Sante Geronimo Caserio

Sante Geronimo Caserio (Italian: [ˈsante kaˈzɛrjo]; 8 September 1873 – 16 August 1894) was an Italian baker, anarchist, and propagandist by the deed. He is primarily known for assassinating Sadi Carnot, the sitting President of the French Republic, on 24 June 1894. This act marked the final attack of the Ère des attentats (1892–1894) and became a pivotal event in the history of anarchism in France. It was also an anticolonial attack, as Caserio targeted the president during the first French colonial exhibition.

Born into a working-class family, Caserio began working as a baker in Milan at age thirteen. During his adolescence there, he met anarchist militants such as Pietro Gori, who drew him into the Italian anarchist movement. Over time, he became a prominent figure in Milanese anarchist circles and was arrested and imprisoned for distributing anti-militarist leaflets to soldiers. He later escaped his sentence, fled to Switzerland, and then settled in France, where he connected with fellow anarchists. In October 1893, Caserio moved to Sète, mingled with local anarchists, and resumed work as a baker before contracting a venereal disease. During his hospitalization, he engaged in anarchist propaganda and received visits from militants as far away as Lyon.

In June 1894, Caserio seemingly abruptly decided to assassinate Sadi Carnot. He traveled to Lyon and positioned himself precisely along the president’s route on the Rue de la République, where he fatally stabbed him. His arrest and the revelation of his identity triggered significant anti-Italian riots in Lyon, leading to the looting of properties owned by Italians, like bars or the Italian consulate of the city.

Caserio fully claimed responsibility for the attack, insisting he acted alone—a claim disputed by modern historians, who argue his act was likely part of a plot orchestrated by a small group of militants. He defended his actions as revenge against Carnot for repressing the French anarchist movement. Convicted of murder by the Rhône Assize Court on 3 August 1894 after an expeditious trial, he refused to appeal and was guillotined thirteen days later.