Angelo Brunetti (), better known as Ciceruacchio, was a Roman popular leader who participated in the

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Ki ...

of 1849. Born in the

Campo Marzio Campo Marzio is the 4th ''rione'' of Rome, identified by the initials R. IV. It belongs to the Municipio I and covers a smaller section of the area of the ancient ''Campus Martius''. The logo of this rione is a silver crescent on a blue backgrou ...

district of Rome, he owned a small carting business and became involved with the movement for the political unification of Italy. Having risen to a prominent position in Roman politics after the accession of Pope Pius IX, he supported the overthrow of the pope's government and the proclamation of the Republic. After the Republic's defeat by the French, Brunetti was captured and executed by the army of the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence ...

Name

Brunetti was known by the nickname Ciceruacchio. Writing in the ''

Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani The ''Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani'' ( en, Biographical Dictionary of the Italians) is a biographical dictionary published by the Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana, started in 1925 and completed in 2020. It includes about 40,000 biograp ...

'', the historian Maria Luisa Trebiliani gives two possible explanations for the name: 1) the Roman statesman and orator

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the esta ...

, to whose eloquence Brunetti was compared, or 2) a puerile term of endearment derived from the Italian ('chubby') and the Romanesco ('piece').

Background

Angelo Brunetti was born on 27 September 1800 into a working-class family in the

district of Rome. His parents were Lorenzo Brunetti, a

farrier A farrier is a specialist in equine hoof care, including the trimming and balancing of horses' hooves and the placing of shoes on their hooves, if necessary. A farrier combines some blacksmith's skills (fabricating, adapting, and adj ...

, and Cecilia Fiorini. After receiving a simple education, Brunetti started working as a cart driver, transporting wine from the Roman Castles to the city. In 1820, he married Annetta Cimarra, a woman from his home district; they had two sons, Luigi and Lorenzo. In the following two decades, he greatly expanded the size of his transport business, and begun delivering

hay Hay is grass, legumes, or other herbaceous plants that have been cut and dried to be stored for use as animal fodder, either for large grazing animals raised as livestock, such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep, or for smaller domesticat ...

and

cereals A cereal is any grass cultivated for the edible components of its grain (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis), composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran. Cereal grain crops are grown in greater quantities and provide more food ...

to customers including the

Ospedale di Santo Spirito in Sassia The Hospital of the Holy Spirit ( it, L'Ospedale di Santo Spirito in Sassia) is the oldest hospital in Europe, located in Rome, Italy. It now serves as a convention center. The complex lies in rione Borgo, east of Vatican City and next to the mo ...

. His business afforded the family a moderate level of comfort.

Involvement in politics

Having acquired considerable local influence through his business activities, Brunetti seems to have been introduced to politics by the writer and the notary , who in 1827 led him to join the

Carbonari The Carbonari () was an informal network of secret revolutionary societies active in Italy from about 1800 to 1831. The Italian Carbonari may have further influenced other revolutionary groups in France, Portugal, Spain, Brazil, Uruguay and Ru ...

, a revolutionary group advocating for the political unification of Italy. In 1835, encouraged by the Italian nationalist , he became a member of

Young Italy Young Italy ( it, La Giovine Italia) was an Italian political movement founded in 1831 by Giuseppe Mazzini. After a few months of leaving Italy, in June 1831, Mazzini wrote a letter to King Charles Albert of Sardinia, in which he asked him to uni ...

, a unification movement led by the activist

Giuseppe Mazzini Giuseppe Mazzini (, , ; 22 June 1805 – 10 March 1872) was an Italian politician, journalist, and activist for the unification of Italy (Risorgimento) and spearhead of the Italian revolutionary movement. His efforts helped bring about the in ...

. In 1837, he came under police surveillance because of his involvement in politics. In 1846, the accession of Pope Pius IX raised hopes for

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

reforms within the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; it, Stato Pontificio, ), officially the State of the Church ( it, Stato della Chiesa, ; la, Status Ecclesiasticus;), were a series of territories in the Italian Peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope fro ...

