Gallipoli (; ; ) is a southern

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

town and ''

comune A (; : , ) is an administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions () and provinces (). The can also have the City status in Italy, titl ...

'' in the

province of Lecce The province of Lecce (; Salentino: ) is a province in the Apulia region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Lecce. The province is called the "Heel of Italy". Located on the Salento peninsula, it is the second most-populous province in Ap ...

, in

Apulia Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian language, Italian name Puglia (), is a Regions of Italy, region of Italy, located in the Southern Italy, southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Ot ...

. In 2014, it had a population of 31,862 and is one of the towns where the Greek dialect

Griko Griko (endonym: /), sometimes spelled Grico, is one of the two dialects of Italiot Greek (the other being Calabrian Greek or ), spoken by Griko people in Salento, province of Lecce, Italy. Some Greek linguists consider it to be a Modern Greek ...

is spoken.

Geography

The town is located by the

Ionian Sea The Ionian Sea (, ; or , ; , ) is an elongated bay of the Mediterranean Sea. It is connected to the Adriatic Sea to the north, and is bounded by Southern Italy, including Basilicata, Calabria, Sicily, and the Salento peninsula to the west, ...

, on the west coast of the Salento Peninsula. The town of Gallipoli is divided into two parts, the modern and the old city. The new town includes all the newest buildings including a skyscraper. The old town is located on a limestone island, linked to the mainland by a bridge built in the 16th century. The municipality borders with Alezio, Galatone, Matino, Sannicola and Taviano. It counts the hamlets (''

frazioni A ''frazione'' (: ''frazioni'') is a type of subdivision of a ''comune'' ('municipality') in Italy, often a small village or hamlet outside the main town. Most ''frazioni'' were created during the Fascist era (1922–1943) as a way to consolidat ...

'') of Baia Verde, Lido Conchiglie, Lido San Giovanni, Rivabella and Torre del Pizzo.

History

According to a legend, the city was founded in ancient times by

Idomeneus In Greek mythology, Idomeneus (; ) was a Cretan king and commander who led the Cretan armies to the Trojan War, in eighty black ships. He was also one of the suitors of Helen, as well as a comrade of the Telamonian Ajax. Meriones was his chari ...

Crete Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...

Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/24 79), known in English as Pliny the Elder ( ), was a Roman Empire, Roman author, Natural history, naturalist, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the Roman emperor, emperor Vesp ...

attributes the foundation to the Senone Gauls, while more likely it was a

Messapi The Messapians were an Iapygian tribe who inhabited Salento in classical antiquity. Two other Iapygian tribes, the Peucetians and the Daunians, inhabited central and northern Apulia respectively. All three tribes spoke the Messapian language, ...

c settlement. Historically, what is known is that Gallipoli was a city of the Greater Greece, ruling over a large territory including today's Porto Cesareo. In 265 BC it sided with Pyrrhus and

Taranto Taranto (; ; previously called Tarent in English) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Taranto, serving as an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base. Founded by Spartans ...

against

ancient Rome In modern historiography, ancient Rome is the Roman people, Roman civilisation from the founding of Rome, founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, collapse of the Western Roman Em ...

, suffering a defeat which relegated it to a

Roman colony A Roman (: ) was originally a settlement of Roman citizens, establishing a Roman outpost in federated or conquered territory, for the purpose of securing it. Eventually, however, the term came to denote the highest status of a Roman city. It ...

(later a ''

municipium In ancient Rome, the Latin term (: ) referred to a town or city. Etymologically, the was a social contract among ('duty holders'), or citizens of the town. The duties () were a communal obligation assumed by the in exchange for the privileges ...

''). In the early

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, it was most likely sacked by the

Vandals The Vandals were a Germanic people who were first reported in the written records as inhabitants of what is now Poland, during the period of the Roman Empire. Much later, in the fifth century, a group of Vandals led by kings established Vand ...

and the

Goths The Goths were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of medieval Europe. They were first reported by Graeco-Roman authors in the 3rd century AD, living north of the Danube in what is ...

. Rebuilt by the Byzantines, Gallipoli lived an economically and socially flourishing period due to its geographical position. Later it was owned by the Roman Popes, and was a centre of fighting against the Greek monastic orders. In the 11th century Gallipoli was conquered by the

Normans The Normans (Norman language, Norman: ''Normaunds''; ; ) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norsemen, Norse Viking settlers and locals of West Francia. The Norse settlements in West Franc ...

and, in 1268, it was besieged by

Charles I of Anjou Charles I (early 1226/12277 January 1285), commonly called Charles of Anjou or Charles d'Anjou, was King of Sicily from 1266 to 1285. He was a member of the royal Capetian dynasty and the founder of the House of Anjou-Sicily. Between 1246 a ...

, causing numerous inhabitants to flee to the nearby Alezio. The city was repopulated around 1300, under the feudal rule of the

principality of Taranto The Principality of Taranto () was a state in southern Italy created in 1088 for Bohemond I, eldest son of Robert Guiscard, as part of the peace between him and his younger brother Roger Borsa after a dispute over the succession to the Duchy o ...

. In 1484 the Venetians tried to occupy it, but without results. King

Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies Ferdinand I (Italian language, Italian: ''Ferdinando I''; 12 January 1751 – 4 January 1825) was Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, King of the Two Sicilies from 1816 until his death. Before that he had been, since 1759, King of Naples as Ferdinand I ...

started the construction of the port, which in the 18th century became the largest olive oil market in the Mediterranean. After the

unification of Italy The unification of Italy ( ), also known as the Risorgimento (; ), was the 19th century Political movement, political and social movement that in 1861 ended in the Proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, annexation of List of historic states of ...

