Gaeta
Gaeta is a city and
comune in the
province of Latina, in
Lazio, central
Italy. Set on a promontory stretching towards the
Gulf of Gaeta, it is 120 km from Rome and 80 km from Naples.
The town has played a conspicuous part in military history: its fortifications date back to Roman times, and it has several traces of the period, including the first-century mausoleum of the Roman general
Lucius Munatius Plancus at the top of the Montagna Spaccata ("Split Mountain").
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The famous natural sea grotto of the Montagna Spaccata. |
Gaeta's fortifications were extended and strengthened in the
15th century, and indeed throughout the history of the
Kingdom of Naples (later the
Two Sicilies). Nowadays Gaeta is a fishing and oil
seaport, and a renowned tourist resort.
NATO maintains a base of operations at Gaeta.
Ancient times
It is the ancient
Caieta, situated on the slopes of the Torre di Orlando, a promontory overlooking the Mediterranean. Gaeta was an ancient Ionian colony of the
Samians according to
Strabo, who believed the name stemmed from the Greek
kaiétas, which means "cave", probably referring to the several harbours. According to
Virgil's
Aeneid (vii.1–9),
Caieta was
Aeneas' (another legend says or Ascanius') wet-nurse, whom he buried here.
In the classical age
Caieta, famous for its lovely and temperate climate, like the neighbouring
Formia and
Sperlonga, was a tourist resort and site of the seaside
villas of many important and rich characters of
Rome. Like the other Roman resorts, Caieta was linked to the capital of the
Empire by
Via Appia and its end trunk
Via Flacca (or Valeria), through an apposite
diverticulum or bye-road. Its port was of great importance in trade and in war, and was restored under Emperor
Antoninus Pius. Among its antiquities is the mausoleum of Lucius Munatius Plancus.
Middle Ages
See also Duchy of Gaeta.At the beginning of the
Middle Ages, after the
Lombards invasion, Gaeta remained under
Byzantine Empire suzerainty. In the following years, like
Amalfi,
Sorrento and
Naples, it would seem to have established itself as a practically independent port and to have carried on a thriving trade with the
Levant. As Byzantine influence declined in Southern Italy the town began to grow. In 840 the inhabitants of the neighbouring Formiæ fled to Gaeta through fear of the Saracens. Though under the suzerainty of Byzantium, Gaeta had then, like nearby ports
Naples and
Amalfi, a republican form of government with a
dux ("duke", or commanding lord under the command of the Byzantine
Exarch of Ravenna), as a strong bulwark against Saracen invasion.
Around 830, it become a lordship ruled by hereditary
hypati, or
consuls: the first one was
Constantine (
839–
866), who in 847 aided
pope Leo IV in the
naval fight at Ostia. At this same time (846) the episcopal see of Gaeta was founded when Constantine, Bishop of Formiae, fled thither and established his residence. He was associated with his son
Marinus I. They were probably violently overthrown (they diappear suddenly from history) in
866 or
867 by
Docibilis I, who, looking rather to local safety, entered into treaties with the Saracens and abandoned friendly relations with the papacy. Nevertheless, he great expanded the duchy and began construction on the palace. Greatest of the
hypati was possibly
John I, who helped crush the
Saracens at
Garigliano in
915 and gained the title of
patricius from the Byzantine Emperor
Constantine VII.
The principle of co-regency governed the early dynstys and Docibilis associated John with him and John in turn associated his son
Docibilis II with him. In
933, three generations were briefly co-ruling: John I, Docibilis II, and
John II. On the death of Docibilis II (
954), who first took the title
dux, the duchy passes from its golden age and enters a decline marked by a division of territory. John II ruled Gaeta and his brother, Marinus, ruled Fondi with the equivalent title of duke. Outlying lands and castles were given away to younger sons, and the family of the Docibili slowly declined after mid-century.
Allegedly, but improbably, from the end of the 9th century, the
principality of Capua claimed Gaeta, as a courtesy title for the younger son of its ruling prince. In the mid-tenth century, the
De Ceremoniis of
Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus lists the ceremonial title "prince of Gaeta" among the protocols for letters written to foreigners
[''De ceremoniis] |
Ruins of the Palace of John II. |
Prince
Pandulf IV of Capua captured Gaeta in
1032 and deposed Duke
John V, assuming the ducal and consular titles. In
1038, Prince
Guaimar IV of Salerno took it from him and, in
1041, established the
Norman counts of Aversa, who were afterwards princes of
Capua, as puppet dukes. The native dynasty made a last attempt to wrest the duchy from Guaimar in
1042 under
Leo the Usurper.
