121-588: Coccia is an Italian surname which is common in southern Italy . Notable people with the surname include: Southern Italy Southern Italy ( Italian : Sud Italia , Italian: [ˈsud iˈtaːlja] , or Italia meridionale , Italian: [iˈtaːlja meridjoˈnaːle] ; Neapolitan : 'o Sudde ; Sicilian : Italia dû Suddi ), also known as Meridione ( Italian: [meriˈdjoːne] ) or Mezzogiorno ( Italian: [ˌmɛddzoˈdʒorno] ; Neapolitan: Miezojuorno ; Sicilian: Menzujornu ; lit. ' Midday ' ),
242-585: A centre of the Renaissance, with artists such as Laurana , da Messina , Sannazzaro and Poliziano arriving in the city. During 1501 Naples came under direct rule from France at the time of Louis XII , as Neapolitan king Frederick was taken as a prisoner to France; this lasted four years. Spain won Naples at the Battle of Garigliano and, as a result, Naples then became part of the Spanish Empire throughout
363-705: A claim to the land. There were several rebellions on the island of Sicily against the King Ferdinand II , but the end of the kingdom was not brought about until the Expedition of the Thousand in 1860, led by Giuseppe Garibaldi , an icon of Italian Unification, with the support of the House of Savoy and its Kingdom of Sardinia with its economic, political and cultural powerhouse in Northern Italy. The expedition resulted in
484-589: A deep reform of the laws culminating with the promulgation of the Constitutions of Melfi (1231, also known as Liber Augustalis ), a collection of laws for his realm that was remarkable for its time and a source of inspiration for a long time afterward. It made the Kingdom of Sicily a centralised state and established the primacy of written law . With relatively small modifications, the Liber Augustalis remained
605-598: A dense network of roads and motorways, a system of maritime connections and an international airport ( Naples Airport ). The port of Naples connects the region with the Mediterranean basin , and brings tourists to the archaeological sites , the cities of art (Naples and Caserta), to the coastal areas and to the islands. There are high-speed rail lines: There is a maintenance and service centre for high-speed trains Alstom AGV in Nola . Sea-based activity accounts for about 3.9% of
726-596: A lesser extent Gaeta , Molfetta and Trani , rivalled other Italian maritime republics in their domestic prosperity and maritime importance. From 999 to 1139, the Normans occupied all the Lombard and Byzantine possessions in southern Italy , ended a millennium of imperial Roman rule in Italy and eventually expelled the Muslims from Sicily. The Norman Kingdom of Sicily under Roger II
847-577: A non-profit private association of small Italian towns of strong historical and artistic interest, that was founded on the initiative of the Tourism Council of the National Association of Italian Municipalities. Campania is traditionally the most industrialized region of southern Italy, particularly the Neapolitan territory was one of the most industrialized areas of Italy until the beginning of
968-563: A powerful Germanic royal house of Swabian origins. The University of Naples Federico II was founded by Frederick II in the city, the oldest state university in the world, making Naples the intellectual centre of the kingdom. Conflict between the Hohenstaufen house and the Papacy , led in 1266 to Pope Innocent IV crowning Angevin Dynasty duke Charles I as the king. Charles officially moved
1089-835: A result of the War of the Spanish Succession ; it was the Austrian Charles VI who ruled from Vienna , similarly, with viceroys. However, the War of the Polish Succession saw the Spanish regain Sicily and Naples as part of a personal union , which in the Treaty of Vienna were recognised as independent under a cadet branch of the Spanish Bourbons in 1738 under Charles VII . During
1210-575: A small commercial port called Parthenope (Παρθενόπη, meaning "Pure Eyes", a Siren in Greek mythology ), which was established by Greek colonial sailors from Rhodes . The region thus became one of the centers of Magna Graecia . At one point in history, a distinct group of Oscan-speaking tribes from Samnium (in south-central Italy), the Samnites , moved down into Campania. Since the Samnites were more warlike than
1331-875: A striking series of defeats for the Sicilian armies against the growing troops of Garibaldi. After the capture of Palermo and Sicily, he disembarked in Calabria and moved towards Naples, and in the meantimem the Piedmontese also invaded the Kingdom from the Marche . The last battles fought were that of the Volturnus in 1860 and the siege of Gaeta , where King Francis II had sought shelter in thepe of for help, which never came. The last towns to resist Garibaldi's expedition were Messina , which surrendered on 13 March 1861, and Civitella del Tronto , which surrendered on 20 March 1861. The Kingdom of
