Congratulations Benevento! Le Streghe Returns to Serie A

With yesterday’s 1-0 victory over Juve Stabia, Benevento Calcio won promotion into Serie A for only the second time in the club’s history. Le Streghe, or the Witches, as they are affectionally known, earned their place in Italy’s top-flight by dominating their opponents with a staggering plus 41 goal differential (GF:56, GA:15). With only seven games remaining, Benevento (76 pts) have a 24-point lead over Crotone (52 pts), the next closest rival. Joining Napoli and (hopefully) Lecce as representatives of the South in the 2020-21 Serie A campaign, we wish them all the best and much success. Forza Benevento!

Photo of the Week: Reliquary Bust of Sant’Andrea Apostolo inside the Duomo di Amalfi

Photo by Andrew Giordano

New Book — Mezzogiorno Mistaken: The Top 10 Myths About Southern Italians

New title that may be of interest to our readers. Available at Amazon

• Mezzogiorno Mistaken: The Top 10 Myths About Southern Italians by John De Luca

Publisher: Independently Published
Publication Date: May 20, 2020
Paperback: $9.95
Language: English
Pages: 134

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Around the Web: La Brigantessa by Rosanna Micelotta Battigelli

Reprinted from Calabria: the Other Italy

What’s the next best thing to visiting a place? Reading about it. While I would have loved to have been able to follow through with my Calabria tours this past spring, the lockdown gave me the opportunity to catch up on a few books that had been waiting patiently on my shelf. Amongst them, La Brigantessa by Rosanna Micelotta Battigelli.

La Brigantessa

The book’s dramatic cover sets the tone for this historical novel set in Southern Calabria during the period of Italian Unification. The story takes place in 1862, a tumultuous time, particularly difficult and tragic for the Italian South. For the average visitor to Italy or the casual reader, the Risorgimento can be confusing when one hears of the victories of Giuseppe Garibaldi and sees statues of him up and down the peninsula, but then becomes aware of a negativity clouding the subject. The novel presents the dichotomy between the south’s initial support of Garibaldi and the subsequent delusion with the outcome of the political movement that favored the north. Continue reading

Celebrating Saint John’s Eve

San Giovanni, pray for us

“He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30)

While the dregs of society continue to burn, loot and destroy, members of the Fratelli della Santa Fede (Brothers of the Holy Faith) celebrated the Vigil of the Birthday of St. John the Baptist with a traditional San Giovanni bonfire to ward off evil spirits and honor the light-bearer before Christ.

Customarily a night of betrothal (St. John is invoked for good marriages) and moonlight bathing to help cure spiritual and physical ailments, we simply enjoyed some good company, Lacryma Christi wine and a little ballo di San Giovanni (St. John’s Dance) around the fire.* Evviva San Giovanni!

The prayer and hymn used in our solemn celebration were obtained from catholicculture.org.

Prayer:

P: Our help is in the name of the Lord.
All: Who made heaven and earth.

P: The Lord be with you.
All: May He also be with you.

Let us pray.
Lord God, almighty Father, the light that never fails and the source of all light, sanctify + this new fire, and grant that after the darkness of this life we may come unsullied to you who are light eternal; through Christ our Lord. All: Amen.

The fire is sprinkled with holy water; after which the clergy and the people sing the following Hymn: Ut queant laxis

1. Ut queant laxis resonáre fibris
Mira gestórum fámuli tuórum,
Solve pollúti lábii reátum, Sancte Joánnes. 

2. Núntius celso véniens Olýmpo
Te patri magnum fore nascitúrum,
Nomen, et vitae sériem geréndae
Ordinae promit. 3. Ille promíssi dúbius supérni,
Pérdidit promptae módulos loquélae:
Sed reformásti genitus perémptae
Organa vocis.

4. Ventris obstrúso récubans cubíli
Sénseras Regem thálamo manéntem:
Hinc parens nati méritis utérque Abdita pandit.

5. Sit decus Patri, genitaéque Proli
et tibi, compare utriúsque virtus,
Spíritus semper, Deus unus, omni
Témporis aevo.
Amen.

1. O for your spirit, holy John, to chasten
Lips sin-polluted, fettered tongues to loosen;
So by your children might your deeds of wonder
Meetly be chanted.

2. Lo! a swift herald, from the skies descending,
Bears to your father promise of your greatness;
How he shall name you, what your future story,
Duly revealing.

