Felice Cavallotti (6 November 1842 – 6 March 1898) was an Italian politician, poet and dramatic author.

Biography

Early career

Born in

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

, Cavallotti fought with the Garibaldian Corps in their 1860 and 1866 campaigns during the Italian Wars of Independence. Following his military service he created a series of anti-monarchical lampoons in the '' Gazzetta di Milano'' and in the '' Gazzettina Rosa'' between 1866 and 1872. He also commented on Garibaldi's deeds in the Neapolitan ''Indipendente'', directed by

Alexandre Dumas, père Alexandre Dumas (born Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, 24 July 1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas , was a French novelist and playwright. His works have been translated into many languages and he is one of the mos ...

Political career

In 1872 Cavallotti was elected to the

Italian Parliament The Italian Parliament () is the national parliament of the Italy, Italian Republic. It is the representative body of Italian citizens and is the successor to the Parliament of the Kingdom of Sardinia (1848–1861), the Parliament of the Kingd ...

as deputy for Corteolona. When sworn in Cavallotti took the oath of allegiance, despite having lampooned the oath in his articles. Eloquent and turbulent, his combativeness in and out of Parliament secured for him the leadership of the Extreme Left on the death of

Agostino Bertani Agostino Bertani (19 October 1812 – 10 April 1886) was an Italian revolutionary and physician during Italian unification. Revolutionary Bertani was born in Milan on 19 October 1812. His father was an administrator for the Napoleonic governme ...

in 1886. During his twelve years' leadership, his party increased in number from twenty to seventy, and at the time of his death his parliamentary influence was greater than ever before. Although he was ambitious and used defamatory methods of personal attack, Cavallotti's eloquent advocacy of democratic reform and apparent generosity of sentiment secured for him a popularity surpassed by that of no Italian political contemporary except

Francesco Crispi Francesco Crispi (4 October 1818 – 11 August 1901) was an Italian patriot and statesman. He was among the main protagonists of the Risorgimento, a close friend and supporter of Giuseppe Mazzini and Giuseppe Garibaldi, and one of the architect ...

. Services rendered in the

cholera Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...

epidemic of 1885, his numerous lawsuits and thirty-three

duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people with matched weapons. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the rapier and later the small sword), but beginning in ...

s, his bitter campaign against Crispi, and his championship of

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

interests combined to enhance his notoriety and to increase his political influence. By skillful alliances with the Marquis

Antonio di Rudinì Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language–speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 400 most popular ...

he more than once obtained practical control of the Italian government and exacted notable concessions to Radical demands. In 1889 he contributed to the erection of the statue of

Giordano Bruno Giordano Bruno ( , ; ; born Filippo Bruno; January or February 1548 – 17 February 1600) was an Italian philosopher, poet, alchemist, astrologer, cosmological theorist, and esotericist. He is known for his cosmological theories, which concep ...

Campo de' Fiori Campo de' Fiori (, ) is a rectangular square south of Piazza Navona in Rome, Italy, at the border between the ''Rioni of Rome, rioni'' Parione and Regola (rione of Rome), Regola. It is diagonally southeast of the Palazzo della Cancelleria and one ...

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, ...

, a symbol of the lay struggle against the unceasing encroachment of the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

in Italian politics.

Death

Aged 55, Cavallotti was killed in a duel against Count Ferruccio Macola, editor of the conservative '' Gazzetta di Venezia'', whom he had insulted.Roman Duel Ends Fatally; Signor Cavallotti, the Poet and Radical, Killed by the Sword of Signor Macola
The New York Times, March 7, 1898 Poet and Freemason

Giosuè Carducci Giosuè Alessandro Giuseppe Carducci (27 July 1835 – 16 February 1907) was an Italian poet, writer, literary critic and teacher. He was noticeably influential, and was regarded as the official national poet of modern Italy. In 1906, he became ...

issued a celebrative discourse for his death. Cavallotti was buried in the cemetery of Dagnente, on the

Lake Maggiore Lake Maggiore (, ; ; ; ; literally 'greater lake') or Verbano (; ) is a large lake located on the south side of the Alps. It is the second largest lake in Italy and the largest in southern Switzerland. The lake and its shoreline are divided be ...

However, Felice Cavallotti denied being a member of the Italian Freemasonry in a letter addressed on 9 January 1875 to the director of the journal ''Italia Reale''. With the permission of his political opponent

, Cavallotti contributed to the erection of the monument commemorating

in Rome, place

, a work of the sculptor

Ettore Ferrari Ettore Ferrari (Rome, 25 March 1845 – Rome, 19 August 1929) was an Italian sculptor and Grand Master Mason. Biography Born in Rome to an artistic family (his father was also a painter), Ferrari was one of the members of the artistic rebirth ...

which was Grand Master of the

Grand Orient of Italy The Grand Orient of Italy (GOI) () is an Italian masonic grand lodge founded in 1805; the viceroy Eugène de Beauharnais was instrumental in its establishment. It was based at the Palazzo Giustiniani, Rome, Italy from 1901 until 1985 and is no ...

Legacy

* via Felice Cavallotti: a street in

Spoleto Spoleto (, also , , ; ) is an ancient city in the Italian province of Perugia in east-central Umbria on a foothill of the Apennines. It is south of Trevi, north of Terni, southeast of Perugia; southeast of Florence; and north of Rome. H ...

, Italy * Rue Cavallotti: a street in

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 ci ...

, France * Οδός Καβαλλόττι: a street in

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

, Greece

References