Peupler pour défendre : les îles Pontines, rempart maritime septentrional du royaume de Naples (1734-1815)

This article aims to highlight how the control and government of the peripheral islands – particularly the Pontine Islands – represented for the Kingdom of Naples not a sporadic concern, but a constant interest, which intensified under the Bourbons. In this process, certain dynamics may be identified, such as the role played by the various actors. During an initial phase covering the 16th and 17th centuries, the impetus was exogenous and interests were linked exclusively to the control of the territory, while economic interests linked to fishing and the coral trade were very limited. During a second phase extending throughout the 18th century, new local and informal actors emerged, giving concrete form to external impulses. These different processes, from both a synchronic and diachronic perspective, are not limited to the insular issue or the tension between centre and periphery, but give rise to broader phenomena throughout the Tyrrhenian and western Mediterranean, reflecting the presence of complex networks of inter-island relations.