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During the [[colonization of the Americas]], Italy was divided between several [[Italian city-state|city-states]] often in [[Italian Wars|conflict between each other]] and therefore virtually every Italian state had no colonial ambitions. Nevertheless, Italian navigators from the dominant [[maritime republics]] of the Mediterranean played a key role in ushering the [[Age of Discovery]] and the [[European colonization of the Americas]]. The most notable among them were [[Cristopher Columbus]] who served for Spain, [[John Cabot]] for England, [[Giovanni Verrazzano]] for France and [[Amerigo Vespucci]] for Portugal. Furthermore, the [[State of the Church]] was involved in resolving disputes between competing colonial powers: an example of this is the [[Treaty of Tordesillas]]. In the 17th century two Italians were particularly interested in colonial affairs: [[Ferdinando I de' Medici]] for Tuscany and [[Giovanni Paolo Lascaris]] for the [[Knights of Malta]]. |
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| ⚫ | The '''Thornton expedition''' was a 1608 [[Grand Duchy of Tuscany|Tuscan]] expedition under Captain [[Robert Thornton (explorer)|Robert Thornton]], an Englishman, sent by [[Ferdinando I de' Medici|Ferdinando I]] of [[Grand Duchy of Tuscany|Tuscany]] to explore [[northern Brazil]] and the [[Amazon River]] and prepare for the establishment of a settlement in northern coastal South America, which would serve as a base to export Brazilian wood to [[Renaissance Italy]]. The area that Thornton considered as a possible site of a Tuscan colony now lies in modern [[French Guyana]], near [[Cayenne]],<ref>Ridolfi, R. ''Pensieri medicei di colonizzare il Brasile'' p. 14</ref> which would be colonised by France in 1630. |
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==Thornton expedition== |
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| ⚫ | The '''Thornton expedition''' was a 1608 [[Grand Duchy of Tuscany|Tuscan]] expedition under Captain [[Robert Thornton (explorer)|Robert Thornton]], an Englishman, sent by [[Ferdinando I de' Medici|Ferdinando I]] of [[Grand Duchy of Tuscany|Tuscany]] to explore [[northern Brazil]] and the [[Amazon River]] and prepare for the establishment of a settlement in northern coastal South America, which would serve as a base to export Brazilian wood to [[Renaissance Italy]]. The area that Thornton considered as a possible site of a Tuscan colony now lies in modern [[French Guyana]], near [[Cayenne]],<ref>Ridolfi, R. ''Pensieri medicei di colonizzare il Brasile'' p. 14</ref> which would be colonised by France in 1630. <ref>Ridolfi, R. ''Pensieri medicei di colonizzare il Brasile'', in «Il Veltro», Roma, luglio-agosto 1962, pp. 1-18</ref> |
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The Amazon region had been previously visited by numerous European explorers and traders over the course of the preceding century. [[Robert Harcourt (explorer)|Robert Harcourt]] sailed for Guiana in 1608, establishing an English base on the [[Wiapoco River]] which lasted a few years.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=jgsWAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA358&lpg=PA358&dq=robert+harcourt+1608&source=bl&ots=frjj1hdt4n&sig=XPcXWR76Vl2_pHvUoSUFV3XY1cs&hl=en&ei=-ru0S_jHI4uqNrb1-KsJ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CBYQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=robert%20harcourt%201608&f=false Hakluytus posthumus or Purchas His Pilgrimes], Samuel Purchas, volume xvi, 1625, reprinted 1906</ref> William Davies, a surgeon on the Thornton expedition noted that they expected to find the Amazon by sailing south from the West Indies until "...you shall see the Sea change to a ruddie colour, the water shall grow fresh, by these signes you may run boldly your course {{sic}}."<ref>[http://www.utexas.edu/utpress/excerpts/exsmiama.html Amazon Sweet Sea], Nigel J. H. Smith, University of Texas Press, 2002</ref> |
The Amazon region had been previously visited by numerous European explorers and traders over the course of the preceding century. [[Robert Harcourt (explorer)|Robert Harcourt]] sailed for Guiana in 1608, establishing an English base on the [[Wiapoco River]] which lasted a few years.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=jgsWAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA358&lpg=PA358&dq=robert+harcourt+1608&source=bl&ots=frjj1hdt4n&sig=XPcXWR76Vl2_pHvUoSUFV3XY1cs&hl=en&ei=-ru0S_jHI4uqNrb1-KsJ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CBYQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=robert%20harcourt%201608&f=false Hakluytus posthumus or Purchas His Pilgrimes], Samuel Purchas, volume xvi, 1625, reprinted 1906</ref> William Davies, a surgeon on the Thornton expedition noted that they expected to find the Amazon by sailing south from the West Indies until "...you shall see the Sea change to a ruddie colour, the water shall grow fresh, by these signes you may run boldly your course {{sic}}."<ref>[http://www.utexas.edu/utpress/excerpts/exsmiama.html Amazon Sweet Sea], Nigel J. H. Smith, University of Texas Press, 2002</ref> |
