Thanks to the book and film versions of The Three Musketeers, many people know of the power wielded in 17th century France by First Minister of State, Cardinal Richelieu. Not many likely know that Richelieu’s assistant and successor, the Abruzzo-born Jules Mazarin, had an equally noteworthy career and a lasting impact on European diplomacy and politics.

Giulio Raimondo Mazzarino was born on July 14, 1602, in the community of Pescina (population 4,195 according to the Census) in the province of L’Aquila in the region of Abruzzo. His father Pietro was a chamberlain for the wealthy Colonna family, and his mother, Ortensia Bufalini, was a Roman noblewoman. Giulio was the oldest of two boys and four girls.

Giulio was admitted to the Jesuit College in Rome at the age of seven. At the age of 20, he entered Complutense University in Madrid, Spain, to study law. There he learned Spanish as a second language. He returned to Rome to complete his legal studies and received the title of doctor in 1628 so that he could practice both civil and canonical law. He then became a lieutenant in the army of the Papal States. Later that year, Pope Urban VIII made him a papal emissary. Mazzarino achieved his first diplomatic success on April 6, 1631, with the Treaty of Cherasco between France and Spain, to the satisfaction of King Louis XIII of France and his First Minister of State, Cardinal Armand Jean du Plessis, Duke of Richelieu. In 1632, the same pope named Mazzarino the vice-legate at Avignon, France, and appointed him a prelate entitled to wear ecclesiastical dress. However, he never became a priest! Nevertheless, he did learn French as a third language.

In 1634, the pope named him nuncio extraordinary to Paris. In 1635, France declared war on Spain and Austria. After Cardinal Richelieu made Mazzarino an ambassador for France, he left Paris and returned to Rome. In October 1638, Richelieu put forth Mazzarino’s name as a candidate for cardinal. His position was confirmed by the pope on December 14, 1639, and Mazzarino left Rome for Paris where he arrived on January 5, 1640. Upon his arrival at age 37, he changed his name to Jules Mazarin. He was formally made a cardinal on December 16, 1641.

Mazarin advised Richelieu on both political and cultural matters. Richelieu sent him on several delicate diplomatic missions. On one of these trips, Mazarin established a solid alliance between France and Savoy. On December 4, 1642, Richelieu died and King Louis XIII died soon thereafter on May 14, 1643. Four days later, the body of nobles, known as the Parliament of Paris, named the late king’s wife, Anne of Austria, as Regent for their four-year-old son, King Louis XIV. Anne that same day named Mazarin First Minister of State. Mazarin also took the title “Superintendent of the Royal Education” and managed all aspects of the young king’s training.

The management style of Mazarin was entirely different from that of Richelieu. Whereas the sharp and fearsome Richelieu thundered rather than governed, Mazarin was gentle, benevolent, and playful. As a result, his rivals in the court underestimated his skills, energy, and determination.

Mazarin continued the costly war against Spain and Austria. Eventually, victories on the battlefields brought Austria to the bargaining table and the Peace of Westphalia was signed in 1648. As a result, Alsace was added to France. Nevertheless, because of the enormous cost of the war, a rebellion against the government by the nobility and discontented citizens broke out and lasted for five years until 1653. During the rebellion, crowds enjoyed listening to songs with verses mocking him. Mazarin had a sense of humor and, after the rebellion ended, he collected what he considered to be the best songs and had them sung in a concert. Also, Louis XIV, who had reached his majority, claimed his throne as king from his mother.

In 1657, Mazarin made a military alliance with England and in 1658 he created the League of the Rhine, a group of 50 small German principalities linked by treaty to France. After several defeats on the battlefields, Spain finally came to the bargaining table in 1659 and the Peace of the Pyrenees was signed. Consequently, the territory of Cerdagne was added to the far south of France as well as part of the Spanish-controlled Low Countries to the north of France. In June 1660, Mazarin also arranged the marriage of King Louis XIV with Princess Maria Theresa of Spain.

In addition to his diplomacy, Mazarin was a patron of the arts. For example, he introduced Italian opera to Paris and assembled an art collection which today can be seen in the Louvre Museum. Also, he founded the Bibliothèque Mazarine, the first true public library in France. It is now located in the Institute of France, across the Seine River from the Louvre.

Unlike members of the nobility, Mazarin did not own an estate. His only property was a Parisienne palace and four surrounding houses which he had purchased over the course of his 18 years of service. However, 37 percent of his fortune was in jewels and cash which he kept in his residence, not in a bank. After a two-month illness, he died on March 9, 1661, at the age of 58.

After his death, King Louis XIV did not appoint a successor. Instead, he assumed the powers of the First Minister of State for himself, marking the beginning of a new era of centralized royal autocratic rule which would last for the next 130 years.

