Bonifacio
Encyclopedia
Bonifacio is a commune at the southern tip of the island of Corsica
, in the Corse-du-Sud
department of France
. Its inhabitants are called Bonifaciens, feminine Bonifaciennes. The commune in this case is identical to the canton and is the largest commune of Corsica.
Bonifacio is the setting of Guy de Maupassant
's short story, Vendetta.
, separated from Sardinia
by the Strait of Bonifacio
. It is a city placed on the best and only major harbor of the southern coast and also is a commune covering a somewhat larger region including the offshore Isles Lavezzi
, giving it the distinction of being the southernmost commune in Metropolitan France
. The commune is bordered on the northwest by the canton of Figari
and has a short border on the northeast with the canton of Porto-Vecchio
. The combined border runs approximately from the Golfe de Ventilegne on the west to the mouth of the Golfu di Sant'Amanza on the east. The coastline circumscribed by the two points is about 75 kilometres (46.6 mi). Highway N198 runs north along the east coast and N196 along the west.
The islands are part of the French portion, 794.6 square kilometres (196,349.8 acre), of the international Bouches de Bonifacio ("Strait of Bonifacio") marine park, a nature reserve
, signed into legal existence by France and Italy in 1993 for the protection of the strait against passage of ships bearing dangerous chemicals, and implemented in France by a ministerial decree of 1999 detailing the land to be included in the réserve naturelle de Bouches de Bonifacio for the preservation of wild birds, other fauna and flora, fish and nature in general.
The southern coast in the vicinity of Bonifacio is an outcrop of chalk-white limestone
, precipitous and sculpted into unusual shapes by the ocean. Slightly further inland the limestone adjoins the granite
of which the two islands, Sardinia and Corsica, are formed. The port of Bonifacio is placed on the Bay of Bonifacio, a drowned ravine of a fjord-like appearance separated from the ocean by a finger-like promontory
1500 metres (4,921.3 ft) long and 200 metres (656.2 ft) wide. In prehistoric post-glacial times when sea levels were low and the islands were connected, the ravine was part of a valley leading to upland Corsica. The maximum draught supported by the harbor is 3.5 metres (11.5 ft), more than ample for ancient ships and modern small vessels.
The city of Bonifacio is split into two sections. The vieille ville (old town), or la Haute Ville (the Upper city), on the site of a citadel
, is located on the promontory overlooking the Mediterranean Sea
. The citadel was built in the 9th century with the foundation of the city. The Citadel has been reconstructed and renovated many times since its construction and most recently was an administrative center for the French Foreign Legion
. Today it is more of a museum. Historically most of the inhabitants have resided in the Haute ville under the immediate protection of the citadel. The harbor facilities and residential areas below, la marine, line the narrow shelf of the inlet and extend for some distance up the valley, giving the settlement a linear appearance and creating a third residential section limited by St. Julien on the east.
The city and its fortifications also extend for some distance along the cliff-tops, which are at about 70 metres (229.7 ft) elevation. The cliffs have been undercut by the ocean so that the buildings, which have been placed on the very lip of the precipice, appear to overhang it. The appearance from the sea is of a white city gleaming in the sun and suspended over the rough waters below.
. The first is the site of the notable Lady of Bonifacio, a female burial carbon-dated to about 6570 BC, which is either late Mesolithic
or Early Neolithic, and the second belongs to the Megalithic Culture and is dated to the Middle Neolithic. The alignment of the two and the extensive use of chert from Monte Arci in Sardinia
shows that the Bay of Bonifacio was a route to inland Corsica from the earliest times.
. He reports the coordinates of Marianum Promontory and town, which, plotted on a map, turn out to be the farthest south of Corsica. After listing the peoples of the east coast he states that the Subasani (ancient Greek
Soubasanoi) were "more to the south."
The people do not appear subsequently and the town and promontory have not been identified, nor do any Roman roads point to it. The only official road, the Via Corsica, ran between the Roman castra
of Mariana and Aleria
on the east coast and further south to Pallas, according to the Antonine Itinerary
. Ptolemy places Pallas unequivocally on the east coast north of Marianum. Although unrecorded tracks and paths to the far south are possible, it is unlikely they would have carried any significant Roman traffic.
