I casi del Lyon e del Mediterranean: i corsari capocorsini nella Livorno del XVII secolo

The present PhD dissertation aims to reconstruct the role of Livorno as a base for corsairs in the Mediterranean throughout the XVII century, situating this investigation within a broader analysis of the evolution of privateering and its legal and diplomatic peculiarities. Within this wider framework, the practice is examined in relation to the profound transformations that reshaped the Mediterranean following the emergence of new commercial powers, with particular attention devoted to the measures adopted to regulate and curb an activity that was increasingly perceived as both residual and detrimental to maritime trade. This research begins with an examination of two case studies concerning the capture of two English vessels by the same Corsican-Livornese privateer. It then turns to the activities of the community of Cap Corsin captains and shipowners established in the port of Livorno, as well as to the inter-Mediterranean commercial and social networks they developed. These experiences provide particularly significant insights into the broader processes of change that characterized the early modern Mediterranean world.