Mazarin, as the de facto ruler of France, played a crucial role in establishing the Westphalian principles that would guide European states’ foreign policy and the prevailing world order. Some of these principles, such as the nation state’s sovereignty over its territory and its domestic affairs and the legal equality among nation states, remain the basis of international law.

Sources, all accessed May 4, 2022:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardinal_Mazarin

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardinal_Richelieu

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pescina

The small town of Montaquila has approximately 2,471 inhabitants, known as Montaquilani. The town is in a very picturesque position, near the Volturno River, and enjoys a splendid view of the Mainarde mountains. Montaquila rises below the hill of the same name, in the wide Volturno valley. Leaving the town, going towards the provincial capital, also called Isernia, there is a beautiful view of the “Ponte dei 25 Archi” (bridge of the 25 arches). With the Mainarde mountains as its backdrop, it has been called the doorway to the Apennines.

The origin of the town’s name is uncertain, although it seems to derive from “Montis Aquili” or “Mons Aquilus.” In the 10th century, it was included in the possessions of the monastery of San Vincenzo. Montaquila was destroyed by a fire in 1464, then rebuilt by an order from Ferdinand of Aragon. Until 1861, it belonged to the province of Terra di Lavoro, and afterwards it was joined to the province of Molise, which at that time was included in the Abruzzi region.
For nearly 40 years, on the Labor Day holiday of May 1, Montaquila hosts its Frittata Festival. A frittata is basically the Italian version of an omelet. For the festival, the egg is celebrated as one of the most important elements in cooking and in human nutrition. In the Spring, eggs are abundant, so it was logical that the tradition was started in many hill towns in the province of Isernia.
The idea for the festival was born about 40 years ago when the residents of the town wanted to raise funds for the feast of their patron saint, San Rocco. They decided to take advantage of the culinary skills of residents and use readily available ingredients. People learned to appreciate this dish and to ask for it, so that over the years it was transformed into a festival.
It became noted also for the exceptional number of eggs that make up the “mother” omelet. On the afternoon of May 1, the giant omelet is carried through the town on a cart by a procession of people dressed in folk costumes. Accompanied by folk music, the procession winds its way through town until it reaches the main square. This year the “mega omelet” will be prepared with as many as 1,501 eggs. It will be flanked by other smaller omelets including from 51 to 201 eggs which are offered by local families. In addition to the eggs, the ingredients are a combination of tasty local products that pay homage to the local culture.
There will be numerous events in connection with the festival, including concerts, hiking, horseback riding through the surrounding mountains, photo contests, and vintage car and motorcycle shows. It is a festival that has something for everyone and that focuses on promoting the local culinary and folk traditions and of course the Montaquila omelet.

The attractions of the place
Church of Santa Maria Assunta, of medieval origin, which was destroyed and then completely rebuilt in 1850
Church of San Michele, with beautiful interior frescoes
Palazzo Ducale

Dates to remember
May 1 – Frittata festival
August 16 – Feast of San Rocco, the patron saint

Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montaquila
https://www.italyheritage.com/regions/molise/province-isernia/montaquila.htm
https://dooid.it/en/montaquila-and-its-unique-festival/

Tradotto da Ennio Di Tullio

Provincia di Isernia, Regione Molise

Il piccolo comune di Montaquila ha circa 2.471 abitanti, detti Montaquilani. Il paese è in una posizione molto pittoresca, vicino al Fiume Volturno, e gode di una splendida vista sulle montagne delle Mainarde. Montaquila sorge ai piedi del colle omonimo, nell’ampia valle del Volturno. Uscendo dal paese, andando verso la capitale provincial, anche detto Isernia, si ha una bella vista sul “Ponte dei 25 Archi”. Con le montagne delle Mainarde sullo sfondo, è stata definita la porta degli Appennini.

L’origine del toponimo è incerta, anche se sembra derivare da “Montis Aquili” o “Mons Aquilus.” Nel X secolo, fu compreso nei possedimenti del monastero di San Vincenzo. Montaquila fu distrutta da un incendio nel 1464, poi ricostruita per un ordine da Ferdinando d’Aragona. Fino al 1861, appartenne alla provincia di Terra di Lavoro, e dopo venne aggregato alla provincia del Molise, che a quel tempo compresa nella regione Abruzzi.

Da quasi 40 anni, nel giorno della festa dei lavoratori del 1 maggio, Montaquila ospita il suo Festival della Frittata. Una frittata è la versione italiana di un omelet. Per la festa, l’uovo viene celebrato come uno degli elementi più importanti nella cucina e nell’alimentazione umana. In la primavera, le uova abbondano, quindi era logico che la tradizione fosse iniziata in molti paesi collinari della provincia di Isernia.

