![Campo de l'Arsenal](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/Campo_de_l%27Arsenal.jpg)
Castello is the largest of the six
sestieri
A (plural: ) is a subdivision of certain Italian towns and cities. The word is from (‘sixth’), so it is thus used only for towns divided into six districts. The best-known example is the ''sestieri'' of Venice, but Ascoli Piceno, Genoa, Mi ...
of
Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...
, Italy.
History
There had been, since at least the 8th-century, small settlements of the islands of
San Pietro di Castello
San Pietro di Castello ( vec, San Piero de Casteło), formerly Olivolo ( it, Olivòlo; vec, Ołivoło), is an island in the Venetian Lagoon, northern Italy, forming part of the Castello sestiere. It is linked to the main islands of Venice by ...
(for which the sestiere is named). This island was also called
Isola d'Olivolo.
From the thirteenth century onward, the district grew around a
naval
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...
dockyard
A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance ...
on what was originally the
Isole Gemini. The land in the district was dominated by the ''
Arsenale
The Venetian Arsenal ( it, Arsenale di Venezia) is a complex of former shipyards and armories clustered together in the city of Venice in northern Italy. Owned by the state, the Arsenal was responsible for the bulk of the Venetian republic's ...
'' of the
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia, ...
, then the largest naval complex in Europe. A
Greek mercantile community numbering around 5,000 in the Renaissance and late Middle Ages was based in this district, with the
Flanginian School
The Flanginian School ( el, Φλαγγίνειος Σχολή, it, Collegio Flanginiano) was a Greek educational institution that operated in Venice, Italy, from 1664-1665 to 1905. The Flanginian produced several teachers that contributed to the ...
and the Greek Orthodox Church of
San Giorgio dei Greci
San Giorgio dei Greci ( el, Ἅγιος Γεώργιος τῶν Ἑλλήνων, ´Agios Geórgios ton Ellínon, Saint George of the Greeks) is a church in the ''sestiere'' (neighborhood) of Castello, Venice, northern Italy. It was the center of ...
being located here, of which the former comprises the
[Greece: Books and Writers (PDF). Ministry of Culture — National Book Centre of Greece. 2001. p. 54. .] and the latter is now the seat of the
Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Italy
The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Italy (and Malta from until the creation of the Exarchate of Malta in 2021), officially the Sacred Orthodox Archdiocese of Italy and Exarchate of Southern Europe ( it, Sacra Arcidiocesi Ortodossa d'Italia ed Esarc ...
.
Other significant structures were by the
monasteries
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...
in the north of the quarter.
Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
closed the Arsenal and planned what are now the
Bienniale Gardens. More recently the island of
Sant'Elena has been created, and more land drained at other extremities of Castello.
Landmarks
Prominent sites and buildings in Castello include:
*
Church of Santi Giovanni e Paolo
The Basilica dei Santi Giovanni e Paolo, known in Venetian as San Zanipolo, is a church in the Castello ''sestiere'' of Venice, Italy.
One of the largest churches in the city, it has the status of a minor basilica. After the 15th century the fu ...
(San Zanipoli)
*Church of
San Giorgio dei Greci
San Giorgio dei Greci ( el, Ἅγιος Γεώργιος τῶν Ἑλλήνων, ´Agios Geórgios ton Ellínon, Saint George of the Greeks) is a church in the ''sestiere'' (neighborhood) of Castello, Venice, northern Italy. It was the center of ...
*
Campo Santa Maria Formosa and Church of
Santa Maria Formosa
Santa Maria Formosa, formally The Church of the Purification of Mary, is a church in Venice, northern Italy. It was erected in 1492 under the design by Renaissance architect Mauro Codussi. It lies on the site of a previous church dating from the ...
*Church and
Ospedale della Pietà
The Ospedale della Pietà was a convent, orphanage, and music school in Venice. Like other Venetian ''ospedali'', the Pietà was first established as a hospice for the needy. A group of Venetian nuns, called the Consorelle di Santa Maria dell’Um ...
*
Church of San Zaccaria
*Church of
San Giovanni di Malta
*Scuola of
San Giorgio degli Schiavoni
*
Scuola di San Marco
*
Venetian Arsenal
The Venetian Arsenal ( it, Arsenale di Venezia) is a complex of former shipyards and armories clustered together in the city of Venice in northern Italy. Owned by the state, the Arsenal was responsible for the bulk of the Venetian republic's ...
*
Church of Sant'Elena
*
Palazzo Malipiero-Trevisan
Palazzo Malipiero-Trevisan is a Renaissance palace in Venice, Italy located in the Castello district, on the south-eastern side of campo Santa Maria Formosa and separated from it by the Santa Maria Formosa river (entry is through a private bridg ...
*
Palazzo Vitturi
*
Palazzo Zorzi Bon
Palazzo Zorzi Bon is a historic palace in Venice located in the Castello district. The building inspired the book ''The Zorzi Affair'' by the American writer Sylva Prince.
Architecture
The palace has four levels. Squeezed between Palazzo Zorzi G ...
See also
*
References
{{Reflist
Sestieri of Venice