Maritime traffic through the strait however was significant and it could hardly have neglected the fine harbor at Bonifacio. The most popular choice for Marianum Promontory therefore is Cape Pertusato, southernmost point of Corsica island, about 9 kilometres (6 mi) east of the harbor, with Bonifacio itself as Marianum town. A second possibility would be the first century AD Roman ruins adjoining Piantarella Beach near the village of Ciappili and next to the grounds of Sperone golf course, a recreational suburb to the west of Bonifacio, but those ruins appear to represent a Roman villa
and the beach though eminently suitable for recreation is of little value as a port. More likely the villa belonged to a citizen of Bonifacio as Marianum.
in 469 AD by Genseric
, king of the Vandals
, and recovered by the Eastern Empire in 534. The Lombards
having taken it again in 725, Charlemagne
(Defender of the Faith) cleared them out by 774 and handed the island over to the Papacy, which had been the most powerful complainant of the island's devastation by Germanics. Starting in 806 the Moors
of Spain
began to contend for the island and held it for a short time but in 828 the Papacy assigned its defense to the margrave of Tuscany
, a powerful state of the Holy Roman Empire
nominally under the Kingdom of Italy
.
The city in evidence today was founded as a fortress by and subsequently named after Boniface II of Tuscany in 828. He had led a naval expedition to suppress the Saracen
s of North Africa and returned to build an unassailable fortress and naval base from which the domains of Tuscany
could be defended at the outermost frontier. Most of the citadel postdates the 9th century or is of uncertain date but Il Torrione, a round tower, was certainly part of the original citadel.
Two Genoese tower
s are in the neighbourhood:
(car or taxi required), and ferry service to Sardinia
is available multiple times daily.
Corsica
Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....
, in the Corse-du-Sud
Corse-du-Sud
Corse-du-Sud is a French département composed of the southern part of the island of Corsica.- History :The department was formed on 15 September 1975, when the Corse department was divided into Haute-Corse and Corse-du-Sud...
department of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Its inhabitants are called Bonifaciens, feminine Bonifaciennes. The commune in this case is identical to the canton and is the largest commune of Corsica.
Bonifacio is the setting of Guy de Maupassant
Guy de Maupassant
Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant was a popular 19th-century French writer, considered one of the fathers of the modern short story and one of the form's finest exponents....
's short story, Vendetta.
Geography
Bonifacio is located directly on the Mediterranean SeaMediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
, separated from Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
by the Strait of Bonifacio
Strait of Bonifacio
The Strait of Bonifacio is the strait between Corsica and Sardinia, named after the Corsican town Bonifacio. It is wide and divides the Tyrrhenian Sea from the western Mediterranean Sea...
. It is a city placed on the best and only major harbor of the southern coast and also is a commune covering a somewhat larger region including the offshore Isles Lavezzi
Lavezzi Islands
The Lavezzi Islands form a small archipelago of granite islands and reefs in the Strait of Bonifacio that separates Corsica from Sardinia in the Mediterranean Sea. They are administered from Bonifacio on Corsica, itself a territory of France.-Geography:...
, giving it the distinction of being the southernmost commune in Metropolitan France
Metropolitan France
Metropolitan France is the part of France located in Europe. It can also be described as mainland France or as the French mainland and the island of Corsica...
. The commune is bordered on the northwest by the canton of Figari
Figari
Figari is a commune in the Corse-du-Sud department of France on the island of Corsica.-Geography:The village of Figari is to the southeast of Sartène, to the southwest of Porto-Vecchio and to the north of Bonifacio. The commune comes from an ancient parish. It includes the center of a large...
and has a short border on the northeast with the canton of Porto-Vecchio
Porto-Vecchio
Porto-Vecchio is a commune in the Corse-du-Sud department of France on the island of Corsica.It is the seat of the canton of Porto-Vecchio, which it shares with Sari-Solenzara, Conca and Lecci. Port-Vecchio is a medium-sized port city placed on a good harbor, the southernmost of the marshy and...
. The combined border runs approximately from the Golfe de Ventilegne on the west to the mouth of the Golfu di Sant'Amanza on the east. The coastline circumscribed by the two points is about 75 kilometres (46.6 mi). Highway N198 runs north along the east coast and N196 along the west.
The islands are part of the French portion, 794.6 square kilometres (196,349.8 acre), of the international Bouches de Bonifacio ("Strait of Bonifacio") marine park, a nature reserve
Nature reserve
A nature reserve is a protected area of importance for wildlife, flora, fauna or features of geological or other special interest, which is reserved and managed for conservation and to provide special opportunities for study or research...
, signed into legal existence by France and Italy in 1993 for the protection of the strait against passage of ships bearing dangerous chemicals, and implemented in France by a ministerial decree of 1999 detailing the land to be included in the réserve naturelle de Bouches de Bonifacio for the preservation of wild birds, other fauna and flora, fish and nature in general.
The southern coast in the vicinity of Bonifacio is an outcrop of chalk-white limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
, precipitous and sculpted into unusual shapes by the ocean. Slightly further inland the limestone adjoins the granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
of which the two islands, Sardinia and Corsica, are formed. The port of Bonifacio is placed on the Bay of Bonifacio, a drowned ravine of a fjord-like appearance separated from the ocean by a finger-like promontory
Promontory
Promontory may refer to:*Promontory, a prominent mass of land which overlooks lower lying land or a body of water*Promontory, Utah, the location where the United States first Transcontinental Railroad was completed...