(1861), Gallipoli was capital of a ''circondario'', together with Lecce and Taranto.

Main sights

*Angevine-Aragonese Castle, built in the 13th century by the Byzantines. It was largely remade under the Angevins and the Aragonese, who added a polygonal wall fortified with round towers. The main additions were carried on by

Francesco di Giorgio Martini Francesco di Giorgio Martini (1439–1501) was an Italian architect, engineer, painter, sculptor, and writer. As a painter, he belonged to the Sienese School. He was considered a visionary architectural theorist—in Nikolaus Pevsner's terms ...

, who worked for King

Alfonso II of Naples Alfonso II (4 November 1448 – 18 December 1495) was Duke of Calabria and ruled as King of Naples from 25 January 1494 to 23 January 1495. He was a soldier and a patron of Renaissance architecture and the arts. Heir to his father Fe ...

. In 1522 an eastern bastion, known as ''Rivellino'', was built which is defended by waters on three sides. *14th century walls (renewed by the Spaniards in the 16th century). Originally they had 12 towers or bastions. *Baroque Cathedral of Sant'Agata (17th century). It has a richly decorated façade in ''carparo'', a local limestone, with niches featuring statues of saints. The interior is on the Latin cross plan, with Baroque altars, including a polychrome high altar by Cosimo Fanzago. *Church of St. Francis of Paola (1621) *Church of St. Francis of Assisi, built in the 13th century but renovated several times later. It is home to a stone

nativity scene In the Christian tradition, a nativity scene (also known as a manger scene, crib, crèche ( or ), or in Italian ''presepio'' or ''presepe'', or Bethlehem) is the special exhibition, particularly during the Christmastide, Christmas season, of ar ...

by Stefano da Putignano (late 16th century) *Church of ''San Domenico al Rosario'' (late 17th century), annexed to a former Dominican convent. *Church of the Holy Crucifix (1750) *Church of ''Santa Maria della Purità'' (1661). The richly decorated interior houses, at the marble high altar, a canvas by

Luca Giordano Luca Giordano (18 October 1634 – 3 January 1705) was an Italian late-Baroque painter and printmaker in etching. Fluent and decorative, he worked successfully in Naples, Rome, Florence, and Venice, before spending a decade in Spain. Early l ...

depicting the ''Madonna della Purità between st. Joseph and St. Francis of Assisi''. * Greek Fountain (16th century), once believed to date to the 3rd century BC. It has bas-reliefs with mythological figures and, on the other façade, the insignia of

Charles III of Spain Charles III (; 20 January 1716 – 14 December 1788) was King of Spain in the years 1759 to 1788. He was also Duke of Parma and Piacenza, as Charles I (1731–1735); King of Naples, as Charles VII; and King of Sicily, as Charles III (or V) (1735� ...

. *''Palazzo Pirelli'' (16th century), with mythological-theme decorations in the vault of former entrance archway which was converted to a pharmacy in the 19th century. *Church of ''San Pietro dei Samari'', outside the city. It was built in by a Crusader knight, Ugo di Lusignano in 1148. *Spiaggia ''la Puritate'' beach under the city walls.

Transportation

Nearest airports are Brindisi, , and Bari, . Gallipoli can be reached from both of them via a freeway, the state road 101. By train, it is connected to

Lecce Lecce (; ) is a city in southern Italy and capital of the province of Lecce. It is on the Salentine Peninsula, at the heel of the Italian Peninsula, and is over two thousand years old. Because of its rich Baroque architecture, Lecce is n ...

by the Ferrovie Sud-Est.

Economy

In past times the economy of Gallipoli was based on the international wine and oil commerce. Nowadays its most important activities are based on fishing and tourism. Tourism is enjoyable throughout the year, due to the mild climate. Numerous festivals, both civil and religious, are also held. These include the Carnival, Easter and all the parades, Sant'Agata, and the Santa Cristina celebrations in July. Gallipoli also boasts a very recently built harbour for private boats, located just steps from the bottom of the main Corso Roma. The summer season starts in May and ends in October, when the weather is almost invariably hot and clear.

LGBT culture

A sophisticated gay scene has developed around Gallipoli, often referred to as “Gay-lipoli”. The city is particularly well known as a destination for the Italian gay population and has become “Italy’s gay summer paradise”. A vibrant nightlife means Gallipoli draws an international gay crowd over the summer months, with visitors also being drawn by the nearby naturist beaches and the popular lidos at Baia Verde.

Sport

The local football team is the Gallipoli Calcio. The team won the 2005–06 Serie C2/C championship. They were promoted to

Serie B The Serie B (), officially known as Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 season. It had b ...

for the first time in the club's short history after winning the 2008–09 Serie C1/B championship, although were instantly relegated and then refounded due to financial issues.

International relations

Gallipoli is twinned with: *

Monfalcone Monfalcone (; Venetian language#Regional variants, Bisiacco: ; ; ; archaic ) is a town and (municipality) in the Province of Gorizia, Regional decentralization entity of Gorizia in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, northern Italy, located on the Gulf of Tr ...

, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy *

Catania Catania (, , , Sicilian and ) is the second-largest municipality on Sicily, after Palermo, both by area and by population. Despite being the second city of the island, Catania is the center of the most densely populated Sicilian conurbation, wh ...

, Sicily, Italy

References

External links

Official website

Anxa News
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Apulia Coastal towns in Apulia Localities of Salento