwards over the mountains. He was soon operating near Sora
in the Abruzzi, with two thousand men and two cannon, having joined forces with other guerrilla leaders. A much stronger French force converged on his base. Pezza failed to retreat in time, and the French closed in on October 24, storming his base camp. Most of his men were killed or captured, and Pezza was again initially thought to be dead, but he had escaped, though wounded; it was, however, to no avail. On November 1, while at Baronissi
, near Avellino
, he was betrayed and captured in a pharmacy by French Corsican troops under the command of Major Joseph Léopold Sigisbert Hugo, father of the novelist Victor Hugo
.
The French offered Pezza an enormous bribe if he would join them. When he refused, they tried him on charges of banditry, and sentenced him to death. The French spurned an offer by Queen Maria Carolina to exchange 200 French prisoners for him, and on November 9 they hanged him in the Piazza del Mercato at Naples, ostensibly for banditry.
Pezza's last words reportedly were “It pains me that I am condemned as a bandit and not a soldier”.
Pezza's death did not end the insurrection against the French, as it was not until 1811 that widespread resistance came to an end, and there were still sporadic outbreaks as late as 1815. Over 33,000 suspected guerrillas were arrested during the fighting, and thousands – men, women, and children alike – were killed.
, noted above, Pezza figures in a number of other artistic endeavors.
Daniel Auber
's opera Fra Diavolo
is founded on traditions associated with the legend, but has very little historical accuracy. Laurel and Hardy
starred as "Stanlio" and "Ollio" in the 1933 feature film The Devil's Brother
(sometimes titled as Fra Diavolo) based on Auber's opera.
There are several other films about Fra Diavolo, a complete listing of which may be found in the Italian Wikipedia site. The most important of these is Fra Diavolo
, made in 1942 by Luigi Zampa
based a play by of the same name by Luigi Bonelli, later a prolific screenwriter. In the film, Pezza is a Robin Hood-like figure fighting the French.
The only Italian film about Pezza to be available in English is the 1964 Giovanni Addessi produzioni cinematografiche of Rome, production, The Legend of Fra Diavolo, with an Italian cast but starring Tony Russell, which was released in the U.S. by Globe Films International. The film is rather more realistic than the Bonelli effort.
Paul Féval, père
used the character of Fra Diavolo in his Les Habits Noirs
book series
. In it, Michele Bozzo (sic) is the nearly immortal Colonel Bozzo-Corana, feared leader of an international criminal brotherhood.
Alexandre Dumas, père
Alexandre Dumas, , born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie was a French writer, best known for his historical novels of high adventure which have made him one of the most widely read French authors in the world...
, including The Last Cavalier: Being the Adventures of Count Sainte-hermine in the Age of Napoleon, not published until 2007 and in Washington Irving
Washington Irving
Washington Irving was an American author, essayist, biographer and historian of the early 19th century. He was best known for his short stories "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle", both of which appear in his book The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. His historical works...
's short story "The Inn at Terracina".
Biography
The nickname "Fra Diavolo" came about due to an old Itrano custom: Until early in the twentieth century Itrani boys and girls who had recently recovered from serious illnesses were dressed as monks on the second Sunday after Easter, for a procession in honor of St. Francis of Paola, the patron of sick children. On one of these solemn occasions little Michele, who was apparently a handful to begin with, proved so naughty that someone called him “Fra Diavolo” which stuck.Early life
The notion that Pezza "was born of low parentage" has received wide circulation but is hardly accurate; it forms part of a hostile tradition derived from French propaganda. The Pezzas had some land in olives and were also engaged in the wool trade. The family home has some interesting architectural details, which also suggests some wealth, and they were related to several of the most prominent families in ItriItri
Itri is a small city and comune in the central Italian region of Latium and the Province of Latina.Itri is an agricultural centre divided in two parts by a small river, the Pontone. It lies in a valley between the Monti Aurunci and the sea, not far from the Gulf of Gaeta...
, such as the Ialongo and the Pennachia.
Although little is known with certainty of his early life, Pezza learned to read and write, hardly a common accomplishment at the time, and further indication of some wealth in the family. As a young man he secured employment as a courier for the Neapolitan Royal Mail, making the 240 km (149 mi) round trip between Terracina
Terracina
Terracina is a town and comune of the province of Latina - , Italy, 76 km SE of Rome by rail .-Ancient times:...
and Naples twice a week for 50 ducats a year, a considerable sum, while becoming intimately familiar with the local terrain, which had a reputation for brigandage
Brigandage
Brigandage refers to the life and practice of brigands: highway robbery and plunder, and a brigand is a person who usually lives in a gang and lives by pillage and robbery....
