AJACCIO, capital of Corsica, on the west coast of the island. Pop. (1931) 21,5o5. Ajaccio occupies a sheltered position at t,he foot of wooded hills on the north shore of the Gulf of Ajaccio. The harbour, to the east, is protected on the south by a peninsula which carries the citadel. To the south-west of this peninsula lies the Place Bonaparte, frequented by winter visitors attracted by the mild climate. Apart from one or two fine thor oughfares, the streets are narrow and the town has a deserted appearance. The present town of Ajaccio lies about two miles to the south of its original site, from which it was transferred by the Genoese in 1492. Occupied in 1553 by the French, it again fell to the Genoese af ter the treaty of Cateau Cambresis in 1559. The town finally passed to the French in 1768. Since 1810 it has been the capital of the department of Corsica. The asso ciations of Napoleon I. with the town are everywhere emphasized by street-names and statues. The town is the seat of a bishopric (7th century) and of a prefect. It has tribunals of first instance and of commerce and a museum. Ajaccio makes cigars and macaroni and carries on shipbuilding, sardine-fishing and coral fishing. Its exports include timber, citrons and skins.