Sicilian Mafia History: Key Groups and Events

• Organized Criminal Group: A structured group of three or more people acting over time to commit serious crimes for financial or material gain as defined in the Palermo Convention (2000).
• Gabbellotto: Wealthy land tenants in Sicily who leased land from aristocrats, often subletting or running farms through partnerships, and many were associated with or part of the Mafia.

Important Events and Dates

• Italy United (1861): Formation of the Kingdom of Italy shifted land control and power dynamics in Sicily.
• Fasci Siciliani Movement & Bernardino Verro's Political Activity (1893): Advocated for peasants' rights, with Bernardino Verro organizing landless workers.
• Murder of Bernardino Verro (1915): Socialist leader opposing Mafia control was assassinated.
• Mori as Sicily’s Prefect (1924-1928): Cesare Mori weakened the Mafia under Mussolini’s fascist government but did not eliminate it.
• Fall of Fascism in Italy (1943): Mafia influence resurged.
• End of World War II (1945): Post-war instability allowed the Mafia to regain power.
• Occupation of Land by Landless Peasants (1944): The Ministry of Agriculture, under Fausto Gullo, legalized the occupation of abandoned lands.
• Portella della Ginestra Massacre (May 1, 1947): Salvatore Giuliano led a massacre targeting leftist activists advocating for land reforms.
• The Sack of Palermo (1950s-1960s): Rapid urban expansion, corruption, and Mafia-controlled construction boom occurred under Vito Ciancimino and Salvo Lima.
• First Mafia War (1962-1963): Conflict between the Greco and La Barbera families over heroin shipments, ending in the Ciaculli Massacre (1963), killing seven police officers.
• Antimafia Parliamentary Commission (1963-1976): First official government effort to combat the Mafia, increasing awareness but with limited immediate results.
• Catanzaro Trial (1965-1968): One of the first major Mafia trials, but Italy lacked strong anti-Mafia laws.
• Murder of Michele Cavataio (1969 - Viale Lazio Massacre): Cavataio, accused of instigating the First Mafia War, was killed.
• Mattanza (1981-1983): A brutal Mafia war led to hundreds of deaths.
• Years of Lead (1969-1980): Period of political terrorism and Mafia-related violence in Italy.
• Article 416-bis (1982): Criminalized Mafia membership.
• Law 646/1982 (Rognoni-La Torre Law): Allowed the confiscation of Mafia assets.
• United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (2000 - Palermo Convention): A global effort to combat organized crime.

Key Figures

• Cesare Mori: Fascist-era prefect of Sicily who led anti-Mafia crackdowns in the 1920s.
• Carlo Alberto dalla Chiesa: A general who fought against the Mafia and was assassinated in 1982.
• Pio La Torre: Proposed laws to combat Mafia influence; assassinated in 1982.
• Piersanti Mattarella: Anti-Mafia politician, murdered in 1980.
• Lucky Luciano: Sicilian-American Mafia boss who played a key role in the international drug trade.
• Paul Kelly: U.S.-based organized crime leader with Sicilian roots.
• Salvatore Giuliano: Bandit involved in the Portella della Ginestra Massacre.
• Vito Ciancimino & Salvo Lima: Politicians deeply tied to Mafia-controlled urban development in Palermo.
• Tommaso Buscetta: Mafia boss turned informant, whose testimony helped convict many Mafia members.
• Michele Cavataio: Alleged instigator of the First Mafia War; killed in the Viale Lazio Massacre.
• Ignazio & Antonino Salvo (The Salvo Cousins): Controlled tax collection in Palermo; deeply involved with the Mafia.
• Peppino Impastato: Anti-Mafia activist and journalist murdered in 1978.

Processes and Power Shifts

• Pre-1861 (Bourbon Rule in Sicily): Aristocrats owned land but delegated control to gabbellotti.
• The new Italian state struggled to control Sicily following the Unification of Italy in 1861.
• Former aristocratic land was expropriated and bought by the gabbellotti, relying on violence and bandit groups, marking the Mafia's emergence.
• Early Fascist Period (1920s-1930s): Mori’s crackdown weakened Mafia influence temporarily.
• Post-WWII: The Mafia regained strength due to weakened state control.
• First Antimafia Efforts (1963-1980s): The government recognized Mafia as a national issue but struggled with enforcement.
• Article 416-bis (1982): Defined and criminalized Mafia membership.
• Confiscation of Mafia Assets (Rognoni-La Torre Law, 1982): Allowed the government to seize Mafia property.