Corsica and the Pope: finally, in 1450 Genoa ceded the administration of the island to its main bank, the Bank of Saint George, which brought peace. In the 16th century, the island entered into the fight between Spain and France for the supremacy in Italy. In 1553, a Franco-Ottoman fleet occupied Corsica, but the reaction of Spain and Genoa, led by Andrea Doria, reestablished the Genoese supremacy on the island, confirmed by the Peace of Cateau-Cambresis. The unlucky protagonist of this episode was Sampiero di Bastelica, who would later come to be considered a hero of the island. Their power reinstated,
Ancient Corsica the strait separating the island from Sardinia to the south was the "Fretum Gallicum". The location of the island between the Italian mainland to the east, the Gallic mainland to the north, and Sardinia to the south, made Corsica an important strategic point for control of the western Mediterranean sea. Additionally, the island was a significant hub of Mediterranean trade. Corsica was described by Theophrastus as thickly wooded and mountainous. Only the flat, coastal area was suitable for agriculture - especially the space around Aleria on the east coast - the island mainly produced timber and raw materials like copper,