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#17328806002401452-449: Is a macroregion of Italy consisting of its southern regions . The term " Mezzogiorno " today mostly refers to the regions that are associated with the people, lands or culture of the historical and cultural region that was once politically under the administration of the former Kingdoms of Naples and Sicily (officially denominated as one entity Regnum Siciliae citra Pharum and ultra Pharum , i.e. "Kingdom of Sicily on
1573-667: Is also a significant aerospace industry : Hitachi Rail Italy has headquarters, manufacturing plant and service facilities in Naples . Here it produces the metro trains Meneghino and Driverless Metro . Luxury brands like Kiton , Cesare Attolini , Isaia , Rubinacci , Harmont & Blaine , E. Marinella are also located in Campania. All of them are relative small-sized with annual sales of less than 100 million euros each. There are other industrial districts in Campania: The region has
1694-761: Is also the most economically productive region in Southern Italy and the 7th most productive in the whole country . Naples ' urban area, which is in Campania, is the eighth most populous in the European Union . The region is home to 10 of the 58 UNESCO sites in Italy , including Pompeii and Herculaneum , the Royal Palace of Caserta , the Amalfi Coast , the Longobardian Church of Santa Sofia in Benevento and
1815-664: Is an administrative region of Italy located in Southern Italy ; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian Peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islands and the island of Capri . The capital of the Campania region is Naples . As of 2018, the region had a population of around 5,820,000 people, making it Italy's third most populous region, and, with an area of 13,590 km (5,247 sq mi), its most densely populated region. Based on its GDP , Campania
1936-506: Is hilly, 34% mountainous and the remaining 15% is made up of plains. There is a high seismic risk across the region. The GDP per capita in Campania is rank 18 from 20 Italian regions, surpassing only Sicily and Calabria . It is only 66.7% of the Italian average. It has been speculated that a factor could be the failure to connect the region's economy with the rest of Italy, while another factor could be its peripheral position with respect to
2057-589: Is mainly Mediterranean ( Köppen climate classification Csa), except at the highest elevations (Dsa, Dsb) and the semi-arid eastern stretches in Apulia and Molise, along the Ionian Sea in Calabria and the southern stretches of Sicily (BSw). The largest city of southern Italy is Naples , an originally Greek name that it has historically maintained for millennia. Bari , Taranto , Reggio Calabria , Foggia , and Salerno are
2178-594: Is nonetheless often subsumed into the Mezzogiorno . The Italian National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT) employs the term " south Italy " ( Italia meridionale , or just Sud , i.e. "south") to statistically identify in its reportings the six mainland regions of southern Italy without Sicily and Sardinia, which form a distinct statistical region under the ISTAT denominated " Insular Italy " ( Italia insulare , or simply Isole "Islands"). These same subdivisions are at
2299-536: Is supported by the abundant presence of artistic and naturalistic beauty which attract millions of people from all over the world every year. Precisely in this sector the region finds its strong point (through which it was able to react to the recession in 2015), in fact, according to 2018 studies done by Eurostat , Campania is in the top 20 of the most visited regions in Europe and fifth in Italy after Lombardy , Lazio , Veneto and Tuscany (in order), as well as first among
2420-575: Is the most representative of these Byzantine monuments. From then to the 11th-century Norman conquest the south of the peninsula was constantly plunged into wars between the Byzantines, Lombardy, and the Aghlabid dynasty . The latter established two emirates in southern Italy : the Emirate of Sicily and, for 25 years, the Emirate of Bari . Amalfi , an independent republic from the 7th century until 1075, and to
2541-450: Is the reclamation process of the area in Bagnoli where the former Italsider and Eternit operated promoted by the region. Campania mainly produces fruit and vegetables, but has also expanded its production of flowers grown in greenhouses, becoming one of the leading regions of the sector in Italy. In 2021 the value added of this sector represents around 2.34% of the total value added of
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#17328806002402662-534: The Aragonese Kingdom of Sicily . The wars continued until the peace of Caltabellotta in 1302, which saw Frederick III recognised as king of the Isle of Sicily, while Charles II was recognised as the king of Naples by Pope Boniface VIII . Despite the split, Naples grew in importance, attracting Pisan and Genoese merchants, Tuscan bankers, and with them some of the most championed Renaissance artists of
