The Mafia is not folklore. It’s a criminal organization that controlled (and in parts still controls) territory, politics, and economies.
Plan a history trip →Cosa Nostra (Sicily): the "original" mafia. Emerged in the 19th century from Sicilian feudal structures. Peak power: 1970s–80s. ’Ndrangheta (Calabria): family-based, now the most powerful Italian criminal organization. Controls 80% of Europe’s cocaine imports. Camorra (Naples/Campania): looser structure, more fragmented, more violent. Roberto Saviano’s "Gomorra" exposed their operations. Sacra Corona Unita (Puglia): smaller, focused on smuggling.
1986–92: Maxi Trial in Palermo (475 defendants, 360 convicted). Led by judges Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino. Both assassinated by Cosa Nostra in 1992 (Falcone: motorway bomb, May 23; Borsellino: car bomb, July 19). Their murders provoked national outrage and a crackdown that fundamentally weakened Cosa Nostra.