1500 metres (4,921.3 ft) long and 200 metres (656.2 ft) wide. In prehistoric post-glacial times when sea levels were low and the islands were connected, the ravine was part of a valley leading to upland Corsica. The maximum draught supported by the harbor is 3.5 metres (11.5 ft), more than ample for ancient ships and modern small vessels.
The city of Bonifacio is split into two sections. The vieille ville (old town), or la Haute Ville (the Upper city), on the site of a citadel
Citadel
A citadel is a fortress for protecting a town, sometimes incorporating a castle. The term derives from the same Latin root as the word "city", civis, meaning citizen....
, is located on the promontory overlooking the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
. The citadel was built in the 9th century with the foundation of the city. The Citadel has been reconstructed and renovated many times since its construction and most recently was an administrative center for the French Foreign Legion
French Foreign Legion
The French Foreign Legion is a unique military service wing of the French Army established in 1831. The foreign legion was exclusively created for foreign nationals willing to serve in the French Armed Forces...
. Today it is more of a museum. Historically most of the inhabitants have resided in the Haute ville under the immediate protection of the citadel. The harbor facilities and residential areas below, la marine, line the narrow shelf of the inlet and extend for some distance up the valley, giving the settlement a linear appearance and creating a third residential section limited by St. Julien on the east.
History
Prehistoric period
Bonifacio has two prehistoric sites of some importance: the ancient cave shelter of Araguina-Sennola near the village of Capello on Route N96 just north of the city and a chambered tomb of Vasculacciu further north near FigariFigari
Figari is a commune in the Corse-du-Sud department of France on the island of Corsica.-Geography:The village of Figari is to the southeast of Sartène, to the southwest of Porto-Vecchio and to the north of Bonifacio. The commune comes from an ancient parish. It includes the center of a large...
. The first is the site of the notable Lady of Bonifacio, a female burial carbon-dated to about 6570 BC, which is either late Mesolithic
Mesolithic
The Mesolithic is an archaeological concept used to refer to certain groups of archaeological cultures defined as falling between the Paleolithic and the Neolithic....
or Early Neolithic, and the second belongs to the Megalithic Culture and is dated to the Middle Neolithic. The alignment of the two and the extensive use of chert from Monte Arci in Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
shows that the Bay of Bonifacio was a route to inland Corsica from the earliest times.
Roman period
The only record of southernmost Corsica in Roman times comes from the geographer PtolemyPtolemy
Claudius Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the...
. He reports the coordinates of Marianum Promontory and town, which, plotted on a map, turn out to be the farthest south of Corsica. After listing the peoples of the east coast he states that the Subasani (ancient Greek
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
Soubasanoi) were "more to the south."
The people do not appear subsequently and the town and promontory have not been identified, nor do any Roman roads point to it. The only official road, the Via Corsica, ran between the Roman castra
Castra
The Latin word castra, with its singular castrum, was used by the ancient Romans to mean buildings or plots of land reserved to or constructed for use as a military defensive position. The word appears in both Oscan and Umbrian as well as in Latin. It may have descended from Indo-European to Italic...
of Mariana and Aleria
Aléria
Aléria is a commune in the Haute-Corse department of France on the island of Corsica...
on the east coast and further south to Pallas, according to the Antonine Itinerary
Antonine Itinerary
The Antonine Itinerary is a register of the stations and distances along the various roads of the Roman empire, containing directions how to get from one Roman settlement to another...
. Ptolemy places Pallas unequivocally on the east coast north of Marianum. Although unrecorded tracks and paths to the far south are possible, it is unlikely they would have carried any significant Roman traffic.
Maritime traffic through the strait however was significant and it could hardly have neglected the fine harbor at Bonifacio. The most popular choice for Marianum Promontory therefore is Cape Pertusato, southernmost point of Corsica island, about 9 kilometres (6 mi) east of the harbor, with Bonifacio itself as Marianum town. A second possibility would be the first century AD Roman ruins adjoining Piantarella Beach near the village of Ciappili and next to the grounds of Sperone golf course, a recreational suburb to the west of Bonifacio, but those ruins appear to represent a Roman villa
Villa
A villa was originally an ancient Roman upper-class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became small farming compounds, which were increasingly fortified in Late Antiquity,...
and the beach though eminently suitable for recreation is of little value as a port. More likely the villa belonged to a citizen of Bonifacio as Marianum.
Tuscan period
Corsica was taken from the Roman EmpireRoman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
in 469 AD by Genseric
Genseric
Genseric , also spelled as Geiseric or Gaiseric, was King of the Vandals and Alans and was one of the key players in the troubles of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century...
