The 'Ndrangheta is arguably the most powerful Mafia in the World, with an annual income equivalent to the GDP of Croatia. Their meteoric rise to power has taken place in the shadows, originating in the 1860s in Calabria, the toe of Italy's boot. Calabria is their base of operations and it's from here that they embezzle public funds, traffic both weapons and humans and exercise their iron grip over 80% of Europe's cocaine trade.
The organisation's pulsing heart is found in Calabria, but its tentacles snake all over the globe. It's the only Mafia to be active in every continent. Everywhere these tentacles touch down, a new 'Ndrina is formed; a perfect copy of the Calabrian organisation's structure, infecting the area and spreading around the globe like cancer through the process of 'colonisation'.
Stepping back, the 'Ndrangheta can be dissected into 5 constituent parts. On a macro scale, the organisation comprises 2 main entities. First is the Crimine, which is the brain of the Mafia that acts as its supreme council, and the second is the Mandamento which puts into action the orders it receives from the Crimine, like a body responding to nerve impulses.
Continuing our analysis, the Mandamento can be broken down further into molecules named 'Ndrine which are family run units that take control of a locale or province. Each 'Ndrina rarely comprises less than 50 members and can be divided into 2 parts; a Societe Maggiore which is made of the older, more experienced family members, and a Societe Minore which is composed of the new, lower ranking members.
6 months after a new member has been 'baptised' (which is the term used to refer to the 'Ndrangheta's cult like initiation ceremony, where the candidate has to swear an oath of allegiance while holding a burning photo of a priest that has been stained with their own blood) they could receive a promotion from the Picciotto Liscio ( smooth young men) to the Picciotto Sgarro ( cheating young men) and if they perform well, they could become a Capo Giovane ( young chief), Puntaiolo ( knife boy) or even ascend to the more powerful societe Maggiore.
The Crimine's structure closely mimics the format of an 'Ndrina, but it is in charge of global operations and is headed up by the Capo Crimine and his second in command the Mastro di giornata (master of the day). The
Finally, This intricately formed organisation is bound together by an almost unbreakable vow of silence known as the Omertà. Since the crime network's creation almost 2 centuries ago, only 42 'Ndranghestiti have broken this vow compared to the thousand pentiti (turncoats) that have given up the secrets of Cosa Nostra, another more widely known Italian mafia.
