Halberdier in Sicily 1859

[VirginiaG]

Hello, I had a family tree done and it shows my 3rd Great Grandfather Letterio Spinelli was a Halberdier in Messina Sicily in 1859. I don’t know the original date he became one just on his son Placido’s birth record in 1859 it says that. Does anyone have any information on what a Halberdier from Sicily might be? Thank you

[erudita74]

I have never seen this occupation in any Sicilian record, but the link below will help you. He was a swordsman or some kind of guard; he wore armor and a helmut (see info in link below about the Vatican)-the word is derived from French--

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halberd

[VirginiaG]

The timeline seems to coincide with the unification of Italy I think.

[erudita74]

The unification process started in 1861 and took 10 years to complete.

[marcF036]

Hello, I had a family tree done and it shows my 3rd Great Grandfather Letterio Spinelli was a Halberdier in Messina Sicily in 1859. I don’t know the original date he became Demenageurs one just on his son Placido’s birth record in 1859 it says that. Does anyone have any information on what a Halberdier from Sicily might be? Thank you

According to legend, a gentleman who was supposedly a fascists burned the town hall because it held his vital records. He wanted to leave Italy but could not if they had his birth certificate.