The 1870 Rome plebiscite

When the Eternal City defied the Pope to be part of the new Italy

Romans celebrate the result of the
vote outside the Palazzo Senatorio

Citizens of Rome voted overwhelmingly in favour of becoming part of the new Italy on this day in 1870, less than two weeks after the city had been captured by the Italian army and the unification process was finally complete.

For nine years after the Kingdom of Italy was officially declared in 1861, Rome remained under the control of Pope Pius IX as the sovereign territory of the Church, even though much of the area that had been the Papal States had been captured by the unification forces by 1860. 

The city’s independence had been protected by a French garrison stationed there permanently by Emperor Napoleon III, a key Church ally, but the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War in 1870 meant that the French soldiers had to be withdrawn.

In their absence, after attempts to persuade Pope Pius IX to agree a peaceful surrender had failed, Italian troops led by General Raffaele Cadorna breached the Aurelian Walls near Porta Pia early on the morning of September 20, and flooded into the city, needing only a few hours to be in complete control. There were casualties on both sides, although thankfully few.

Pius IX, who had been head of the Catholic Church since 1846, believed that retaining the sovereign territorial power held by the church for more than 1,100 years was vital to its spiritual authority.  He was also fiercely opposed to two of the leading figures in the Risorgimento movement, Giuseppe Garibaldi and Giuseppe Mazzini, whom he perceived as anti-Catholic.

But the people of Rome and the surrounding Lazio region, which was the last territorial remnant of the Papal States, wanted to be part of a unified Italy and Giovanni Lanza, who had been prime minister since December 1869, believed that a referendum would settle any arguments and legitimise the annexation of the territories.

Thus a plebiscite was organised for Sunday, October 2, 1870. Multiple polling stations, typically in public buildings, were set up across the city and region, which were open from early morning until the evening.

Voting eligibility was quite restricted at the time. Only males over the age of 21 were allowed to take part and they were required to meet certain property or tax‑paying requirements, often needing to prove their literacy as well. 

Pope Pius IX opposed the absorption of
Rome into the unified Kingdom of Italy 

The number of registered voters across Rome and Lazio was 167,548, of which there was a turnout of 80.75 per cent despite Pius IX asking Catholics to abstain.

When the results were announced the following day, there was an overwhelming majority in favour of becoming part of the unified kingdom.

In the city itself, the vote was ‘Yes: 40,785  No: 46’; in the Lazio region it was ‘Yes: 77,520  No: 857’.  Overall, 133,681 had voted in favour and only 1,507 against.

Rome was officially declared the capital of Italy in February, 1871. Before then, the status of capital city had been bestowed first on Turin (1861-65) and then Florence (1865-71).

Despite the numbers, Pope Pius IX remained steadfast in his opposition.

After the plebiscite had ratified annexation, the Italian government passed the Law of Guarantees offering personal inviolability for the pope, annual financial support, extra-territoriality for the Vatican and Lateran palaces, and the freedom to conduct diplomacy.

But Pius IX rejected the law entirely, arguing that accepting it would imply recognising Italy’s sovereignty over Rome. He continued to insist that the pope needed territorial sovereignty to remain politically independent and able to act freely in international affairs.

He declared himself a “prisoner in the Vatican”, refusing to leave the Apostolic Palace and refusing all contact with the Italian state.

His actions began a stand-off between the Papacy and the Italian state that persisted for almost 60 years in which a succession of popes refused to recognise Italy’s sovereignty and the Italian authorities in turn avoided interfering in Vatican affairs.

This awkward relationship came to be known as the ‘Roman Question’ and was not settled until the Lateran Treaty of 1929, agreed between Pope Pius XI and Benito Mussolini.

Under the terms of the treaty, the Vatican City was recognised as an independent, sovereign micro state, Catholicism was recognised as the sole official state religion of Italy, and a financial settlement was agreed that provided substantial financial compensation to the Holy See for the loss of its historical territories.

St Peter's Basilica is part of the Vatican City, the 
smallest sovereign state in the world

Travel tip:

The Vatican City, which occupies an area of 44 hectares (110 acres) within the city of Rome and has approximately 1,000 citizens, is the smallest sovereign state in the world by both area and population. It came into existence in 1929 when an agreement was signed between the Kingdom of Italy and the Holy See to recognise the Vatican as an independent state. The treaty - known as the Lateran Treaty - settled what had been a long-running dispute regarding the power of the Popes as rulers of civil territory within a united Italy.  The treaty was named after the Lateran Palace where the agreement was signed and although the signatory for the Italian government was the Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini, succeeding democratic governments have all upheld the treaty.  The major tourist attractions of St Peter’s Square and St Peter’s Basilica, the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel and the Pinocateca Vaticana art gallery are all within Vatican territory. The Via della Conciliazione, the broad thoroughfare that connects St Peter's Square to Castel Sant'Angelo on the western bank of the Tiber, was built by Mussolini to symbolise the new accord between the Vatican and the Italian state.

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The Monumento al Bersaglieri
stands opposite Porta Pia

Travel tip:

Porta Pia is a gate in Rome’s ancient walls, named after Pope Pius lV, who commissioned Michelangelo to design it just before his death in Rome in 1564. You will find it at the end of Via XX Settembre, which goes off Piazza di San Bernardo, not far from the Quirinale Palace and the Trevi Fountain. It was a dozen metres to the west of the gate that Italian artillery created the breach in the wall through which soldiers from the Bersaglieri, an elite light-infantry corps of the Italian army, entered Rome on September 20, 1870, to complete the unification of Italy. A marble and bronze Monument to the Porta Pia Breach marks the spot. Opposite the gate, on the external side, at the centre of the Piazzale di Porta Pia, is the Monumento al Bersagliere, commissioned by Mussolini and erected in 1932 by Publio Morbiducci. The buildings between the two arches of the gate now contain the Historical Museum of the Bersaglieri.

