before the Swiss Guard, the Vatican benefited from a Corsican Guard

“The Pope’s next trip to the Isle of Beauty, on December 15, 2024, is an opportunity to recall the ties that unite him to the papacy,” declared Iviu Pasquali, president of the‘Associu di a Guardia Corsa Papale, to our colleagues from France Bleu. Little-known but very real story: before the famous Swiss guards and their brightly colored striped baggy pants, guards from Corsica watched over the Vatican and the Pope.

The Papal Corsican Guard was created in 1603 under Pope Clement VIII. Over the years, she ensured the security of the Pope but also monitored the countryside and streets of Rome. It was under the pontificate of Alexander VII (1655-1667) that this military corps was officially named the Corsican Guard. “The history of the guard begins in the 7th century, well before its formalization in the 17th century. Thousands of Corsicans served the Holy See, contributing to the development of Rome,” continues Iviu Pasquali.

A bloody dissolution

On August 20, 1662, a brawl broke out between the Corsican guards and the men of the French ambassador, the Duke of Créquy. The fight was bloody, leaving fifteen people dead. When Louis XIV heard the news, he was beside himself, convinced that the Pope’s soldiers had tried to assassinate his ambassador. There followed two years of diplomatic crisis between France and the Vatican, ending with the signing of the Treaty of Pisa in 1664. In addition to the execution of several accused guards, the Corsican Guard was dissolved. A pyramid was built in place of their former barracks in Rome on which was written: “The Corsican nation is declared unfit and incapable of serving the apostolic see.” This tragic opposition between the soldiers of the Sun King and those of the Pope is told in the song “Roma” performed by Doria during the Liet International festival, which advocates minority languages.

A legacy still present

The Corsican diaspora in Rome, however, remained substantial, strongly established in the Trastevere district where the community has been alongside its own parish since the mid-16th century: the basilica of San Crisogono. Many of them continued to serve the Vatican. Thus, to create the Vatican gendarmerie – the “carabinieri” – in 1816, the Pope relied on the Corsicans to strengthen its workforce. A pride that the islanders take pleasure in recalling.