, knowledge that would later serve him in good stead. In 1797, while so employed, he vied for the affections of a young woman with another young man. One night his rival and another man ambushed Pezza, intending to do him some harm. Pezza, who reportedly had a "fiery temper," managed to kill both of his attackers. He took to the hills, but was soon caught. Tried, he was convicted of manslaughter, since the slaying had been committed in self-defense, and on October 25, 1797, he was sentenced to a tour in the army in lieu of prison.
On January 20, 1798, Pezza was enrolled in the Reggimento di Messapi, stationed at Fondi
Fondi
Fondi is a city and comune in the province of Latina, Lazio, central Italy, halfway between Rome and Naples. Before the construction of the highway between the latter cities in the late 1950s, Fondi had been an important settlement on the Roman Via Appia, which was the main connection from Rome to...
, about a dozen miles north of Itri and perhaps a dozen south of the frontier with the Papal States
Papal States
The Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
. Pezza rose quickly, becoming a sergeant, probably because he was literate and, as a member of the middle class and a former Royal courier, already familiar with firearms. In November of late 1798 Pezza took part in the disastrous attempt of the Neapolitan Army to oust the French from the Papal States.
The French responded quickly to the Neapolitan incursion, forcing them to retreat, and then undertook an invasion of the Kingdom of Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
. Plagued by cold and heavy rains, the Neapolitans fell back along the Appian Way
Appian Way
The Appian Way was one of the earliest and strategically most important Roman roads of the ancient republic. It connected Rome to Brindisi, Apulia, in southeast Italy...
. Thousands of troops deserted and many more were captured. Pezza, who was with the rear guard, was almost captured by the French, but escaped by donning peasant dress, and took to the hills above Itri. During the retreat, the Neapolitan Reggimento di Lucania fortified an old Roman villa, the Fortino di San Andrea, located about a mile north of Itri, where a pass carries the Appian Way over the Auruncian Mountains. On December 26, reinforced by some irregulars hastily recruited by Pezza, the regiment ambushed elements of the French "Polish Legion", touching off a three day skirmish. Unable to get through the easily defended defile, some French troops passed down the coast road, along the ancient Via Flacca, from Terracina
Terracina
Terracina is a town and comune of the province of Latina - , Italy, 76 km SE of Rome by rail .-Ancient times:...
to capture Sperlonga
Sperlonga
Sperlonga is a coastal town in the province of Latina, Italy, about half way between Rome and Naples.Surrounding towns include Terracina to the West, Fondi to the North, Itri to the North-East, and Gaeta to the East.-History:...
. The weather was foul, very cold with incessant rains that turned to ice. From Sperlonga, the French began working their way overland across the mountains, to outflank the Neapolitans at the old villa, and by dawn on the 29th were in position to attack. But the French movement had been detected by Pezza’s irregulars, who were patrolling the hills, and they guided the Neapolitan troops safely out of the encirclement, so that they could fall back on the great fortress of Gaeta
Gaeta
Gaeta is a city and comune in the province of Latina, in Lazio, central Italy. Set on a promontory stretching towards the Gulf of Gaeta, it is 120 km from Rome and 80 km from Naples....
, about 15 miles down the coast. The French pressed on, and over the next few weeks, despite unusually cold and icy weather, overran the rest of Naples, capturing the city itself on January 22, 1799 and proclaiming the Parthenopaean Republic
Parthenopaean Republic
The Parthenopean Republic was a French-supported republic in the territory of the Kingdom of Naples, formed during the French Revolutionary Wars after King Ferdinand IV fled before advancing French troops...
. For Pezza, the most critical event of this period occurred on December 30, when French and Polish troops captured Itri. A band of peasants from the vicinity attempted to resist, but were rapidly overcome. The invaders then shot their prisoners, plundered the town a bit, proclaimed a new age of freedom, erected a “Liberty Tree,” and held a ball.
Resistance to French rule
Though many reform-minded nobles and some intellectuals backed it, the French puppet regime in Naples, the Parthenopaean RepublicParthenopaean Republic
The Parthenopean Republic was a French-supported republic in the territory of the Kingdom of Naples, formed during the French Revolutionary Wars after King Ferdinand IV fled before advancing French troops...
