Corsicans, coming mainly from the regions of Cap Corse and La Castagniccia in the mediterranean island of
Corsica
Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...
, started arriving in the first third of the 19th century and settled mainly in the coastal towns of
Carúpano and
Rio Caribe. Known locally as Los Corsos, Corsicans played a central role in the development of the
cocoa and rum industry in
Venezuela
Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...
. Around the 1950s many Corsican families left Paria and settled in
Caracas
Caracas ( , ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas (CCS), is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the northern p ...
, and have been active in politics, commerce, medicine and the arts.
Historical background
The first Corsicans to settle in Venezuela were sailors and missionaries, who moved from the island when was part of the Italian
Republic of Genoa
The Republic of Genoa ( ; ; ) was a medieval and early modern Maritime republics, maritime republic from the years 1099 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italy, Italian coast. During the Late Middle Ages, it was a major commercial power in ...
, in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
During the reign of
Napoleon III
Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was President of France from 1848 to 1852 and then Emperor of the French from 1852 until his deposition in 1870. He was the first president, second emperor, and last ...
Corsica suffered a decline in agricultural production (particularly in the wine, olive and chestnut industries) due to unfair trade practices imposed by France. That coupled with a population boom due to the eradication of malaria in coastal areas, forced many Corsican families to emigrate to the
Caribbean
The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...
.
The first wave of Corsicans arrived in the Venezuelan region of Paria around 1830. Antonio Oletta, Francisco and Cayetano Morandi, José Vicente Franceschi and Juan Bautista Lucca were some of the first Corsicans to settle in the town of
Carúpano. Once in Paria, many Corsicans founded
cocoa exporting firms, most notable being that of the Franceschi & Co, established in 1830 and still existing today, making it one of Venezuela's oldest companies.
There were two other significant waves of immigration at the end the 19th century. While most of them went to
Carúpano, where there was already a well established Corsican-Venezuelan community, others settled in the towns of
Barcelona
Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
and
Ciudad Bolivar. The Corsos controlled the Venezuelan
cocoa bean
The cocoa bean, also known as cocoa () or cacao (), is the dried and fully fermented seed of ''Theobroma cacao'', the cacao tree, from which cocoa solids (a mixture of nonfat substances) and cocoa butter (the fat) can be extracted. Cacao tree ...
trade and modernized many of the towns where they lived.
In 1876, four companies -Franceschi & Cia., Massiani & Cia., Lucca & Cia. and Raffalli Bros., represented almost 90% of the export of cocoa carried out during that year. Nearly half a century later, in 1921, five companies -Franceschi & Cia., Prosperi & Cia. (founded 1890), Antoni Brothers, Benedetti, Vicentelli & Cia. (founded 1889) and Raffalli Brothers still represented 80% of the export trade for cocoa from Carúpano. (Harwich Vallenilla, Nikita. La red comercial corsa. 1991).
On 01.18.1870, the company « Compañia Minera Anonima El Callao » was founded by Liccioni & Cagninacci (cf Acta de Fundacion, en sesion de 6 de Marzo de 1883).
The port facilities, road improvements and a telegraph cable that connected Carúpano with
Marseille
Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...
were some of the projects put forward by the Corsicans in Carúpano.
During the turbulent dictatorship of General
Cipriano Castro (1899-1908), the value of agricultural production contracted by 52%, the year of the economic blockade of the great European powers due to default on foreign debt. In 1908, accusing the opposition to his regime, General Castro massively expelled Corsican producers and traders established in and around Carúpano.
Distinguished Venezuelans of Corsican Descent
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Rafael Agostini Hospedales (1808-1881), writer and lawyer
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Olga Antonetti (1945-1968), model,
Miss Venezuela 1962
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Diego Arria Salicetti (born 1938), economist, diplomat, polítician
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Aimée Battistini (1916-1989), painter
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Josefina Benedetti (born 1955), composer
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Oscar Benedetti Pietri (1926 - 2021), engineer
*
Ángel Biaggini (1899 - 1975), lawyer and politician
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Ernesto Branger Orzattoni (1853-1926), entrepreneur
*
Jean Cagnignacci, gold miner entrepreneur of
El Callao
*
Aristides Calvani (1918-1986), politician and lawyer
*
Aníbal Dominici (1837-1897), politician and lawyer
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Pedro César Dominici (1873-1954), writer and diplomatic
*
Santos Dominici (1869-1954), physician
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Alberto Franceschi (born 1949), politician and businessman
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Carlos Francisco Grisanti Franceschi– diplomat
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Arturo Hernández Grisanti (1927 – 2008) – writer, politician
*
Arturo Uslar Pietri (1906 – 2001) – writer, intellectual, political thinker, winner of the
Prince of Asturias Award
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Raúl Leoni (1905 -1972) – President of Venezuela, 1964–1969
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Jaime Lusinchi (May 27, 1924 – May 21, 2014) – President of Venezuela, 1984–1989
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Antonio Liccioni (1817 - 1901), gold miner entrepreneur of
El Callao
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Juan Liscano (1915-2001), poet, writer, folklorist, editor
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Francisco Massiani (1944 - 2019), writer
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Ascanio Negretti (1897 - 1949), violinist
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Ángel Santos Palazzi (1877 - 1916), militar
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Alejandro Pietri Pietri, arquitecto
*
Alicia Pietri (1923 - 2011), public figure who twice served as First Lady of Venezuela (1969–1974 and 1994–1999)
*
Juan Pietri Pietri (1849 - 1911), physician, politician, militar
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Luis Geronimo Pietri (1892 - 1969), politician, diplomat and lawyer
*
Berenice Perrone (born 1936), singer and actress
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José Rafael Pocaterra, ambassador, politician, writer and lawyer
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Qurico Prosperi Boschetti, entreprenour
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Carlos Prosperi Mannuit, politician
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Benjamin Rausseo (born 1962), politician and comedian
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Benito Roncagliolo, engineer
*
Bartolomé Tavera Acosta
Bartolomé Tavera Acosta (1865–1931) was a Venezuelan journalist and historian. He is considered a pioneer of ethnology and linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules ...
(1865-1931) Historian, ethnologist, linguist and journalist
*
Leon Santelli, rum Master
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Espartaco Santoni (1937-1998), actor
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Leopoldo Sucre Figarella (1926-1996), politician
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Jose Felix Oletta, physician and politician
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Luis Augusto Vegas Benedetti (1935-2006), trader and politician
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José Antonio Velutini (1844-1912), militar
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Luis Emilio Velutini (born 1953), businessman*
Oscar Benedetti Pietri (1926 - 2021), engineer
*
Henrique Benedetti Ruesta (born 1965), Engineer, general contractor and wakeboard champion
*
Luis Benedetti Hedderich (born 1934), Economist, conservationist, and founder of Avila Mountain National Park.
*
Luis Benedetti Ruesta (born 1960), Engineer, Red Bull reporter and kitesurf champion (Yaque)
See also
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Corsican people
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Corsican immigration to Puerto Rico
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History of Venezuela
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List of Corsicans
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Italians in Venezuela
External links
Puerto Rican and Venezuelan Connections, Corsica IsulaVenezuela y la inmigracion corsaBetween America and Europe
{{DEFAULTSORT:Corsican Emigration To Venezuela
Corsican diaspora
Demographics of Venezuela
History of Corsica