2783-1041: The Chalcidean / Cumaean variety of the Greek alphabet , which was adopted by the Etruscans ; the Old Italic alphabet subsequently evolved into the Latin alphabet , which became the most widely used alphabet in the world. Many of the new Hellenic cities became very rich and powerful like Neapolis (Νεάπολις, Naples , "New City"), Syrakousai (Συράκουσαι, Syracuse ), Akragas (Ἀκράγας, Agrigento ), and Sybaris (Σύβαρις, Sibari ). Other cities in Magna Graecia included Tarentum (Τάρας), Metapontum (Μεταπόντιον), Heraclea (Ἡράκλεια), Epizephyrian Locri (Λοκροὶ Ἐπιζεφύριοι), Rhegium (Ῥήγιον), Croton (Κρότων), Thurii (Θούριοι), Elea (Ἐλέα), Nola (Νῶλα), Syessa (Σύεσσα), Bari (Βάριον), and others. Although many of
2904-628: The Crown of Aragon . At his death in 1458, the kingdom was again divided . Ferrante , Alfonso's illegitimate son, inherited Naples. When Ferrante died in 1494, Charles VIII of France invaded Italy by using the Angevin claim to the throne of Naples, which his father had inherited on the death of King René's nephew in 1481, as a pretext, which started the Italian Wars . Charles VIII expelled Ferrante’s successor, Alfonso II of Naples , from Naples in 1495. However, he
3025-569: The Historic Centre of Naples . In addition, Campania's Mount Vesuvius is part of the UNESCO World Network of Biosphere Reserves . The Campania's hinterland was inhabited from the beginning of the 1st millennium BC by the Osci , Samnites and Etruscans , while between the 8th and 7th centuries BC its coastal areas were colonised by the ancient Greeks ( Magna Graecia ). At that time, Capua
3146-512: The House of Anjou , who had likewise been ruling it. Thus, the peace was formal recognition of an uneasy status quo . Although the king of Spain had seized both two crowns in the 16th century, the administrations of the two halves of the Kingdom of Sicily remained separated until 1816, when they were reunited in the Kingdom of Two Sicilies . In 1442, Alfonso V conquered the Kingdom of Naples and unified Sicily and Naples once again as dependencies of
3267-598: The House of Hohenstaufen and the papacy led to Sicily's conquest by Charles I , Duke of Anjou . Opposition to French officialdom and taxation combined with incitement of rebellion by agents from the Byzantine Empire and the Crown of Aragon led to the Sicilian Vespers insurrection and successful invasion by king Peter III of Aragon in 1282. The resulting War of the Sicilian Vespers lasted until 1302
3388-581: The Kingdom of Naples . It was during this period that elements of Spanish , French and Aragonese culture were introduced to Campania. Allegiances with the Muslim Saracens were made in 836, and the Arabs were requested to repel the siege of Lombard troops coming from the neighbouring Duchy of Benevento . After a period as a Norman kingdom, the Kingdom of Sicily passed to the Hohenstaufens , who were
3509-655: The Lombards , who annexed the area of Cosenza to their Duchy of Benevento . Consequently, the Lombard and the Byzantine areas became influenced by Eastern monasticism, and much of southern Italy experienced a slow process of orientalisation in religious life (rites, cults and liturgy), which accompanied a spread of Eastern churches and monasteries that preserved and transmitted the Greek and Hellenistic tradition. The Cattolica monastery in Stilo
3630-533: The Middle Ages and a period of uncertainty in regard to the future of the area. The area had many duchies and principalities during the Middle Ages , in the hands of the Byzantine Empire (also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire) and the Lombards . Under the Normans , the smaller independent states were brought together as part of the Kingdom of Sicily , before the mainland broke away to form
3751-587: The Oenotrians , the Campanians (after whom the region is named) and the Lucanians (who inhabited the southernmost part of Campania, known in ancient times as Lucania , roughly where modern-day Salerno is). Many of these tribes lived in simple agro-towns . Not much is known about the pre-Indo-European tribes that had lived in the region earlier; they were probably not as technologically or culturally advanced as
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3872-502: The Peace of Caltabellotta divided the old Kingdom of Sicily into two. The island of Sicily, called the "Kingdom of Sicily beyond the Lighthouse" or the Kingdom of Trinacria, went to Frederick III of the House of Barcelona , who had been ruling it. The peninsular territories, called Kingdom of Sicily contemporaneously but Kingdom of Naples by modern scholarship, went to Charles II of
3993-670: The Roman Empire , Campania, with Latium , formed the most important region of the Augustan divisions of Italia , the Regio I Latium et Campania ; Campania was one of the main areas for granary . In ancient times Misenum (modern ' Miseno '), at the extreme northern end of the bay of Naples, was the largest base of the Roman navy, since its port (Portus Julius) was the base of the Classis Misenensis,