, had little popular support. In addition, French and Polish troops acted abominably, looting and rape were common. French atrocities were so blatant that their commander in Naples, General Jean Étienne Championnet
Jean Étienne Championnet
Jean Étienne Vachier, called Championnet , French general, enlisted in the army at an early age and served in the Great Siege of Gibraltar....
, was sacked by Guillaume-Charles Faipoult, one of the government Representatives on mission, and subsequently imprisoned.
Irregular resistance had begun almost as soon as the invaders entered the country, and French atrocities only served to send more young men into the hills to join the insurgency. Attacks on French soldiers became common. The French retaliated swiftly and brutally, which only made matters worse. The experience of Itri was typical. On January 15 two French soldiers were killed while patrolling the Appian Way near the town. The next day a mixed force of French and Polish troops inflicted severe reprisals on the town, looting, raping, and murdering, leaving 60 men, women, and children lying dead in the streets; Michele Pezza’s 67-year old father was among the dead.
Meanwhile, although in exile in Sicily, the Neapolitan government, effectively controlled by Queen Maria Carolina, wife of King Ferdinand IV of Naples, appointed Fabrizio Ruffo
Fabrizio Ruffo
Fabrizio Ruffo was an Italian cardinal and politician, who led the popular anti-republican Sanfedismo movement .-Biography:...
, a progressive government minister and one of the last laymen to hold the dignity of cardinal
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
in the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
, to organized a resistance movement. On February 8, 1799, British and Neapolitan ships landed 5,000 troops and volunteers under Ruffo's command in Calabria
Calabria
Calabria , in antiquity known as Bruttium, is a region in southern Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula. The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro....
. This force soon expanded into an unruly army of laymen and clerics, nobles and peasants, rich and poor, men, women, and children. Dubbed “La Armata cristiana della Santa Fede– The Christian Army of the Holy Faith,” this horde made up for its lack of training and equipment with enthusiasm, ferocity, and suicidal courage.
Terra di Lavoro
Terra di Lavoro is the name of a historical region of southern Italy. It corresponds roughy to the modern southern Lazio and northern Campania regions of Italy....
, and soon became one of Ruffo's principal subordinate commanders. His "massa - band," quickly grew to some 4,000 men, including his three brothers and the scions of a number of the leading families of Itri, such as Pasquale-Maria Nofi, who served as his adjutant with the rank of lieutenant. With these men, he raided French outposts far and wide. On one occasion he slipped into heavily occupied Fondi
Fondi
Fondi is a city and comune in the province of Latina, Lazio, central Italy, halfway between Rome and Naples. Before the construction of the highway between the latter cities in the late 1950s, Fondi had been an important settlement on the Roman Via Appia, which was the main connection from Rome to...
in the guise of a priest – thus becoming once again “Fra Diavolo” – to cut down the “Liberty Tree” which the French had planted there, replacing it with a cross that still stands. He even harassed French forces holding Gaeta, the great fortress dominating the northwestern route into the Kingdom of Naples, ambushing supply trains (he once made off with 1,400 sheep) and couriers. Pezza made the Fortino di San Andrea his base of operations, and spread terror against French supporters over a wide area. He soon had a substantial price on his head.
The city of Naples was liberated from the French in June, Gaeta was recaptured at the end of July by royal troops and Pezza's men, aided by the British fleet. By late September the French had largely been driven out of the kingdom, and a Neapolitan Army had gone on to liberate Rome. The Neapolitan insurrection had probably cost the lives of 50,000 or 60,000 people in the kingdom.
A hard, tough leader, Pezza gave no quarter. His men committed “most monstrous misdeeds,” torturing and murdering hundreds of prisoners of war, including a French general; He was so ferocious that for a time Cardinal Ruffo placed him under arrest for his many atrocities. Nevertheless, for his services, Pezza was made a colonel in the army, ennobled as the Duke of Cassero, granted an annual pension of 2,500 ducats, making him one of the richest men in the district, and was even given a lock of the queen’s hair. He settled down near Itri with his wife, Fortunata Rachele Di Franco, a local beauty whom he had married in July 1799, when she was just 18, and he was en route to the liberation of Rome. For the next few years they lived quietly, while producing two sons.
