Amilcare Cipriani
Encyclopedia
Amilcare Cipriani was an Italian
anarchist
patriot.
Cipriani was born in Anzio
to a family originally from Rimini
. At the age of 16 he fought with Giuseppe Garibaldi
alongside French troops in the Battle of Solferino
in the Second Italian War of Independence
, but against them at Aspromonte
in 1862.
Cipriani founded the "Democratic Club", and along with Emanouil Dadaoglou
organized a group and took part in the revolution against King Otto of Greece
in 1862. After joining the First International in 1867, Cipriani partook in the defence of the Paris Commune
in 1871, for which he was condemned to death but instead was exiled to a penal colony
in New Caledonia
along with 7,000 others. In the amnesty
that followed in 1880, Cipriani returned to France but was quickly expelled. Arrested in Italy in January 1881 for "conspiracies", he served seven years of his twenty year sentence before a popular campaign secured his release in 1888. At the Zurich
congress of the Second International
in 1893, Cipriani resigned his mandate in solidarity with Rosa Luxemburg
and the anarchists who were excluded from the proceedings. In 1897, he went with Garibaldi's son to Greece to fight against the Turks and sustained wounds before being re-imprisoned in Italy for a further three years on July 30, 1898.
He was elected deputy of the new Italian Chamber of Deputies
(and subsequently re-elected eight times) but was unable to claim his seat because he refused to swear an oath of allegiance
to the King
. In 1891, he was among the delegates to the conference which established the short-lived Socialist Revolutionary Anarchist Party
.
He wrote for Le Plébéien and other anarchist periodicals. Cipriani died in a Paris
hospital at the age of 73. His writings were banned as subversive literature in Italy in 1911. The parents of fascist Italian dictator Benito Mussolini
gave him the middle name "Amilcare" in honour of Cipriani.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
anarchist
Anarchism
Anarchism is generally defined as the political philosophy which holds the state to be undesirable, unnecessary, and harmful, or alternatively as opposing authority in the conduct of human relations...
patriot.
Cipriani was born in Anzio
Anzio
Anzio is a city and comune on the coast of the Lazio region of Italy, about south of Rome.Well known for its seaside harbour setting, it is a fishing port and a departure point for ferries and hydroplanes to the Pontine Islands of Ponza, Palmarola and Ventotene...
to a family originally from Rimini
Rimini
Rimini is a medium-sized city of 142,579 inhabitants in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It is located on the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia and Ausa...
. At the age of 16 he fought with Giuseppe Garibaldi
Giuseppe Garibaldi
Giuseppe Garibaldi was an Italian military and political figure. In his twenties, he joined the Carbonari Italian patriot revolutionaries, and fled Italy after a failed insurrection. Garibaldi took part in the War of the Farrapos and the Uruguayan Civil War leading the Italian Legion, and...
alongside French troops in the Battle of Solferino
Battle of Solferino
The Battle of Solferino, , was fought on June 24, 1859 and resulted in the victory of the allied French Army under Napoleon III and Sardinian Army under Victor Emmanuel II against the Austrian Army under Emperor Franz Joseph I; it was the last major battle in world...
in the Second Italian War of Independence
Second Italian War of Independence
The Second War of Italian Independence, Franco-Austrian War, Austro-Sardinian War, or Austro-Piedmontese War , was fought by Napoleon III of France and the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia against the Austrian Empire in 1859...
, but against them at Aspromonte
Aspromonte
Aspromonte is a mountain massif in the province of Reggio Calabria . The name means "rough mountains", so named by the farmers who found its steep terrain and rocky soil difficult to cultivate. It overlooks the Strait of Messina, being limited by the Ionian and Tyrrhenian Seas and by the Pietrace...
in 1862.
