Theodore of Corsica

Theodore of Corsica

:"Kingdom of Corsica" redirects here. For the 14th-century union with Sardinia, see "Kingdom of Sardinia and Corsica

Theodore of Corsica (August 25 1694 – December 11 1756), born Theodor Stephan Freiherr von Neuhoff [German title|Freiherr] , was a German adventurer who was briefly King of Corsica. Theodore is the subject of an opera by G. Paisiello, "Il Re Teodoro in Venezia" (1784, Vienna).

Theodor von Neuhoff was born in Cologne as the son of a Westphalian nobleman. Educated at the court of France, he served first in the French Army and then in that of Sweden. Baron de Goertz, minister to King Charles XII of Sweden, realizing Neuhoff's capacity for intrigue, sent him to England and Spain to negotiate with Cardinal Alberoni. He remained in Spain, where he was made colonel and married one of the queen's ladies-in-waiting. Soon afterwards he repaired to France and became mixed up in the Mississippi Company boom; then he led a wandering existence visiting Portugal, the Netherlands, and Italy.

At Genoa, Neuhoff made the acquaintance of some Corsican rebels and exiles, and persuaded them that he could free their country from Genoese tyranny if they made him king of the island. With the help of the Bey of Tunis, he landed in Corsica in March 1736 with military aid. The islanders, whose campaign had not been successful, elected and crowned him king. He assumed the title of King Theodore I, issued edicts, instituted an order of knighthood, and waged war on the Genoese, at first with some success. But in-fighting among the rebels soon led to their defeat. The Genoese put a price on his head and published an account of his colourful past, and he left Corsica in November 1736, ostensibly to seek foreign assistance. After sounding out the possibility of protection from Spain and Naples, he set off to Holland where he was arrested for debt in Amsterdam.

On regaining his freedom, Theodore sent his nephew to Corsica with a supply of arms; he himself returned to Corsica in 1738, 1739, and 1743, but the combined Genoese and French forces continued to occupy the island. In 1749 he arrived in England to seek support, but eventually fell into debt and was confined in a debtors' prison in London until 1755. He regained his freedom by declaring himself bankrupt, making over his kingdom of Corsica to his creditors, and subsisted on the charity of Horace Walpole and some other friends until his death in London in 1756.

A certain Colonel Frederick (c. 1725-1797), who claimed to be Theodore's son, was known as the Prince of Caprera. He served in the army of King Frederick II of Prussia and afterwards acted as agent in London for the duke of Württemberg. Frederick wrote an account of his father's life, "Memoires pour servir a l'histoire de la Corse", and also an English translation, both published in London in 1768. In 1795 he published an enlarged edition, "A Description of Corsica" with an account of its union to the crown of Great Britain. See also Fitzgerald, "King Theodore of Corsica" (London, 1890).

Notes

*1911

Bibliography

*Bent, J. Theodore (1886). "King Theodore of Corsica," "The English Historical Review", Vol. 1, No. 2, pp. 295-307.
*Fitzgerald, Percy (1890). "King Theodore of Corsica". London: Vizetelly.
*Gasper, Julia (forthcoming). "Theodore de Neuhoff, Roi de Corse". Bastia: Editions Materia Scritta. fr icon
*Graziani, Antoine-Marie (2005). "le Roi Théodore". Paris: Tallandier, coll. « Biographie ». 371 p., 22 cm. – ISBN 2-84734-203-6. fr icon
*Pirie, Valerie (1939). "His Majesty of Corsica: The True Story of the Adventurous Life of Theodore 1st". London: William Collins & Sons.
*Vallance, Aylmer (1956). "The Summer King: Variations by an Adventurer on an Eighteenth-Century Air". London: Thames & Hudson.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • CORSICA — CORSICA, Mediterranean island. Corsica is the only major Mediterranean island without a Jewish settlement either in ancient or in medieval times. King Theodore, the German adventurer who temporarily established his rule in Corsica in 1736,… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • THEODORE —    1) King of Corsica, otherwise Baron Theodore de Neuhoff, born in Metz; a soldier of fortune under the French, Swedish, and Spanish flags successively, whose title to fame is his expedition to Corsica, aided by the Turks and the Bey of Tunis,… …   The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

  • Théodore Adorno — Theodor W. Adorno Pour les articles homonymes, voir Adorno. Theodor W. Adorno …   Wikipédia en Français

  • History of Corsica — That the history of Corsica has been influenced by its strategic position at the heart of the western Mediterranean and its maritime routes, only convert|12|km|0 from Sardinia, convert|50|km|sigfig=1 from the Isle of Elba, convert|80|km from the… …   Wikipedia

  • Teodoro de Neuhoff — Para el Papa nº 73 de la Iglesia Católica, véase Teodoro I. Teodoro I Rey de Córcega Theodor von Neuhoff. Reinado abril de 1736 noviembre de 1736 …   Wikipedia Español

  • Theodor von Neuhoff — (zeitgenössischer Kupferstich) Freiherr Theodor Stephan von Neuhoff (* 25. August 1694 in Köln[1]; † 11. Dezember 1756 in London) war ein politischer Abenteurer, dem es Mitte des 18. Jahrhunderts gelang, sich vorübergehend an die …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Candide — This article is about Voltaire s satire. For other uses, see Candide (disambiguation). Candide …   Wikipedia

  • List of state leaders in 1736 — 1735 state leaders Events of 1736 1737 state leaders State leaders by year Africa* Ashanti Confederacy Opoku Ware I, Asantehene (1720 1750) * Bunyoro Duhaga, Omukama of Bunyoro (1731 c.1782) * Dahomey Tegbesu, King of Dahomey (1732 1774) *… …   Wikipedia

  • Colonel Frederick — Colonel Frederick, pseudonym of the 18th century author of Memoirs of Corsica, Containing the Natural and Political History of that Important Island, 1768, and of The Description of Corsica, 1795. He was born c.1725 and came to London c.1750, but …   Wikipedia

  • Cologne — Köln redirects here. For other uses, see Köln (disambiguation). This article is about the German city. For other uses, see Cologne (disambiguation). Köln Cologne Cologne Cathedral at nighttime …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”