4114-498: The Treaty of Utrecht in 1713, Naples was given to Charles VI , the Holy Roman Emperor . He also gained control of Sicily in 1720, but Austrian rule did not last long. Both Naples and Sicily were conquered by a Spanish army during the War of the Polish Succession in 1734, and Charles, Duke of Parma , a younger son of King Philip V of Spain was installed as King of Naples and Sicily from 1735. Charles inherited
4235-555: The Two Sicilies , with Naples as the capital city. Naples became the first city on the Italian peninsula to have a railway in 1839, there were many factories throughout the kingdom making it a highly important trade centre. In September 1943, Salerno was the scene of Operation Avalanche and suffered a great deal of damage. From 12 February to 17 July 1944, it hosted the Government of Marshal Pietro Badoglio . In those months Salerno
4356-475: The Tyrrhenian Sea . Campania is famous for its gulfs (Naples, Salerno and Policastro) as well as for three islands ( Capri , Ischia and Procida ). Four other regions border Campania; Lazio to the northwest, Molise to the north, Apulia (Puglia) to the northeast and Basilicata to the east. The mountainous interior is fragmented into several massifs , rarely reaching 2,000 m (6,562 ft) (Miletto of 2,050 m (6,726 ft)), whereas close to
4477-657: The province of Salerno ). There, they essentially replicated their Dodecapolis (twelve cities) political model, founding the cities of Hyria (modern-day Nola ), Irnthi or Marcina (modern-day Salerno ), Amina (modern-day Pontecagnano Faiano ), Velcha , Velsu and Uri . In addition to assimilating into their urban-political domains, the Etruscans also incorporated the pre-existing tribal Oscan agro-towns of Capua (modern-day Santa Maria Capua Vetere ), Nuceria (modern-day comuni of Nocera Superiore and Nocera Inferiore ), Suessula , Acerra , Ercolano , Pompeii , Stabiae and Sorrento . Meanwhile, during
4598-412: The "Mezzogiorno" after the Second World War . In the 1946 referendum , the region voted to keep the monarchy, with its greatest support coming in Campania . Politically, the region was at odds with the north, which won the referendum to establish a republic. Today, the south remains less economically developed than the northern and central regions, which enjoyed an " economic miracle " in the 1950s and
4719-532: The "absolutely antithetical conditions" of northern and southern Italy at the time of Italian unification in 1861, when south and north were united again after more than one thousand years. Gramsci remarked that in Northern Italy, the historical period of the Comunes had given a special boost to history and in northern Italy existed an economic organization similar to that of the other states of Europe, propitious to further development of capitalism and industry , but in southern Italy, history had been different, and
4840-419: The "civilized, Piedmontese north" (167) to intervene. Another viewm however, was marked by disdain for southern Italy. According to the article, "such manifestations of the south's difference threaten the glowing and gloating sense of northern superiority" (167). These viewpoints clearly indicate the divide between northern and southern Italy in the 1860s. In an attempt to explain the striking difference between
4961-399: The "spur" of the boot, the peninsula of Monte Gargano ; on the Tyrrhenian Sea , the Gulf of Salerno , the Gulf of Naples , the Gulf of Policastro and the Gulf of Gaeta are each named after a large coastal city. Along the northern coast of the Salernitan Gulf and on the south of the Sorrentine Peninsula runs the Amalfi Coast . Off the peninsula's tip is the isle of Capri . The climate
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5082-453: The 1960s and became highly industrialized. Starting from the unification of Italy in 1861–1870, a growing economic divide between the Northern provinces and the southern half of Italy became evident. In the early decades of the new kingdom, the lack of effective land reform, heavy taxes, and other economic measures imposed on the south, along with the removal of protectionist tariffs on agricultural goods imposed to boost northern industry, made
5203-439: The 20th century, preceded only by the provinces of the so-called "industrial triangle" ( Milan , Turin and Genoa ). In recent decades, the gap with respect to other regions is no longer as significant as it used to be, given that southern regions such as Apulia and Abruzzo have grown considerably economically, while Campania has paradoxically undergone a constant process of de-industrialisation. The symbol of this phenomenon
5324-449: The 8th century BC, Greek-speaking people from Euboea (in Central Greece ), known as Cumaeans , began to establish colonies themselves roughly around the coastal areas of the modern-day province of Naples and in the nearby islands founding, among others, the cities of Cumae , Pithekoūsai (modern-day Ischia ), Paestum , Herculaneum and Dicaearchia , later 'Puteoli', in Latin (modern-day Pozzuoli ). The city of Naples began as
