Salvatore Giuliano - the story of the national avenger

The well-known criminal authority Salvatore Giuliano lived to the age of only 27 years old. But even this time he was enough to become famous throughout Italy and become a legendary person in Sicily. Where did his path to success begin? How was the fate of Salvatore Giuliano? The answer to these and other questions can be found in our material.

Childhood and youth

Giuliano Salvatore was born on November 16, 1922 in the small town of Montelepre, which is located in the suburbs of Palermo. A boy was born in a big family. Since the native boyfriend lived in poverty, from the age of 13 he was forced to work hard. At first he was engaged in the processing of the land allotment that belonged to the family. Then he became a road builder and a repairman for telephone communications.

In 1943 Salvatore Giuliano, whose biography is considered in our article, received a report on the conscription. However, soon the territory of Sicily passed under the control of the Anglo-American authorities, after the Allied army landed on the island. Local residents acutely felt the lack of provisions. The population began to starve. To help relatives and friends, young Salvatore Giuliano began to smuggle. The guy organized illegal importation of wheat supplies to Sicily, which saved many lives of the island's inhabitants.

In the autumn of 1943, during another smuggling operation, Giuliano Salvatore had to defend her interests in a shootout with the police. In the course of the battle with the representatives of the law and order, he deprived the carabinier of his life. This led to the fact that the newly-made national hero was forced to leave his native city and hide in the mountains.

Giuliano Salvatore - Bandit

Winter came and the carabinieri decided to lure the young smuggler out of his hiding-place. To this end, the authorities announced the arrest of his father Giuliano, as well as several of his close comrades. Salvatore did not stay away. The guy carried out an operation to release those close to prison, after which people began to voluntarily go to his brigade. In the main, the detachment of the national avenger was formed from former criminals, homeless and deserters, in other words, the most desperate inhabitants of Sicily.

Salvatore Giuliano organized a strict drill of fighting comrades. Soon the gang of criminals turned into a well-organized military detachment. By supplying the companions with combat equipment, the self-proclaimed commander set about organizing predatory operations aimed at destroying the estates of well-to-do landowners and aristocrats loyal to power. Salvatore generously shared the benefits among the Sicilian poor who supported his initiatives.

Soon the detachment of the young commander turned into an invincible force, as the carabinieri simply could not catch all the robbers. Poor peasants and poor peasants happily hid bandits, and Giuliano perceived them as the savior of the inhabitants of Sicily from hunger. The leader of the bandits took advantage of the favorable moods in the society and began to promote ideas concerning the establishment of the island as an independent territory. From this moment, local separatists began to refer to Salvatore Giuliano as the colonel of the rebel army.

Impact on reputation

In the spring of 1947, peasants gathered in the town of Gineestri to mark the May holidays. Smartly dressed people took to the streets to have fun with their relatives, as well as enjoy freedom after the fall of the fascist regime in Italy.

In turn, Giuliano's team also planned to be at a mass event. Their goal was to capture a man named Girolamo Li Causi, a representative of the Sicilian communist movement, whose ideas provoked discontent among the separatists. However, as soon as the figure of the leader of the peasant party rose from the sea of red flags, several shots were heard in the crowd. A mass firefight began, in which more than a dozen civilians were killed. Among them were women and children. Responsibility for what was done by the authorities was entrusted to Giuliano, although he assured himself of his personal innocence of the tragedy. Whatever it was, the incident dealt a serious blow to the reputation of Salvatore.

The inglorious demise of the hero

After the events in Ginestra, the separatist leader fell out of favor with not only the authorities and a substantial part of the population of Sicily, but also the local mafia. Information about the whereabouts of members of the gang has been massively provided to the carabineers. For capture Salvatore have established a decent reward. The insurgent himself for a long time managed to break out of the police raids in a cunning way.

The final for Giuliano was a betrayal by a cousin. The latter helped the authorities to get out on his trail and lie in wait. It happened on the morning of July 1950 in the town of Castelvetrani. According to the official version, Salvatore was shot dead by the carabineers in the battle. However, as the journalistic investigation later revealed, the people's hero was killed by former comrades-in-arms.

Giuliano in Literature and Cinematography

In 1984, the light saw the novel of the famous Italian writer Mario Puzo called "Sicilian". It is easy to guess that the main hero of the literary creation, which is considered the continuation of the Godfather, was the figure of the famous leader of the separatist movement.

In 1962, on a wide screen came the biographical film "Salvatore Giuliano", directed by Francesco Rosie. Then, in 1987, the artistic film "Sicilian", based on the novel by Mario Puzo, was presented to the audience. In the image of the "Italian Robin Hood" here was the famous American actor Christopher Lambert.