Camorra

Camorra (kəmôr`ə), Italian secret criminal association in Naples. Of controversial origin, it first came to light in 1830. Its activities spread by intimidation, blackmail, and bribery until Naples was controlled by it. The Camorra appears to have been used by the Bourbon rulers of Naples as a quasi-police network to crush opposition. Efforts to break the power of the Camorra, begun in the 1880s, culminated in the 1911 murder trial at which numerous members were convicted. The Camorra was suppressed and supplanted after Benito Mussolini's takeover in 1922.

---

Camorra 

a secret society of bandits in southern Italy, similar to the Mafia. It became particularly widespread in the 18th century on the mainland part of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. It drew its members from among the déclassés of the towns and villages. It had an extensive network and its own hierarchy, laws, and jargon.

During the Bourbon Restoration (1815–60) it was used by the monarchy to suppress antifeudal movements. After the unification of Italy, it became a tool of separatist groups in the south, which brought on governmental persecution and led to its decline at the turn of the century. Remnants of the camorristi formed gangs of extortioners, and the word has become synonymous in Italian with extortion and violence.