History of Camorra is a documentary realized in 2021 about the brutal Gomorrah's mafia we have all seen on TV recently.
The Camorra has become one of the most prominent crime syndicates of recent times, featured in many movies and series like Gomorrah.
During the nineteenth century within the city of Naples, and specifically in the poorest social ranks, marginalized and abandoned, an organization initially emerged and became what is still considered one of the most powerful organized crime groups: the Camorra.
It is difficult to find a generally accepted etymological origin because many scholars have expressed very different theories. This is because the term was not born on paper but in the daily speech of the poorer part of the population that nobody seemed to care about. And so the word camorra is associated to gambling and extortion from an activity. Some link it to the Arabic word "kumar", which means gambling establishment. Others have traced the origin of the term to the term camorra, of Castilian origin, meaning brawl or cloth jacket. Finally there are those who made a biblical reference, specifically to Gomorrah, the city par excellence of sin.
Beyond all these possible etymologies, how come these criminal activities, born in the most obscure and chaotic meanders of a boisterous city, have been able to organize themselves and to take power until becoming a group still present and feared today? Let’s dive in.
The camorra began to distinguish and organize itself from other criminal activities during the Borbon restoration (when the Borbon kings of Naples re-established their rule on the city), and more precisely in the prisons of Naples and in the army. Concerning this last place, this statement seems strange- but not so much; in fact at that time many convicts were allowed to be enlisted in the army. The historical sources on this matter are few, even absent, for what concerns the centuries preceding the nineteenth century, but certainly is valid according to the investigations of Marco Monnier, an expert on Camorra issues.
If we examine more carefully the type of organization that was created immediately after the Congress of Vienna, we can say that there was a well-defined hierarchy. Whoever wanted to join the group was defined "tamurro" and had to meet particular requirements, as well as pass a ritual test, to begin the criminal career, differentiated into three levels: "picciotto d'onore", "picciotto di sgarro" and "camorrista". The "picciotto d'onore" or, as Monnier defines it, "garzone di mala vita", had the task of carrying out tests of loyalty and courage, even of a certain importance. Passed to the next level, became "picciotto of sgarro" for a certain period of time that ranged from three to eight years, he was entrusted with more dangerous tasks and could commit murder or take blame for crimes not committed, so as to stand out with his companions.
In the pre-unification period, Camorra groups were formed where there were a good number of pro-sectarian criminals. The organization had a certain power over the twelve districts of Naples, divided into paranze, each of which corresponded to a leader. These figures then elected a general called "capintesta" of the Neapolitan camorra. Initially this role was assumed by the Cappuccio family.
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