5445-417: The Bourbons in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies were staunch supporters of a feudal system, had feared the traffic of ideas and had tried to keep their subjects insulated from the agricultural and industrial revolutions of Northern Europe. The study by Mack Smith is confirmed by the Italian historian and left-wing politician Antonio Gramsci in his book The Southern Question by which the author emphasizes
5566-428: The Crown of Aragon and France resumed their war over the kingdom, ultimately resulting in an Aragonese victory leaving Ferdinand in control of the kingdom by 1504. The kingdom remained disputed between France and Spain for the next several decades. The French efforts to gain control of it became feebler as the decades went on, and Spanish control was never genuinely endangered. The French finally abandoned their claims to
5687-406: The Greek elements that once formed Magna Graecia. After Pyrrhus of Epirus failed in his attempt to stop the spread of Roman hegemony in 282 BCE, the south fell under Roman domination and remained in such a position until the barbarian invasions (the Gladiator War is a notable suspension of imperial control). It was restored to Eastern Roman control in the 530s after the fall of Rome in
5808-401: The Greek inhabitants of Magna Graecia were entirely Latinized during the Middle Ages , pockets of Greek culture and language remained and have survived to the present day. One example is the Griko people in Calabria ( Bovesia ) and Salento ( Grecìa Salentina ), some of whom still maintain their Greek language ( Griko language ) and customs. The Griko language is the last living trace of
5929-467: The Greek settlers and the native peoples were initially hostilem especially with the Iapygian tribes. The Hellenic influence eventually shaped their culture and way of life. The Romans used to call the area of Sicily and coastal southern Italy Magna Graecia ("Great Greece") since it was so densely populated by coastal Greek colonies ; the ancient geographers differed on whether the term included Sicily or merely Apulia and Calabria with Strabo being
6050-399: The Italian institutional sources the problems of southern Italy had existed way before Italian unification, and Giustino Fortunato emphasised that the Bourbons were not the only ones responsible for the problems of the south, which had ancient and deep origins in the previous centuries of poverty and isolation, caused by domination by foreign governments. In literature, the period around 1860
6171-411: The Jing of Naples Ferdinand II had no interest in doing useful works to improve the neglected condition of public hygiene, particularly in the provinces, where scarcity of sewer systems and often water shortages were known issues. The problem of brigandage is explained in the book Heroes and Brigands by the southern Italian historian and politician Francesco Saverio Nitti , outlining that brigandage
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#17328806002406292-461: The Neapolitan Greeks were left with no option but to call on the Romans , with whom they established an alliance, setting off the Second Samnite War . The Roman consul Quintus Publilius Filo recaptured Neapolis by 326 BC and allowed it to remain a Greek city with some autonomy as a civitas foederata while strongly aligned with Rome. The Second Samnite War ended with the Romans controlling all of southern Campania and additional regions further to
6413-410: The Neapolitan pro- Republican aristocracy, causing a civil war . The Republicans conquered Castel Sant'Elmo and proclaimed a Parthenopaean Republic , secured by the French Army . A counter-revolutionary religious army of lazzaroni under Fabrizio Ruffo was raised; they had great success and the French surrendered the Neapolitan castles and were allowed to sail back to Toulon . Ferdinand IV
6534-406: The Oscans, and any who still flourished had become fully Oscanised by the middle of the first millennium BC. Between the 9th and 6th centuries BC, the Etruscans from Central Italy established colonies in the Campanian Plains (the inland territories that today are the provinces of Caserta and Naples ), as well as in the regions of Agro Nocerino-Sarnese and Agro Picentino (which today are in
6655-472: The Samnite city of Maleventum, in which the Romans, led by the consul Curius Dentatus , were victorious. They renamed it Beneventum (modern day Benevento ), which grew in stature until it was second only to Capua in southern Italy. During the Second Punic War in 216 BC, Capua, in a bid for equality with Rome, allied with Carthage . The rebellious Capuans were isolated from the rest of Campania, which remained allies of Rome. Naples resisted Hannibal due to
6776-442: The Spanish throne from his older half-brother in 1759, he left Naples and Sicily to his younger son, Ferdinand IV . Despite the two kingdoms being in a personal union under the House of Bourbon from 1735 onwards, they remained constitutionally separated. Being a member of the House of Bourbon , King Ferdinand IV was a natural opponent of the French Revolution and Napoleon . In January 1799, Napoleon Bonaparte , in