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{{Quote|In the first years of the 17th century Ferdinando I of Tuscany evaluated the possibility of a colony in Brasil […] Ferdinando gave captain Thornton a caravelle and a [[tartane]] [for an expedition in 1608] […] Thornton sailed for one year: he reached Guyana and Brasil, exploring the Amazon and Orinoco rivers. […] In July 1609 he was back in [[Livorno|Leghorn]], but in February of that year the Grand Duke died and in Florence nobody [after him] was still thinking about establishing an overseas colony.|Matteo Sanfilippo<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.asei.eu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=180:gli-italiani-in-brasile-id-parte&catid=65:articoli&Itemid=250 |language=Italian |title=Gli italiani in Brasile |author=Matteo Sanfilippo |date=2008-06-23 |work= |publisher=Archivio Storico dell'Emigrazione Italiana |quote=Nei primi anni del Seicento Ferdinando I di Toscana ...valuta la possibilità di una colonia brasiliana...Ferdinando fa armare una caravella e una tartana nel porto di Livorno e le affida al capitano Thornton...Thornton naviga per quasi un anno: approda in Guyana e in Brasile, esplora il Rio delle Amazzoni e l’Orinoco, rientra facendo tappa alla Caienna e a Trinidad. Il 12 luglio 1609 è di nuovo a Livorno, ma...il 7 febbraio di quell’anno il granduca è morto e a Firenze non si pensa più alla possibilità di fondare una colonia...oltreoceano. |accessdate=28 March 2010}}</ref>}} |
{{Quote|In the first years of the 17th century Ferdinando I of Tuscany evaluated the possibility of a colony in Brasil […] Ferdinando gave captain Thornton a caravelle and a [[tartane]] [for an expedition in 1608] […] Thornton sailed for one year: he reached Guyana and Brasil, exploring the Amazon and Orinoco rivers. […] In July 1609 he was back in [[Livorno|Leghorn]], but in February of that year the Grand Duke died and in Florence nobody [after him] was still thinking about establishing an overseas colony.|Matteo Sanfilippo<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.asei.eu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=180:gli-italiani-in-brasile-id-parte&catid=65:articoli&Itemid=250 |language=Italian |title=Gli italiani in Brasile |author=Matteo Sanfilippo |date=2008-06-23 |work= |publisher=Archivio Storico dell'Emigrazione Italiana |quote=Nei primi anni del Seicento Ferdinando I di Toscana ...valuta la possibilità di una colonia brasiliana...Ferdinando fa armare una caravella e una tartana nel porto di Livorno e le affida al capitano Thornton...Thornton naviga per quasi un anno: approda in Guyana e in Brasile, esplora il Rio delle Amazzoni e l’Orinoco, rientra facendo tappa alla Caienna e a Trinidad. Il 12 luglio 1609 è di nuovo a Livorno, ma...il 7 febbraio di quell’anno il granduca è morto e a Firenze non si pensa più alla possibilità di fondare una colonia...oltreoceano. |accessdate=28 March 2010}}</ref>}} |
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==Knights Hospitaller== |
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{{main article|Hospitaller colonization of the Americas}} |
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[[File:Giovanni Paolo Lascaris di Ventimiglia e Castellar.jpg|thumb|250px|Giovanni Paolo Lascaris]] |
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Giovanni Paolo Lascaris, Italian nobleman and Grand Master of the [[Knights Hospitaller]] of [[SMOM|Malta]] was interested in colonial affairs and in 1651 bought the island of [[Saint Kitts|Saint-Christophe]], along with the dependent islands of [[Saint Croix]], [[Saint Barthélemy]], and [[Saint Martin]], from the failing [[Compagnie des Îles de l'Amérique]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Dubé |first=Jean-Claude |date=2005 |translator=Elizabeth Rapley |title=The Chevalier de Montmagny: First Governor of New France |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GKf5fiJHcIwC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false |deadurl= |location=Ottawa |publisher=University of Ottawa Press |isbn=0-7766-0559-3 |archiveurl= |archivedate= |accessdate=11 April 2014 |pages=263–287 }}</ref> The Knights' ambassador to the French court, [[w:fr:Jacques de Souvré|Jacques de Souvré]], signed the agreement.