In 1806 Napoleon, Emperor of the French, decided to place his brother Joseph Bonaparte
Joseph Bonaparte
Joseph-Napoléon Bonaparte was the elder brother of Napoleon Bonaparte, who made him King of Naples and Sicily , and later King of Spain...
on the Neapolitan throne. Some 32,000 French troops invaded Naples in January, in three columns under General Laurent de Gouvion-Saint-Cyr, later a Marshal of France
Marshal of France
The Marshal of France is a military distinction in contemporary France, not a military rank. It is granted to generals for exceptional achievements...
; about 12,000 men marched down the Adriatic coast, 15,000 more attacked down the Apennines, which form the spine of Italy, and General Jean Louis Reynier, later a Marshal of France
Marshal of France
The Marshal of France is a military distinction in contemporary France, not a military rank. It is granted to generals for exceptional achievements...
, led about 10,000 troops, down the Appian Way. The Neapolitan Army, with barely 13,000 men available for mobile operations, fell back on Calabria
Calabria
Calabria , in antiquity known as Bruttium, is a region in southern Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula. The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro....
as the French quickly occupied frontier areas and pressed on. By February Reynier's column had captured Fondi
Fondi
Fondi is a city and comune in the province of Latina, Lazio, central Italy, halfway between Rome and Naples. Before the construction of the highway between the latter cities in the late 1950s, Fondi had been an important settlement on the Roman Via Appia, which was the main connection from Rome to...
and continued on towards Itri. Some Neapolitan troops were garrisoned at Pezza's old base, the Fortino di San Andrea, but they fled south to Itri when the French turned up. The French pursued. There was a short skirmish at Itri, which hardly impeded the French advance. Reynier sent a regiment ahead to seize Gaeta
Gaeta
Gaeta is a city and comune in the province of Latina, in Lazio, central Italy. Set on a promontory stretching towards the Gulf of Gaeta, it is 120 km from Rome and 80 km from Naples....
by a coup de main, but the fortress, commanded by the Prince of Hesse-Philippstead, resisted stoutly; he would hold out until July 18. But if Gaeta stood against them, the French found the rest of Naples easier prey. The capital fell on February 14 as the king and queen once more fled to Sicily, and the French soon overran most of the rest of the kingdom.
When the French invaded, Pezza was recalled to active duty, and ordered to organize a guerrilla column to resist the attackers. But the French moved so fast he was barely able to escape, and fled with his brothers to Sicily. He soon returned, however, and on March 23, 1806, he clashed with the French near Itri. Shortly afterwards, Pezza was recalled to Sicily to gather more forces, and in April joined an expedition to reinforce Gaeta that was led by the British admiral Sir Sydney Smith
Sydney Smith
Sydney Smith was an English writer and Anglican cleric. -Life:Born in Woodford, Essex, England, Smith was the son of merchant Robert Smith and Maria Olier , who suffered from epilepsy...
, one of Napoleon’s most inveterate foes.
Hesse-Philippstead gave Pezza command of a band of irregulars who were landed along the coast near the mouth of the Garigliano River, about 20 miles southeast of Gaeta, with instructions to stir up guerrilla resistance in the French rear. Pezza conducted several raids against French outposts, but then undertook an ill-advised attack against a substantial French force. Defeated, he fled back to Gaeta, assuming a disguise so as to con a French officer into giving him a pass through the siege lines. To Hesse-Philippstead this smacked of treachery, and he decided that Pezza was secretly in league with the French. Pezza was arrested and sent in chains to Palermo in May 1806. Sir Sidney quickly cleared Pezza’s name, however, and for a few weeks he conducted seaborne raids against French outposts along the coast from Ponza
Ponza
Ponza is the largest of the Italian Pontine Islands archipelago, located 33 km south of Cape Circeo in the Tyrrhenian Sea. It also the name of the commune of the island, a part of the province of Latina in the Lazio region....
and the other islands in the Gulf of Gaeta
Gulf of Gaeta
The Gulf of Gaeta is a body of water on the west coast of Italy and part of the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is bounded by Cape Circeo in the north, Ischia and the Gulf of Naples in the south, and the Pontine Islands in the west....
.
On June 4, a small British army inflicted a stunning defeat on the French in the Battle of Maida
Battle of Maida
The Battle of Maida on 4 July 1806 saw a British expeditionary force fight a First French Empire division outside the town of Maida in Calabria, Italy during the Napoleonic Wars. John Stuart led 5,200 British troops to victory over about 6,000 French soldiers under Jean Reynier, inflicting...