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More reading:

The capture of Rome

How the Lateran Treaty confirmed the Vatican as an independent state

Alessandro la Marmora, founder of the Bersaglieri corps

Also on this day:

1538: The birth of Church reformer Saint Charles Borromeo

1821: The birth of soldier and politician Nino Bixio

1897: The birth of Mafia boss Joe Profaci

1950: The birth of anti-corruption magistrate Antonio Di Pietro

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Guido I da Montefeltro - Lord of Urbino

Brilliant military strategist who suffered poetic damnation

Guido I da Montefeltro was a powerful
force on the side of the Ghibellines

Guido I da Montefeltro, the brilliant military strategist who consolidated the power of medieval Urbino but was famously consigned to Hell in Dante’s Inferno, died on this day in 1298.

A leading figure in the long-running power struggle between the pro-imperial Ghibellines and the pro-papal Guelphs in northern and central Italy, Guido achieved many notable battlefield victories, yet towards the end of his life became a Franciscan monk.

He is thought to have died and been buried at a monastery in Ancona, the coastal city some 75km (45 miles) southwest of Urbino, although this is disputed in some accounts, which placed him at the main Franciscan monastery in Assisi. He was around 75 years old.

Guido’s taking of Holy orders, by way of seeking redemption for the brutal military deeds by which he had inflicted so much suffering and loss of life, was at the heart of the poet Dante Alighieri’s decision to place him in Hell in the Inferno section of his epic narrative poem, the Divine Comedy, which he populated with many real people, historical and contemporary.

Only a few months before he died, Guido had been asked by Pope Boniface VIII, who had overturned a previous excommunication to admit him back into the Catholic Church, for advice on how to capture the fortress of Palestrina from the Colonna family, with whom he was in dispute. In return for a promised guarantee of absolution, Guido’s counsel was that Boniface should commit a deceit, to make promises but then renege.

Dante chose the episode to illustrate a profound theological point, that absolution cannot be bought, bargained for or granted in advance.

The Montefeltro family originally derived their name from the mountainous region of Monte Feltro, near Guido’s birthplace in 1223 at San Leo, a few kilometres northeast of Urbino.

Dante and Virgil confront the soul of Guido I da
Montefeltro in an illustration from the Divine Comedy

By the 13th century, the family had  positioned themselves as the dominant lords of Urbino. They funded their small, relatively poor state by renting out their highly disciplined armies and strategic military minds to major powers such as the Papacy, Florence, and Venice.

For generations, the family was locked in a brutal, bloody feud with the neighbouring House of Malatesta, the lords of Rimini. This rivalry dictated their shifting alliances with the Pope and other Italian states.

Guido I da Montefeltro, also known as Il vecchio (The Elder), was a pivotal figure who firmly established the family's reputation for military brilliance and political cunning.

His first notable military victories included the seizing of the city of Faenza in 1274, signalling his rise as a dominant warlord in the Romagna region, the Battle of Ponte San Procolo in 1275, in which he led a coalition of Ghibellines from Romagna, Bologna and Florence in a crushing victory over the Guelph forces, and the Battle of Raversano, a a decisive victory over the Malatesta of Rimini, which secured control of the towns of Cesena and Cervia.

Da Montefeltro (left) shown accepting
a commission to defend Forlì in 1282 

Guido’s tactical tour-de-force came in 1282 while defending the city of Forlì against a massive papal army led by French commander Jean d'Eppe, in which he allowed the enemy to breach the outer walls of the city and begin plundering the suburbs, then ambushed the enemy rearguard in a coordinated counter-attack that completely routed his numerically superior opponents.

Nonetheless, eventually Forlì fell to the papal forces, leading most of Romagna to submit to papal control. Guido accepted the authority of Pope Honorius IV in 1286.

Excommunicated in 1288, he became captain of the Ghibellines of Pisa. Over the next few years, he aided Pisa in its struggle against Florence, and the city of Urbino against Cesena.  He returned to Urbino in 1296, having been readmitted to the Church in 1296.

Good things in time emerged from the warlike behaviour of Guido I da Montefeltro and others. The wealth brought home from mercenary contracts was systematically funnelled into monumental architecture, world-class libraries, and the patronage of Renaissance artists and humanists.

This process culminated in the reign of Federico da Montefeltro as Duke of Urbino. Like his ancestor Guido, Federico was a brilliant military tactician and one of the most successful of all Italian condottieri. He launched a radical urban transformation after taking power in 1444.

Rather than tearing down the medieval fortress town, he meticulously introduced an architectural language of order, proportion, and perspective directly into the existing hillsides. The grand city walls added in the 11th century were eventually reinforced using modern designs, some of which were influenced by Leonardo da Vinci.

The defining achievement of this era is the Palazzo Ducale (Ducal Palace), in which the architects broke with tradition by eschewing the customary fortress design in favour of open, arcaded loggias, and its iconic twin towers. 

Federico used the vast fortune he earned as Italy’s most successful mercenary commander to finance a legendary court. He built one of the greatest libraries in Europe and hosted a brilliant circle of minds, including the painter Piero della Francesca, whose mastery of linear perspective anchored the Urbino school of art, the brilliant architect Leon Battista Alberti, and the court poet and painter, Giovanni Santi, father of the artist, Raphael.

The studiolo in the Ducal Palace with
its intricate inlaid wood panelling

Travel tip:

Urbino, which is 36km (22 miles) inland from the Adriatic resort of Pesaro, in the Marche region, is a majestic city on a steep hill.  It was once a famous centre of learning and culture, known not just in Italy but also in its glory days throughout Europe, attracting outstanding artists and scholars to enjoy the patronage of the noble rulers. The Ducal Palace - a Renaissance building made famous by Baldassare Castiglione’s Book of the Courtier - is now one of the most important monuments in Italy and is listed as a Unesco World Heritage site. Inside the palace, the National Gallery of the Marche features paintings by Titian and Raphael, and there are more examples of Raphael’s paintings at his house - Casa Natale di Raffaello.  One of many outstanding features of the palace is Federico da Montefelto’s studiolo (study). It is a masterpiece of intarsia (intricate wood inlay) that uses absolute perspective to create optical illusions (trompe l'oeil) of bookshelves, musical instruments, and classical texts, celebrating the intellectual passions of a humanist ruler.