In
1045, the Gaetans elected their own Lombard duke,
Atenulf I. His son,
Atenulf II, was made to submit to the Norman Prince
Richard I of Capua in
1062, when Gaeta was captured by
Jordan Drengot. In
1064, the city was finally placed under a line of puppet dukes, appointed by the Capuan princes, who had usurped the ducal and
consular titles. These dukes, usually Italianate Normans, ruled Gaeta with some level of independence until the death of
Richard of Caleno in
1140. In that year, Gaeta was definitively annexed to the
Kingdom of Sicily by
Roger II, who bestowed on his son
Roger of Apulia, who was duly elected by the nobles of the city. The town did maintain its own coinage until as late as
1229, after the Normans had been superceded by the centralising
Hohenstaufen.
In the many wars for possession of the
Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, Gaeta, owing to its important strategic position, was often attacked and defended bravely. In 1194 the
Pisans, allies of
Emperor Henry VI in the conquest of the kingdom, took possession of the city and held it as their own.
In
1227 the Hohenstaufen Emperor
Frederick II was in the city and strengthened the castle. However, in the struggle between Emperor Frederick and the
Papacy, in 1228 it rebelled against Frederick II and surrendered to the pope, after the Papal forces destroyed the imperial castle in the fray. After the peace of San Germano of 1230, it was given back to the Sicilian kingdom. In
1233, Frederick regained control of the important port and fortress. In
1279 Charles I of Anjou rebuilt the castle and enhanced the fortifications. In
1289 King
James II of Aragon besieged the city in vain. From
1378 Gaeta hosted for some years
antipope Clement VII. The future King of
Naples Ladislas lived in Gaeta from
1387. Here, on
21 September, he married
Costanza Chiaramonte, whom he repudiated three years later.
King
Alfons V of Aragon (as Alfonso I of Naples) made Gaeta his beachhead for the conquest of the
Kingdom of Naples in
1435, besieged it, and displayed great generosity, to his own disadvantage, by succouring those unable to bear arms who had been driven out from the besieged town. After a disastrous naval battle he captured it, and gained control of the kingdom. He enlarged the castle, which became his royal palace, and created a mint.
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Gaeta's historic quarter from Monte Orlando. |
Modern era
In
1495, king
Charles VIII of France conquered the city and sacked it. The following year, however,
Frederick I of Aragon regained it with a tremendous siege which lasted from
September 8 to
November 18.
In 1501 Gaeta was retaken by the French, who, after the defeat of Garigliano (January 3, 1504), abandoned it to Gonsalvo de Cordova,
Ferdinand the Catholic's general.
In
1528 Andrea Doria, admiral of
Charles V, defeated a French fleet in the waters off Gaeta and gave the city to its emperor. Gaeta was thenceforth protected with a new and more extensive wall, which also encompassed Monte Orlando.
In the War of the Spanish Succession, on
September 30,
1707 Gaeta was stormed and taken after a three months' siege by the
Austrians under
general Daun. On
6 August,
1734 it was
taken, after a stubborn resistance made by the Spanish
viceroy of four months, by French, Spanish and Sardinian troops under the future
King Charles of Naples. The fortifications were again strengthened; and in
1799 it was temporarily occupied by the French.
On
July 18,
1806 it was captured, after an heroic defence, by the French under
André Masséna. It was created a
duché grand-fief in the napoleonic kingdom of Naples, but under the French name
Gaete, for finance minister
Martin-Michel-Charles Gaudin, in 1809 (family extinguished in 1841).
On
July 18,
1815 it capitulated, after a three months' siege, to the Austrians.
In November
1848 Pope Pius IX, after his flight in from the
Roman Republic, found refuge at Gaeta, where he remained until
September 4,
1849.
Finally, in
1860, it was the scene of the
last stand of
Francis II of the Two Sicilies against the forces of United Italy. Shut up in the fortress with 12,000 men, after
Garibaldi's occupation of
Naples, inspired by the heroic example of Queen Maria, the king offered a stubborn resistance, and it was not till
February 13,
1861 that he was forced to capitulate after the withdrawal of the French fleet made bombardment from the sea possible, thus sealing the annexation of the Kingdom of Naples to the Kingdom of Italy.
Cialdini, the Piedmontese general, received the
victory title of
Duke of Gaeta.
