Italian irredentism in Corsica Italian irredentism in Corsica Italian irredentism in Corsica was a cultural and historical movement promoted by Italians and by people from Corsica who identified themselves as part of Italy rather than France, and promoted the Italian annexation of the island. Corsica was part of the Republic of Genoa for centuries until 1768, when the Republic ceded the island to France, one year before the birth of Napoleon Bonaparte in the capital city of Ajaccio. Under France, the use of Corsican (a regional tongue which is closely related to Italian) has gradually declined in favour of the standard French language. Giuseppe
Ancient Corsica a new problem with the Saracens, who ravaged the coasts of the island frequently. The Lombards also returned to the island, to fight against the Saracens. The conflict with the Saracens, which also drew in other significant powers that often laid claim to Corsica or a part thereof, dominated the fortunes of the island for several centuries. This period is almost unrecorded, except in the Chronicles of Giovanni della Grossa (1388-1464), which were written much later and are heavily infused with legends. Source material and research on the island are both sparse and as a result there have been few