Origins Corsicans have, for most of their history under French rule, felt alienated from the French mainland due to geography, language, and customs. From the introduction of French rule, Corsican government institutions had largely been run by small, local families of politicians called “clans”. The early French governments tolerated the clans, preferring to leave Corsica’s governance to the Corsicans. French officials in Corsica like the
prefect were sidelined on the island, and the goal of the prefect was to stay out of Corsican politics most of the time, only providing insight or guidelines to the French government in
Paris. Under Napoleon III, The French cabinet had begun a policy of appointing a Corsican deputy minister, and for most of the
French Third Republic that minister was
Emmanuel Arène. Known to the locals as “u re Manuele” (the king Emmanuel), who attempted to create a system of clanism where Corsican politicians would be more open to French authority. Regardless of his attempt, real power in Corsica remained with the local Conseil Général and the mayors, who often acted in their own interests and were hostile, sometimes even physically violent, to French authorities such as the prefect and the deputies. In
Bastia, tens of thousands of Corsicans met and swore the now infamous Oath of Bastia, where they declared: “Before the world, with all our soul, on our glories, on our graves, on our cradles, we swear to live and die French”. After the outbreak of
World War II, many Corsicans saw the war with Germany on the mainland as mostly irrelevant, fearing a possible Italian invasion more than a German one. Many Corsicans, despite the wish to remain French, largely still didn’t feel a national connection to mainland France due to a separate linguistic, historical, and cultural identity. Upon the
fall of France in 1940, the new
Vichy government made defending Corsica from the Italian threat a priority. Despite the insistence of French unity by Corsican citizens, many were only supportive of a French government to reject Italian sovereignty. Corsican prefect Paul Balley stated: “a Corsican who claims to be French is demonstrating not so much loyalty to France as rejection of Italy”. The M29N was the first militant base of Corsican separatism. It was founded by Corsican communists who were sympathetic to the Algerian
National Liberation Front (Front de Libération National, FLN) and led by
Achille de Susini, who had spent many years rallying support for the FLN amongst Corsican separatists. It gained traction quickly due to many Corsican separatists feeling connected to Algerian colonial struggle as a “colonized peoples”. The GP formed in 1974, beginning a series of actions in armed actions in Bastia in March of that year. The declared objectives of the GP were vague, however they were vaguely separatist. In the 1975 “Pentecost Manifesto” published by the GP and the FPCL, GP officials are especially critical of
Edmond Simeoni’s on-and-off militarism as leader of the ARC. This sparked criticism of Simeoni within the ARC itself, with ARC member and future FLNC leader
Pierre Poggioli stating: “Choose the fishing rod of the rifle, Edmond!” After the August 1975 Aleria standoff, the French authorities strengthened their attempts to delegitimize and crack down on the growing nationalist movement. This caused nationalists to strengthen their campaigns as a response, and the FPCL and GP had begun a joint armed campaign by the end of 1975.
Foundation The FLNC detailed the formal separation from the
autonomist movement at Casabianca, declaring the movement to be supporting “
neo-colonialism”, stating that institutions of an autonomous Corsica will be French in all but name. The FLNC also takes a stance against the overconscription of Corsicans in the French army, claiming the French state is “using [the Corsicans] as cannon fodder”. They also denounce any collaboration with the French Communist Party, claiming the party to have betrayed Marxist principles and “serving the interests of the colonialist state”. Many of the subjects discussed at this meeting were published a year later into the manifesto “a libertà o a morte” (“Liberty or Death”). Many dissidents from the APC joined the creation of the FLNC as well, notably
Alain Orsoni,
Pierre Poggioli, and
Jean-Guy Talamoni, though the latter has denied any involvement within the FLNC. During and after the meeting,
a series of 21 bomb attacks occurred throughout Corsica. In
Ajaccio (4 attacks),
Bastia (2 attacks),
Corte (3 attacks),
Francardo (1 attack),
Ghisonaccia (3 attacks),
Porto-Vecchio (2 attacks),
Sartène (1 attack),
Linguizzetta (1 attack),
Biguglia (1 attack), and
Calenzana (1 attack), large bomb attacks were all carried out.
Marseille (1 attack) and
Nice (1 attack) on the french mainland also suffered bomb attacks. An anonymous correspondent called into a
Corse-Matin agency, and subsequently delivered a press release to be printed into the newspaper the next morning. A manifesto appeared that morning as well, found printed on leaflets and put into mailboxes, thrown onto streets, taped or stapled onto walls, and in many other places. These demands all concluded the removal of the French state, which they refer to as “oppressive” and “colonialist”, and replacement of it with a democratic Corsican republic with
marxist ideals would be the most beneficial option for the Corsican people.