3. Scarcely believing message so transcendent,
Him for a season power of speech forsaketh,
Till, at your wondrous birth, again returneth,
Voice to the voiceless.

4. You, in your mother's womb all darkly cradled,
Knew your great Monarch, biding in His chamber,
Whence the two parents, through their offspring's merits,
Mysteries uttered.

5. Praise to the Father, to the Son begotten,
And to the Spirit, equal power possessing,
One God whose glory, through the lapse of ages,
Ever resounding.
Amen.

P: There was a man sent from God.
All: Whose name was John.

Let us pray. God, who by reason of the birth of blessed John have made this day praiseworthy, give your people the grace of spiritual joy, and keep the hearts of your faithful fixed on the way that leads to everlasting salvation; through Christ our Lord. All: Amen.

Prayer Source: Roman Ritual, The, Complete Edition by Philip T. Weller, S.T.D., The Bruce Publishing Company, Milwaukee, WI, 1964

* For more information about the local customs of St. John's vigil in Naples see Becoming Neapolitan: Citizen Culture in Baroque Naples, John A. Marino, John Hopkins University Press, 2011

Happy Birthday Princess Maria Carolina!

HRH was born in Rome, Italy on June 23, 2003

Photo courtesy of Real Casa di Borbone

Happy Birthday Princess Maria Carolina of Bourbon Two Sicilies, Duchess of Calabria and Palermo! May God's love and affection be with you always! Auguri Altezza Reale!

Photo of the Week: Cristo Re in the Chiesa Madre di S. Maria dell'Olmo, Castelmezzano

Photo by Andrew Giordano

Napoli Defeat Juventus in Cup Tie

Graphic courtesy of Gennaro De Crescenzo

Congratulations SSC Napoli for your much deserved victory over bitter rivals Juventus in yesterday’s Coppa Italia Final. Played behind closed doors at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, the southern giants won the prestigious trophy 4-2 on penalties, thanks to goals by Lorenzo Insigne, Matteo Politano, Nikola Maksimovic, and Arek Milik.

While strong defending and phenomenal keeping by Gianluigi Buffon kept the scoreline clean during the match, it was ultimately Napoli’s Alex Meret’s heroics against Paulo Dybala (and a Danilo howler) during the shootout that gave the Partenopei their sixth Coppa Italia victory.*

After a disappointing start to the season under Carlo Ancelotti, new coach Gennaro Gattuso deserves a lot of praise for turning this team around. Still competing in the Champions League and with a lot of ground to make up in Serie A, we expect this great result to help inspire Napoli for the remainder of the season.

More than a brief respite from the ongoing world crises, Napoli’s triumph also symbolically gave us a Bourbon victory over the Savoy, that is to say a Southern victory over the North. Sure, it doesn’t make up for 150 years of colonization, emigration and discrimination, but at the very least for a day we got to stick it to Juve. Forza Napoli Sempre!

* Napoli last won the tournament in 2014 against Fiorentina.

Around the Web: Vendée Radio — Mr. Luis Infante Interview: Carlism

Mr. Luis Infante is political secretary of S.A.R. Don Sixto Enrique de Borbón and a prominent figure in the Comunión Tradicionalista (contemporary Carlist movement). In this interview he introduces the great Carlist counter-revolutionary movement specifically to anglophone listeners. He explains its main tenets, the reasons for its longevity and it's past and current defense of Spain and the Catholic city.

Listen to the podcast: Mr. Luis Infante Interview: Carlism

New Books: Stories for the Years

Forthcoming title that may be of interest to our readers. Available at Amazon.com

• Stories for the Years by Luigi Pirandello

Publisher: Yale University Press
Publication date: August 5, 2020
Hardcover: $30.00
Language: English
Pages: 352

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Happy Birthday Princess Beatrice di Borbone!

HRH was born in Saint-Raphaël, France on June 16, 1950
Photo by New York Scugnizzo

Il Regno would like to extend our warmest birthday wishes to Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrice di Borbone delle Due Sicilie, Dame Grand Cross of Justice and Grand Prefect of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of St. George. May God continue to shower you with all the blessings you truly deserve. Auguri Altezza Reale!

Photo of the Week: San Vito in the Chiesa Madre di S. Maria dell'Olmo, Castelmezzano

Photo by Andrew Giordano

Compra Sud — La Bottega delle due Sicilie

Let's support those who keep our traditions and folkways alive.

