Corleone

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Comune di Corleone
Municipal coat of arms
Country	Italy
Region	Sicily
Province	Palermo (PA)
Mayor	Nicolò Nicolosi (since May 28, 2002)

Elevation	600 m
Area	229 km²
Population
- Total (as of December 31, 2004)	11,355
- Density	49/km²
Time zone	CET, UTC+1
Coordinates	37°49′N 13°18′E
Gentilic	Corleonesi
Dialing code	091
Postal code	90034
Frazioni	Ficuzza
Patron	San Leoluca

Website: Comune di Corleone

Corleone is a small town of approximately 12,000 inhabitants in the Province of Palermo in Sicily, Italy. It is known primarily as the birthplace of Mafia bosses Michele Navarra, Luciano Leggio, Leoluca Bagarella, Salvatore Riina and Bernardo Provenzano. The Mafia has dominated the local community for decades, and only recently have segments of the population begun to rebel against this influence, which the mafia retributes with enormous violence.^{[citation needed]}

1 History
2 Main sights
3 Corleone today
4 In literature and film
5 See also
6 References

[edit] History

The town was once dominated by the Arabs, who brought about remarkable economic and political growth and gave it the name Qurlayun; later the Normans achieved prominence.

A lookout tower built between the 11th and 12th century, known as Saracena, still stands. The view from the tower includes the Cascata delle Due Rocche, a sheer drop following the path of the Corleone river.

At one time the town was surrounded by defensive walls that connected the Castello Soprano and Castello Sottano. The Castello Sottano is better preserved than the Soprano, but it cannot be visited since it serves as a Franciscan retreat.

Corleone was known as “Courageous Civitas” because of its position on the front line in all wars fought in Sicily. Halfway between Palermo and Agrigento, the town controlled one of the main arteries and was therefore one of the most strategic locations on the island.

Corleone became a royal property around the end of the 14th century, and later passed into the feudal holdings of Federico Ventimiglia.

Remarkable demographic growth was reported in the 15th and 16th centuries, following the arrival of several religious orders.

[edit] Main sights

The Chiesa Madre (“Mother Church”), dedicated to St. Martin Bishop, was started in the late 14th century. Its appearance today has been influenced by numerous changes and renovations. Its interior has a nave and aisles divided into various chapels containing precious artwork, including a wooden statue representing San Filippo d’Agira from the 17th century, a statue representing San Biagio (16th century), and a fine marble panel depicting the Baptism of Christ from this same period.

The Chiesa dell'Addolorata is a church of the 18th century, dedicated to the Basilian abbot and patron saint San Leoluca, the Chiesa di Santa Rosalia, and the small Sant’Andrea (the latter two from the 17th century), all with important frescoes and paintings, are notable landmarks. The Santuario della Madonna del Rosario di Tagliavia, a religious building from the 19th century, is now a destination for pilgrims on Ascension Day.

[edit] Corleone today

Beginning in the 1960s, the town became famous (or perhaps infamous) for its Mafia, being the town in which some well-known clans had their headquarters (the Clan dei Corleonesi). One of the known mafiosi is Salvatore Riina. In 2003 there was an unsuccessful private referendum held to change the name of Corleone to its ancient name of Cuor di Leone, or Lion Heart, to shrug off its association with Mafiosi, fictional or otherwise. [1]

The most notable event in Corleone is the arrest of Bernardo Provenzano "Boss of Bosses", who was in hiding for more than 40 years. This gave rise to much celebration. "Liberation Day" on April 11 (the date of Provenzano's capture in 2006) and naming a street "11 Aprile" shows just how much the arrest has affected Corleone.

[edit] In literature and film

The name of the town was used as the adopted surname of the title character in Mario Puzo's book and Francis Ford Coppola's film, The Godfather. In the novel, Vito Andolini emigrates from the village of Corleone, his last name gets changed by a miscommunication between the man helping Vito and the man logging in the names at Ellis Island by saying "Corleone" instead of "Andolini". In the theatrical release of The Godfather, Part II, young Vito is assigned the Corleone surname while passing through emigration at Ellis Island. Shy and unable to speak English, Vito is unable to respond when asked for his proper name, and is given the last name of Corleone by an immigration official.

Coincidentally, the grandparents of Al Pacino (who played Michael Corleone in The Godfather), emigrated from Sicily in the same generation as Don Vito Corleone from the film.