Grado ( vec, Gravo; fur, Grau; sl, Gradež; la, Gradus) is a town and ''

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

'' of 8,064 residents in the north-eastern

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

region of

Friuli-Venezia Giulia (man), it, Friulana (woman), it, Giuliano (man), it, Giuliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_t ...

, located on an island and adjacent peninsula of the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to t ...

between

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 ...

and

Trieste Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into provi ...

. The territory of the municipality of Grado extends between the mouth of the Isonzo and the

and the lagoon of the same name which covers an area of about 90 square kilometers and goes from Porto Buso to Fossalon. Characteristic of the lagoon is the presence of the '' casoni'', which are simple houses with thatched roof used in the past by the fishermen of Grado, who remained in the lagoon for a long time, returning to the island of Grado only during the colder period of the year. Once mainly a fishing centre, today it is a popular tourist destination, known commonly as ''L'Isola del Sole'' ("The Sunny Island"). It is also famous because it is a

spa town A spa town is a resort town based on a mineral spa (a developed mineral spring). Patrons visit spas to "take the waters" for their purported health benefits. Thomas Guidott set up a medical practice in the English town of Bath in 1668. H ...

; from 1873 a maritime hospice for children called Ospizio Marino wanted by the doctor Giuseppe Barellai was established on the island, because the climate and the environment of the island are a good place for the treatment of some childhood diseases. Subsequently, Grado was the chosen destination for marine thermal treatments, especially by the Austrian population. Together with

Marano Lagunare Marano Lagunare ( fur, Maran) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Udine in the Italian region Friuli-Venezia Giulia, located about northwest of Trieste and about south of Udine. Marano Lagunare borders the following municipalities ...

, it is the centre of the Marano-Grado Lagoon, which is famous for its uncontaminated nature. Grado is the birthplace of

Biagio Marin Biagio Marin (1891–1985) was a Venetian poet, best known from his poems in the Venetian language, which had no literary tradition until then. In his writings he never obeyed rhetoric or poetics. He only employed a few hundred words for his po ...

, a poet who sang about the island in the local Venetian dialect.

History

In Roman times the city, known as ''ad Aquae Gradatae'', was the first port for ships entering the Natissa (

Natisone The Natisone ( fur, Nadison; sl, Nadiža; la, Natiso) is a river in Slovenia and Italy. It flows for some time as a border river between Slovenia and Italy, continues in Slovenia and then crosses the border and continues in Eastern Friuli, in no ...

), headed upstream to

Aquileia Aquileia / / / / ;Bilingual name of ''Aquileja – Oglej'' in: vec, Aquiłeja / ; Slovenian: ''Oglej''), group=pron is an ancient Roman city in Italy, at the head of the Adriatic at the edge of the lagoons, about from the sea, on the river N ...

. During the late years of the

Western Roman Empire The Western Roman Empire comprised the western provinces of the Roman Empire at any time during which they were administered by a separate independent Imperial court; in particular, this term is used in historiography to describe the period fr ...

many people fled from Aquileia to Grado in order to find a safer place, more protected from the invasions coming from the east. In 452, Nicetas, Bishop of Aquileia, took refuge briefly at Grado; of the same period is the earliest construction of Grado's first cathedral, the first church of Santa Maria delle Grazie, and the baptistery. Grado was the home base of the patriarchate's fleet. In 568, after the invasion of the

Lombards The Lombards () or Langobards ( la, Langobardi) were a Germanic people who ruled most of the Italian Peninsula from 568 to 774. The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the ''History of the Lombards'' (written between 787 and ...

, the seat of the Patriarchate of Aquileia was transferred to Grado by the Patriarch Paulinus. After the

Schism of the Three Chapters The Schism of the Three Chapters was a schism that affected Chalcedonian Christianity in Northern Italy lasting from 553 to 698 AD, although the area out of communion with Rome contracted throughout that time. It was part of a larger Three-Chapter C ...

, two different patriarchs were elected: the

patriarch of Grado This is a list of the Patriarchs of Grado (north-eastern Italy).
''

Venetian Lagoon, while that of

Old-Aquileia The Patriarchate of Old Aquileia existed between 607 and 698 because of the Tricapitoline Schism in the Patriarchate of Aquileia. It was allied with the Arian Lombards, while the rival Patriarchate of Grado was allied with the Byzantine Empire. ...

, later moved to

Cividale Cividale del Friuli ( fur, Cividât (locally ); german: Östrich; sl, Čedad) is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Udine, part of the Northern Italy, North-Italian Friuli Venezia Giulia ''regione''. The town lies above sea-level in the foo ...

, had its jurisdiction over the interior. A long-lasting dispute over the authority of the two patriarchs ensued. In 993, the patriarch of Aquileia, Popo, conquered Grado but was unable to keep possession of it. The matter was settled only in 1027 when the pope declared the supremacy of the See of Aquileia over Grado and the Venetian province. The seat of the patriarchate was transferred to

in 1451 by

Pope Nicholas V Pope Nicholas V ( la, Nicholaus V; it, Niccolò V; 13 November 1397 – 24 March 1455), born Tommaso Parentucelli, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 March 1447 until his death in March 1455. Pope Eugene IV, Po ...

. Reduced to a minor hamlet, Grado was sacked by the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

, who burned the city archives in 1810 and by the French in 1812. Grado was acquired by Austria in 1815, to which it belonged until 1918 when it was ceded to Italy after its victory in World War I. In the Belvedere area where the land is interrupted and gives way to the lagoon, it was possible to embark to reach the island of Grado. Subsequently, there was a tourist and urban development and in 1905 a road was built in the middle of the lagoon to connect the two parts of the territory. In 1936 Grado was definitively connected to the mainland through the construction of a swing bridge which put an end to the isolation of the island.

