Pasquale Paoli - Pasquale Paoli and Italian Irredentism

Pasquale Paoli and Italian Irredentism

Insofar as Italian irredentism was a political or historical movement, Pasquale Paoli lived long before its time and did not have anything to do with the movement that ended with the occupation of Corsica by Italian fascist troops in the initial stages of World War II. The Italy of his time was not even a united country and he earned his reputation as an early revolutionary by leading Corsica out from under the dominion of one Italian state, the Republic of Genoa.

There is no question, however, that Paoli was sympathetic to Italian culture and regarded his own native language as an Italian dialect (Corsican is an Italic language spoken also in northern Sardinia). There is no evidence that he advocated the political unity of all Italians on formerly Roman soil, as did the irredentists and he certainly did not advocate union with Italy, as there was no Italy as it is known today. The modern state had to wait for historic Italian nationalism to run its course. His Italian cultural sympathies however have offered some ground for philosophic irredentism claiming him. He was considered by Niccolò Tommaseo, who collected his Lettere (Letters), as one of the precursors of the Italian irredentism, a view which is debatable.

The "Babbu di a Patria" (father of Corsica), as was nicknamed Pasquale Paoli by the Corsican Italians, wrote in his Letters the following appeal in 1768 against the French invaders:

We are Corsicans by birth and sentiment, but first of all we feel Italian by language, origins, customs, traditions; and Italians are all brothers and united in the face of history and in the face of God ... As Corsicans we wish to be neither slaves nor "rebels" and as Italians we have the right to deal as equals with the other Italian brothers ... Either we shall be free or we shall be nothing... Either we shall win or we shall die (against the French), weapons in hand ... The war against France is right and holy as the name of God is holy and right, and here on our mountains will appear for Italy the sun of liberty....

("Siamo còrsi per nascita e sentimento ma prima di tutto ci sentiamo italiani per lingua, origini, costumi, tradizioni e gli italiani sono tutti fratelli e solidali di fronte alla storia e di fronte a Dio… Come còrsi non vogliamo essere né schiavi né "ribelli" e come italiani abbiamo il diritto di trattare da pari con gli altri fratelli d’Italia… O saremo liberi o non saremo niente… O vinceremo con l’onore o soccomberemo (contro i francesi) con le armi in mano... La guerra con la Francia è giusta e santa come santo e giusto è il nome di Dio, e qui sui nostri monti spunterà per l’Italia il sole della libertà…")

Pasquale Paoli wanted the Italian language to be the official language of his Corsican Republic. His Corsican Constitution of 1755 was in Italian and the short-lived university he founded in the city of Corte in 1765 used Italian.