Ersa () is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

of the

Haute-Corse Haute-Corse (; co, Corsica suprana , or ; en, Upper Corsica) is (as of 2022) an administrative department of France, consisting of the northern part of the island of Corsica. The corresponding departmental territorial collectivity merged wi ...

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

on the island of

Corsica Corsica ( , Upper , Southern ; it, Corsica; ; french: Corse ; lij, Còrsega; sc, Còssiga) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of ...

Geography

Ersa is the northernmost commune of Corsica. It extends from

Centuri Centuri, formerly known as Allied Leisure, was an American arcade game manufacturer. They were based in Hialeah, Florida, and were one of the top six suppliers of coin-operated arcade video game machinery in the United States during the early 198 ...

to the West, to

Rogliano Rogliano is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Cosenza in the Calabria region of southern Italy. It's located in the Savuto Valley. It was mostly destroyed in a violent earthquake in 1638. The town is from Cosenza. Monuments and place ...

to the East. Ersa is covered with shrubs and arid summits. The coast, which is carved to the West by the Cape Grossu ( Cape Grosso) and the Punta of Corno of Becco, has beaches of sand and pebbles. The commune is watered by the streams Acqua Tignese and Granaghjulu on its undulating slopes of the Mount Maghjore (364 m).

History

The ancient Latin name of Ersa is Arsia. Human occupation predated Roman conquest. The commune experienced

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

occupation during 1555 to 1571. In 1592 the

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( lij, Repúbrica de Zêna ; it, Repubblica di Genova; la, Res Publica Ianuensis) was a medieval and early modern maritime republic from the 11th century to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast. During the Lat ...

annexed Ersa, which allied itself to

Pasquale Paoli Filippo Antonio Pasquale de' Paoli (; french: link=no, Pascal Paoli; 6 April 1725 – 5 February 1807) was a Corsican patriot, statesman, and military leader who was at the forefront of resistance movements against the Genoese and later ...

in 1757. Until the 17th century, the Cape Corse was the target of frequent incursions of barbaric pirates. When Corse joined France at the end of the 17th century there were 1130 inhabitants, highly involved in the cultivation of grapes for wine. Since then the population has dropped to about 135 inhabitants.

Villages

The villages of the commune of Ersa lie between the two summits. They are connected by the departmental route D80. * 'Rota' * 'Boticella' - this dominant village is grouped of the chapel Saint Jean-Baptiste, the Moulin Mattei is located nearby; * 'Cucincu' - in the small hamlet discovers itself the chapel Saint-Peters * 'Granaghjulu' - the mansions are perched and the lanes compact - the church Saint Andrew and its steeple are historic monuments. * 'Guadellu'- the vast church Saint Andrew, today ruined, is the intermediate of the chapel of confraternity Santa-Croce. * 'Gualdu' - this hamlet in the middle of Piazza raises itself to a square tower and the chapel Sainte- Anne * 'Piazza': Chief town—an ancient convent of Capucins dating to the 17th century and sheltering the town hall, the school and the room of functions - the ancient church of the convent, Santa-Maria-Assunta, is today a parish - with the likewise chapel Saint-Antonie * 'Poghju'- one discovers here a

round tower A fortified tower (also defensive tower or castle tower or, in context, just tower) is one of the defensive structures used in fortifications, such as castles, along with curtain walls. Castle towers can have a variety of different shapes and ful ...

, hence the chapels Saint-Joseph and Saint-Roch * 'Suertu'- this village abandon to the ? San Nicolau is always dominated by the ruined chapel of the same name. The ancient small port of Barcaghju, situated at the rear of the bay, near to the mouth of river Acqua Tignose, offers a panorama of the island of

Giraglia Giraglia is a French island at the northern tip of Corsica in the Mediterranean Sea, known for its powerful lighthouse''ll porticciolo di Barcaggio è di fronte all'isola della Giraglia, dove si trova uno dei più potenti fari del Mediterraneo.'' ...

. It occupies the location of a pre-Roman village. Nearby is a chapel dedicated to Saint Peter and to the south is the wrecked chapel of Saint-Lucie. Its beach has a large sand-dune. Near the commune of Rogliano, is the Genoese tower of Agnello, framing on the headland of Cape Agnello. The second sea-front, Tollare, at the mouth of the River Granaghjulu, extends its ancient mansions around that of its chapel Saint-Anne and its round Genoese tower.

Population

Environment

The old

garbage dump A landfill site, also known as a tip, dump, rubbish dump, garbage dump, or dumping ground, is a site for the disposal of waste materials. Landfill is the oldest and most common form of waste disposal, although the systematic burial of the waste ...

has been removed. A new garbage recycling site has been created since 1 January 2009. 20

wind turbine A wind turbine is a device that converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. Hundreds of thousands of large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, now generate over 650 gigawatts of power, with 60 GW added each year. ...

s (aerogenerators) have been erected (13 on Ersa and 7 on the neighbouring Rogliano). Inquiries of the French justice were undertaken because money was stolen for private and political purpose.

References