Ruggero Settimo (19 May 1778 – 2 May 1863) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

politician, diplomat, and

patriotic Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and sense of attachment to one's country. This attachment can be a combination of many different feelings, language relating to one's own homeland, including ethnic, cultural, political or histor ...

activist from

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

. He was a counter-admiral of the Sicilian Fleet. He fought alongside the British fleet in the Mediterranean Sea against the French under

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...

. He reconquered the island of

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

, and defended the city of Gaeta near

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

. In 1811 he had to retire from the military due to health problems. He was a member of the Sicilian government of Prince Castelnovo in 1812 as Minister of the merchant navy. He was a member of the revolutionary junta of 1820–1821. In 1848 as president of the Sicilian Senate, he was appointed as chief of the government of the Kingdom of Sicily; he led the Sicilian government until 1849."Ruggiero Settimo"
Treccani, Italy After unification in 1861, Settimo was elected as President of the Senate of the newly created

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

of the Kingdom of Italy.

Life

Ruggiero Settimo was born in Palermo, Sicily. He was one of the most important leaders of the Sicilian revolution of independence of 1848, after which he was effective head of state of an independent Sicily for 16 months that replaced the Bourbon

Two Sicilies The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies ( it, Regno delle Due Sicilie) was a kingdom in Southern Italy from 1816 to 1860. The kingdom was the largest sovereign state by population and size in Italy before Italian unification, comprising Sicily and all ...

. Once the rebellion was put down by

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

Ferdinand II's army, Settimo escaped to

, where he lived the next twelve years in exile. Following the success of the ''

Risorgimento The unification of Italy ( it, Unità d'Italia ), also known as the ''Risorgimento'' (, ; ), was the 19th-century political and social movement that resulted in the consolidation of different states of the Italian Peninsula into a single ...

'' movement during 1860 and 1861, Settimo was elected as President of the Senate of the newly created

of the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Sardinia was proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to an institutional referendum to abandon the monarchy and f ...

, serving until his death. A statue in his honor was erected in front of the Teatro Politeama Garibaldi of Palermo.

References

Bibliography

* Correnti, Santi (2002) ''A Short History of Sicily'', Les Editions Musae, Montreal. * Scianò, Giuseppe (2004) ''Sicilia, Sicilia, Sicilia!'', Edizione Anteprima, Palermo (in Italian).
1778 births 1863 deaths Politicians from Palermo People of the Revolutions of 1848 Members of the Senate of the Kingdom of Italy Italian commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Burials at San Domenico, Palermo Members of the Sicilian Parliament Prime ministers 18th-century Italian politicians 19th-century Italian politicians {{Sicily-politician-stub

Life

See also

References

Bibliography