Corsica's principal port, Bastia, lies at the base of the Cap Corse peninsula. Founded by the Genoese in 1380 and protected by a mighty bastion, Bastia was capital of Corsica until 1811 when Napoleon relocated the capital to his birthplace, Ajaccio. Bastia centers around a beautiful central main square, the Place Saint-Nicolas, shaded by plane-trees and palms with a marble statue of Napoleon.