Riccardo Astuto di Lucchese (January 1, 1882 – August 25, 1952) was an Italian diplomat and writer. He was born in
Naples
Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
. He was the Italian colonial governor of
Eritrea
Eritrea, officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa, with its capital and largest city being Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia in the Eritrea–Ethiopia border, south, Sudan in the west, and Dj ...
for five years, from 1930 to 1935.
Biography
Born in a noble Sicilian family but residing in Naples where he was born in 1882, he graduated in law from the
University of Rome.
From 1913 to 1915 he was first secretary then head of the civil affairs office of the governorate of
Tripolitania
Tripolitania (), historically known as the Tripoli region, is a historic region and former province of Libya.
The region had been settled since antiquity, first coming to prominence as part of the Carthaginian empire. Following the defeat ...
. Transferred to Cyrenaica, he held several positions (secretary general in
Benghazi
Benghazi () () is the List of cities in Libya, second-most-populous city in Libya as well as the largest city in Cyrenaica, with an estimated population of 859,000 in 2023. Located on the Gulf of Sidra in the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean, Ben ...
, regional commissioner in Derna), including that of director (1919), until the disagreement with the governor
Giacomo De Martino on the conciliation policy implemented with the Senussi forced him to a new series of transfers: first in
Somalia
Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...
, from 1922 in Tripolitania and then from June of the following year again in
Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica ( ) or Kyrenaika (, , after the city of Cyrene), is the eastern region of Libya. Cyrenaica includes all of the eastern part of Libya between the 16th and 25th meridians east, including the Kufra District. The coastal region, als ...
.
After being long director general of the Ministry of Colonies (1924-1930), from mid-July 1930 until mid-January 1935 he was governor of Eritrea. He promoted the construction of the railway from Asmara to the border with Sudan, but
WW2
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilising ...
blocked this project.
Placed in retirement, he continued to hold important positions, mainly of study and research. Furthermore, even after the end of
WW2
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilising ...
, he was president of the Italian-African Institute, a member of the Institute for the East and a member of the foreign policy commission of the
Christian Democracy
Christian democracy is an ideology inspired by Christian social teaching to respond to the challenges of contemporary society and politics.
Christian democracy has drawn mainly from Catholic social teaching and neo-scholasticism, as well ...
party.
He promoted in the late 1940s the return to Italian administration of the former Italian colonies in Africa, but he was successful only with
Somalia
Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...
.
He died in his villa in
Francavilla al Mare
Francavilla al Mare () is a ''comune'' and town in the province of Chieti, in the Abruzzo region of Italy.
The municipality, included in the urban area of Pescara, borders with Chieti, Miglianico, Ortona, Pescara, Ripa Teatina, San Giovanni T ...
, not far away from Naples, in 1952.
Writings
In his writings of the late 1920s he paid attention to Africa's problems, advocating the possibility of incorporating it into the European socio-political structure ("Eurafrica"), while those of the late 1930s deal with the problem of race, adhering, in line with the spirit of the fascist racial laws of the period, to the "canon" of safeguarding Aryan purity in
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...
.
Treccani: Astuto di Lucchese
/ref>
*''La legge organica per l'impero dell'Africa Orientale Italiana'', in Rassegna italiana, XIX (1936), pp. 641–651.
*''L'impero italiano nel quadro generale dell'Africa'', in L'Impero (A.O.I.). Studi e documenti of T. Sillani..., Roma 1937, pp. 265–282.
*'' L'originalità dell'ordinamento dell'impero coloniale italiano'', in Civiltà fascista, IV (1937), pp. 604–615.
*'' L'impero fascista'', in Gerarchia, XVII (1938), pp. 163–169.
*''Popolamento ed equilibrio economico in Africa Orientale Italiana'', in Rassegna economica dell'Africa italiana, XXVIII (1940), pp. 421–431.
*'' Soluzione del problema dell'Africa'', in Gli Annali dell'Africa italiana, III (1940), pp. 29–45.
*''Il problema fondamentale della cooperazione europea in Africa'', ibid., pp. 63–77
He also edited the four volumes of the Eritrean Diary ("Diario Eritreo") of Ferdinando Martini in 1940.
After WW2
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilising ...
he wrote:
*''Linee principali di una amministrazione fiduciaria delle nostre colonie'', in Rassegna di studi sociali, I 947
Year 947 (Roman numerals, CMXLVII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* Summer – A Principality of Hungary, Hungarian army led by Grand Prince Taksony of Hungary, Taksony campaign ...
pp. 296–342.
*'' L'Eritrea alla commissione dei "Quattro"'', in Rivista del commercio, II 948
Year 948 ( CMXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Byzantine Empire
* Arab–Byzantine War: Hamdanid forces under Sayf al-Dawla raid into Asia Minor. The Byzantines respond with reprisa ...
n. 1, pp. 35–44.
Notes
Bibliography
*V. Clemente
''Astuto di Lucchese, Riccardo''
in «Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani
The ''Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani'' () is a biographical dictionary published in 100 volumes by the Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana, started in 1960 and completed in 2020. It includes about 40,000 biographies of distinguished Italia ...
», vol. 34, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana
Institute Giovanni Treccani for the publication of the Italian Encyclopedia (), also known as Treccani Institute or simply Treccani, is a cultural institution of national interest, active in the publishing field, founded by Giovanni Treccani a ...
, Roma 1988.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Di Lucchesi, Riccardo
1882 births
1952 deaths
Diplomats from Naples
20th-century Italian writers
20th-century Italian male writers
19th-century Neapolitan people
Italian governors of Eritrea