Casabianca distinguished himself in the Royal French Navy, was a deputy for Corsica at the National Convention, then became member of the Council of Five Hundred.

During the Battle of the Nile of 1 August 1798, where Rear-Admiral Horatio Nelson destroyed the French fleet in Aboukir Bay, Casabianca fought until his death.

Although the ship was on fire, the boy, who did not know that his father was no longer alive, refused to leave his post without receiving his orders.

After the fire reached the gunpowder section, the ship exploded; the child perished, along with an unknown number of crewmen.

The English poet Felicia Hemans made the death of Giocante Casabianca the subject of her poem "Casabianca" in 1826, with its line "The boy stood on the burning deck ...", which became a classic of English literature and was studied in elementary school classes.