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The Casa di Natale di Raffaele sits
on a steep hill in the city of Urbino

Travel tip:

The Casa Natale di Raffaello (Raphael's Birthplace), located at Via Raffaello, 57 in the steep artisan district of Urbino, is the 15th-century townhouse where the High Renaissance master Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio) was born on Good Friday, 1483. Although open to the public as a museum, it is preserved as an intimate, authentic representation of a prosperous, middle-class Renaissance artist's home and workshop. The building is a substantial townhouse that reflects the prestigious social standing of Raphael's father, Giovanni Santi, who served as the official court painter and poet to Duke Federico da Montefeltro.  In 1635 - 115 years after Raphael’s death - the Urbino architect Muzio Oddi purchased and meticulously restored the home. In 1873, the building was officially acquired by the Accademia Raffaello and with generous financial help from the London nobleman, John Morris Moore, the Academy established its permanent headquarters inside the property, dedicated to transforming it into a study centre and historical house-museum. Today, visitors can wander through several historic floors, taking in original architectural elements, period furniture, and Renaissance artefacts.  The focal point of the house is the small room where Raphael was born. Painted directly onto the wall is a stunning, delicate fresco of the Madonna and Child, which the artist, architect and historian Giorgio Vasari documented as painted by  Raphael at around the age of 15, he was still studying under his father or his master, Perugino.

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More reading:

How Federico da Montefeltro was immortalised in a famous portrait

The precocious genius of Raphael

Francesco Maria II della Rovere, the last Duke of Urbino

Also on this day:

1901: The birth of nuclear physicist Enrico Fermi

1913: The birth of footballer Silvio Piola

1936: The birth of businessman and politician Silvio Berlusconi

1964: The birth of politician Giorgio Frassineti

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Romano Mussolini - jazz musician and painter

Dictator’s son forged successful career in music

At his peak, Romano Mussolini played around the
world alongside some of jazz's greatest icons

Romano Mussolini, the youngest son of Benito Mussolini, who grew up to enjoy success as a jazz musician and a painter, was born on this day in 1927 at the family home in Carpena, a hamlet outside Forlì in the Emilia-Romagna region.

Although he began his career with the anonymity of an assumed name, in time he became a central figure in Italy's post-war contemporary jazz scene under his true identity.

His peak achievement came in 1963, when his band, the Romano Mussolini All Stars, recorded the album Jazz allo Studio 7, winning the prestigious Italian Critics Award, raising his profile enough to play on tour alongside such jazz icons as Chet Baker, Duke Ellington, and Dizzy Gillespie.

Yet despite his musical fame, Romano considered painting to be his true creative passion and his expressive, figurative style achieved national and international recognition. 

Villa Carpena, the Mussolini family home and today open to the public as a museum, was a beautiful, Liberty-style country house in a pleasant rural setting. Between there and his father’s official residence in Rome, the neoclassical mansion, Villa Torlonia, Romano’s early years were somewhat idyllic. 

He studied music as a child, playing classical pieces on the piano and accompanying his father, who played the violin.  He first encountered jazz listening to records belonging to his older brother, Vittorio.  Largely self-taught as a musician, he began experimenting with playing jazz on the piano in around 1943. He also played accordion and alto saxophone.

Italy’s defeat in World War Two changed everything, of course. Having failed to escape to Switzerland, who rejected an application by his mother, Rachele, for asylum, Romano, his mother and sister, Anna-Maria, hid in a  house near Como, where he learned that his father, who had made a separate escape attempt in the company of his mistress Clara Petacci, had been executed by partisans.

Themselves captured by partisans, they were handed over to the British, who moved them to an internment camp near Terni in Umbria. From there they were transferred to Ischia, the island off the coast near Naples, where they remained in state-imposed exile until the Italian government announced an amnesty in 1947.

Romano Mussolini as a young child, pictured with
his father on a beach holiday at Riccione

Thanks to the family whom he lived with on Ischia, Romano had been able to keep up his piano playing and painting. After the amnesty, he stayed on the island, where he met Ugo Calise, a guitarist and composer, who invited him to play accordion in his group.

In the early 1950s, he returned to the mainland, moving into an apartment on the northern outskirts of Rome. He began to play jazz piano professionally, under the name of Romano Full or Raymond Full.

By 1955, after forming a partnership with a trumpeter, Nunzio Rotondo, he performed for the first time under his real name.

He modelled himself on his idol, the Canadian pianist Oscar Peterson, and his popularity grew, reaching a high point in 1963 when he was becoming a regular at the Santa Tecla club in Milan, which was something of a temple of jazz in the city.

His trio, the Romano Mussolini All Stars, recorded an album, Jazz allo Studio 7 - named after a famous Milan recording studio - that won that year's Italian critics award.  The award opened numerous doors, including regular invitations to tour abroad.

The irony is that, had his father’s regime survived, Romano would have probably had to choose a different career. Jazz, with its roots in black culture, was severely restricted by the Fascist government.  

Romano Mussolini explored various ways to earn extra money to support his music career, some more successful than others. He attempted to launch himself as a film producer but achieved poor results, making more from writing soundtracks for films. One of his more profitable ventures was a chicken and pig farm he acquired in Romagna.

Mussolini (left) pictured on an album sleeve with
singer Lilian Terry and trumpeter Nunzio Rotondo

In 1962, he married Maria Scicolone, the younger sister of actress Sophia Loren. They had two daughters, Alessandra and Elisabetta.  Alessandra went on to lead a small political party on the Italian far-right and was often described as a neofascist. Romano Mussolini composed the party's official anthem.

As he became older, Romano devoted himself more and more to painting. His subjects ranged from landscapes to still life, abstract dreams, beautiful women, clowns, gypsy scenes and the carnivals of Venice. His style has been described as Post-War Italian Figurative Expressionism.

Although there are none on display in the famous galleries, many of his paintings survive in collections around the world, occasionally changing hands at auction.