. Brunetti organised the Roman public to gather in mass rallies in honour of the new pope. Through his leadership of these events, he became one of the city's most influential politicians, inspiring imitators such as the Neapolitan Michele Viscuso. Visiting Rome during this time, the Piedmontese politician Massimo d'Azeglio described Brunetti thus: " eis Rome's first citizen. He exhorts, he pontificates, he keeps the peace."

Roman Republic

In the context of the

Revolutions of 1848 The Revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the Springtime of the Peoples or the Springtime of Nations, were a series of political upheavals throughout Europe starting in 1848. It remains the most widespread revolutionary wave in Europea ...

, the government of Pius IX came under pressure to enact liberal reforms. As the pope resisted the popular demands for change, the leaders of the reform movement began to antagonise him. Initially, Brunetti isolated himself by his continued support of Pius, but gradually came to embrace the increasingly radicalised opposition. In November 1848,

Pellegrino Rossi Pellegrino Luigi Odoardo Rossi (13 July 1787 – 15 November 1848) was an Italian economist, politician and jurist. He was an important figure of the July Monarchy in France, and the minister of justice in the government of the Papal States, unde ...

, the head of the pope's government, was assassinated. Brunetti was thought to be personally implicated, while his son Luigi was suspected to have been the assassin. After Rossi's death, Pius IX fled to the Neapolitan town of Gaeta. In February 1849, while the pope was exiled, the Roman opposition replaced their

theocratic Theocracy is a form of government in which one or more deities are recognized as supreme ruling authorities, giving divine guidance to human intermediaries who manage the government's daily affairs. Etymology The word theocracy originates fr ...

government with a democratic one, the

. Brunetti occupied a less prominent role during this period. However, he participated in the defence of the city against a French assault under

Charles Oudinot Lieutenant-General Charles Nicolas Victor Oudinot, 2nd Duc de Reggio (3 November 1791 in Bar-le-Duc – 7 June 1863 in Bar-le-Duc), the eldest son of Napoleon I's marshal Nicolas Oudinot and Charlotte Derlin, also made a military career. He serve ...

. When the city was captured by the French, Brunetti accompanied Giuseppe Garibaldi, the military leader of the Republican forces, on his northward retreat towards

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...

Death

On 9 August 1849, Brunetti, his sons, and a small group of Republicans were captured by troops of the

before crossing into Venetian territory. Without a trial, they were executed on the next day for their involvement in the Roman Republic by a

firing squad Execution by firing squad, in the past sometimes called fusillading (from the French ''fusil'', rifle), is a method of capital punishment, particularly common in the military and in times of war. Some reasons for its use are that firearms are ...

in the town of .

Reception

Luigi Magni Luigi Magni (21 March 1928 – 27 October 2013) was an Italian screenwriter and film director. Life and career Born in Rome, Magni started his career as a screenwriter, in 1956, with '' Tempo di villeggiatura''. In 1968 he collaborated w ...

's film ''

In the Name of the Sovereign People ''In the Name of the Sovereign People'' ( it, In nome del popolo sovrano) is a 1990 Italian historical comedy-drama film written and directed by Luigi Magni. It won the David di Donatello for best costumes. Plot Rome, Papal States, 1849. P ...

'' (1990), Ciceruacchio is played by the Italian actor

Nino Manfredi Saturnino "Nino" Manfredi (22 March 1921 – 4 June 2004) was an Italian actor, voice actor, director, screenwriter, playwright, comedian, singer, author, radio personality and television presenter. He was one of the most prominent Italian a ...

References

Bibliography

* * {{Authority control 1800 births 1849 deaths Carbonari Politicians from Rome Italian independence activists Italian nationalists People of the Revolutions of 1848 People executed by Austria by firing squad