Italian irredentism in Corsica corse" in 1934 and Bertino Poli wrote "Il pensiero irredentista corso e le sue polemiche" in Florence in 1940. Small list of renowned Corsican Italians: 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
Invasion of Corsica (1794) constitution offered wide male suffrage, biennial elections and strong executive powers firmly held by Paoli through Pozzo di Borgo, but within weeks government had broken down in bickering between Elliott and Pozzo di Borgo over Corsican persecution of French supporters still living on the island. The final operation of the campaign targeted Calvi, a fortified port on the northwestern coast of Corsica commanded by the French commander in Corsica, Raphaël de Casabianca. Calvi was protected by two modern forts; to the west was the star fort Fort Mozello, supported an external battery, and to the southwest was Fort Mollinochesco, which