<ref>{{cite book |last=Mifsud |first=A. |date=1914 |title=Knights Hospitallers of the Venerable Tongue of England in Malta |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yK80AQAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false |deadurl= |publisher=Valletta, Malta |isbn=0-404-17009-9 |archiveurl= |archivedate= |accessdate=11 April 2014 |pages=246 }}</ref> The Order's proprietary rights were confirmed in a treaty with France two years later: while the king would remain sovereign, the Knights would have complete temporal and spiritual jurisdiction on their islands. The only limits to their rule were that they could only send French knights to govern the islands, and upon the accession of each new King of France they were to provide a gold crown worth 1,000 écus.<ref>{{cite journal |last= Allen|first= David F. |date= 1990|title= The Social and Religious World of a Knight of Malta in the Caribbean, c. 1632-1660|url= http://mhs.eu.pn/cc/CC08.html|journal= Libraries and Culture|publisher= |volume= 25|issue= 2|pages= 147–157|others= Web page by Malta Historical Society.|accessdate=11 April 2014}}</ref> In 1665, after Lascaris's death, the Knights sold their islands back to France, ending their brief colonial project. |
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==References== |
==References== |
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Revision as of 08:57, 5 October 2017
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During the colonization of the Americas, Italy was divided between several city-states often in conflict between each other and therefore virtually every Italian state had no colonial ambitions. Nevertheless, Italian navigators from the dominant maritime republics of the Mediterranean played a key role in ushering the Age of Discovery and the European colonization of the Americas. The most notable among them were Cristopher Columbus who served for Spain, John Cabot for England, Giovanni Verrazzano for France and Amerigo Vespucci for Portugal. Furthermore, the State of the Church was involved in resolving disputes between competing colonial powers: an example of this is the Treaty of Tordesillas. In the 17th century two Italians were particularly interested in colonial affairs: Ferdinando I de' Medici for Tuscany and Giovanni Paolo Lascaris for the Knights of Malta.
Thornton expedition
The Thornton expedition was a 1608 Tuscan expedition under Captain Robert Thornton, an Englishman, sent by Ferdinando I of Tuscany to explore northern Brazil and the Amazon River and prepare for the establishment of a settlement in northern coastal South America, which would serve as a base to export Brazilian wood to Renaissance Italy. The area that Thornton considered as a possible site of a Tuscan colony now lies in modern French Guyana, near Cayenne,[1] which would be colonised by France in 1630. [2]
The Amazon region had been previously visited by numerous European explorers and traders over the course of the preceding century. Robert Harcourt sailed for Guiana in 1608, establishing an English base on the Wiapoco River which lasted a few years.[3] William Davies, a surgeon on the Thornton expedition noted that they expected to find the Amazon by sailing south from the West Indies until "...you shall see the Sea change to a ruddie colour, the water shall grow fresh, by these signes you may run boldly your course [sic]."[4]
Sailing from Leghorn in September 1608, Thornton returned to the same port in the end of June 1609, reportedly completing the voyage without losing a man.[5] He brought back with him to Tuscany five or six natives, most of whom died of small-pox. Only one lived on at the Medici court for several years, and learned to speak Tuscan.[5] The natives often talked about the richness and fertility of their native land, speaking of a country rich in silver and gold.[5] Thornton himself corroborated these reports, and asserted that the country was rich in rosewood, wild sugar canes, white pepper, balsam, cotton and many other kinds of merchandise which would form an abundant commerce for the Tuscans.[5]
However, once back in Tuscany, Thornton found that Ferdinando I had died, and that his successor Cosimo II was uninterested in the establishment of a colony. Thornton was ready to sail back to the area between the rivers Orinoco and Amazon in the summer of 1609 with Italian settlers from Livorno and Lucca, but the project was scrapped.[6]
In the first years of the 17th century Ferdinando I of Tuscany evaluated the possibility of a colony in Brasil […] Ferdinando gave captain Thornton a caravelle and a tartane [for an expedition in 1608] […] Thornton sailed for one year: he reached Guyana and Brasil, exploring the Amazon and Orinoco rivers. […] In July 1609 he was back in Leghorn, but in February of that year the Grand Duke died and in Florence nobody [after him] was still thinking about establishing an overseas colony.
