Nicola Napolitano

Who was Nicola Napolitano?

Nicola Napolitano, also known by the nickname Caprariello, a nickname derived from his activity of goat shepherd, was born in Nola from the peasants Sabato and Carmela from Naples. Illiterate, having never attended school, he was recruited in 1861 in the military service established by the newborn Regno d'Italia, then known as Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.

Disobedient, he was arrested and forced to attend military service, but deserted almost immediately, joining the brigands led by the La Gala brothers from Nola, where he soon played an important role, gaining a reputation for his fierceness and strength, to the point of being able to put together and lead his own brigand band during 1862.

Arrested after a shooting fight at the beginning of September 1863, he was executed by shooting in his birth city, Nola, on the 10th of that same month.