Cipriani founded the "Democratic Club", and along with Emanouil Dadaoglou
Emanouil Dadaoglou
Emanouil Dadaoglou was a notable Greek anarchist and a central figure in the early era of Greek Anarchism .Born in Smyrna, Dadaoglou was a trader. He probably acquired his anarchist ideas from Italian political refugees. In Paris he met with fellow anarchists Amilcare Cipriani and Pavlos Argyriadis...
organized a group and took part in the revolution against King Otto of Greece
Otto of Greece
Otto, Prince of Bavaria, then Othon, King of Greece was made the first modern King of Greece in 1832 under the Convention of London, whereby Greece became a new independent kingdom under the protection of the Great Powers .The second son of the philhellene King Ludwig I of Bavaria, Otto ascended...
in 1862. After joining the First International in 1867, Cipriani partook in the defence of the Paris Commune
Paris Commune
The Paris Commune was a government that briefly ruled Paris from March 18 to May 28, 1871. It existed before the split between anarchists and Marxists had taken place, and it is hailed by both groups as the first assumption of power by the working class during the Industrial Revolution...
in 1871, for which he was condemned to death but instead was exiled to a penal colony
Penal colony
A penal colony is a settlement used to exile prisoners and separate them from the general populace by placing them in a remote location, often an island or distant colonial territory...
in New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
along with 7,000 others. In the amnesty
Amnesty
Amnesty is a legislative or executive act by which a state restores those who may have been guilty of an offense against it to the positions of innocent people, without changing the laws defining the offense. It includes more than pardon, in as much as it obliterates all legal remembrance of the...
that followed in 1880, Cipriani returned to France but was quickly expelled. Arrested in Italy in January 1881 for "conspiracies", he served seven years of his twenty year sentence before a popular campaign secured his release in 1888. At the Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
congress of the Second International
Second International
The Second International , the original Socialist International, was an organization of socialist and labour parties formed in Paris on July 14, 1889. At the Paris meeting delegations from 20 countries participated...
in 1893, Cipriani resigned his mandate in solidarity with Rosa Luxemburg
Rosa Luxemburg
Rosa Luxemburg was a Marxist theorist, philosopher, economist and activist of Polish Jewish descent who became a naturalized German citizen...
and the anarchists who were excluded from the proceedings. In 1897, he went with Garibaldi's son to Greece to fight against the Turks and sustained wounds before being re-imprisoned in Italy for a further three years on July 30, 1898.
He was elected deputy of the new Italian Chamber of Deputies
Italian Chamber of Deputies
The Italian Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of the Parliament of Italy. It has 630 seats, a plurality of which is controlled presently by liberal-conservative party People of Freedom. Twelve deputies represent Italian citizens outside of Italy. Deputies meet in the Palazzo Montecitorio. A...
(and subsequently re-elected eight times) but was unable to claim his seat because he refused to swear an oath of allegiance
Oath of allegiance
An oath of allegiance is an oath whereby a subject or citizen acknowledges a duty of allegiance and swears loyalty to monarch or country. In republics, modern oaths specify allegiance to the country's constitution. For example, officials in the United States, a republic, take an oath of office that...
to the King
Victor Emmanuel III of Italy
Victor Emmanuel III was a member of the House of Savoy and King of Italy . In addition, he claimed the crowns of Ethiopia and Albania and claimed the titles Emperor of Ethiopia and King of Albania , which were unrecognised by the Great Powers...
. In 1891, he was among the delegates to the conference which established the short-lived Socialist Revolutionary Anarchist Party
Socialist Revolutionary Anarchist Party
The Socialist Revolutionary Anarchist Party was a short-lived Italian political party.Founded in January 1891 at the Congress of Capolago, at which around 80 delegates from Italian socialist and anarchist groups participated. Notable figures included, Errico Malatesta, Luigi Galleani, Amilcare...
.
He wrote for Le Plébéien and other anarchist periodicals. Cipriani died in a Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
hospital at the age of 73. His writings were banned as subversive literature in Italy in 1911. The parents of fascist Italian dictator Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
gave him the middle name "Amilcare" in honour of Cipriani.
See also
- Anarchism and nationalism