Pizzo (), also called Pizzo Calabro, is a seaport and in the

province of Vibo Valentia The province of Vibo Valentia (; Vibonese: ) is a province in the Calabria region of Italy, set up by a national law of 6 March 1992, which came into effect on 1 January 1996, and formerly part of the province of Catanzaro. Its capital is the ...

(Calabria, southern Italy), situated on a steep cliff overlooking the Gulf of Saint Euphemia. Fishing is one of the main activities, including that of tuna and coral.

History

As with many other places in Calabria, Pizzo claims ancient origins. The town may have been founded by colonists from an unknown site in ancient

Magna Grecia Magna Graecia refers to the Greek-speaking areas of southern Italy, encompassing the modern Italian regions of Calabria, Apulia, Basilicata, Campania, and Sicily. These regions were extensively settled by Greeks beginning in the 8th century ...

, but there is currently no documentary or archeological evidence to support this. Consequently, the history of Pizzo begins in 1300 when the existence of a community of Basilian monks, a fort, and a fishing village is documented . The name ''Pizzo'' (translated either as bird's beak or projecting point) fits perfectly with the tuffa promontory that juts out into the sea near the mouth of the river Angitola. For centuries tuna was trapped in the beaches around Pizzo, especially in the months of May and June. Despite fading in importance over time this activity continued until the 1970s in the Centofontane area, where nets were spread to corral tuna from offshore. Ruins of the activity remain. The activity is now banned. The Piedigrotta and Prangi areas include some sea caves, and "the cave of the Saracen", although largely eroded today, was supposedly used by Saracen pirates to store booty and people captured during their raids along the coast of Calabria. The former King of Naples

Joachim Murat Joachim Murat ( , also ; ; ; 25 March 1767 – 13 October 1815) was a French Army officer and statesman who served during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Under the French Empire he received the military titles of Marshal of the ...

, who was the brother-in-law of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

, was imprisoned for several days in the town's Aragonese castle and then sentenced to death. He was executed by firing squad on October 13, 1815, in the main hall of the castle and was possibly buried in the church of San Giorgio. Paradoxically, the castle is now called Castello Murat. Inside the castle is the Provincial Museum Murat. In 1783 the town was almost destroyed by an

earthquake An earthquakealso called a quake, tremor, or tembloris the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those so weak they ...

, and it suffered some damage from the same cause in 1905.

Main sights

It has an old castle, built by the Aragonese in the 15th century, in which

, ex-king of Naples, was shot on October 13, 1815. Other sights include the Baroque church of St. George (1632) and the cave church of Piedigrotta (17th century)

Cuisine

Pizzo is famous in the area for its Tartufo, a large ball of ice cream filled with molten chocolate.

History

Main sights

Cuisine

Transport

Demographics

Climate

References

Notes

External links