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Calogero Vizzini
Calogero Vizzini (; 24 July 1877 – 10 July 1954), also commonly known as "Don Calò", was a Sicilian Mafia boss of Villalba, Sicily, Villalba in the province of Caltanissetta, Sicily. He was considered to be one of the most influential and legendary Mafia bosses of Sicily after World War II until his death in 1954. In the media, Don Calò was often depicted as the "Capo dei capi, boss of bosses" – although such a position does not exist in the loose structure of Sicilian Mafia, Cosa Nostra. Vizzini was the archetype of the paternalistic "man of honour" of a rural Mafia that disappeared in the 1960s and 1970s. In those days, a mafioso was seen by some as a social intermediary and a man standing for order and peace. During the first stage of his career, he used violence to establish his position; the second stage of his career saw him limit his use of violence, turn to principally legal sources of income, and exercise his power in an open and legitimate manner. Vizzini is the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Villalba, Sicily
Villalba ( Sicilian: ''Villarba'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Caltanissetta in the Italian region Sicily, located about northwest of Caltanissetta, about southeast of Palermo and 68 km from Agrigento. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,852 and an area of .All demographics and other statistics: Italian statistical institute Istat. It rises over an internal hilly area, 620 metres above sea-level. The name Villalba has Spanish origins, and it means "the white city" because of the town's white houses. Villalba is known for the cultivation of cereals, grapes, vegetables, tomatoes, and lentils. The Sagra del Pomodoro (tomato festival) is held every year in the month of August. Villalba borders the following municipalities: Cammarata, Castellana Sicula, Marianopoli, Mussomeli, Petralia Sottana, Polizzi Generosa, Vallelunga Pratameno. History Since the 17th century, the fief was owned by the Miccichè family. In 1751, it was acquired by N ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Protection Racket
A protection racket is a type of racket and a scheme of organized crime perpetrated by a potentially hazardous organized crime group that generally guarantees protection outside the sanction of the law to another entity or individual from violence, robbery, ransacking, arson, vandalism, and other such threats, in exchange for payments at regular intervals. Each payment is called "protection money" or a "protection fee". An organized crime group determines an affordable or reasonable fee by negotiating with each of its payers, to ensure that each payer can pay the fee on a regular basis and on time. Protections rackets can vary in terms of their levels of sophistication or organization. The perpetrators of a protection racket may protect vulnerable targets from other dangerous individuals and groups or may simply offer to refrain from themselves carrying out attacks on the targets, and usually both of these forms of protection are implied in the racket. Due to the freq ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Guido Donegani
Guido Donegani (26 March 1877 in Livorno – 16 April 1947 in Bordighera), was a prominent Italian engineer, businessman and politician. He was CEO and President of the Italian chemical industrial giant Montecatini from 1910-1945. Due to his support to the Fascist regime of Benito Mussolini he was arrested at the end of the Second World War, but acquitted of charges of collaboration. Early life Donegani was born in the port city of Livorno. The Donegani family was part of the Livorno business elite involved in maritime transport and import and export activities. He studied industrial engineering at the Polytechnic University of Turin where he graduated in 1901. The next year he was elected in the provincial council of Livorno. In the decade 1910-20 over 40 plants producing fertilizers and essential chemicals were established in Italy, controlling respectively 70 and 60% of the domestic market of super-phosphates and sulfuric acid. During the war, the company expanded into explo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Western Europe, with a population of 14.9 million. London stands on the River Thames in southeast England, at the head of a tidal estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major settlement for nearly 2,000 years. Its ancient core and financial centre, the City of London, was founded by the Roman Empire, Romans as Londinium and has retained its medieval boundaries. The City of Westminster, to the west of the City of London, has been the centuries-long host of Government of the United Kingdom, the national government and Parliament of the United Kingdom, parliament. London grew rapidly 19th-century London, in the 19th century, becoming the world's List of largest cities throughout history, largest city at the time. Since the 19th cen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rome
Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2,746,984 residents in , Rome is the list of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, third most populous city in the European Union by population within city limits. The Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, with a population of 4,223,885 residents, is the most populous metropolitan cities of Italy, metropolitan city in Italy. Rome metropolitan area, Its metropolitan area is the third-most populous within Italy. Rome is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, within Lazio (Latium), along the shores of the Tiber Valley. Vatican City (the smallest country in the world and headquarters of the worldwide Catholic Church under the governance of the Holy See) is an independent country inside the city boun ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sulphur