, king of the Vandals
Vandals
The Vandals were an East Germanic tribe that entered the late Roman Empire during the 5th century. The Vandals under king Genseric entered Africa in 429 and by 439 established a kingdom which included the Roman Africa province, besides the islands of Sicily, Corsica, Sardinia and the Balearics....
, and recovered by the Eastern Empire in 534. The Lombards
Lombards
The Lombards , also referred to as Longobards, were a Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin, who from 568 to 774 ruled a Kingdom in Italy...
having taken it again in 725, Charlemagne
Charlemagne
Charlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 and Emperor of the Romans from 800 to his death in 814. He expanded the Frankish kingdom into an empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe. During his reign, he conquered Italy and was crowned by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800...
(Defender of the Faith) cleared them out by 774 and handed the island over to the Papacy, which had been the most powerful complainant of the island's devastation by Germanics. Starting in 806 the Moors
Moors
The description Moors has referred to several historic and modern populations of the Maghreb region who are predominately of Berber and Arab descent. They came to conquer and rule the Iberian Peninsula for nearly 800 years. At that time they were Muslim, although earlier the people had followed...
of 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...
began to contend for the island and held it for a short time but in 828 the Papacy assigned its defense to the margrave of Tuscany
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
, a powerful state of the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
nominally under the Kingdom of Italy
Kingdom of Italy (medieval)
The Kingdom of Italy was a political entity under control of Carolingian dynasty of Francia first, after the defeat of the Lombards in 774. It was finally incorporated as a part of the Holy Roman Empire in 962....
.
The city in evidence today was founded as a fortress by and subsequently named after Boniface II of Tuscany in 828. He had led a naval expedition to suppress the Saracen
Saracen
Saracen was a term used by the ancient Romans to refer to a people who lived in desert areas in and around the Roman province of Arabia, and who were distinguished from Arabs. In Europe during the Middle Ages the term was expanded to include Arabs, and then all who professed the religion of Islam...
s of North Africa and returned to build an unassailable fortress and naval base from which the domains of Tuscany
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
could be defended at the outermost frontier. Most of the citadel postdates the 9th century or is of uncertain date but Il Torrione, a round tower, was certainly part of the original citadel.
Population
Sights
The town's charm and proximity to idyllic beaches makes it a popular tourist destination in the summer, predominantly for residents of mainland France.Genoese tower
The Genoese towers are vestiges of the Genoese heritage after their occupation of Corsica.The Corsican littoral is constellated with these towers , which are now one of the symbols of the island. Although all of them don’t have a Genoese origin — some of them are Florentine — they are generally...
s are in the neighbourhood:
- Torra di Sant' AmanzaTorra di Sant' AmanzaThe Torra di Sant' Amanza is a Genoese tower in Corsica, located in the commune of Bonifacio .It is one of the Official Historical Monuments of France.-Notes and references:...
- Torra di SponsagliaTorra di SponsagliaThe Torra di Sponsaglia is a Genoese tower in Corsica, located between the communes of Bonifacio and Porto-Vecchio .It is one of the Official Historical Monuments of France.-Notes and references:...
- Église Saint-Dominique de BonifacioÉglise Saint-Dominique de BonifacioÉglise Saint-Dominique de Bonifacio is a church in Bonifacio, Corse-du-Sud, southeastern Corsica. It is the largest church on the island.The church is located within the walls of an old Dominican convent, now defunct, in the western part of the historic center, next to City Hall of Bonifacio. The...
- Église Sainte-Marie-Majeure de BonifacioÉglise Sainte-Marie-Majeure de BonifacioÉglise Sainte-Marie-Majeure de Bonifacio is a church in Bonifacio, Corse-du-Sud, southeastern Corsica.The building was classified as a Historic Monument in 1982. It was built in the 12-13th century.-References:...
Transportation
The town is served by Figari airportFigari Sud-Corse Airport
Figari Sud-Corse Airport or Figari South Corsica Airport is an airport located 3 km northwest of Figari, a commune of the Corse-du-Sud département in France, on the island of Corsica and 25 km of Porto-Vecchio....
(car or taxi required), and ferry service to Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
is available multiple times daily.
Personalities
The following persons of note were born in Bonifacio:- Tommaso Maria ZigliaraTommaso Maria ZigliaraTommaso Maria Zigliara was a Roman Catholic cardinal, theologian, and philosopher.-Life:...
(1833–1893), Roman CatholicCatholicismCatholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
cardinalCardinal (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...
, theologian, and philosopher. - The film star, Marie-José NatMarie-José NatMarie-José Nat is a French film and television actress.-Early life and family:Marie-José Nat was born Mary-José Benhalassa in Bonifacio, Corse-du-Sud, to a Kabyle father and a Corsican mother...
.
External links
- Official website of Tourist Office of Bonifacio (English/French/German/Italian/Spanish)
- magnificent panorama of Bonifacio