His musical career continued, including an appearance at the Lake Maggiore Jazz Festival in 2002, although his later years were most notable for writing a book of memoirs under the title, Il Duce, mio padre. 

In the book, Romano condemned his father’s part in the deportation to Nazi death camps of some 7,000 Italian Jews, yet his appraisal of the dictator’s political career was largely sympathetic. 

He died in Rome from heart problems in February, 2006 and was buried in the family crypt in the cemetery of San Cassiano in Predappio, the town south of Forlì where both his parents were born.

The Villa Carpena, where Romano Mussolini
grew up, is now open to the public

Travel tip:

The Villa Carpena museum, located about 10km (6 miles) southeast of  Forlì, is the historic former country residence of Benito Mussolini and his family. Known officially as the Casa dei ricordi di Mussolini (The House of Memories of Mussolini), the estate was the family home from 1924 onwards. His widow, Rachele, lived there long after his death. It eventually became neglected but in 2001 was bought by an Italian businessman  from the Mussolini estate and painstakingly restored, before being opened to the public as the first private museum dedicated to the dictator's personal life. Visitors today can explore the largely unchanged rooms, which are filled with original family belongings, furniture, and private photographs. Key highlights include Mussolini’s study, his uniform, personal letters, and the cradle of his children. The surrounding grounds feature a large garden, a vineyard, and the remains of a defensive bunker built during World War II. 

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The Maronti Beach in Ischia is one of the many
beautiful beaches for which Ischia is noted

Travel tip:

Ischia is a beautiful volcanic island notable for its many beautiful beaches located in the Tyrrhenian Sea at the northern tip of the Gulf of Naples. It has an area of some 47 square  kilometres, rising to a height of 789 m (2,589 ft) at the peak of Monte Epomeo. The vineyards surrounding Monte Epomeo produce excellent wine that is served in the island’s restaurants. The hot mineral springs on the island have been used since Roman times as a cure for ailments and are still recommended for people suffering from rheumatism and arthritis today. An entire circuit of the island’s 34km (21 miles) of coastline on one of the local buses will take about two and a half hours. Ischia is also the name of the island’s main town, the other municipalities being Barano d'Ischia, Casamicciola Terme, Forio, Lacco Ameno and Serrara Fontana. Notable sights include the Aragonese Castle (Castello Aragonese), which was built on a rock near the island in 474 BC, by Hiero I of Syracuse. Nowadays, it is connected to the town of Ischia by a stone causeway.  The island, which has a population of around 62,000, is accessible by hydrofoil and car ferries from Naples and Sorrento. Typical journey times are 50-60 minutes by hydrofoil from either starting point, with the ferry from Naples taking about one hour and a half.

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More reading:

Rachele Mussolini, the dictator’s long-suffering wife

How Mussolini and his mistress were captured and killed

The controversial career of Alessandra Mussolini

Also on this day:

1927: The birth of World Cup-winning football coach Enzo Bearzot

1973: The death of Oscar-winning actress Anna Magnani

1997: Earthquake damages Basilica of Saint Francis in Assisi

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Stefano Casiraghi - businessman and socialite

Died in powerboat tragedy after marrying princess

Stefano Casiraghi and Princess Caroline of Monaco
pictured on their wedding day in 1983

The businessman and socialite Stefano Casiraghi, who became a worldwide celebrity after what was described as a ‘fairytale marriage’ to Princess Caroline of Monaco, was born on this day in 1960 in Como in Lombardy.

After meeting on the yacht of a mutual friend during the summer of 1983, they were married in a civil ceremony at the Royal Palace in Monte Carlo just after Christmas in the same year.

At 26, Princess Caroline - daughter of Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, and the American actress Grace Kelly - was three years older than Stefano and had already been married, yet friends believed no couple could have been better matched.

Sadly, however, it was a fairytale that ended in tragedy as Casiraghi, who indulged his passion for speed by racing powerboats and became world offshore speedboat champion in 1989, was killed when his boat overturned as he tried to defend his title near Cap Ferrat the following year.

Casiraghi had been born into wealth. His father, Giancarlo Casiraghi, built a successful business empire in northern Italy involving real estate, retail exports, and industrial ventures. One of four siblings, Stefano grew up on the family's estate, Villa Cigogne, in Fino Mornasco, a small town just outside the lakeside city of Como.

He enrolled at Milan’s Bocconi University, which offers business-oriented courses, but left without obtaining a degree and began to work in his father’s business. 

At the same time, he began racing speedboats on Lake Como, becoming serious enough about the sport to compete in more than 80 offshore races during his life. He became highly skilled as a throttle man, the crew member who controls the engine power, speed, and boat balance while the driver steers. 

Casiraghi and Princess Caroline are said to have
shared a mutual attraction right from the start

His high profile in what was a glamorous, exclusive sport opened the door to a rich social life, in which he rubbed shoulders with celebrities and was never short of female company.

He and Princess Caroline met as guests on a superyacht belonging to their mutual friend, Francesco Caltagirone, a wealthy entrepreneur, cruising between Corsica and Sardinia in the summer of 1983. They were introduced by Robertino Rossellini, the son of film director Roberto Rossellini and the actress, Ingrid Bergman.

Caroline had already been married to and divorced from the French venture capitalist Philippe Junot, who was 17 years’ her senior, and had been dating Robertino Rossellini.  Casiraghi was already engaged to Pinuccia Macheda, the daughter of a prominent Milanese family.

Yet, reportedly, Caroline and Casiraghi experienced an instant mutual attraction. So strong, in fact, that when they arrived in Porto Rotondo, an exclusive seaside resort village in northeastern Sardinia, where Casiraghi was due to meet Macheda and his parents, they decided effectively to elope.

With Caroline simply abandoning Rossellini and Casiraghi leaving Macheda with his parents, they fled first to Isola di Cavallo, a small, private island off the southern tip of Corsica, before secretly flying to New York.

