The well-known criminal authority Salvatore Giuliano lived to only 27 years of age. But even this time was enough for him to become famous throughout Italy and become a legendary person in Sicily. How did his path to success begin? What was the fate of Salvatore Giuliano? The answer to these and other questions can be found in our material.
Childhood and youth
Giuliano Salvatore was born on November 16, 1922 in the small town of Montelepre, which is located in the suburbs of Palermo. A boy was born in a large family. Since the boy’s relatives lived in poverty, from the age of 13 he was forced to work hard. Initially, he was engaged in the processing of land that belonged to the family. Then he became a road builder and master of repairing telephone communications.
In 1943, Salvatore Giuliano, whose biography is considered in our article, received a message about conscription. However, soon the territory of Sicily came under the control of the Anglo-American authorities, after the landing of the Allied army on the island. Locals acutely felt a lack of provisions. The population began to starve. To help family and friends, young Salvatore Giuliano began to smuggle. The guy organized an illegal import of wheat supplies to Sicily, which allowed to save many lives of the inhabitants of the island.
In the fall of 1943, during another smuggling operation, Giuliano Salvatore had to defend her interests in a shootout with the police. During the battle with law enforcement officials, he took the life of a carabiner. This led to the fact that the newly made national hero was forced to leave his native city and hide in the mountains.
Giuliano Salvatore - Bandit
Winter came, and the Carabinieri decided to lure the young smuggler out of his shelter. To this end, the authorities announced the arrest of Father Giuliano, as well as several of his close friends. Salvatore did not stand aside. The guy carried out an operation to release loved ones from prison, after which people began to voluntarily go to his brigade. Basically, the squad of the people's avenger was formed from former criminals, homeless people and deserters, in other words, the most desperate inhabitants of Sicily.
Salvatore Giuliano organized a rigorous drill for his comrades. Soon the gang of criminals turned into a well-organized military detachment. Equipping the companions with military equipment, the self-proclaimed commander set about organizing predatory operations aimed at devastating the estates of wealthy landowners and aristocrats loyal to power. Salvatore generously shared the benefits between the Sicilian poor who supported his initiatives.
Soon the detachment of the young commander turned into an invincible force, since the Carabinieri simply did not have the opportunity to catch all the robbers. The poor and disadvantaged peasants were happy to hide the bandits, and Giuliano was perceived by them as the savior of the inhabitants of Sicily from hunger. The leader of the robbers took advantage of the favorable mood in society and began to promote ideas regarding the formation of the island as an independent territory. From that moment on, local separatists began to call Salvatore Giuliano nothing more than a colonel in the rebel army.
Hit on reputation
In the spring of 1947, peasants gathered in the town of Ginestri to celebrate the May holidays. Smartly dressed people took to the streets to have fun with their relatives, as well as enjoy freedom after the fall of the fascist regime in Italy.
In turn, the Giuliano team also planned to be at a mass event. Their goal was to capture a man named Girolamo Lee Causi, a representative of the Sicilian communist movement, whose ideas aroused discontent among the separatists. However, as soon as the figure of the leader of the peasant party rose from the sea of red flags, several shots rang out in the crowd. A mass skirmish began, in which more than a dozen civilians died. Among them were women and children. The responsibility for the deed was placed on Giuliano, although he assured of personal involvement in the tragedy. Be that as it may, the incident dealt a serious blow to Salvatore's reputation.
Inglorious demise of a hero
After the events in Ginestra, the separatist leader fell out of favor not only with the authorities and a substantial part of the population of Sicily, but also with the local mafia. Information on the whereabouts of gang members began to be massively provided to carabinieri. For the capture of Salvatore set a decent reward. The rebel himself for a long time managed to cunningly break out of the police raids.
The finale for Giuliano was a betrayal by a cousin. The latter helped the authorities to follow his trail and trap him in ambush. It happened on a July 1950 morning in the town of Castelvetrani. According to the official version, Salvatore was shot dead by carabinieri in a battle. However, as later revealed by a journalistic investigation, the national hero was killed by former associates.
Giuliano in literature and cinema
In 1984, the world saw the novel of the famous Italian writer Mario Puzo called "Sicilian". It is easy to guess that the figure of the famous leader of the separatist movement became the protagonist of the literary creation, which is considered a continuation of The Godfather.
In 1962, the biographical film Salvatore Giuliano, directed by Francesco Rosi, was released on wide screens. Then, in 1987, the Sicilian film, based on the novel of the same name by Mario Puzo, was presented to the audience. In the image of "Italian Robin Hood," the famous American actor Christopher Lambert performed here.