Isola del Giglio (; en, Giglio Island, lat, Igilium) is an Italian

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

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 ...

in the

Tyrrhenian Sea The Tyrrhenian Sea (; it, Mar Tirreno , french: Mer Tyrrhénienne , sc, Mare Tirrenu, co, Mari Tirrenu, scn, Mari Tirrenu, nap, Mare Tirreno) is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy. It is named for the Tyrrhenian pe ...

, off the coast of

Tuscany it, Toscano (man) it, Toscana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Citizenship , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = Italian , demogra ...

, and is part of the

Province of Grosseto The province of Grosseto ( it, links=no, provincia di Grosseto) is a province in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Grosseto. As of 2013 the province had a total population of 225,098 people. Geography The Province of Gro ...

. The island is one of seven that form the Tuscan Archipelago, lying within the

Arcipelago Toscano National Park Arcipelago Toscano National Park is a large Tuscan Archipelago national park and marine park in the Provinces of Grosseto and Livorno, western Tuscany, Italy. Geography The Tuscan archipelago (chain of islands) is located between the Ligurian Se ...

. ''Giglio'' means "lily" in Italian, and though the name would appear consistent with the insignia of Medici Florence, it originally derives from the Latin name of the island, ''Igilium'', which in turn could be related to the Ancient Greek name of the neighbouring

Capraia Capraia is an Italian island, the northwesternmost of the seven islands of the Tuscan Archipelago, and the third largest after Elba and Giglio. It is also a ''comune'' (Capraia Isola) belonging to the Province of Livorno. The island has a p ...

, ''Αἰγύλιον'' (''Aigýlion'', Latinized as ''Aegilium''), from grc, αἴξ, , goat, translit=aíx. In 2012, the cruise ship ''

Costa Concordia ''Costa Concordia'' () was a cruise ship operated by Costa Crociere. She was the first of her class, followed by sister ships ''Costa Serena'', '' Costa Pacifica'', ''Costa Favolosa'' and ''Costa Fascinosa'', and ''Carnival Splendor'' built for ...

'' foundered off the coast of the island.

Geography

The island is separated by a stretch of sea from the nearest point of the mainland, the promontory of

Monte Argentario Monte Argentario is a ''comune'' (municipality) and a peninsula belonging to the Province of Grosseto in the Italian region Tuscany, located about south of Florence and about south of Grosseto. The peninsula is connected with the mainland by thre ...

. Mainly mountainous, it consists almost entirely of

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...

, culminating in the Poggio della Pagana, which rises to . Ninety percent of its surface is covered by

Mediterranean vegetation Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub is a biome defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. The biome is generally characterized by dry summers and rainy winters, although in some areas rainfall may be uniform. Summers are typically hot in ...

, alternating with large pine forests and numerous vineyards which allow the production of the local "Ansonaco" wine. The coast is long, made up of rocks, smooth cliffs and several bays: Arenella, Cannelle, Caldane and Campese, the biggest one with its small village of the same name. The municipality is composed of the islands of Giglio and

Giannutri Giannutri () is a small island in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the coast of Tuscany, Italy; it is the southernmost island of the Tuscan Archipelago and it is a ''frazione'' of the ''comune'' of Isola del Giglio in the Province of Grosseto. Geography ...

. Three principal settlements are located on the main island: * Giglio Porto (G. Harbour), located on the eastern coastal side and hosts the port. It is divided into the quarters of Chiesa, Moletto and Saraceno. * Giglio Castello (G. Castle), located upon a hill between the two other localities and characterized by the majestic walls of a fortress. It is divided into the quarters of Casamatta, Centro, Cisterna and Rocca. * Giglio Campese, it is located on the north-western coastal side and is a modern sea resort.

History

The modern island was formed probably 4.5 to 5 million years ago, and has been inhabited since the Stone Age. Later, it was probably an

Etruscan __NOTOC__ Etruscan may refer to: Ancient civilization *The Etruscan language, an extinct language in ancient Italy *Something derived from or related to the Etruscan civilization **Etruscan architecture **Etruscan art **Etruscan cities ** Etrusca ...

military stronghold. Under the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

it was known as ''Aegilium Insula'' or ''Igillia Insula''. It was an important base in the Tyrrhenian Sea, and was cited briefly by

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, ...

in his '' De Bello Civili'', by

Pliny Pliny may refer to: People * Pliny the Elder (23–79 CE), ancient Roman nobleman, scientist, historian, and author of ''Naturalis Historia'' (''Pliny's Natural History'') * Pliny the Younger (died 113), ancient Roman statesman, orator, w ...

, by

Pomponius Mela Pomponius Mela, who wrote around AD 43, was the earliest Roman geographer. He was born in Tingentera (now Algeciras) and died AD 45. His short work (''De situ orbis libri III.'') remained in use nearly to the year 1500. It occupies less ...

, and by the fifth-century AD poet

Rutilius Claudius Namatianus Rutilius Claudius Namatianus (fl. 5th century) was a Roman Imperial poet, best known for his Latin poem, ''De reditu suo'', in elegiac metre, describing a coastal voyage from Rome to Gaul in 416. The poem was in two books; the exordium of the firs ...