L’idea della festa nasce circa 40 anni fa quando gli abitanti del paese vollero raccogliere fondi per la festa del loro santo patrono, San Rocco. Hanno deciso di sfruttare le abilità culinarie dei residenti e di utilizzare ingredienti facilmente reperibili. La gente imparò ad apprezzare questo piatto e a richiederlo, tanto che negli anni si trasformò in una festa.

È diventata nota anche per l’eccezionale numero di uova che compongono la frittata “madre.” Nel pomeriggio del 1° Maggio, la frittata gigante viene portata per il paese su un carro da un corteo di gente vestita con costumi popolari. Accompagnato da musiche popolari, il corteo si snoda attraverso il paese fino a raggiungere la piazza principale. Quest’anno la “mega frittata” sarà preparata con ben 1.501 uova. Ad essa se ne affiancheranno altre più piccole, da 51 a 201 uova, che sono offerte dalle famiglie locali. Oltre alle uova, gli ingredienti sono un connubio di gustosi prodotti locali che rendono omaggio alla cultura locale.

Numerosi saranno gli eventi legati al festival, includendo concerti, escursioni, passeggiate a cavallo tra le montagne circostanti, concorsi fotografici, e mostre di auto e moto d’epoca. È una festa che ha una cosa per tutti e che punta a promuovere le tradizioni culinarie e popolari locali e ovviamente la frittata di Montaquila.

Le attrazioni del luogo:

• Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta, di origine medievale, che fu distrutta e poi completamente ricostruita nel 1850
• Chiesa di San Michele, con bellissimi affreschi interni
• Palazzo Ducale

Date di ricordare

• 1 maggio – Sagra della frittata
• 16 agosto – Festa di San Rocco, santo patrono

Madonnina Gullo is the 2024 recipient of the Angela Lastrico Raish Music Scholarship, a privately endowed fund administered through the AMHS Scholarship Committee.
Ms. Gullo is a rising senior at The Catholic University of America (CUA) Benjamin T. Rome School of Music, Drama, and Art, where she majors in Musical Theatre. She is actively involved at her university, where she currently serves as a Resident Assistant and Managing Director of CenterStage, a student-run theater company. She is from New York and has family roots in Sicily.
Madonnina’s application packet sums up her resilience, her work ethic, and her talent. She is dedicated to her studies and has made the Dean’s List every semester. In addition to carrying 18 credits during the application semester, she also held three jobs, and volunteered for campus events. On top of her work schedule and academic studies, she was cast in every CUA musical the last several semesters.
Family is central to Madonnina’s life, and she credits her family members with teaching her the value of hard work, resilience, and the importance of her Sicilian ancestry. Her parents bestowed the name “Madonnina” on her after visiting the Madonnina delle Lacrime Santuario (Little Madonna of the Tears Santuary) in Siracusa, Sicily. Making music is her way of experiencing the Italian culture and honoring her ancestors.

To read about the winners of this year’s AMHS scholarships, click HERE.

Madonnina Gullo’s Letter of Thanks
Dear Abruzzo and Molise Heritage Society and the Angela Lastrico Raish Scholarship Committee:
I wish to express my sincere gratitude for choosing me as a recipient of the 2024 Angela Lastrico Raish Scholarship. This award will help me continue to pursue a Bachelor’s Degree of Music in Musical Theatre at The Catholic University of America.
In true Italian fashion, I have always been taught the value of hard work and resilience. My parents and grandparents have been my biggest supporters throughout my life, and never missed a performance of mine. My grandparents have never missed a thing, despite having 19 other grandchildren. They have always expressed the importance of two things: following your passions, and working as hard as you possibly can to achieve them. Throughout my educational career, I have juggled multiple jobs at once to attend my university, all while maintaining a heavy academic schedule.
I have had the opportunity to travel to Italy twice, but my first visit occurred when my mother was expecting me. One of my parents’ favorite cities is Siracusa, Sicily, and that is the place where they found the name they eventually gave me. I spend a lot of time explaining my name: Madonnina, but I do not mind. It gives me a chance to talk about my culture and being named after the Madonnina delle Lacrime of Siracusa. My second trip to Italy happened with my family. During that visit, I was old enough to appreciate how interwoven music and Italian culture are with each other. There is music being performed everywhere: in the streets, in restaurants, and even echoing down alleyways from people’s homes.
I look forward to honoring my ancestors by making music for many years to come. I am thankful for this scholarship’s assistance in reaching my goals of becoming a professional performer, and I will continue to work hard to be deserving of this honor.
Mille Grazie!
Madonnina Gullo

