Davide Lazzeretti

Davide Lazzeretti was born near Arcidosso, a small town in the Province of Grosseto in the Italian region of Tuscany.[1] Lazzaretti's early life is characterized by being the town drunk and working as a wagoner.[2] In 1860, Lazzaretti participated in nine months of military service, working with Garibaldi in a military campaign opposing the Church State Army.[3]

In 1868 Lazzaretti had his self-proclaimed prophetic meeting with the Virgin Mary.[2] This led him to live the life of a hermit, modeled after the life of St Francis. He gained many adherents among the peasants aroung Monte Amiato and Monte Labbro. He began sporting a tattoo of a key, simbolizing St Peter, on his forehead. At Monte Labbro, he gathered a community of followers, about 80 families. He would disappear for weeks at a time, returning with new prophecies and visions. This continued until 1870 when Lazzaretti created three religiously oriented organizations: the Holy League, the Institute of Penitentiary Hermits and Penitents, and the Society of Christian Families. In 1873-1877 he travelled three times to France. He traveled to Rome and attempted to meet with the Pope. He postulated he would become the leader of a Divine Republic consisting of the three Latin people of Spain, France and Italy. On the 18th of August, a few days after the date he predicted the Divine Republic would start, he led a crowd of his followers, dressed in peasant garb to the town, where the local policemen shot him dead.[4]

The David Lazzaretti Study Center in Arcidosso, located in Italy, is named after him[5]