For a while, the couple lived an idyllic life with
their three children, Andrea, Charlotte and Pierre

After a period in which their whereabouts were unknown to all but their closest friends, Stefano brought Caroline back to introduce her to his parents. They married on December 29, 1983,  in a civil ceremony conducted in the Hall of Mirrors at the Royal Palace in Monaco.

They would have had a Catholic ceremony, but though Caroline had been divorced from Junot, and an annulment had not yet been obtained. In any event, Caroline was more than three months pregnant. 

Stefano Casiraghi has the natural charm to win over Monte Carlo and, coming just 15 months after the death of Caroline’s mother, Princess Grace, after a road accident, lifted the spirits of Prince Rainer and the whole principality.

The couple had three children: Andrea, Charlotte and Pierre. Regularly featuring in magazine shoots, they seemed to have an idyllic life.

Stefano developed his own business interests, while continuing to race his boats. It provided a thrill he seemed reluctant to give up but it became more than a pastime. He was proud to have set a speed record of 277 kph (172 mph) on Lake Como in 1984.

In 1989, he won the World Championships of offshore powerboat racing off Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Casiraghi flanked by Patrice Innocenti (left) and team
boss Romeo Ferraris after becoming world champions

The accident that killed him came in October the following year, as he and his co-pilot, Patrice Innocenti, sought to defend their title off the coast of Monaco near Cap Ferrat. As it happens, early in the race, they stopped to rescue the pilot of another competing boat, which had caught fire.

Looking to make up for lost time, Casiraghi’s 42-foot catamaran, Pinot di Pinot, had reached a speed of around 150kph (93mph) when it struck a wave and flipped over. Innocenti survived but Casiraghi did not. 

Caroline was in Paris when the accident happened and was informed by her father in a telephone call. After an accident off Guernsey only a few weeks earlier, Stefano had reportedly told her he intended to retire after defending his title, win or lose.

The funeral took place in Monaco's Cathedral of St. Nicholas, which had staged Princess Grace's funeral eight years earlier. Casiraghi is buried in the Chapelle de la Paix in Monaco.

The Parco delle Groane has a network of cycle
paths and walking trails for visitors

Travel tip:

Fino Mornasco, where Stefano Casiraghi grew up in his wealthy family’s estate, is a municipality of around 8,000 inhabitants, occupying a historically strategic position on the routes that connected Como - 10km (6 miles) to the north - with Milan and the Po Valley. Much of its territory falls within the Parco delle Groane, a 7,700‑hectare protected area of heathland, pine forests, and oak woods. The area, where archaeological finds have indicated a Roman-era settlement, became the property of various noble families during the Middle Ages. Later, it came under the control of the Visconti and Sforza dynasties of Milan, was subjected to Spanish and then Austrian rule before becoming formally part of the Kingdom of Italy after unification. In 1928, the villages of Fino and Mornasco were merged. The town also became part of the Como silk district, one of Italy’s most important textile regions, and retains this industrial heritage today, which is celebrated at the Museo della Seta (Silk Museum). Other points of interest include the Torre de’ Molini, a medieval tower offering panoramic views, and the Villa Raimondi, a 19th‑century neoclassical villa with an 18th‑century chapel where Giuseppe Garibaldi once celebrated a wedding. It sits in a landscaped park. The Parco delle Groane has more than 100 km of trails, including bike‑friendly and gravel routes.

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Lake Como is famous for its dramatic mountain
backdrops and deep, blue water

Travel tip:

The city of Como, which can be found at the foot of Lake Como, about 50km (30 miles) north of Milan by road. It has become a popular tourist destination because it is close to the lake and has many attractive churches, gardens, museums, theatres, parks and palaces to visit. The Villa Olmo, built in neoclassical style there in 1797 by an aristocratic family, hosted Napoleon, Ugo Foscolo, Prince Metternich, Archduke Franz Ferdinand I and Giuseppe Garibaldi, to name but a few of the eminent people who have stayed there. Another landmark is The Tempio Voltiano, which stands in a public garden near the side of the lake and houses a museum dedicated to the life and work of Alessandro Volta, the Como scientist who invented the first electric battery. The museum has a collection of scientific instruments used by the inventor, including his early voltaic piles, and some of his personal belongings and awards he received.  Lake Como is a scenic, two-forked glacial lake, famous for its dramatic Alpine backdrop and deep blue waters. Covering an area of 146 square kilometres (56 sq mi), it is the third-largest lake in Italy, after Garda and Maggiore. At over 400m (1,300 ft) deep, it is one of the deepest lakes in Europe. It's longest fork is 46km (29 miles) and the lake is 4.5km (2.8 miles) wide at its broadest point.

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More reading:

Beatrice Borromeo, the journalist who married into the Monegasque royal family

Roberto Rossellini, the film director who pioneered neorealism

Cristoforo Benigno Crespi, a textile entrepreneur whose company built a village to house employees

Also on this day:

1474: The birth of poet Ludovico Ariosto

1504: The unveiling of Michelangelo’s David

1973: The birth of historical novelist Matteo Strukel

2014: The death of soprano Magda Olivero

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Festa di San Vito

Saint watches over dancers, entertainers, and pet dogs 

A statue of San Vito, with dogs at
his feet, at Paternò in Sicily

Celebrations are held throughout Italy every year on this day to celebrate the feast day of San Vito (Saint Vitus) . Although it is not a national public holiday, June 15 is the day when many Italians remember San Vito, a  young Christian martyr from Sicily, who died during the persecutions carried out in the fourth century by successive Roman Emperors, including Diocletian.

Many Italian towns, particularly those in southern Italy, honour San Vito with processions through the streets, theatrical events and religious ceremonies.

Vito was thought to have been born towards the end of the third century in Mazzaro del Vallo in Sicily. Little is known about his life, but according to legend, he was the son of a senator. As he grew up, he resisted his father’s attempts, which included various forms of torture, to persuade him to renounce his faith. He fled with his tutor and his tutor’s wife, who was also Vito’s nanny, to Lucania, in what is now Basilicata.