Early campaign The FLNC began a large-scale armed campaign after announcing their existence, officially kickstarting the
Corsican conflict. These attacks typically targeted government agencies, though attacks on French nationals they declared to be “settlers” also occurred, though with less frequency. A large wave of public support to the FLNC came on 24 September 1976, when soldiers of the
French Foreign Legion shot and killed two Corsican shepherds in the town of
Bustanico. This caused residents of the nearby larger town of Corte to engage in mass protests which would soon become the first of many urban guerrilla theatres in the Corsican conflict. The FLNC began activities in the town soon after protests began, bombing the home of the foreign legion colonel in the Corte area on the same day as the murders in Bustanico. On 26 September, barricades were placed around Corte, and access to the town became limited. A French army general sent to Corte narrowly missed an assassination when FLNC gunmen shot at his car, wounding his driver. On 11 October, after weeks of protests and fighting, the Foreign Legion was pulled out of Corte in an attempt to make a temporary peace in the town. The growing influence and strength of the FLNC created a sense of unease in many French communities, most of whom were recent pied-noir arrivals from Algeria. Thus, many gathered around French colonel
Pierre Bertolini, a
Franco-Italian in charge of Foreign Legion actions in northern Corsica, and created the
New Action Front Against Independence and Autonomy (Front d’Action Nouvelle Contre l’Indépendance et l’Autonomie, FRANCIA) on 6 April 1977. FRANCIA is often described as a “
death squad” due to its extensive connections with the French military, with the French military even coordinating many of its attacks. Almost immediately, the FLNC and FRANCIA engaged in an armed conflict parallel to the one with the French government. With the strengthening of armed conflict, the FLNC began to carry out smaller attacks on the French mainland. A large attack in
Grenoble completely destroyed the
labour exchange in the city. This caused a change of strategy from the French police and military, resorting to a harshly criticized policy of trying to weed out FLNC leaders by arresting various Corsican activists, many of whom had nothing to do with the FLNC. This policy would continue throughout the Corsican conflict, and while it would occasionally result in the arrest of FLNC members or leaders, in many cases the arrested members were innocent of what they had been accused of. On 25 October 1979, more attacks in Paris occurred, including the bombing of an army outpost in
La Courneuve. On 6 January 1980, the “
Battle of Bastelica-Fesch” occurred, a major turning point of the Corsican conflict. Three FRANCIA members, commanded by FRANCIA leader and French army commander Pierre Bertolini, entered the town of
Bastelica in an attempt to assassinate
UPC leader
Marcel Lorenzoni. Lorenzoni was made aware of this in advance, and alerted his party. The FLNC quickly established a column called the “Bastelica Nationalist Collective”, and “imprisoned” the FRANCIA members. Some members of the collective transported them to the Fesch hotel in Ajaccio, while others stayed behind and fought with the incoming police forces. After six days, the FLNC surrendered the hotel and were driven out of Bastelica. After Bastelica, the FLNC issued the “white paper”, in which it harkened back to the speech delivered in court by Mathieu Filidori, claiming to represent the Corsican people and calling for legitimacy and negotiations with the French government. On 14 May 1980, an FLNC commando led by then Paris brigade leader
Alain Orsoni committed an attack targeting gendarmes guarding the Iranian embassy, causing four injuries. This led to Orsoni’s arrest 3 months later.