Contemporary Gaeta
After the
Risorgimento and until
World War II, Gaeta grew in importance and wealth as a seaport. The nearby town of Elena, separated after the Risorgimento and named after the queen of Italy, was reunited to Gaeta following
World War I.
Mussolini transferred Gaeta from the southern region known today as
Campania (formerly Terra di Lavoro, to which it is historically and culturally attached) to the central region of
Lazio. During World War II, the city retained its strategic importance for Mussolini and later for his Nazi allies. After the king dismissed Mussolini, the latter was initially taken via Gaeta to the island prison of
Ponza (where Mussolini had previously locked up many of his political enemies). To keep the population ignorant of the massive convoy, a false air-raid siren sounded. Mussolini would later be transferred to
Gran Sasso, from where the
Germans rescued him.
After Italy surrendered to the Allies, however, the town's fortunes began to decline. Recognizing its strategic importance, and fearful of an Allied landing in the area, German troops occupied the city and expelled most of the population. The zone of exclusion began with a five-kilometre border from the historical city centre. Soon after, however, the population was expelled even beyond this point. The Gaetani were finally ordered to leave the area completely. Those who could not were placed in a concentration camp, and a few were taken to Germany.
Following the Allied advance across the
Garigliano and the Allied occupation of
Rome, the Gaetani were allowed to return to their city and begin the process of rebuilding. In subsequent decades the city has boomed as a beach resort, and it has seen some success at marketing its agricultural products, primarily its tomatoes and olives. Many of its families count seamen among their number. However, the decades since World War II have been as difficult for Gaeta as they have been for most of Italy's
Mezzogiorno. In particular, its importance as a passenger seaport has nearly vanished: ferries to
Ponza and elsewhere now leave from the nearby town of
Formia. All attempts to build a permanent industry as a source of employment and economic well-being for the town have failed. Notable losses include the Littorina rail line (now used as a parking lot and a marketplace), the
AGIP refinery (nowadays a simple depot), and the once-thriving glass factory, which has become an unused industrial relic.
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Castle of the houses of Anjou and Aragon. |
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The famous bell tower of the Cathedral. |
Main monuments of the city include:
* The massive
Castle.
* The
Mausoleum of Lucius Munatius Plancus (
22 BCE) is a cylindrical
travertine monument at the top of Monte Orlando (168 m). It stands at 13.20m and has a diameter of 29.50 m. Another important
Roman public man,
Lucius Sempronius Atratinus,
Marc Antony's fleet commander, has a mausoleum, sited in the more recent district of Gaeta: of similar diamater, it is however not as well preserved.
*The
Sanctuary of SS. Trinità, mentioned as early as the
11th century and visited, among the others, by
St. Francis and Saint
Philip Neri. The Crucifix Chapel was built in
1434 over a rock which had fallen from the nearby cliffs. From the sanctuary the
Grotta del Turco can be visited: it is a grotto which ends directly in the sea and where the waves create atmospheric effects of light.
*The
Church of Annunziata (
1320), was rebuilt at the beginning of the 17th century in
Baroque style by
Andrea Lazzari. It houses works by
Luca Giordano,
Sebastiano Conca and
Giacinto Brandi, as well as the sarcophagus of Enrico Caracciolo, a notable
Gothic work of art. The most interesting sight is however the
Golden Grotto, a
Renaissance room where
Pope Pius IX devised the
dogma of
Papal infallibility. The walls of the grotto are decorated with 19 panels by
Giovan Filippo Criscuolo (
1531) into carved and gilded frames with small pilasters. On the altarpiece is an
Immacolata by
Scipione Pulzone.
*Church of
San Giovanni a Mare was built by the hypate Giovanni IV in the
10th century, outside the old sea walls of the city. It is a rare example of fusion between the
basilica form with the
Byzantine one. The simple façade has a Gothic portal and a dome, while the interior has a nave with two aisles. The inner pavement is slightly inclined to allow waters to flow away after sea floods.
*The
Cathedral of
Assunta and Sant'Erasmo was erected over a more ancient church, Santa Maria del Parco, and consecrated by
Pope Paschal II in
1106: it had a nave with six aisles separated by columns with Gothic capitals. In
1778, however, two of the aisles were suppressed and the Gothic lines hidden. In the
13th century Moorish arches were added over the capitals. In
1663 the crypt was decorated in Baroque style. The interior houses a banner from the
Battle of Lepanto, donated by
Pope Pius V to
Don John of Austria, who used it as his admiral's flag. The main sight of the church is however the marble Paschal candelabrum, standing 3.50 m tall, from the late 13th century: it is in
Romanesque style, decorated with 48 reliefs in 4 vertical rows, telling the
Stories of the Life of Jesus. There are also paintings by Giacinto Brandi and
Giovan Filippo Criscuolo. The cathedral contains the relics of
St. Erasmus, transferred from
Formiæ; the campanile, in Norman style, dates from 1279.