— Matteo Sanfilippo[7]
Knights Hospitaller
Giovanni Paolo Lascaris, Italian nobleman and Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller of Malta was interested in colonial affairs and in 1651 bought the island of Saint-Christophe, along with the dependent islands of Saint Croix, Saint Barthélemy, and Saint Martin, from the failing Compagnie des Îles de l'Amérique.[8] The Knights' ambassador to the French court, Jacques de Souvré, signed the agreement.[9] The Order's proprietary rights were confirmed in a treaty with France two years later: while the king would remain sovereign, the Knights would have complete temporal and spiritual jurisdiction on their islands. The only limits to their rule were that they could only send French knights to govern the islands, and upon the accession of each new King of France they were to provide a gold crown worth 1,000 écus.[10] In 1665, after Lascaris's death, the Knights sold their islands back to France, ending their brief colonial project.
References
- ^ Ridolfi, R. Pensieri medicei di colonizzare il Brasile p. 14
- ^ Ridolfi, R. Pensieri medicei di colonizzare il Brasile, in «Il Veltro», Roma, luglio-agosto 1962, pp. 1-18
- ^ Hakluytus posthumus or Purchas His Pilgrimes, Samuel Purchas, volume xvi, 1625, reprinted 1906
- ^ Amazon Sweet Sea, Nigel J. H. Smith, University of Texas Press, 2002
- ^ a b c d John Temple Leader, Life of Sir Robert Dudley, Earl of Warwick and Duke of Northumberland : Illustrated with letters and documents from original sources, collected by the author, and hitherto inedited (1895)
- ^ Ridolfi, R. Pensieri medicei di colonizzare il Brasile, in «Il Veltro», Roma, luglio-agosto 1962, p. 12
- ^ Matteo Sanfilippo (2008-06-23). "Gli italiani in Brasile" (in Italian). Archivio Storico dell'Emigrazione Italiana. Retrieved 28 March 2010.
Nei primi anni del Seicento Ferdinando I di Toscana ...valuta la possibilità di una colonia brasiliana...Ferdinando fa armare una caravella e una tartana nel porto di Livorno e le affida al capitano Thornton...Thornton naviga per quasi un anno: approda in Guyana e in Brasile, esplora il Rio delle Amazzoni e l'Orinoco, rientra facendo tappa alla Caienna e a Trinidad. Il 12 luglio 1609 è di nuovo a Livorno, ma...il 7 febbraio di quell'anno il granduca è morto e a Firenze non si pensa più alla possibilità di fondare una colonia...oltreoceano.
- ^ Dubé, Jean-Claude (2005). The Chevalier de Montmagny: First Governor of New France. Translated by Elizabeth Rapley. Ottawa: University of Ottawa Press. pp. 263–287. ISBN 0-7766-0559-3. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
{{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|deadurl=(help) - ^ Mifsud, A. (1914). Knights Hospitallers of the Venerable Tongue of England in Malta. Valletta, Malta. p. 246. ISBN 0-404-17009-9. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
{{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|deadurl=(help) - ^ Allen, David F. (1990). "The Social and Religious World of a Knight of Malta in the Caribbean, c. 1632-1660". Libraries and Culture. 25 (2). Web page by Malta Historical Society.: 147–157. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
Bibliography
- Franzina, Emilio. Storia dell'emigrazione italiana. Donzelli Editore. Roma, 2002 ISBN 88-7989-719-5
- Ridolfi, R. Pensieri medicei di colonizzare il Brasile, in «Il Veltro» (luglio-agosto 1962). Roma, 1962
- Sanfilippo, Matteo. Gli Italiani in Brasile. Edizioni Sette Citta'. Viterbo, 2008