When he was about 12 or 13, he was believed to have been taken to Rome to drive out a demon that had taken possession of the soul of one of the sons of the Emperor Diocletian. He successfully performed the exorcism, but was then tortured, along with his tutor and nanny, for staying faithful to Christianity.

According to the story, an angel brought the three of them back to Lucania by a miracle, but they all died from the wounds they had suffered. After Vito had been dead for three days, he appeared to a local woman, who later discovered the three dead bodies and buried them where they lay.

During the Middle Ages, San Vito was counted among the Fourteen Holy Helpers, a group of saints who are venerated by Catholics because they believe their intercession can help against various diseases. 

In the sixth century, Pope Gregory the Great referred to a monastery dedicated to San Vito in Sicily and later popes wrote about a shrine and a chapel dedicated to him. His relics were taken to Pavia, France, Germany, and Bohemia. The bones from his hand are kept as a sacred relic in St Vitus Cathedral in Prague. 

The Cathedral of Saint Vitus in Prague, where
bones from his hand are kept as a sacred relic

In Germanic and Latvian cultures, the feast of Saint Vitus was once celebrated with manic dancing before his statue. After this dancing became popular, the name Saint Vitus Dance was given to the neurological disorder, Sydenham’s Chorea, which is characterised by involuntary jerking movements.

This also led to San Vito being considered the patron saint of dancers and entertainers. He is also supposed to protect people against lightning strikes, animal attacks and oversleeping.

Vito is the patron saint of the towns of Ciminna and Vita in Sicily, Forio on the island of Ischia, the town of Sapri in Campania, the contrada of San Vito in Torella dei Lombardi in Avellino, and the town of Rapone, in Basilicata. 

On June 15, which Italian regard as the beginning of summer, towns with San Vito as their patron have his statue carried through the streets, accompanied by brass bands. 

Because legend claims that the Emperor Diocletian set rabid dogs on Vito, only for the dogs to be cured and calmed by him, some regions historically tie his feast day in with the blessing of animals.

San Vito Lo Capo in Sicily, which sits at the head
of a promentory 34km (20 miles) north of Trapani

Travel tip:

San Vito Lo Capo, a town in northwestern Sicily named after the Saint, hosts some of the most spectacular celebrations with locals performing a dramatic, torch-lit re-enactment of the Saint's arrival by sea, culminating in a midnight firework display. On the afternoon of June 15, locals participate in a traditional game on the water. Competitors try to walk across a 10-metre-long wooden beam that is suspended over the sea and heavily coated in slippery soap. The goal is to grab a flag at the far end. At dusk, a flotilla of local fishing boats sails out to sea and returns carrying actors portraying young Vito, and his tutor and nanny. The shore erupts with flaring rockets and the blare of boat sirens. A solemn night procession features a heavy statue of San Vito carried on the shoulders of the faithful. The statue is wrapped in a cloak covered in gold ex-votos, offerings that have been given by people in exchange for miracles. San Vito can be found about 34km north of the resort of Trapani.

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Positano, looking from the beach towards the
Church of Santa Maria Assunta

Travel tip:

Because San Vito is also the patron saint of dogs, on June 15 in Positano on the Amalfi coast,  the area near the Church of Santa Maria Assunta and the pier of the Spiaggia Grande is filled with local people bringing their pet dogs to receive a blessing from a priest. The town's main beach is taken over by market stalls selling traditional Italian sweets, street food, and toys. The celebration closes at midnight with a big fireworks display over the sea that illuminates the entire cliffside town. Positano is one of the most glamorous towns on the Amalfi coast and became fashionable with artists and writers after the Second World War. Positano’s villas, shops and hotels spill down the hillside to the beach, so that seen from further round the bay, the resort looks as though it is covered by a cascade of pink, cream and yellow houses.

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More reading:

Sant’Eustachio, the Christian convert martyred by Hadrian

Why Saint Bona of Pisa became the patron saint of flight attendants

Saint Camillus de Lellis, the reformed gambler who gave up his vice to care for the sick

Also on this day:

1479: The birth of Lisa del Giocondo, immortalised as Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa

1801: The birth of philosopher and writer Carlo Cattaneo

1897: The birth of politician and journalist Carlo Scorza

1927: The birth of comic book creator Hugo Pratt

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Battle of Campaldino

Victory of Guelphs over Ghibellines established Florentine dominance

The Battle of Campaldino resulted in the deaths
of an estimated 1,700 Ghibelline soldiers

The Battle of Campaldino, which is seen as an important turning point in medieval Italian history, took place on this day in 1289 on the Plain of Campaldino, part of the Casentino valley in eastern Tuscany.

Fought between the Guelphs of Florence, approximately 50km (30 miles) to the west, and the Ghibellines of Arezzo, about 35km (21 miles) to the south, it ended in a victory for the former, crushing the aspirations of the Ghibellines to become the dominant force in the region.

It was a milestone moment that solidified Florence as the major economic and military superpower in central Italy, paving the political and financial path that would ultimately create the wealth that underpinned the Italian Renaissance.

The battle for power between the Guelphs and the Ghibellines, which was immortalised by the poet Dante Alighieri - himself a combatant on the Guelph side at Campaldino - in his Divine Comedy, spanned around 300 years of Italian history, between the early 12th and the late 14th centuries.

The two factions were characterised by one side’s support for the papacy (the Guelphs) and the other’s allegiance to the Holy Roman Emperor (the Ghibellines) and while their bitter and prolonged struggle was for supremacy in northern Italy, the conflict had its roots in Germany.

It originated in the battle for imperial control between the House of Welf and the House of Hohenstaufen and spilled into Italy when the Hohenstaufen emperors - notably Frederick I (Barbarossa) and his grandson Frederick II - marched armies into northern Italy to re-assert their legal authority over cities such as Milan, Florence, and Bologna, which were still part of the Empire even though they had developed independent wealth.

The Guelphs and Ghibellines fought for supremacy in the
north of Italy for almost three centuries

This invasion caused division among the local populations and effectively forced people to take sides, with those who welcomed the order imposed by imperial rule siding with the Hohenstaufens, and those who resisted declaring their support for the House of Welf.

