Milazzo (
Sicilian: ''Milazzu''; la, Mylae; ) is a town (''
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 ...
'') in the
Metropolitan City of Messina
The Metropolitan City of Messina ( it, Città metropolitana di Messina) is a metropolitan city in Sicily, Italy. Its capital is the city of Messina. It replaced the Province of Messina and comprises the city of Messina and other 107 municipalitie ...
,
Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
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, southern Italy; it is the largest commune in the Metropolitan City after
Messina
Messina (, also , ) is a harbour city and the capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 219,000 inhabitants in ...
and
Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto
Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto (; Sicilian language, Sicilian: ''Baccialona Pizzaottu'') is a town and ''comune'' of about 50,000 inhabitants in the north coast of Sicily, Italy, from Messina, Italy, Messina towards Palermo. It belongs to the M ...
. The town has a population of around 31,500 inhabitants.
History
Several civilizations settled in Milazzo and left signs of their presence from the Neolithic age. In Homer's ''Odyssey'' Milazzo is presumably the place where Ulysses is shipwrecked and meets
Polyphemus
Polyphemus (; grc-gre, Πολύφημος, Polyphēmos, ; la, Polyphēmus ) is the one-eyed giant son of Poseidon and Thoosa in Greek mythology, one of the Cyclopes described in Homer's ''Odyssey''. His name means "abounding in songs and lege ...
.
Historically, the town originated as the ancient ''Mylae'' ( grc, Μύλαι), an outpost of
Zancle
Messina (, also , ) is a harbour city and the capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 219,000 inhabitants in t ...
, occupied before 648 BC, perhaps as early as 716 BC.
It was taken by the Athenians in 426 BC. The people of
Rhegium
Reggio di Calabria ( scn, label= Southern Calabrian, Riggiu; el, label=Calabrian Greek, Ρήγι, Rìji), usually referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria. It has an estimated popula ...
planted the exiles from
Naxos
Naxos (; el, Νάξος, ) is a Greek island and the largest of the Cyclades. It was the centre of archaic Cycladic culture. The island is famous as a source of emery, a rock rich in corundum, which until modern times was one of the best abr ...
and
Catana
Catania (, , Sicilian and ) is the second largest municipality in Sicily, after Palermo. Despite its reputation as the second city of the island, Catania is the largest Sicilian conurbation, among the largest in Italy, as evidenced also by ...
in 395 BC as a counterpoise to
Dionysius the Elder
Dionysius I or Dionysius the Elder ( 432 – 367 BC) was a Greek tyrant of Syracuse, in Sicily. He conquered several cities in Sicily and southern Italy, opposed Carthage's influence in Sicily and made Syracuse the most powerful of the Western Gr ...
's foundation of
Tyndaris
Tindari (; scn, Lu Tìnnaru ), ancient Tyndaris ( grc, Τυνδαρίς, Strab.) or Tyndarion (, Ptol.), is a small town, ''frazione'' (suburb or municipal component) in the ''comune'' of Patti and a Latin Catholic titular see.
The monumenta ...
; but Dionysius soon took it. In the bay
Gaius Duilius
Gaius Duilius ( 260–231 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. As consul in 260 BC, during the First Punic War, he won Rome's first ever victory at sea by defeating the Carthaginians at the Battle of Mylae. He later served as censor in 258, an ...
won
the first Roman naval victory over the
Carthaginians
The Punic people, or western Phoenicians, were a Semitic people in the Western Mediterranean who migrated from Tyre, Phoenicia to North Africa during the Early Iron Age. In modern scholarship, the term ''Punic'' – the Latin equivalent of the ...
(260 BC).
In 36 BC the naval
Battle of Mylae
The Battle of Mylae took place in 260 BC during the First Punic War and was the first real naval battle between Carthage and the Roman Republic. This battle was key in the Roman victory of Mylae (present-day Milazzo) as well as Sicily itself. ...
was fought offshore. The fleet of
Octavian
Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...
, commanded by
Marcus Agrippa
Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa (; BC – 12 BC) was a Roman general, statesman, and architect who was a close friend, son-in-law, and lieutenant to the Roman emperor Augustus. He was responsible for the construction of some of the most notable build ...
, engaged that of
Sextus Pompey
Sextus Pompeius Magnus Pius ( 67 – 35 BC), also known in English as Sextus Pompey, was a Roman military leader who, throughout his life, upheld the cause of his father, Pompey the Great, against Julius Caesar and his supporters during the last ...
. While the battle was nearly a draw, Sextus could not replace his losses, and was thus weaker at the following
Battle of Naulochus
The naval Battle of Naulochus ( it, Battaglia di Nauloco) was fought on 3 September 36 BC between the fleets of Sextus Pompeius and Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, off Naulochus, Sicily. The victory of Agrippa, admiral of Octavian, marked the end of t ...
(36 BC), where he was utterly defeated.
After the fall 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 ...
, under the
Byzantine
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
s, the town became one of the first episcopal seats of Sicily. In the 9th century Milazzo was conquered by the Arabs, who built the first nucleus of the castle here.