6897-446: The Two Sicilies was dissolved and annexed to the new Kingdom of Italy , which was founded in the same year. At the time of Italian unification, the gap between the former northern states of Italy and the southern two Sicilies was significant: northern Italy had about 75,500 kilometers of roads and 2,316 kilometers of railroads, combined with a wide range of canals connected to rivers for freight transportation; iron and steel production
7018-414: The Two Sicilies, though this meant control only of the mainland portion of the kingdom. Throughout this Napoleonic interruption, King Ferdinand remained in Sicily, with Palermo as his capital. After Napoleon's defeat, King Ferdinand IV was restored by the Congress of Vienna of 1815 as Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies . He established a concordat with the Papal States , which previously had
7139-417: The West in 476, and some form of imperial authority survived until the 1070s. Total East Roman rule was ended by the Lombards by Zotto 's conquest in the final quarter of the 6th century. After the Gothic War (535–554) until the arrival of the Normans , much of southern Italy's destiny was linked to the fortunes of the Eastern Empire even though Byzantine domination was challenged in the 9th century by
7260-467: The annexed territory of the former Two Sicilies and the economic and political powerhouse centred in the north, racist theories were postulated , suggesting that such a divide had its roots in the coexistence of two mostly incompatible races. The British historian Denis Mack Smith describes the radical difference between Northern and the newly-annexed southern Italy in 1860 as both halves being on quite different levels of civilization. He pointed out that
7381-439: The area has had it record numbers of emigration. The most prevalent issue in southern Italy is its inability to attract businesses and therefore create jobs. Between 2007 and 2014, 943,000 Italians were unemployed, 70% being Italians from the south. Employment in the south is ranked the lowest when compared to countries in the European Union. Italians from the south are also ranked the lowest in terms of financial contributions into
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#17328806002407502-403: The area. The government blames the Mafia's illegal garbage disposal racket. In samples of milk, which is using to produce mozzarella di bufala , found cancerogenic dioxine . In Naples-Bagnoli is an asbestos contamination from former Eternit cement plant. Millions of tons of toxic industrial waste has been dumped in Campania, not only in the Triangle of death, a region once celebrated for
7623-403: The article "This is Not Italy! Ruling and Representing the South", it is clear how the northern elites considered the south. The Piedmontese north felt the need to invade the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies and establish a new form of governance based on the northern system, since they viewed the south as underdeveloped and lacking in social capital. Those views of the south can largely be attributed to
7744-410: The author underscored the Sicilians' problems of having to change their old lifestyle and remaining on their island. The novel was adapted by Luchino Visconti for his homonymous 1963 film The Leopard . The southern economy greatly suffered after the Italian unification, and the process of industrialisation was interrupted. This situation of persistent backwardness in the socioeconomic development of
7865-432: The basis of Sicilian law until 1819. His royal court in Palermo from around 1220 to his death saw the first use of a literary form of an Italo-Romance language, Sicilian , which had a significant influence on what was to become the modern Italian language . He also built the Castel del Monte and in 1224 founded the University of Naples , now called, after him, Università Federico II . In 1266, conflict between
7986-408: The bottom of the Italian First level NUTS of the European Union and the Italian constituencies for the European Parliament . Nonetheless, Sardinia and especially Sicily are included as "southern Italy" in most definitions of the southern Italy macroregion. In a similar fashion to France 's Midi ("midday" or "noon" in French ), the Italian term " Mezzogiorno " refers to the intensity and
8107-417: The capital from Palermo to Naples where he resided at the Castel Nuovo . During this period, much Gothic architecture sprang up around Naples, including the Naples Cathedral , the main church of the city. In 1281, with the advent of the Sicilian Vespers , the kingdom split in half. The Angevin Kingdom of Naples included the southern part of the Italian peninsula, while the island of Sicily became
