The Tomb of Hadrian, or Castle of St. Angelo, as it has been called since the famous vision of Gregory the Great, is a familiar object to every stranger in Rome. It stands above the yellow Tiber facing the ancient Aelian Bridge, now called also the Bridge of St. Angelo on the main road to St. Peter’s and the Vatican. It is connected with the latter by a subterranean passage built by Pope Alexander VI in 1500, and used by his successors as a path of retreat to the fortress in times of internal re

St. Angelo a living part of the history of Rome—Its origin and uses—Preceded in date by the Mamertine Prison—Mausoleum of Hadrian—Other ancient monuments in Rome—Description of mausoleum—Hadrian, his life and work—Antinous—Funeral procession—Antoninus Pius—Marcus Aurelius—Severus—The mausoleum as a fortress—Struggles with the Barbarians. A prison of great antiquity still exists in Rome and claims precedence in date over St. Angelo. This is the Mamertine Prison, situated just below the Capitol an

Growth of the Papacy—Popes gain territory and wealth—Gregory the Great—Boniface subsequently erected the chapel of St. Angelo—Rome the centre of conflict—The Leonine city and Leo IV—Castle frequently changed hands—Theodora and Marozia—Romans, maddened by misgovernment, entrust power to Crescentius—He is murdered—Three popes in Rome at the same time—Cencius—Castle much strengthened—Constant fighting for St. Angelo—Rome a prey to violence and crime—An epidemic of murder—Pope Alexander VI—A reign o

Leo X—The Castle witnesses many foul deeds—It is beautified and state apartments added—Clement VII improves and embellishes it—The Castle attacked by Charles of Bourbon on behalf of the emperor Charles V—Stands a long siege—Benvenuto Cellini does good service—Remarkable character of that eminent goldsmith—His story as told in his Memoirs—Clement VII takes refuge in the castle—Cellini commands a battery and does great execution upon the enemy—Helps the pope to conceal his jewels. The pontificate

Cellini favoured by Clement VII and receives an important commission—Paul III succeeds Clement and is no friend to Cellini—Benvenuto slays a rival jeweller, Pompeo—Pier Luigi, the new pope’s nephew, vows vengeance—He is arrested on the charge of having appropriated to his own use jewels entrusted to him by Clement VII during the siege—The case fails but Cellini is committed to St. Angelo—Thrilling escape—A Venetian Cardinal, Cornaro, gives him a refuge, but surrenders him in exchange for a bisho

The most remarkable of Popes—State of Rome under Gregory XIII—Murders, thefts and robberies openly perpetrated in the streets—Brigandage rife up to the very gates of the city—Sixtus V wins the election—Seizes the reins of government with masterful hands—Sternly vindicates the law by the summary execution of offenders—Earliest efforts directed against brigandage—Curbs the insolent daring of robbers—Represses every kind of crime—The story of Vittoria Accoramboni—Boons conferred by Sixtus upon Rome

Francesco Cenci succeeds to the wealth amassed by his father, the papal treasurer—A man of vicious habits and ignoble passion—Hated by his family and his servants—Maltreats his daughters—Beatrice, the youngest, is courted by Guido Guerra—Francesco carries his family to a remote castle where he imprisons Beatrice in a dungeon—A plot is formed to kill him by the children, Guerra, and two of his servants—The deed is perpetrated—One of the servants confesses—Guerra absconds and the four Cenci are ar

Popes having consolidated their spiritual dominion in Christendom aim at complete temporal power—Inquisition originated by Pope Innocent III—His character—Inquisition grows into engine of the most cruel intolerance—Annals of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries full of conflicts between Inquisition and civil authorities in various states of Europe—Spanish bishop imprisoned in St. Angelo for life on charge of heretical belief in Mahometan tenets—Advent of Protestant Reformation and the new Inqu

Crime very prevalent in Rome under later popes—Repressive edicts—Gambling carried to great excess—Atrocious murders committed by persons of high rank—Presentation of the Chinea—Decrees published by the governor of Rome against law-breakers—Discipline of nunneries—Guiseppe Balsamo, called Count Cagliostro, the famous adventurer—His travels and marriage—He professes to have discovered the “Philosopher’s stone”—He foretells the advent of the French Revolution—His last visit to Rome—Arrest and impri

Growth of Venetian Republic—The famous Council of Ten—Its methods of administration—The Pozzi or “Wells,” under the Grand Ducal Palace—The prison of the Piombi or “Leads” of the Ducal Palace—Casanova describes his life there—His arrest and imprisonment—Plans for making his escape—He is suddenly removed to another cell—Fresh plans for escape—Tool passed on to one Father Balbi by a most ingenious method—They gain the roof and effect an entry into the Ducal Palace—They escape and take a gondola to

Prisons of the Two Sicilies—Castel Capuano called the Vicaria—Notorious reputation—Ill-treatment of political prisoners—British indignation—Mr. Gladstone’s open letter to Lord Aberdeen—Reforms promised but not carried out—Prison at Palermo—Island prisons—Nisida—Description of convict life there—Interior of the prison—The Camorra—Its powerful influence in the prisons—Details of organisation—Vitality of Camorrists—Prominent members defy authority—Society makes its own laws and enforces them rigidl

Origin of the Camorra—Its operation in the Vicaria of Naples—Diego Zezza Organisation of the Camorra—Its vocabulary—The leader Salvatore Crescenzo—Origin of the Mafia unknown—Operates in Sicily—A protective agency—The “high” and “low” Mafia—Palizzola—The “Black Hand” in the United States—Murder of Petrosino. The society of the Camorra is undoubtedly of considerable antiquity. It came to Naples from Spain in the days of the Spanish dominion and its etymology is thus explained. The word has been t