September 2024

Farewell to Embassy of Italy’s Maria Fusco
By Nancy DeSanti
Holy Rosary Church and Casa Italiana Sociocultural Center (CISC) on August 11 said goodbye to Maria Fusco, the Embassy of Italy’s Education Director for the past eight years. She returned to Italy on August 23, 2024.
At the Mass on August 11, Father Walter Tonelotto gave a warm tribute to Maria, thanking her for her contributions to Holy Rosary Church as a frequent lector at the Italian Mass during the years that she was here. Then she gave heartfelt remarks to the parishioners, saying how much the church meant to her, especially when her father passed away a couple of years ago, and her mother passed away in June.
A farewell reception was hosted by CISC at which time its president and AMHS member, Francesco Isgrò, presented Maria with a gift of a framed photograph of a famous Dante Alighieri statue, which he noted was appropriate given how much Professoressa Fusco has done to promote the Italian language in the United States. He noted her work in coordinating with the Twinning Project which links Italian high school students with American counterparts, and he also noted that she recently coordinated a visit by a group of 40 Italian students, sponsored by the Italian Senate. The students participated in sessions organized by the Italian-American Museum of D.C. (IAMDC).
Francesco also thanked her for participating in so many of the events held in Casa Italiana and outside events held by the Lido Civic Club. In reply, Maria noted that there are now about 200,000 students who are studying Italian in this country. She thanked the Casa Italiana Language School teachers who were present, along with the Ente Promotore.
Maria was a frequent guest at AMHS programs, and afterwards, she told AMHS members present that she really enjoyed coming to our events.
We wish Maria all the best as she begins the next chapter of her life. Già ci manca! (Already she is missed!).

AMHS Happy Hour at Tonari
By Maria D’Andrea-Yothers
On Friday, August 23, eight AMHS members and friends enjoyed Happy Hour at Tonari, the first and only “Wafu” Italian restaurant in Washington, D.C. The popularity of Italian food in Japan started decades ago when Japanese were first introduced to spaghetti noodles and red sauce from Italian-American GIs. In 1953, a small restaurant in Tokyo named “Kabe no Ana” (Hole in the Wall) essentially became the unofficial pioneer of “Wafu” Italian cooking when the owner started to use Japanese ingredients in pasta dishes, hoping to appeal to a wider audience. This niche culinary concept took off to meteoric heights in the 1990s, and it is now served in thousands of eateries all over Japan. The AMHS group enjoyed an eclectic mix of wines, beers, and cocktails, as well as Japanese-inspired pizza.
AMHS will be looking to host its next Happy Hour in October, at either Cucina Morini or Osteria Morini. Stay tuned!

Pleasant Coincidence in Halifax
By Carmine Spellane
I have been spending a good part of my summers in Nova Scotia, specifically on beautiful Cape Breton Island in the north of the province. I first went there in 2003 and bought a vacation home in the town of Baddeck in 2014. While I love the lively Celtic culture (per my paternal lineage) that infuses Cape Breton, very few Italians immigrated to that part of Canada. So, I truly miss access to good Italian cuisine and wines, not to mention hanging out with paisani.
My wife and I took a side trip this summer to Halifax, the largest city in Nova Scotia. Pier 21 in this maritime city functioned as Canada’s Ellis Island prior to the age of jet travel. Ships from around the world, but especially Europe, docked there carrying immigrants with a familiar dream — to make a new live on the North American continent, free from wars and class struggles. Among them were Italians, most of whom headed to the large urban areas of Toronto, Montreal, and points west.
Today, only a few Italians can be found in Halifax. Nevertheless, one evening, my wife and I were walking and looking for a place to eat dinner. On the waterfront, a popular and well-rated Italian eatery called the Bicycle Thief, after the classic film by Vittorio De Sica, was full. On a side street, we found a place called Ragazzi (Little Boys), and, not being able to resist the name, we went inside.
We were greeted by a tall, gregarious gentleman with a slight but distinct accent. He escorted us to a table where I thanked him with my highly imperfect Italian and said, “Mi chiamo Carmine.” (I call myself Carmine.) His smile grew bigger, his manner even warmer, as he introduced himself as Leonardo. He came back to our table several times during our meal to make sure our food and service were satisfactory. They certainly were. I asked him, again in halting Italian, where he hailed from in Italy. “L’Aquila,” he answered. I responded with enthusiasm, telling him, mostly in English by now, that my maternal grandparents were from Molise, and that I belonged to the Abruzzo Molise Heritage Society back home in Washington, D.C. He was surprised that I knew that L’Aquila was chosen as the Italian Capital of Culture for 2026. As we left, Leonardo was busy at the bar. I thanked him again and was rewarded with a bear hug. I assured him that my wife and I would be back on our next visit to Halifax. I urge all of you to do the same if you are ever in that coastal city!
And that, i miei amici (my friends), is how I got my Italian fix in the Great White North this summer!

September 2024