Cucumetto

Cucumetto is the most feared bandit chief in the Roman countryside during the early 19th century, a figure whose ferocious daring and brutality make him the subject of widespread terror and legend. His story, as related by the innkeeper Signor Pastrini to Franz d'Epinay and Albert de Morcerf, serves as a dark prelude to the adventures of the young shepherd Luigi Vampa, who will ultimately supplant him.

Rise and Reign of Terror

Cucumetto establishes his band in the Lepini mountains after being pursued from the Abruzzo and driven out of the Kingdom of Naples. He crosses the Garigliano like Manfred and takes refuge on the banks of the Amasine between Sonnino and Juperno, where he gathers a following of young men from Palestrina, Frascati, and Pampinara. His methods are defined by extreme cruelty and a rigid code of law: a captured young girl belongs first to him who carries her off, then the rest of the band draw lots for her, and she is abandoned to their brutality until death relieves her sufferings. If her parents are rich enough to pay a ransom, a messenger is sent to negotiate; the prisoner is hostage for the messenger's safety, and if the ransom is refused, the prisoner is irrevocably lost.

The Abduction of Rita and the Betrayal of Carlini

Cucumetto's most infamous crime involves a young girl named Rita, the daughter of a surveyor from Frosinone. Rita's lover, Carlini, is a member of Cucumetto's own band. When Carlini is sent away to a village on a mission, Cucumetto seizes the opportunity to abduct Rita. Upon Carlini's return, he discovers his chief has violated his betrothed. Carlini pleads with Cucumetto to make an exception for Rita, as her father is rich and can pay a large ransom. Cucumetto feigns agreement, allowing Carlini to send a shepherd to Rita's father demanding three hundred piastres, with only twelve hours' delay. However, Cucumetto has no intention of honoring the arrangement. He returns to the glade where the band is supping, and when Carlini follows, he proposes that the band draw lots for Rita, as is their custom. Carlini, in a state of suppressed fury, agrees. The lot falls to Diavolaccio, the man whose face Carlini had earlier broken with a glass for proposing a toast to Cucumetto and Rita. Diavolaccio then retrieves Rita, but she is dead, a knife plunged up to the hilt in her left breast. Carlini, whose sheath is empty, has killed her to spare her a worse fate. Cucumetto, understanding the desperate deed, declares, "She is thine." Carlini carries her body away, and later, when Rita's father arrives with the ransom, Cucumetto directs him to Carlini. The father, after learning the truth, embraces Carlini and together they bury the girl. Carlini swears vengeance, but Cucumetto, having overheard the oath, anticipates it. Two days later, in an encounter with Roman carbineers, Carlini is killed by a ball between his shoulders, fired by Cucumetto, who was stationed ten paces behind him.

Death and Succession

Cucumetto's downfall comes at the hands of Luigi Vampa, a young shepherd whom he had previously saved from carbineers. Grateful for the shelter, Cucumetto later becomes enamored of Vampa's betrothed, Teresa. He kidnaps her, but Vampa, a skilled marksman, shoots him dead with a single ball from his carbine. Vampa then takes Cucumetto's body, assumes his costume, and presents himself to Cucumetto's band, declaring, "I have killed your chief, Cucumetto, whose dress I now wear." Within an hour, Luigi Vampa is chosen captain in his place. The story of Cucumetto thus serves as a foundational myth for the new bandit chief, illustrating the brutal cycle of violence, betrayal, and succession that defines the lawless world of the Roman Campagna.