Historedia
EuropeEvent

Corsican Invasion of Capraia

When
1767–1768
Where
Genoese island of Capraia in the Tuscan Archipelago; Capraia under the Treaty of Versailles
Episodes
2

In 1767, troops of the young Corsican Republic under Pasquale Paoli occupied Capraia, a Genoese island in the Tuscan Archipelago. The occupation was reversed after the French conquest of Corsica, when the Treaty of Versailles (1768) returned Capraia to Genoa and detached it from Corsica.

Episodes

  1. 1767 · Genoese island of Capraia in the Tuscan ArchipelagoCorsican occupation of Capraia

    In 1767 troops under Pasquale Paoli of the newly independent Corsican Republic occupied the Genoese island of Capraia.

  2. 1768 · Capraia under the Treaty of VersaillesReturn of Capraia to Genoa

    After the French conquest of Corsica, the Treaty of Versailles (1768) returned Capraia to Genoa and detached it from Corsica.

Background and detail

Background. In November 1755 the people of Corsica ratified a constitution proclaiming the island a sovereign nation independent from the Republic of Genoa, and Paoli became the new head of state, called the General. Paoli's government claimed the same jurisdiction as the Republic of Genoa, while in practice the Genoese held only the coastal cities and the Corsican republic controlled the rest of the island from Corte.

Capraia and the Corsican Occupation. Capraia is the northwesternmost of the seven islands of the Tuscan Archipelago, lying about 30 kilometres from Corsica and 62 kilometres from Livorno by sea. In 1767 troops under Pasquale Paoli of the new independent Corsican Republic occupied the island, which was then Genoese territory.

Aftermath. The occupation proved short-lived. Capraia was captured during the French conquest of Corsica, but under the terms of the Treaty of Versailles (1768) it was returned to Genoa and detached from Corsica. Genoa had ceded Corsica itself to France by that treaty in May 1768, having effectively lost control of the island.

People involved

  • Pasquale Paoli · Corsican head of state whose troops occupied Capraia

Sources

  1. Capraia Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-16
  2. Pasquale Paoli Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-13

Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.