8228-415: The city of Naples, and there were also several martyrs during this time. The period of relative calm was violently interrupted by the epic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 which buried the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum . With the Decline of the Roman Empire , its last emperor, Romulus Augustus , was put in a manor house prison near Castel dell'Ovo , Naples, in 476, ushering in the beginning of
8349-446: The city of Portici. The region, which was characterised until recently by an acute economic contrast between internal and coastal areas, has shown an improvement in the last decade thanks to the development of the provinces of Benevento and Avellino. At the same time, the provinces of Naples, Caserta and in part Salerno, have developed a variety of activities connected to advanced types of services. Unlike central and northern Italy , in
8470-406: The coast there are volcanic massifs: Vesuvio (1,281 m (4,203 ft)) and Campi Flegrei . The climate is typically Mediterranean along the coast with warm, sunny and sultry summers and mild, rainy winters, whereas in the inner zones it is more continental, with lower temperatures in winter and warm summers. Snow is possible at higher elevations but rare at sea level. 51% of the total area
8591-417: The colonies. Naples enjoyed a demographic and economic rebirth, mainly due to the interest of King Victor Emmanuel III , who was born there. In the 1950s, the Cassa per il Mezzogiorno was set up as a huge public master plan to help industrialise the south by land reforms creating 120,000 new small farms and by the "Growth Pole Strategy" whereby 60% of all government investment would go to the south to boost
8712-471: The developed central areas of Europe. Overall, Campania appears to be a region with great economic potential, which is partly held back by organized crime ( Camorra ) and the resulting corruption. The economy of Campania is one of the most affected nationwide by the economic and financial crisis that began in 2008, but between 2015 and 2016 it came out of the recession and began to recover due to, above all, industry, but also tourism and tertiary. Tourism
8833-456: The eastern coast of the Black Sea , Eastern Libya and Massalia ( Marseille ). They included settlements in Sicily and the southern part of the Italian peninsula. The first Greek settlers found Italy inhabited by three major populations: Ausones , Oenotrians and Iapyges (the last of which were subdivided into three tribes: Daunians , Peucetians and Messapians ). The relationships between
8954-401: The economy of Italy from immigrants. In southern Italy, the tourism, distribution, food industries, wood furniture, wholesale, vehicle sales, mineral sales and artisan fields are among the leading areas contributing to the projected employment growth. The south heavily relies on tourism in for its economy and attracts tourists through its rich historical background. Campania Campania
9075-410: The economy, which includes port movements of goods and passengers and sea transportation, as well as a sizable seaside tourism economy. In Castellammare di Stabia there is a big Fincantieri shipyard. Shipping companies Grimaldi and Tirrenia both headquarter in Naples . The services sector makes up for 78% of the region's gross domestic product. The unemployment rate stood at 17.4% in 2022 and
9196-505: The entire Habsburg Spain period. The Spanish sent viceroys to Naples to directly deal with local issues: the most important of which was Pedro Álvarez de Toledo , who was responsible for considerable social, economic and urban progress in the city; he also supported the Inquisition . During this period Naples became Europe's second largest city after Paris . During the Baroque era it
9317-554: The fall of the last indigenous state , was an integral part of the Council of Aragon instead and remained as such until the first years of the XVIII° century, when Sardinia was ceded to Austria and eventually handed over to the Alpine -based House of Savoy in 1720. After the War of the Spanish Succession in the early 18th century, possession of the kingdom again changed hands. Under the terms of
9438-463: The fertility of its soil, but now the local population have been exposed to land contaminated with waste. This includes highly dangerous materials such as asbestos , zinc , lead , germanium , arsenic , mercury , cadmium , chromium , dioxin and uranium . Blood tests of people living in Campania show alarming levels of dioxins. Campania had a massive automotive industrial production till 2011, focused on Alfa Romeo . Production of Alfa Romeo
9559-537: The first decade of the 2000s the region of Campania has not attracted large numbers of immigrants, despite having increased from approximately 100,000 in 2007 to 240,000 in 2021. The Italian national institute of statistics ISTAT estimated in December 2022 that 241,008 foreign-born immigrants live in Campania, equal to 4.32% of the total regional population. Part of the reason for this is in recent times, there have been more employment opportunities in northern regions than in