, in Calabria. Hoping to follow-up this victory, Pezza and a band of followers landed at Amante, in Calabria, on the 26th. Pezza proved to be the most effective of the many guerrilla leaders who had sprung up in the aftermath of the invasion, and soon attracted considerable local support. The French were soon closely invested at Cosenza
Cosenza
Cosenza is a city in southern Italy, located at the confluence of two historic rivers: the Busento and the Crathis. The municipal population is of around 70,000; the urban area, however, counts over 260,000 inhabitants...
. Given time the guerrillas might have taken the city. But Gaeta had fallen to the French on July 18, after twelve days of heavy bombardment, during which Hesse-Phillipstread had been gravely wounded. This released some 10,000 French troops, most of whom were promptly sent into Calabria. The various guerrilla leaders unwisely attempted to make a stand at Lauria
Lauria
Lauria is a city and comune of Basilicata, Italy, in the province of Potenza, situated near the borders of Calabria.It is a walled town on the steep side of a hill with another portion in the plain below.-History:...
. There, on August 8 Marshal Massena defeated them, virtually annihilating their forces in a no quarter fight. Although on August 14, with the support of Sir Sydney’s ships, Pezza managed to capture Fort Licosa from the enemy, that very same day the French relieved Cosenza
Cosenza
Cosenza is a city in southern Italy, located at the confluence of two historic rivers: the Busento and the Crathis. The municipal population is of around 70,000; the urban area, however, counts over 260,000 inhabitants...
. As by this time enormously superior French forces were on the march, the British decided to withdraw their expedition; this withdrawal arguably prevented the Neapolitan insurgency from developing into an "ulcer" such as the Peninsular War
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...
in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
beginning in 1808.
Despite the withdrawal of the British, for a time the guerrilla fighting in Calabria intensified. It was a horribly bloody affair, with the French often slaughtering whole villages, and the people massacring French prisoners. Surprisingly, Pezza proved far less ferocious than he had been in 1799. He even turned French prisoners over to the British in return for money and supplies, and once proved enormously courteous to the some French officers’ wives whom he had captured. Nevertheless, the French posted a 50,000 ducat reward for anyone who killed or captured him, a sum equivalent to millions of dollars today.
Capture and death
Late in August 1806, Sir Sidney transferred Pezza and about 300 of his guerrillas by sea to the coast near Sperlonga, north of Gaeta. For a couple of weeks Pezza caused considerable trouble for the French, raiding local garrisons and ambushing convoys. On September 5, he ambushed and massacred a considerable French force near Itri. As a result, the French organized a “flying column,” which pinned him down near Itri on the 28th. A hot battle resulted, but the French were able to storm his position from three different directions, resulting in the defeat of Pezza's band, which lost more than one hundred killed and about 60 taken prisoner, all of whom were immediately shot by the French. Pezza himself was reported dead, but survived.With the remnants of his band, Pezza fled eastwards over the mountains. He was soon operating near Sora
Sora, Italy
Sora is a city and comune of Lazio, Italy, in the province of Frosinone. It is built in a plain on the banks of the Liri. This part of the valley is the seat of some important manufactures, especially of paper-mills....
in the Abruzzi, with two thousand men and two cannon, having joined forces with other guerrilla leaders. A much stronger French force converged on his base. Pezza failed to retreat in time, and the French closed in on October 24, storming his base camp. Most of his men were killed or captured, and Pezza was again initially thought to be dead, but he had escaped, though wounded; it was, however, to no avail. On November 1, while at Baronissi
Baronissi
Baronissi is a town and comune in the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-western Italy. It is home to a campus of the University of Salerno.- Geography :The town is situated 7 km north of Salerno and it's far 35 from Avellino...
, near Avellino
Avellino
Avellino is a town and comune, capital of the province of Avellino in the Campania region of southern Italy. It is situated in a plain surrounded by mountains 42 km north-east of Naples and is an important hub on the road from Salerno to Benevento.-History:Before the Roman conquest, the...
, he was betrayed and captured in a pharmacy by French Corsican troops under the command of Major Joseph Léopold Sigisbert Hugo, father of the novelist Victor Hugo
Victor Hugo
Victor-Marie Hugo was a Frenchpoet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, human rights activist and exponent of the Romantic movement in France....
.
The French offered Pezza an enormous bribe if he would join them. When he refused, they tried him on charges of banditry, and sentenced him to death. The French spurned an offer by Queen Maria Carolina to exchange 200 French prisoners for him, and on November 9 they hanged him in the Piazza del Mercato at Naples, ostensibly for banditry.