The names are said to derive from the battle cries of the rival houses - ‘Hie Welf!’ in the case of the House of Welf, and ‘Hie Waiblingen!’, which was  a major Hohenstaufen castle. On Italian lips, these evolved into Guelph and Ghibelline.

The split along the lines of pro-Popes and pro-Empire took hold because the papacy, which ruled a large swath of central Italy known as the Papal States, viewed the Holy Roman Empire as an existential threat to church independence and gave their support to the House of Welf.

Once the Pope versus Emperor narrative had become established in Italy, rival Italian city-states began to use these German faction labels to further their own aims.

If a powerful city-state declared itself Ghibelline, for instance, its bitterest regional neighbour would immediately declare itself Guelph to secure papal backing. Thus Florence declared itself Guelph in opposition to Ghibelline Siena and Ghibelline Arezzo, while Guelph Milan squared up to Ghibelline Cremona.

The names stuck long after the original struggle between the Welfs and the Hohenstaufens in Germany had been resolved.

The poet Dante Alighieri fought
in the Battle of Campaldino

The Battle of Campaldino came about at a time when Tuscany was deeply divided with Guelph Florence and Ghibelline Arezzo both intent on becoming the dominant city-state in the region.

The area was suffering from grain shortages and when Florence began to expand its economic and territorial reach up the Arno River to feed its growing population, it directly threatened the security, trade routes and influence of Arezzo. 

Tensions began to flare when Arezzo expelled all Guelph supporters from the city in 1287, sparking both sides to launch a series of raids on each other. The catalyst for wider conflict came as the Florentine Guelphs threatened the towns of Bibbiena and Civitella, prompting Arezzo to mobilise its forces.

Florence had assembled a Guelph coalition of soldiers from Pistoia, Lucca, Siena and Prato in addition to their own men, under the command of the professional condottiero, Amerigo di Narbona, and Guillaume de Durfort, his French military adviser. 

The Aretine army was led by bishop Guglielmino degli Ubertini and Bonconte da Montefeltro, the son of Guido I da Montefeltro.

The Guelph army not only numbered more combatants - 12,000 against 10,800 - they were better trained. The battle, which took place on the part of the Campaldino plain between Pratovecchio and Poppi, raged for several hours before a major storm struck, by which point the Ghibellines had seen 1,700 men killed and another 2,000 captured, against just 300 losses for the Guelph side. 

Soon afterwards, the Florentine Guelphs began fighting among themselves for power in the city, splitting into factions called the White Guelphs and the Black Guephs. 

Dante, who had fought at Campaldino as a 24-year-old cavalry scout, was a White Guelph. In common with the rest of his faction, when the Black Guelphs eventually seized power, he was sent into permanent exile in 1302.

It was not long afterwards that he began writing his masterwork, the Divine Comedy, which portrays the poet’s vision of the afterlife divided into three sections: Inferno, Purgatory and Paradise.

The gruesome sights he had encountered on the battlefield directly inspired vivid characters and scenes in the Divine Comedy, including a meeting in Purgatory with Bonconte da Montefeltro, one of the Ghibelline leaders, who was slain at Campaldino and whose body was never found. 

The Pieve di San Pietro a Romena is seen as
a masterpiece of Romanesque architecture

Travel tip:

Pratovecchio Stia is a small town in the upper Casentino valley in Tuscany, formed in 2014 by merging the historic villages of Pratovecchio and Stia. It sits in a landscape of forests, Romanesque churches and medieval castles, near the source of the Arno river, surrounded by the Casentino Forest National Park, one of Italy’s most atmospheric woodland landscapes. The town itself retains a medieval street plan with many artisan workshops, especially those making products using the densely woven Casentino wool cloth. Things to see include the Romena Castle, once one of the most powerful Guidi fortresses, mentioned by Dante in Inferno. The keep, three towers and stretches of defensive walls survive, along with the drawbridge and the Podestà’s house.  Dante spent some time living in the castle during his exile from Florence. The Pieve di San Pietro a Romena, one of the most beautiful parish churches in Casentino, is a masterpiece of 12th‑century Romanesque architecture with sculpted capitals and a separate baptistery. Pratovecchio is the birthplace of Paolo Uccello, one of the great early Renaissance painters, celebrated for his pioneering use of perspective. 

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Travel tip:

The Castello dei Conti Guidi at Poppi, which has
echoes of the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence

Poppi is one of the Casentino valley’s most atmospheric hill towns, crowned by the Castello dei Conti Guidi, a 13th‑century fortress attributed to Arnolfo di Cambio, the architect of Florence’s Palazzo Vecchio, of which it has echoes. Its soaring tower, frescoed chapel, and magnificent wooden library make it the cultural heart of the valley. Below the castle, Poppi’s medieval street plan unfolds in quiet stone lanes, Romanesque churches, and elegant loggias.  The Badia di San Fedele, with its terracotta works by the Della Robbia school, anchors the historic centre, while panoramic terraces offer sweeping views across forests, vineyards, and the winding Arno. Poppi also serves as a gateway to the Casentino Forest National Park, one of Italy’s most pristine woodland reserves.  Poppi’s cuisine is rustic and generous, including tortelli di patate, grilled meats, porcini mushrooms and the celebrated Casentino prosciutto. The town is renowned for its festivals, from medieval re-enactments to food fairs celebrating chestnuts and mountain produce. It is included in the Borghi più belli d'Italia - Italy’s most beautiful small towns. Poppi’s Palazzo Crudeli is the birthplace of Tommaso Crudeli, who was condemned by the Catholic Church as heretic. He belonged to the first Freemason Lodge of Italy established by the English colony in Florence, 1732.

