Originating as a resistance movement against Arab invaders in 9th Century Sicily, this secret society was brought to the United States during the great waves of emigration from Italy in the late 19th Century. It was soon organising crime and racketeering in many American cities, and under bosses like ‘Lucky’ Luciano, Carlo Gambino and Santo Trafficante, became a nationwide ‘business’ which boasted of being bigger than US Steel.