Sulfur (American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphur (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth spelling) is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundance of the chemical elements, abundant, Polyvalency (chemistry), multivalent and Nonmetal (chemistry), nonmetallic. Under standard conditions for temperature and pressure, normal conditions, sulfur atoms form octasulfur, cyclic octatomic molecules with the chemical formula octasulfur, S8. Elemental sulfur is a bright yellow, crystalline solid at room temperature. Sulfur is the tenth most abundant element by mass in the universe and the fifth most common on Earth. Though sometimes found in pure, native element minerals, native form, sulfur on Earth usually occurs as sulfide minerals, sulfide and sulfate minerals. Being abundant in native form, sulfur was known in ancient times, being mentioned for its uses in Outline of ancient India, ancient India, ancient G ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Black Market
A black market is a Secrecy, clandestine Market (economics), market or series of transactions that has some aspect of illegality, or is not compliant with an institutional set of rules. If the rule defines the set of goods and services whose production and distribution are prohibited or restricted by law, non-compliance with the rule constitutes a black-market trade since the transaction itself is illegal. Such transactions include the illegal drug trade, prostitution (where prohibited), illegal currency transactions, and human trafficking. Participants try to hide their illegal behavior from the government or regulatory authority. Cash is the preferred medium of exchange in illegal transactions, since cash transactions are less easily traced. Common motives for operating in black markets are to trade contraband, avoid taxes and regulations, or evade price controls or rationing. Typically, the totality of such activity is referred to with the definite article, e.g., "''the' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting took place mainly in European theatre of World War I, Europe and the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I, Middle East, as well as in parts of African theatre of World War I, Africa and the Asian and Pacific theatre of World War I, Asia-Pacific, and in Europe was characterised by trench warfare; the widespread use of Artillery of World War I, artillery, machine guns, and Chemical weapons in World War I, chemical weapons (gas); and the introductions of Tanks in World War I, tanks and Aviation in World War I, aircraft. World War I was one of the List of wars by death toll, deadliest conflicts in history, resulting in an estimated World War I casualties, 10 million military dead and more than 20 million wounded, plus some 10 million civilian de ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, fourth-most populous city in the European Union and the List of cities proper by population density, 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2022. Since the 17th century, Paris has been one of the world's major centres of finance, diplomacy, commerce, culture, Fashion capital, fashion, and gastronomy. Because of its leading role in the French art, arts and Science and technology in France, sciences and its early adoption of extensive street lighting, Paris became known as the City of Light in the 19th century. The City of Paris is the centre of the Île-de-France region, or Paris Region, with an official estimated population of 12,271,794 inhabitants in January 2023, or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cammarata
Cammarata is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Agrigento in the Italian region Sicily, located about southeast of Palermo and about north of Agrigento on the eponymous mountain Mount Cammarata, which has an elevation above sea level in a territory rich in forests. Cammarata borders the following municipalities: Acquaviva Platani, Casteltermini, Castronovo di Sicilia, Mussomeli, San Giovanni Gemini, Santo Stefano Quisquina, Vallelunga Pratameno, Villalba. History The name derives from the Greek ''Kàmara'', meaning "vaulted room". King Roger I laid siege to the Cammarata in 1087 and sold it to a relative Lucia d'Altavilla (or in English Lucy of Hauteville). She then assumed the title Dominae Camaratae or Lucy of Cammarata for the town she was given The town is mentioned in 1141 in a document mentioning several Arabic localities, a sign that it was settled at least from the Islamic domination of the island. The county of Cammarata followed the history of Si ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Francesco Paolo Varsallona
Francesco Paolo Varsallona or Varsalona was a Sicilian bandit who operated on the island around the turn of the 20th century. He is considered to be the last great bandit of the pre- fascist era.Hess, ''Mafia & Mafiosi'', p. 9 He hailed from Castronovo and was the son of a bandit that had belonged to the notorious band of Angelo Pugliese, better known as "Don Peppino il Lombardo", credited with introducing kidnapping people for money in Sicily.Lupo, ''Storia della mafia'', p. 194 Outlaw Varsallona became an outlaw in 1893 after he killed a witness in the trial about his brother Luigi Varsallona's murder. His brother, a bandit as well, had been killed in 1892 over a dispute about the booty of his band’s actions. The witness did his best to provide the defendants with an alibi. Varsallona took justice in its own hands and in an act of vendetta killed the witness.Badolati & Dodaro, ''Il Mammasantissima'', p. 26Lewis, ''The Honoured Society'', p. 47-48 He became a fugitive and his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bandit
Banditry is a type of organized crime committed by outlaws typically involving the threat or use of violence. A person who engages in banditry is known as a bandit and primarily commits crimes such as extortion, robbery, kidnapping, and murder, either as an individual or in groups. Banditry is a vague concept of criminality and in modern usage can be synonymous with gangsterism, brigandage, marauding, terrorism, piracy, and thievery. Definitions The term ''bandit'' (introduced to English via Italian around 1776) originates with the early Germanic legal practice of outlawing criminals, termed ''*bamnan'' (English ban). The legal term in the Holy Roman Empire was ''Acht'' or '' Reichsacht'', translated as " Imperial ban". In modern Italian, the equivalent word "bandito" literally means banned or a banned person. The New English Dictionary on Historical Principles (NED) defined "bandit" in 1885 as "one who is proscribed or outlawed; hence, a lawless desperate marauder, a bri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