Contact: www.bottega2sicilie.net
www.bottegaborbonica.net
http://stores.ebay.it/bottega2sicilie
e-mail: bottega2sicilie@libero.it

Around the Web: Historian Charles A. Coulombe Discusses Blessed Karl, A Saint for Our Times

Watch podcast: Scutum Fidei [ENG] - Blessed Karl, a saint for our times - guest Charles A. Coulombe

New Music — Alessandro Scarlatti: Il Martirio Di Santa Teodosia

Forthcoming music that may be of interest to our readers.

• Alessandro Scarlatti: Il Martirio Di Santa Teodosia performed by Thibault Noally and Les Accents

Label: Aparte
Release Date: July 10, 2020
Audio CD: $21.98
Number of Discs: 1

Available at Amazon.com

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Around the Web: Karen Haid, Author of "Calabria The Other Italy" Featured on "Untold Italy" Podcast

Let’s take a trip to the deep south of Italy. To the toe of the boot where not so many visitors to Italy venture. Such a shame. Calabria is the southern most region on Italy’s mainland and it has a fascinating and ancient past, incredible beaches and beautiful mountains to explore. Guest Karen Haid lived in the region for several years and wrote a book Calabria: The Other Italy about her time there. She joins Untold Italy to share her insider knowledge.

Listen to Episode #024: Getting to Know Calabria the Other Italy

Photo of the Week: Fountain of Neptune in Napoli

The Fontana del Nettuno. Photo by Andrew Giordano

Around the Web: A Return to a Sane World: The Manifesto of the Legitimist Alliance

Reprinted from www.thewarforchristendom.com

The time would come for the first stroke of the consecrated sword, piercing the darkness like a lightning flash. For this reason individuals have the duty of living in alliance with others, gathering the treasure of a new rule of law… – Ernst Jünger, On the Marble Cliffs (1939)

In the aftermath of the great fratricidal war which tore humanity between the extremes of chaotic anarchy and base inhuman subservience, there emerged men and women of great moral clarity, heroic action, and concern for the future of a world scarred by unspeakable horrors. Offering belief in the rule of the Natural Moral Law as a light to a fragmented and benighted world, these Legitimists provided a compelling vision of the Common Good, and though their work is largely dismissed and abandoned today, it is not forgotten. This manifesto is an invitation to all men of good will to join in an alliance for the preservation of the rule of Natural Law, and the restoration of the state and society in proper relation to it, informed by our perspective sub specie Æternitatis, that we never place our hope for paradise in this world but in Eternity. In this dark and chaotic yet fateful night of modernity let us go forth ensigned by an eight-pointed star, representing the light of our eight fundamental and eternal principles, Authority, Faith, Responsibility, Restoration, Tradition, Truth, Freedom, and Nobility through which we seek the Highest Good and ultimate End of Man in political society. Continue reading

New Music: Composers from the Neapolitan School

New and forthcoming CDs that may be of interest to our readers.

• Nicola Porpora: Dalla Reggia di Flora performed by Cristina Grifone and Musica Perduta

Label: Brilliant Classics
Release Date: January 3, 2020
Audio CD: $9.99
Number of Discs: 1

Available at Amazon.com

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• Francesco Durante: Requiem in G Minor performed by Carlo Centemeri and Astrarium Consort

Label: Brilliant Classics
Release Date: April 3, 2020
Audio CD: $9.99
Number of Discs: 1

Available at Amazon.com

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• Salve Regina: Leo, Pergolesi, Porpora performed by Federica Napoletani and Ensemble Imaginaire

Label: Brilliant Classics
Release Date: April 3, 2020
Audio CD: $9.99
Number of Discs: 1

Available at Amazon.com

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• Domenico Scarlatti: Complete Piano Sonatas 4 performed by Christoph Ullrich

Label: Tacet Records
Release Date: May 8, 2020
Audio CD: $17.15
Number of Discs: 2

Available at Amazon.com

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• Domenico Cimarosa: Requiem in G Minor performed by Adriana Kucerova

Label: Naxos
Release Date: July 27, 2020
Audio CD: $11.99
Number of Discs: 1

Available at Amazon.com

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Photo of the Week: Palazzo Reale di Napoli

The Royal Palace of Naples. Photo by Andrew Giordano