228 / 540
Introduction
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven
and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.
(Revelation 21:1)
any times, fleeing from what no longer exists—perhaps because a natural tragedy has extinguished
it, or because of illness or the threat of man-made wars—we leave our places on earth behind to seek
out new ones.
Finding new lands and new people, leaving behind what exists, or simply seeking to survive have
also served as reasons for exodus, the links between the old and the new leaving a path by which
we are able to understand the roots of the relationships between different societies and their governments.
Finding new markets, new products, and new foods offer strong incentives as well to search for new hea-
vens and earths. No matter the impetus or the goal, faith sustains the journey.
We believe these scenarios are applicable to the people and organized states of Italy and the Dominican
Republic. Thus, this overview attempts to further understand the present and past of their diplomatic and
commercial interconnections, the long history of mutual cooperation, and the close ties that exist between
the two nations.
As a scholar, and generally curious about history, I visited the archives at the Office of the President of the
Italian Republic and at the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2013, when I was ambassador of the Domini-
can Republic to the Holy See in Rome.
What principally motivated me to visit the archives of Italy was my surname, derived from my paternal
grandfather, Giuseppe Grimaldi Caroprese, and the knowledge that he was not born just anywhere—but in a
privileged location, namely the southern European peninsula of Italy. Italy has been the scene of many pivotal
events throughout human history; it was baptized, and its unique position at the apex of history recognized,
in 1861, when the Kingdom of Italy was created with the name of the ancient “Italic” people from the south
of the peninsula. Studying the papers and other documents in the official Italian archives, I was able to verify
the strong ties that over the last century have sustained the harmonious relationship between the peoples and
governments of Italy and the Dominican Republic.
CHAPTER 20
Origins of the Strong Relations
between Italy and the
Dominican Republic (Testimonial)
By Víctor Manuel Grimaldi Céspedes
Ambassador of the Dominican Republic at the Holy See
•