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More reading:

How Castruccio Castracani masterminded a Ghibelline victory at the Battle of Montecatini

Dante Alighieri - the great Florentine writer whose body remains in exile

Beatrice Portinari – Dante’s inspiration

Also on this day:

1655: The birth of painter Antonio Cifrondi

1690: The birth of composer Giovanni Antonio Giay

1956: The death of writer and journalist Corrado Alvaro

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Lateran Treaty comes into effect

When the Vatican became an independent state

A map of the territory of the Vatican City, as 
defined by the Lateran Treaty of 1929

Benito Mussolini was helped to gain more power and any public opinion against him was effectively neutralised by the Lateran Treaty when it came into effect in Italy on this day in 1929.

The Catholic Church had effectively given legitimacy to fascism when the Kingdom of Italy and the Holy See had signed the treaty earlier in the year, recognising the Vatican as an independent state within Italy. The Church was perceived as openly inviting Catholics to support the Fascist regime.

When the Treaty was ratified by the Italian Parliament on June 7, 1929, it finally settled what had been known as ‘The Roman Question’, a dispute regarding the power of the popes as rulers of civil territory within a united Italy. 

Although Italy was then under a Fascist government, the Lateran Treaty was incorporated into the new, democratic Italian constitution in 1947 and all the succeeding democratic Italian governments have upheld the treaty since.

Mussolini had agreed to give the church financial support in return for public support from the Pope, Pius XI. He paid the Vatican 1.75 billion lira to compensate for the seizures of church property since 1860. 

Pius XI invested the money in the stock markets and real estate. To manage these investments, he appointed Bernardino Nogara, who, through shrewd investing in stocks, gold, and futures markets, significantly increased the Catholic Church's financial holdings. 

The income largely paid for the upkeep of the expensive-to-maintain stock of historic buildings in the Vatican, which until 1870 had been maintained through funds raised from the Papal States.

The signing of the Treaty in the Lateran Palace, by
Cardinal Pietro Gasparri (left) and Benito Mussolini

 As part of the treaty, the youth organisation Catholic Action granted the unique status of being the only non-Fascist organisation in Italy that was not banned. It was allowed to continue by Mussolini, but its role was restricted to religious and educational activity. Later, Mussolini tried to absorb Catholic Action into his Fascist youth groups.

From this day in 1929, the Vatican was officially an independent state occupying 40 hectares (100 acres) of land within Italy, with the Pope as an independent sovereign ruling within Vatican City. 

The papacy had recognised the state of Italy, with Rome as its capital, giving the city a special character as ‘the centre of the Catholic world and a place of pilgrimage.’

During the Risorgimento, the struggle to unite Italy in the 19th century, the Papal States had resisted being incorporated into the new nation. Italian troops had invaded the Romagna, then part of the Papal States, in 1860, and the rest of the territory, including Rome, was occupied by the army in 1870. 

After the ratification of the Lateran Treaty, the Papacy formally relinquished any claim over its former territories. 

Via della Conciliazione, the wide boulevard built
after the Lateran Treaty was ratified

The treaty is named after the Lateran Palace where the agreement was signed by King Victor Emanuel III and Pope Pius XI.

The Lateran Palace was the main papal residence in Rome between the fourth and 14th centuries. It is in Piazza San Giovanni in Laterano, next to the Basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano, the first Christian basilica in Rome and now the Cathedral Church of the city. Some distance away from the Vatican, the palace is now an extraterritorial property of the Holy See, with similar rights to a foreign embassy.

Via della Conciliazione, the wide avenue along which visitors approach Saint Peter’s Basilica from Castel Sant’Angelo, was built on the orders of Mussolini as a symbol of reconciliation between the Holy See and the Italian state after the Lateran Treaty was ratified. 

Roughly 500 metres long, the vast colonnaded street designed by Marcello Piacentino was intended to link the Vatican to the heart of Rome. At the time it had the opposite effect symbolically, as many buildings were demolished and residents had to be displaced.

The Papal Palace sits at the top of the main street in
pretty Castel Gandolfo, which overlooks Lake Albano

Travel tip:

Under the 1929 Lateran Treaty, the Papal Palace and surrounding villas of Castel Gandolfo became the extraterritorial property of the Holy See. The site resumed its historical role as the papal summer residence, underwent major expansions, and hosted thousands of refugees during World War II. Castel Gandolfo, where the Pope still has his summer residence, overlooks Lake Albano from its wonderful position in the hills south of Rome. The Pope spends every summer in the Apostolic Palace. Although his villa lies within the town’s boundaries, it is one of the properties of the Holy See. The palace is not under Italian jurisdiction and is policed by the Swiss Guard. The whole area is part of the regional park of Castelli Romani, which has many places of historic and artistic interest to visit.

Castel Sant'Angelo, on the banks of the Tiber, was
used by the popes as a fortress, castle and prison

Travel tip:

Castel Sant’Angelo, the towering cylindrical building in Parco Adriano, on the banks of the Tiber, was originally commissioned by the Roman emperor Hadrian as a mausoleum for himself and his family. There is a legend that the Archangel Michael appeared on top of the mausoleum, sheathing his sword as a sign of the end of the plague of 590, which is how the castle acquired its present name. It was later used by the popes as a fortress, castle and prison, and is now a museum. It was once the tallest building in Rome.  Hadrian also built the Pons Aelius – now Ponte Sant’Angelo – which provided a scenic approach to the mausoleum from the centre of Rome across the Tiber. Baroque statues of angels were later added, lining each side of the bridge. Pope Nicolas III commissioned a covered fortified corridor, the Passetto, to link the castle to the Vatican and Pope Clement VII was able to use it to escape from the Vatican during the siege of Rome by Charles V’s troops in 1527. The elevated passage, mounted on a wall, is approximately 800m (2,600 ft) long and still exists today, running alongside the Borgo Sant’Angelo and Via dei Corridori, the streets that are parallel with Via della Conciliazione.  

More reading:

The February signing of the Lateran Treaty 

Bernardino Nogara, the former engineer appointed to build papal wealth

The archbishop who tried to arrange a truce between Mussolini and the partisans

Also on this day:

1422: The birth of condottiero Federico da Montefeltro 

1687: The birth of castrato singer Gaetano Berenstadt

1936: The birth of TV presenter Pippo Baudo

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