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Italians in Crimea

Italians — one of the numerous peoples that left a distinct mark on the multinational history of Crimea: from medieval Genoese and Venetian colonists to the modern Italian community of the peninsula, which in the 20th century was almost completely destroyed by repressions and deportation.

Overview

The presence of Italians in Crimea has two distinct waves. The first occurred in the Middle Ages: almost 800 years ago, when Italy as a unified state did not yet exist, colonists from the maritime republics of Venice, Pisa, and Genoa established themselves on the peninsula. After fierce struggles, Genoa prevailed, holding the Crimean coast (Soldaia/Sudak, Caffa/Feodosia, Cembalo/Balaklava) for nearly 300 years and erecting numerous fortresses on capes, until the Ottoman Empire put an end to Genoese rule. The remaining Italians assimilated into local language and culture (partially among Crimean Tatars).

The second wave arrived 300 years later, when the coast was already held by the russian empire: these were natives of modern Italian principalities and kingdoms (Sardinian, Neapolitan), merchants of Taurida grain, as well as architects, painters, musicians, doctors, and teachers. Architect Alessandro Digbi determined the master plan for central Kerch and the erection of its prominent buildings (notably the Mithridates Staircase). In Feodosia, Italian Street still recalls them. A special chapter is formed by the reflection of the Crimean War in Italian literature — specifically the novel Noble Madness by Scapigliatura movement writer Ugo Tarchetti.

Key Details / Subtopics

  • Medieval colonies: Genoese, Venetians, and Pisans; Soldaia (Sudak) was the last stronghold of Venetians, while Matteo Polo, uncle of Marco Polo, lived and traded in Sudak — from where Marco Polo's journey to the East began.
  • Griffin as a symbol: the mythical creature griffin is present on the coats of arms of modern Crimea and Kerch, just as on the ancient coat of arms of Genoa — a trace of medieval connection.
  • Garibaldi family: a Ligurian family from Genoa had an extensive Crimean branch; Giuseppe Garibaldi's uncle Ambrogio traded in Feodosia, Taganrog, and Kerch, serving as consul for Italian kingdoms. There is a plausible assumption that the oath to unite Italy was taken by the future hero in Taganrog in 1833.
  • Reflection of Crimean War in Italian literature: classic Italian writer of the Scapigliatura movement Ugo Tarchetti in his novel Noble Madness portrayed the tragic participation of Sardinian army soldiers in the Crimean War.
  • Soviet period and national collective farm: Italians were grouped into the Sacco and Vanzetti National Collective Farm (named after executed US Italian workers); its profits supported Italian cultural institutions in Kerch. Unlike other ethnicities, Italians had no national village councils.
  • Population: according to various estimates, there were 3,000 to 5,000 Italians — about 2% of the Crimean ASSR population. Through interethnic marriages (for example, the Crimean Garibaldis), many became culturally and by blood closer to Crimean Germans.
  • Repressions and deportation: due to Cheka repressions, by the start of World War II only 1.3% of Italians remained in Crimea; many emigrated to their ancestral homeland in the early 1930s. In February 1942, almost immediately following the Kerch–Feodosia Landing Operation, Italians from the "liberated territory" were deported to Kazakhstan; the journey claimed half the deportees. Return was permitted after Stalin's death, but barely half the survivors returned (slightly over 300 persons); property was not restored.
  • Community revival: in 1992 Crimean Italians founded the "Cerchio" society (Italian name of Kerch), advocating the preservation of their religious, cultural, and historical identity; from an initial 200 people, fewer than fifty remain today.