Castellammarese War

The Castellammarese War was a violent struggle for control of the American Mafia fought in New York City between the followers of Joe Masseria and those of Salvatore Maranzano. It ran from February 26, 1930, until April 15, 1931, and took its name from Castellammare del Golfo, the Sicilian town where Maranzano was born. Maranzano's faction won the contest and reorganized the city's crime families into what became known as the Five Families, after which Maranzano proclaimed himself boss of all bosses. He was murdered in September 1931 on the orders of Lucky Luciano, who then set up a governing body called the Commission, giving every family equal standing so that a feud of this kind would not recur. The conflict is a gang war rather than a war between states, and it is included here for its place in the history of organized armed violence.