RAMBLES
IN
CORSICA AND SARDINIA.
WORKS BY THE SAME AUTHOR.
I.
RAMBLES IN NORWAY, 1848-1849; including Remarks on its Political,Military, Ecclesiastical, and Social Organization. With a Map,Wood Engravings, and Lithographic Illustrations. 1 vol. 8vo.Longman and Co., 1860.
*** A few copies only of this Edition are on hand.
II.
The Same, in 1 vol. post 8vo. without the Illustrations.(Traveller's Library.) Longman and Co., 1855.
III.
EVERARD TUNSTALL: A South-African Tale. Bentley, 1851.
*** A New Edition is in preparation.
IV.
THE DANUBE AND THE BLACK SEA. A Memoir on their Junction by aRailway and Port; with Remarks on the Navigation of the Danube,the Danubian Provinces, the Corn Trade, the Antient and PresentCommerce of the Euxine; and Notices of History, Antiquities,&c. With a Map and Sketch of the Town and Harbour ofKustendjie. 1 vol. 8vo. E. Stanford, 6 Charing Cross, 1857.
LONDON:
PRINTED BY SPOTTISWOODE AND CO.
NEW-STREET SQUARE.
RAMBLES
IN THE ISLANDS OF
CORSICA AND SARDINIA.
WITH
NOTICES OF THEIR HISTORY, ANTIQUITIES, AND PRESENT CONDITION.
BY THOMAS FORESTER
AUTHOR OF “NORWAY IN 1818-1819,” ETC.
LONDON
LONGMAN, BROWN, GREEN, LONGMANS, AND ROBERTS.
1858
PREFACE
Nearly a century ago, James Boswell made an expeditionto Corsica, and was entertained with distinctionby Pascal Paoli. Next to conductingSamuel Johnson to the Hebrides, the exploit of penetratingto what was then considered a sort of UltimaThule in southern Europe, was the greatest event inthe famous biographer's life; and, next to his devotionto the English sage, was the homage he paid tothe Corsican chief.
Soon after his return from this expedition, in 1767,Boswell printed his Journal, with a valuable accountof the island; but from that time to the present, noEnglishman has written on Corsica except Mr. RobertBenson, who published some short “Sketches” of itshistory, scenery, and people in 1825. During the warof the revolution, Nelson's squadron hung like athunder-cloud round the coast, and for some time an[vi]expeditionary force of British troops held possessionof the island. Our George the Third accepted theCorsican crown, but his reign was as ephemeral asthat of King Theodore, the aspiring adventurer, whoended his days in the Fleet Prison.
These occurrences, with any knowledge of thecountry and people arising out of them, have passedfrom the memory of the present generation; and itmay be affirmed, without exaggeration, that when thetour forming the subject of the present work wasprojected and carried out, Corsica was less knownin England than New Zealand. The general impressionconcerning it was