*The Cathedral has a great
bell tower, standing at 57 m, which is considered the city's finest piece of art. The base has two marble lions, and the whole construction made large reuse of ancient Roman architectural elements. The upper part, octagonal in plan, with small Romanesque arches with majolica decoration, was completed in
1279.
*The Chapel of the Crucifix is a curiosity: built on a huge mass of rock that hangs like a wedge between two adjoining walls of rock. Legend tells how the rock was thus split at the moment of our Saviour's death.
*The large church of
St. Francis, according to the legend constructed by the Saint himself in
1222, was in fact built by Frederick II, in very fine Gothic-Italian style, and contains paintings and sculpture by many of the most famous Neapolitan artists.
*The parish church of
Santa Lucia, the former
St. Maria in Pensulis, was once a Royal chapel and here prayed
Margherita of Durazzo and king
Ladislas. It had originally Romanesque and
Sicilian-Arab lines, but in the
1456 it was rebuilt in Renaissance style, and in 1648 adapted to a Baroque one. The side has a Mediaeval
pronaos with ancient fragments and figures of animals.
*The
Medieval Quarter of Gaeta is itself of interest. It lies on the steep sides of Mount Orlando and has characteristic houses from the 11th-13th centuries.
Gaeta is also the centre of the Regional Park of
Riviera di Ulisse, which includes Monte Orlando,
Gianola and the
Scauri Mounts, and the two promontories of Torre Capovento and that of
Tiberius' Villa at
Sperlonga.
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View of Monte Orlando from a former anti-aircraft position on the harbour of Serapo. The Montagna Spaccata is the sharply vertical cliff on the right side of the promontory. The bastions of Charles V can be seen just on the lower left corner of the convent in the wood. |
In 1967, a NATO Base was established in Gaeta. This was done following the transfer of the lead nation responsibilities for NATO naval forces in the Mediterranean from the
British Mediterranean Fleet to the
US Navy. The British fleet was abolished - it's former base in
Malta was no longer exclusively under British control due to that nation having achieved independence from the UK. It was used as the home port for the flag ship of the United States' Sixth Fleet. The first ship stationed there was the
USS Little Rock, the last was the
USS LaSalle. The ship currently there is the
USS Mount Whitney. A total of 9 ships have been stationed in Gaeta. The town is host to the families of the crews who work on the ship. There is a DOD school for American children and a local base with health care and other services.
The base itself is located on Monte Orlando, which overlooks the Gulf of Gaeta.
The reduction and possible loss of the NATO base, which should take place in 2006, has raised concern about its effect on the economy of the city.
Gaeta has erected a monument to Giovanni Caboto (
John Cabot), who, according to many sources, was born there (although other sources give
Genoa or
Chioggia). For other important people born in Gaeta, see
Natives of Gaeta; yet others, with no Wikipedia article yet, include: the painters
Giovanni da Gaeta,
Giovan Filippo Criscuolo (c. 1500-
1584), and
Scipione Pulzone (
1550-
1597).
Gaetani speak a dialect of Italian that, while similar to the nearby Neapolitan, is one of the few Italian dialects to preserve Latin's neuter gender.
Distinctive local cuisine includes the tiella, which resembles both a
pizza and a calzone. The tiella can be made with a number of stuffings. Typical stuffings include diced calamari with parsley, garlic, oil, hot pepper and just enough tomato sauce for color. Other stuffings include escarole and baccalà (dried codfish), egg and zucchini, spinach, and ham and cheese.
Sciuscielle, mostaccioli, susamelli, and roccocò are also local desserts most often made during the Christmas season.
The most famous folklore event of Gaeta is
Gliu Sciuscio of
December 31, in which bands of young Gaetani in traditional costumes head to the city's streets, playing mainly self-built instruments.
The town is also notable for its distinctive brand of olives, marketed throughout the world (the main production, however, takes place in neighbouring
Itri), and its beaches (Serapo, Fontania, Ariana, Sant'Agostino).
*
List of Hypati and Dukes of Gaeta*
Siege of Gaeta*
Diocese of Gaeta*
gaeta.it*
Heraldica.org - Napoleonic heraldry*
links for further development*
Photos 2006