Frederick II of Hohenstaufen
Frederick II (German: ''Friedrich''; Italian: ''Federico''; Latin: ''Federicus''; 26 December 1194 – 13 December 1250) was King of Sicily from 1198, King of Germany from 1212, King of Italy and Holy Roman Emperor from 1220 and King of Jerus ...
further fortified the town and created a personal hunting park. The castle was later mostly rebuilt in the age of
Charles V of Spain.
Milazzo was also the seat of
a battle in 1718 between Spain and Austria, and of
another fought by
Giuseppe Garibaldi
Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as ''Gioxeppe Gaibado''. In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as ''Jousé'' or ''Josep''. 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, patr ...
against the
Kingdom of Two Sicilies
The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies ( it, Regno delle Due Sicilie) was a kingdom in Southern Italy from 1816 to 1860. The kingdom was the largest sovereign state by population and size in Italy before Italian unification, comprising Sicily and a ...
during his
Expedition of the Thousand
The Expedition of the Thousand ( it, Spedizione dei Mille) was an event of the Italian Risorgimento that took place in 1860. A corps of volunteers led by Giuseppe Garibaldi sailed from Quarto, near Genoa (now Quarto dei Mille) and landed in Ma ...
.
Geography
Milazzo borders with the municipalities of
Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto
Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto (; Sicilian language, Sicilian: ''Baccialona Pizzaottu'') is a town and ''comune'' of about 50,000 inhabitants in the north coast of Sicily, Italy, from Messina, Italy, Messina towards Palermo. It belongs to the M ...
,
Merì
Merì is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Messina in the Italian region Sicily, located about east of Palermo and about west of Messina.
Merì borders the following municipalities: Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto, Milazzo
...
and
San Filippo del Mela
San Filippo del Mela ( Sicilian: ''San Filippu'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Messina in the Italian region Sicily, located about east of Palermo and about west of Messina.
San Filippo del Mela borders the followi ...
.
Milazzo is the point of reference of a vast territory, from
Villafranca Tirrena to
Patti (over 200,000 inhabitants). Is also, an important centre of the Strait of Messina Metropolitan Area (who also includes areas of
Reggio Calabria
Reggio di Calabria ( scn, label= Southern Calabrian, Riggiu; el, label= Calabrian Greek, Ρήγι, Rìji), usually referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria. It has an estimated popul ...
), with the nearby town
Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto
Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto (; Sicilian language, Sicilian: ''Baccialona Pizzaottu'') is a town and ''comune'' of about 50,000 inhabitants in the north coast of Sicily, Italy, from Messina, Italy, Messina towards Palermo. It belongs to the M ...
. Located at the base of a peninsula that juts into the Tyrrhenian Sea with a small promontory, the town is from the city of
Messina
Messina (, also , ) is a harbour city and the capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 219,000 inhabitants in ...
.
Main sights
*
Castle of Milazzo
The Castello di Milazzo ( en, Milazzo Castle) is a castle and citadel in Milazzo, Sicily. It is located on the summit of a hill overlooking the town, on a site first fortified in the Neolithic era. The Greeks modified it into an acropolis, and it ...
. Begun by the Arabs, enlarged by the Normans, restored and strengthened by
Frederick II, it is surrounded by walls with round towers built under
Alfonso V of Aragon
Alfonso the Magnanimous (139627 June 1458) was King of Aragon and King of Sicily (as Alfonso V) and the ruler of the Crown of Aragon from 1416 and King of Naples (as Alfonso I) from 1442 until his death. He was involved with struggles to the t ...
, with a Gothic portal dating from the 14th century. Near the castle are the ruins of the fourteenth-century palace of the grand jury and the old cathedral (1603) probably built on a design by architect Camillo Camillians.
Other sights include:
*the Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
*the Baroque Church of the Holy Crucifix (1629), housing a wooden canopy from the 18th century and a wooden crucifix from the early 17th century.
*Rock church of St. Anthony of Padua
*Sanctuary of St. Francis of Paola
Economy
Over time, the town is moving forward towards the sea by recording a continuous development of
agriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
and fishing activities,
commercial
Commercial may refer to:
* a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television)
** Radio advertisement
** Television advertisement
* (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...
and
industrial
Industrial may refer to:
Industry
* Industrial archaeology, the study of the history of the industry
* Industrial engineering, engineering dealing with the optimization of complex industrial processes or systems
* Industrial city, a city dominate ...
.
Transportation
The port of Milazzo is a departure point for ferries to the
Aeolian Islands
The Aeolian Islands ( ; it, Isole Eolie ; scn, Ìsuli Eoli), sometimes referred to as the Lipari Islands or Lipari group ( , ) after their largest island, are a volcanic archipelago in the Tyrrhenian Sea north of Sicily, said to be named after ...
and
Naples
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
.
See also
*
S.S. Milazzo
Società Sportiva Milazzo is an Italian association football club, based in Milazzo, Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
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...
*
Taberna Mylaensis
References
External links
Milazzo official website
{{authority control
Coastal towns in Sicily
Municipalities of the Metropolitan City of Messina
Zanclean colonies
Colonies of Magna Graecia
Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Italy