Alfio Grassi

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Alfio Grassi (born August 2, 1766 in Acireale , † April 25, 1827 in Paris ) was an Italian officer in the French service and military writer .

Life

Alfio Grassi came from a wealthy family and was a son of Nicola Grassi and Maria Vasta. In his youth he received a good education in literature ; his favorite ancient authors were Titus Livius and Plutarch . Nevertheless, he preferred to devote himself to military service and entered the army in Naples against his father's will . In 1793 he achieved the degree of captain . He was enthusiastic about the French Revolution and tried to incite the Neapolitan army to riot. His plan was discovered, however, whereupon he was sentenced to death in absentia in 1796. However, he was able to hide until the conquest of the Kingdom of Naples by French troops and the establishment of the Parthenopean Republic (January 1799). Now he took part in the fighting against royalist insurgents who supported the expelled King Ferdinand IV , but had to flee to France after the reconquest of Naples by coalition troops (June 1799) .

More than 20 years later, in a letter to his brother Vincenzo dated November 9, 1820, Grassi claimed that he had joined Napoleon's army immediately after his arrival in France , but his appointment by the Minister of War cannot be made until May 1809 to the surplus captain in the 28th Cavalry Regiment. Perhaps he had previously served as a simple soldier in the French army . In another letter addressed to his brother on April 19, 1817, he stated that he had turned down advantageous offers for his renewed service in the Neapolitan army. He did not want to fight against his homeland Sicily , which the French intend to conquer.

From 1810 to 1812 Grassi served as a captain on the Iberian Peninsula . In a battle at Tineo in Asturias on March 19, 1811 , he distinguished himself and was injured. On July 22, 1812 he was wounded again by four sword blows during the Battle of Salamanca . He then fought from 1813 to 1814 in the ranks of the troops commanded by Marshal Louis-Nicolas Davout in Germany. Because of his military merits, he was made a Knight of the Legion of Honor .

After Napoleon's abdication and the Restoration of the Bourbons in April 1814, Grassi, who had meanwhile been naturalized in France, had to give up active military service. As a retired squadron commander , he now received half his pay and used his leisure time to study military history and politics. As a military writer, he first wrote the work Extrait historique sur la milice romaine et sur la phalange grecque et macédonienne, avec un table d'application qui démontre que nous devons aux Romains et aux Grecs, ce qu'il ya de plus important et de plus essentiel dans notre milice… (Paris 1815). He also remained in retirement during Napoleon's reign the Hundred Days after his return from Elba and after the subsequent second Bourbon Restoration (1815).

In order to carry out studies for further work, Grassi visited Greece and the Ottoman Empire . He then wrote the following works:

  • Charte turque, ou organization religieuse, civile et militaire de l'Empire ottoman; suivie de quelques réflexions sur la guerre des Grecs contre les Turcs , 2 volumes, Paris 1825
  • La Sainte-Alliance, les Anglais et les jésuites, leur système politique à l'égard de la Grèce, des gouvernements constitutionnels et des événements actuels , Paris 1827

In the latter work, Grassi defended the Greek struggle for independence and advocated a liberal constitution. The last years of his life were overshadowed by family worries such as the death of his wife and being forced to remain in exile in France. A political history of Portugal , on which Grassi was last working, remained unfinished because he died in Paris on April 25, 1827 at the age of 60 while it was being drafted. He had never seen his fatherland again.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ comparisons to Bertrand Bouvier , Anastasia Danae Lazaridis (eds.): Jacovaky Rizo Néroulos , analysis raisonnée de l'ouvrage intitulé "Charte turque" - Ιακωβάκη Ρίζου Νερουλού Κριτική ανάλυση του που συγγράμματος επιγράφεται "Τουρκική Χάρτα". Εισαγωγή, έκδοση, μετάφραση, ευρετήρια : Bertrand Bouvier, Αναστασία Δανάη Λαζαρίδου. Morphōtiko Idryma Ethnikēs Trapezēs, Athens 2013, table of contents ; Book display . - ( Editio princeps of an unpublished Geneva manuscript and translation into modern Greek)

literature

personal data
SURNAME Grassi, Alfio
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Italian officer and military writer
DATE OF BIRTH August 2, 1766
PLACE OF BIRTH Acireale
DATE OF DEATH April 25, 1827
Place of death Paris