Pezza's last words reportedly were “It pains me that I am condemned as a bandit and not a soldier”.
Pezza's death did not end the insurrection against the French, as it was not until 1811 that widespread resistance came to an end, and there were still sporadic outbreaks as late as 1815. Over 33,000 suspected guerrillas were arrested during the fighting, and thousands – men, women, and children alike – were killed.
Legacy
In addition to the works by Alexandre Dumas and Washington IrvingWashington Irving
Washington Irving was an American author, essayist, biographer and historian of the early 19th century. He was best known for his short stories "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle", both of which appear in his book The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. His historical works...
, noted above, Pezza figures in a number of other artistic endeavors.
Daniel Auber
Daniel Auber
Daniel François Esprit Auber was a French composer.-Biography:The son of a Paris print-seller, Auber was born in Caen in Normandy. Though his father expected him to continue in the print-selling business, he also allowed his son to learn how to play several musical instruments...
's opera Fra Diavolo
Fra Diavolo (opera)
Fra Diavolo, ou L'hôtellerie de Terracine is an opéra comique in three acts by the French composer Daniel Auber, from a libretto by Auber's regular collaborator Eugène Scribe...
is founded on traditions associated with the legend, but has very little historical accuracy. Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema...
starred as "Stanlio" and "Ollio" in the 1933 feature film The Devil's Brother
The Devil's Brother
The Devil's Brother or Bogus Bandits or Fra Diavolo is a 1933 comedy film starring Laurel and Hardy. It is based on Daniel Auber's operetta Fra Diavolo about the Italian bandit Fra Diavolo.-Plot:...
(sometimes titled as Fra Diavolo) based on Auber's opera.
There are several other films about Fra Diavolo, a complete listing of which may be found in the Italian Wikipedia site. The most important of these is Fra Diavolo
The Adventures of Fra Diavolo
The Adventures of Fra Diavolo is a 1942 adventure film directed by Luigi Zampa and starring Enzo Fiermonte.-Cast:* Enzo Fiermonte - Michele Pezza detto "Fra' Diavolo"* Elsa De Giorgi - Fortunata Consiglio* Laura Nucci - Gabriella Del Prà...
, made in 1942 by Luigi Zampa
Luigi Zampa
Luigi Zampa was an Italian film-maker.- Biography :Son of a worker, Zampa studied film making from 1932 to 1937 at the Italian film school Centro sperimentale di cinematografia in Rome....
based a play by of the same name by Luigi Bonelli, later a prolific screenwriter. In the film, Pezza is a Robin Hood-like figure fighting the French.
The only Italian film about Pezza to be available in English is the 1964 Giovanni Addessi produzioni cinematografiche of Rome, production, The Legend of Fra Diavolo, with an Italian cast but starring Tony Russell, which was released in the U.S. by Globe Films International. The film is rather more realistic than the Bonelli effort.
Paul Féval, père
Paul Féval, père
Paul Henri Corentin Féval, père was a French novelist and dramatist.He was the author of popular swashbuckler novels such as Le Loup Blanc and the perennial best-seller Le Bossu...
used the character of Fra Diavolo in his Les Habits Noirs
Les Habits Noirs
thumb|250px|Cover for a French edition of Les Habits Noirs.Les Habits Noirs is a book series written over a thirty-year period, comprising eleven novels, created by Paul Féval, père, a 19th-century French writer....
book series
Book series
A book series is a sequence of books having certain characteristics in common that are formally identified together as a group. Book series can be organized in different ways, such as written by the same author, or marketed as a group by their publisher....
. In it, Michele Bozzo (sic) is the nearly immortal Colonel Bozzo-Corana, feared leader of an international criminal brotherhood.
External links
- Notes about Fra Diavolo on Around Napoli
- A short life of Pezza on the Itri town website
- Fra Diavolo and Museo del Brigantaggio in Itri
Further reading
- Bruto Amante (1796–1806). Fra Diavolo e il Suo Tempo (reprint: Attivita bibliografica editoriale, 1974)
- Anna Franchi (1946). Fra Diavolo. VIR.
- Giuseppi dall’Ongaro (1985). Fra Diavolo. De Agostini.
- Francesco Barra (1999). Michele Pezza, detto Fra’ Diavlo. Avagliano. ISBN 978-88-8309-020-2.