Defferre Agreements On 3 April 1981, presidential candidate
François Mitterand visited Corsica, where he announced his support for Corsican autonomy and a peaceful agreement with the FLNC. After the FLNC’s two governing bodies, the cunsigliu and the ghjunta, held a vote on 1 April, the FLNC announced an unlimited truce to support Mitterand’s campaign on the same day as his visit. and Orsoni was released on 2 March 1982. Both were released alongside a large number of other FLNC prisoners. out of a window.In October 1981, one of the FLNC’s major demands were met: the reopening of the
University of Corsica, closed since the arrival of French troops since 1768. A university council was established on 23 October, and on 26 October the university officially reopened. On 17 June 1983,
Guy Orsoni, brigade leader for
Porto-Vecchio and brother of
Alain Orsoni, was kidnapped by members of the Valinco mafia with alleged French support. This caused a wave of protests in Corsica as well as a mobilization of the FLNC to destroy the Valinco mafia. Felix Rosso, a major member of Valinco, was shot and killed by an FLNC commando on 10 September. By the end of 1983, Valinco had been under sharp decline, and their leader, Jean-Marc Leccia, was arrested in
Miami,
Florida by American police. On 1 January 1984, the
Corsican Workers’ Trade Union (Sindicatu di i Travagliadori Corsi, STC) was formed as a labour extension of the FLNC. This allowed the FLNC to involve itself in the labour struggle as well as the political struggle. Throughout 1983 and 1984, a large number of FLNC members and Corsican nationalist activists were arrested, though by this time the FLNC had enough popular support to recruit people to fill in lost positions. However, a major loss came on 9 January 1984 when
Stefanu Cardi, brigade leader in the south, was killed in
Coti-Chiavari by a bomb which detonated prematurely. A series of commemorations were held, some of which resulted in clashes with French authorities. On 24 January 1985, the FLNC enters conflict with the successors of FRANCIA,
Corse Française Républicaine (CFR). CFR militants storm the grounds of the University of Corsica, armed to the teeth. In response, the FLNC began to engage CFR members in armed conflict at the university grounds, as well as assassinating their leader, Jean Depuy. By February, the conflict had ended and the CFR had disbanded. On 16 July 1985, Members of the FLNC commando involved in the Ajaccio prison attack are all sentenced to heavy amounts of prison time. The commando leader, Pierre Albertini, issued a statement in court detailing the Corsican national liberation struggle. In early 1986, the FLNC and its political wing, the MCA, begin campaigning for the elections. Many nationalists in the FLNC, notably a faction
Maoists who do not believe in electoralism, The former members of the MCA are grouped into ACN, and the three elected officials maintain their seats in the new election. On 15 November 1987, Ghjuvan’Battista Acquaviva, an FLNC brigade leader, is shot dead by French police. This begins a process of mourning similar to the one after the death of Stefanu Cardi in 1984. Several thousand people attend his funeral in
L’Île Rousse. On 19 December, the FLNC bombed the home of Colon Roussel, the gendarme who shot Acquaviva. On 22 April 1988, the FLNC places a carbomb on the main road outside of Ajaccio airport. The bomb was remotely detonated as a gendarme car drove past it. 5 gendarmes were wounded, one seriously. This was followed by a press release demanding the release of FLNC prisoners. This was one of the many factors leading to the 1988 ceasefire and renewal of negotiations.
Dissident Campaign On 31 May 1988, after the
reelection of François Mitterrand, the FLNC declared another ceasefire, urging negotiations. Many members of the FLNC’s congress disagreed with this action, and began to speak out against the decision. These members rallied around hyper-militarist figures within the FLNC such as
François Santoni, who had disrespected ceasefire agreements before during the Defferre agreements. By 1989, tensions in Corsica were beginning to boil. In March,
civil servants began a strike over the high cost of living on the island. This lasts until late April. At the same time, the FLNC began to implode as brigade leaders withdrew from the congress, creating independent brigades. One of these brigades attempts to take the prefect of the island hostage on 18 April 1989, but fails. A dissident leader in Ajaccio was shot dead by two armed men from the FLNC. What followed was a race between what remained of the FLNC and the dissidents for arms, occupied territory, and influence. In January 1990, the last agreements with the government were voted on and passed.
Pierre Joxe, the new interior minister under Mitterrand, “scolded” the dissidents, and proposed plans for the development of the town of Corte, Corsican language rights, and tourism. In September 1990, a third faction appears, the
Corsican National Liberation Army (Armata di Liberazione Naziunale di a Corsica, ALNC). The ALNC would only exist for a month before being reattached to the FLNC on 7 October 1990. During its existence, they mainly bombed tourist camps, committing a total of 12 claimed attacks. On 6 October 1990, a fourth and much larger faction appeared called
Resistenza. Resistenza was formed as an armed wing for the
Corsican National Alliance, a political party founded by former FLNC leader Pierre Poggioli. On 17 October 1990, the FLNC officially became the
FLNC-Canal Habituel (Canale Abituale, FLNC-CA) after Alain Orsoni dissolved the congress and created his own political wing, the
Movement for Self-Determination (Muvimentu per l’Autodeterminazione, MPA). The dissident brigades would unite on 25 November 1990, invading the town of
Borgo and proclaiming the creation of the
FLNC-Canal Historique (Canale Storicu, FLNC-CS). == Structure ==