, who celebrated Igilium's successful repulse of the Getae and safe harbor for Romans, in a time when Igilium's slopes were still wooded. In 805, the island was donated by

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first ...

to the abbey of the Tre Fontane in Rome, and was later successively a possession of the

Aldobrandeschi The Aldobrandeschi were an Italian noble family from southern Tuscany. Overview Of probable Lombard origin, they appear in history as counts in the 9th century. The first known count was Hildebrand II (857). Their possession extended to what i ...

, Pannocchieschi,

Caetani The House of Caetani, or Gaetani, is the name of an Italian noble family, originally from the city of Gaeta, connected by some to the lineage of the lords of the Duchy of Gaeta, as well as to the patrician Gaetani of the Republic of Pisa. It play ...

, and

Orsini Orsini is a surname of Italian origin, originally derived from Latin ''ursinus'' ("bearlike") and originating as an epithet or sobriquet describing the name-bearer's purported strength. Notable people with the surname include the following: *Angel ...

families, and of the municipality of

Perugia Perugia (, , ; lat, Perusia) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber, and of the province of Perugia. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and pa ...

. In 1241, the Sicilian and Pisan fleet of Emperor Frederick II destroyed a Genoese fleet in the Battle of Giglio. From 1264, Isola del Giglio was a Pisan dominion, from which it passed to the Medici family. It suffered several

Saracen upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek and Latin writings, to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Romans as Arabia Pe ...

attacks, which ended only in 1799. On 14 June 1646, Grand Admiral

Jean Armand de Maillé-Brézé Jean Armand de Maillé, Duke of Fronsac, Marquis of Brézé (18 October 1619 – 14 June 1646) was a French admiral. He was born in Milly-le-Meugon, in one of the most powerful French families of the time; his father was Urbain de Maillé, Mar ...

was killed at the

Battle of Orbetello The Battle of Orbetello, also known as the Battle of Isola del Giglio, was a major naval engagement of the Franco-Spanish War of 1635. It was fought on 14 June 1646 off the Spanish-ruled town of Orbetello, on the coast of Tuscany, Italy, betwee ...

, at sunset on his flagship the ''Grand Saint Louis''. Alongside its history, the island was always renowned for its mineral ore: many columns and buildings in Rome were built with the Gigliese granite.

Government

List of mayors

Main sights

The island houses the remains of a Roman villa of Domitius Ahenobarbus (1st-2nd century AD), in the area of Giglio Porto (Giglio port). No traces of the once existing Temple of Diana can be seen now. The church of San Pietro Apostolo in Giglio Castello (Giglio castle) has an ivory crucifix attributed to the sculptor Giambologna. The island is also the site of an

shipwreck dating back to the early

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostl ...

, ''c.'' 600 BC. The cargo of the ship included

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

and

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

ingots,

iron Iron () is a chemical element with Symbol (chemistry), symbol Fe (from la, Wikt:ferrum, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 element, group 8 of the periodic table. It is, Abundanc ...

spits, amphorae and a

Corinth Corinth ( ; el, Κόρινθος, Kórinthos, ) is the successor to an ancient city, and is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese (region), Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Since the 2011 local government refor ...

ian helmet. Even a wooden writing tablet with stylus was preserved. The finds are almost completely lost now.

Transportation

Isola del Giglio is connected to Tuscany by ferries run by the shipping companies '' Toremar'' and '' Maregiglio'', departing daily from

Porto Santo Stefano Porto Santo Stefano () is a seaport town on the west coast of Italy, in the municipality of Monte Argentario, in the Province of Grosseto, Tuscany. It is the municipal seat of Monte Argentario and one of the two major towns that form the townshi ...

''Costa Concordia'' grounding incident

In 2012, the island received prolonged international media attention, following the 13 January 2012 running aground of the cruise liner ''

'', just off the island's shore. Most of the more than 4,200 passengers and crew were rescued and taken to the island, as well as to the mainland. 32 people died and 64 were injured. The people of the island rushed to help, providing hot drinks and blankets, and many opened their homes to the victims. The arrival of 2,000 salvage workers invigorated life on the island, and many of the workers fraternised with the islanders. Some local women left the island with their new partners. The ship removal work was started in 2013 and was completed towards the end of July 2014. Flotation devices were attached to right the ship and then raise it. It was subsequently towed to its final destination

port of Genoa The Port of Genoa it is one of the most important seaports in Italy, in competition with the ports of Marseille and Barcelona in the Mediterranean Sea. With a trade volume of 51.6 million tonnes, it is the busiest port of Italy after the port of ...

to be scrapped.

In popular fiction

In the 2007 romantic bestselling Italian novel '' Scusa ma ti chiamo amore'' by Federico Moccia, the couple end up living in a lighthouse on this island. It is also the site of the

sea burial Burial at sea is the disposal of human remains in the ocean, normally from a ship or boat. It is regularly performed by navies, and is done by private citizens in many countries. Burial-at-sea services are conducted at many different location ...

of the captain of The Pharaon in The Count of Monte Cristo.

COVID-19

In July 2020, the island attracted global attention because it had not yet experienced any known cases of COVID-19.

Sister cities

* ,

San Quirico d'Orcia San Quirico d'Orcia is a ''comune'' (municipality) of about 2,500 inhabitants in the Province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southeast of Florence and about southeast of Siena inside the Valdorcia landscape. It is named i ...

since 2013

References

External links

*
Tourist and Visitor Information for Isola del Giglio
{{authority control Giglio Arcipelago Toscano National Park Province of Grosseto Islands of the Tyrrhenian Sea