L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, JULY 8, 2021 www.italoamericano.org 14 L'Italo-Americano T he Beati Paoli a r e , p e r h a p s , the most myste- rious citizens of P a l e r m o , s o mysterious we don't even know if they existed. For more than five centuries, their name and the legend surrounding it has perme- ated the streets of Sicily's capital, with some believ- ing not only that they exist- ed, but that they were the archetype of the island's infamous mafia. Others, however, relegate them to the realm of pure literature and lore. Where is the truth? And why the fascination with this secretive organization, rooted in the baroque past of beautiful Palermo? R e a l o r n o t , t h e c i t y embraced the Beati Paoli with warmth, as shown by the large amount of streets and shops bearing their n a m e a r o u n d t o w n . B u t who were they and, most importantly, did they even exist? Their first attestation dates to the 18 th century, w h e n t h e M a r q u i s o f Villabianca publishes the Opuscoli Palermitani, or the Palermitan Pamphlets. Here, the nobleman col- l e c t e d o r a l t a l e s h e h a d learnt as a child about a secret sect that worked to protect the weak against i n j u s t i c e . I n d e e d , t h e M a r q u i s – f u l l n a m e , F r a n c e s c o M a r i a Emanuele Gaetani – was adamant the Beati Paoli was a sect founded in 1180, t h a t h a d b e e n a c t i n g i n secret since. Its name, he continued, was inspired by its members' devotion to San Francis of Paola, while t h e a d j e c t i v e b e a t i ( b l e s s e d ) w a s a d d e d because of their habit to w a n d e r f r o m c h u r c h t o church dressed like monks. During the night, however, t h e B e a t i P a o l i w o u l d cover their heads with dark hoods and, when needed, become vengeful: indeed, t h e y w e r e a l s o k n o w n locally as the vendicosi. B u t w h o w e r e t h e y ? W e l l , t r a d i t i o n s a y s t h e group was largely formed b y m e n f r o m t h e l o w e r classes who, masked and hidden by darkness, would take revenge against the injustice perpetrated by the rich against the poor and the weak of the city. As all sects and secret societies, the Beati Paoli had a secret meeting place, which could become, when needed, also a tribunal to decide about the fate of their enemies. According to tradition, they used to gather under the Mercato del Capo, in Palermo, in what used to be an ancient P u n i c n e c r o p o l i s t h a t developed, with galleries a n d s e c r e t t u n n e l s , b e t w e e n t h e c h u r c h o f S a n t a M a r i a d i G e s ù – locally known as Chiesa S a n t a M a r u z z a d e i Canceddi, and located in w h a t i s t o d a y k n o w n a s Piazza dei Beati Paoli -- and the Grotta of Vicolo degli Orfani. It is believed that the church's crypt held the door to a hidden pas- sage that led directly to the s e c r e t c h a m b e r s o f t h e B e a t i P a o l i ' s s e e , t h e Gr otta, l ikel y a r oom in Palazzo Baldi-Blandano. F o r t h e m o s t c u r i o u s among us, part of the Beati Paoli's secret enclave can b e a c c e s s e d a n d v i s i t e d today through a small door in Vicolo degli Orfani. It's all very mysterious, i s n ' t i t ? A n d i t c o u l d n ' t r e a l l y b e o t h e r w i s e , because historical informa- tion about the sect is very l i t t l e . T h e B e a t i P a o l i reached true popularity at the beginning of the 20 th century, thanks to the work of Sicilian writer and jour- nalist Luigi Natoli who, u n d e r t h e n a m e p e n o f William Galt, had his novel I Beati Paoli published in 2 3 9 i n s t a l l m e n t s i n t h e Giornale di Sicilia between the 6 th of May 1909 and the 2 nd of January 1910. Natoli's narrative, inspired of course by the legendary adventures of the secret sect, mixes together fiction a n d r e a l i t y , p r e s e n t i n g among its characters also historical figures. Natoli was also particularly care- f u l i n r e c o n s t r u c t i n g i n detail the society around his protagonists, basing his descriptions on historical t r e a t i s e s l i k e A n t o n i o M o n g i t o r e ' s D i a r i o Palermitano and Giovanni E v a n g e l i s t a d i B i a s i ' s Storia dei Viceré di Sicilia. His novel was so popular t h a t , i n 1 9 4 7 , i t b e c a m e also a movie, I Cavalieri dalle Maschere Nere (The b l a c k m a s k s ' k n i g h t s ) , directed by Pino Mercanti, a famous Italian screen- writer and director of those years. Because of their mysteri- ous nature and the lack of f a c t u a l i n f o r m a t i o n w e h a v e a b o u t t h e m , i t s h o u l d n ' t s u r p r i s e t h a t even more legends devel- oped around the already legendary Beati Paoli. One o f t h e m o s t n o t o r i o u s wants them as the ances- tors of the Sicilian Mafia, a theory in part based on the fact that, after the killing of New York police lieutenant J o e P e t r o s i n o i n Palermo (1909), it emerged that Mafia members had begun meeting in secret in the very same spot tradi- tion wanted the Beati Paoli to meet centuries earlier. It was infamous Cosa Nostra boss Tommaso Buscetta who, some seventy years later, fed the fire of curiosi- ty when stating that "Mafia (…) goes way back… first, there were the Beati Paoli (…): we sworn the same o a t h , w e h a v e t h e s a m e duties." I n s p i t e o f B u s c e t t a ' s words, no historical link between the sect and orga- nized crime has ever been d i s c o v e r e d , a d d i n g a n extra layer of mystery to the already mysterious life o f t h e B e a t i P a o l i o f Palermo. Between legend and reality: who were Palermo's Beati Paoli? FRANCESCA BEZZONE An image depicting a meeting of the Beati Paoli, a legendary sect from Palermo (Photo: Lachris77/Dreamstime) HERITAGE HISTORY IDENTITY TRADITIONS

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