Main sights

Today there are frequent finds of inscriptions, sarcophagi, marble sculpture and small bronzes that once furnished its villas. The remains of one of these villas have been excavated on the islet of Gorgo in the lagoon. Modern landmarks include: *The ''Basilica of Sant'Eufemia'' (

Cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

), with the octagonal Baptistry (late 5th century). The church was once preceded by a quadri-

portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cult ...

, one of the columns of which is now in the centre of the Patriarch's Square. The current appearance of the church dates from the reconstruction by Fra Elia (579), with a simple hut façade and a bell tower (15th century) on the right side, which is surmounted by a statue portraying St. Michael and known as the ''Anzolo'' (1462). The interior has a nave and two aisles. The main point of interest is the mosaic pavement from the 6th century, restored in 1946–48. *The basilica of ''Santa Maria delle Grazie''. Begun in the 4th to 5th centuries, it was renovated in the 6th century and restored in

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

in 1640. *The '' Barbana Sanctuary''. It is located in a small island in the Grado Lagoon called Barbana, which can be reached in 25 minutes by motorboat, the service is offered by the boat "Nuova Cristina" from Riva Zaccaria Gregori, Grado. The original church was erected in 582 and was since rebuilt and enlarged. The current sanctuary was built in Neo-Romantic style and houses numerous vestiges of the buildings that have succeeded each other over the centuries, including two columns that probably date back to the original church. Inside there are very different works: the main altar has a relief with the lagoon surmounted by a wooden statue guarded by an aedicule of the Madonna, a large canvas representing the union of Venetians in a brotherhood, two Venetian altars dedicated to St. Anthony of Padua (on the right) and St. Francis of Assisi (on the left). Furthermore, near the entrance to the bell tower, it is possible to see capitals and marble from the early Middle Ages. Of the ancient fortress only a tower, turned into a private residence, and parts of the walls can still be seen. Under the Town Hall are remains of the Palaeo-Christian basilica of Piazza Vittoria. The Valle Cavanata Nature Reserve is a

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

situated in the easternmost part of the Grado Lagoon.

Resort town

Josef Maria Auchentaller - Plakat Seebad Grado - Leopold Museum 1906

Today, Grado attracts scores of tourists each year to its hotels and campgrounds. A large water park run by a municipal corporation is the main attraction, complete with indoor and outdoor swimming pools, and a health centre offering spa treatments. The town also boasts a well-preserved pedestrian-only centre, in which many shops, bars, and restaurants are located. Grado also offers facilities for many sporting activities, including tennis, wind-surfing, and golf. From Grado can be done excursions by boat to the Grado Lagoon, and visit the many dozen islands inside it (like Barbana). Laguna di Grado (in Italian)
/ref>

Twin towns

Sankt Lorenzen bei Knittelfeld Sankt Lorenzen bei Knittelfeld is a former municipality in the district of Murtal in Styria, Austria. Since the 2015 Styria municipal structural reform, it is part of the municipality Sankt Margarethen bei Knittelfeld Sankt Margarethen bei Knit ...

, Austria *

Sankt Marein-Feistritz Sankt Marein-Feistritz is a municipality since 2015 in the Murtal District of Styria, Austria. The municipality, Sankt Marein-Feistritz, was created as part of the Styria municipal structural reform, at the end of 2014, by merging the former t ...

, Austria

Image gallery

File:July2006_Grado old town II.JPG, Many restaurants can be found in the oldest part of the town. File:Cathedral_S_Eufemia,_Grado_IMG_0717_bordercropped.jpg, Basilica di Sant'Eufemia by night File:July2006_Grado old town III.JPG, The harbour File:Santuario-madonna-di-barbana.jpg, Barbana island, the Marian sanctuary File:Grado kanal.JPG, Channel in Grado

Bibliography

*Bisconti F., ''Temi di iconografia paleocristiana'', Vatican City, 2000. *Bovini G., "Grado paleocristiana", in ''Archeologia Cristiana'', Bologna 1973. *Farioli R., "Mosaici pavimentali dell'alto Adriatico e dell'Africa settentrionale in età bizantina", in ''Antichità Altoadriatiche'', vo. V.paleocristiana, Ravenna 1975. *Farioli R., '' Pavimenti musivi di Ravenna'', Ravenna 1975. *Efthalia Rentetzi, "Un'inedita figura di pesce. Parentele stilistiche tra i mosaici pavimentali di s. Maria delle Grazie e s. Eufemia a Grado", in ''Artonweb. Punti di visa sull'arte.''

*Efthalia Rentetzi, "Un frammento inedito di S. Eufemia a Grado. Il pavimento musivo del Salutatorium", in
Arte Cristiana
, fasc.. 850 (Gennaio - Febbraio 2009), Volume XCVI, p. 51-52. *Touring Club Italiano, "Gorizia e provincia: Il Collio, la valle dell'Isonzo, Grado e la laguna, il Carso", 2009. *Ezio Marocco, "Grado: guida storico artistica", Bruno Fachin Editore - Trieste. *Italia Nostra - sezione di Udine, "Gli ambienti del Friuli-Venezia Giulia: LA LAGUNA", 1990. *Graziano Benedetti, "Lagune del Friuli-Venezia Giulia: itinerari, tradizioni & antichi sapori. Alla scoperta di una natura affascinante.", in LEGUIDE MAGNUS, 1994.

Notes

External links

Official institutional website of City

Official tourist website of City

Scuola Insieme, a local Italian language school
offers details on history, travel, and activities in and around Grado.
Richard Stillwell, ed. ''Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites'', 1976:
"Ad Aquas Gradatas (Grado), Italy" *Information abou
Grado

{{Authority control Cities and towns in Friuli-Venezia Giulia