Genova contro i Barbareschi: una piccola lunga guerra mediterranea (XVI-XVIII sec.)

The Republic of Genoa, from 1528 to 1797 – that is, throughout the entirety of its existence – waged a continuous, small maritime war against the Barbary corsairs. This was a defensive conflict, conducted through the fortification and militarization of the coastline and adjacent inland areas, the deployment of naval forces to intercept corsair vessels and protect merchant shipping, the provision of means of self-defense for merchantmen, and the ultimately unsuccessful pursuit of independent diplomatic settlement. It was a small maritime war that constituted one of the central pillars of the defense policy of a state for which the sea held a position of primary importance, both geographically and economically