9680-669: The heel and the boot itself. It is an arm of the Ionian Sea . The island of Sardinia , situated to the west of the Italian peninsula and right below the French island of Corsica , may also often be included. On the eastern coast is the Adriatic Sea , leading into the rest of the Mediterranean through the Strait of Otranto (named after the largest city on the tip of the heel). On the Adriatic, south of
9801-530: The highest in the south, and illiteracy in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies reached 87%. In 1860, the southern merchant navy amounted to 260,000 tons, and the northern merchant navy came to 347,000 tons, apart from the Venetian Navy, which was annexed in 1866 and assessed at 46,000 tons. In 1860 the whole Italian merchant navy was the fourth largest in Europe at about 607,000 tons. The southern merchant navy
9922-436: The historical Kingdom of the Two Sicilies , including Abruzzo , Apulia , Basilicata , Calabria , Campania , Molise , and Sicily . The island of Sardinia, although being culturally , linguistically and historically less related to the aforementioned regions than any of them is to one another is frequently included as part of the Mezzogiorno , often for statistical and economical purposes. Southern Italy forms
10043-567: The imposing walls. Capua was eventually starved into submission in the Roman retaking of 211 BC , and the Romans were victorious. With the initial exception of Naples, the region adopted Latin as official language, in that sense gradually replacing the native Oscan and the Greek and the Etruscan still talked respectively in their colonies of the region, subsequently becoming fully Romanised . As part of
10164-565: The kingdom by the Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis in 1559. With the Treaty of London (1557), the new client state of the so-called Presidi ("state of the garrisons") was established and governed directly by Spain as part of the Kingdom of Naples. The administration of the Kingdom of Naples and Sicily, as well as of the Duchy of Milan , was run by the Council of Italy . The island of Sardinia, which had fully come to be under Iberian sovereignty in 1409 upon
10285-509: The latter named Italian capital of culture in 2022), Vesuvius and the Sorrento coast; a notable growth in the cruise sector was observed in the Port of Naples . Tourist data on other sites in Campania show important records that the region holds nationally and worldwide. Among these above all the data relating to Capri (which is the most visited minor island in Italy and among the most sought-after in
10406-412: The letters of correspondents in southern Italy who sent biased letters to leaders of the north, specifically Camillo Benso , urging the invasion and reformation of the south. Although those views of the south were condescending, they also came with a genuine belief that to create a unified Italy, help from the north was necessary. Viewing southern Italy as barbaric served as a sort of justification to allow
10527-459: The lower part of the Italian "boot", containing the ankle ( Campania ), the toe ( Calabria ), the arch ( Basilicata ), and the heel ( Apulia ), Molise (north of Apulia) and Abruzzo (north of Molise) along with Sicily, removed from Calabria by the narrow Strait of Messina . Separating the "heel" and toe of the "boot" is the Gulf of Taranto , named after the city of Taranto , which is at an angle between
10648-456: The most important Roman fleet. It was first established as a naval base in 27 BC by Marcus Agrippa, the right-hand man of the emperor Augustus. Roman Emperors chose Campania as a holiday destination, among them Claudius and Tiberius , the latter of whom is infamously linked to the island of Capri . It was also during this period that Christianity came to Campania. Two of the apostles , St. Peter and St. Paul , are said to have preached in
10769-455: The most prominent advocate of the wider definitions. With this colonisation, Greek culture was exported to Italy in its dialects of the Ancient Greek language , its religious rites and its traditions of the independent polis . An original Hellenic civilization soon developed, later interacting with the native Italic and Roman civilisations . The most important cultural transplant was
10890-654: The name of the French Republic , captured Naples and proclaimed the Parthenopaean Republic , a French client state, as successor to the kingdom. King Ferdinand fled from Naples to Sicily until June of that year. In 1806, Bonaparte, by then French Emperor, again dethroned King Ferdinand and appointed his brother, Joseph Bonaparte , as King of Naples. In the Edict of Bayonne of 1808, Napoleon removed Joseph to Spain and appointed his brother-in-law, Joachim Murat , as King of
11011-626: The next largest cities in the area. The region is geologically very active, except for Salento in Apulia , and highly seismic: the 1980 Irpinia earthquake killed 2,914 people, injured more than 10,000 and left 300,000 homeless. In the 8th and the 7th centuries BCE, for various reasons, including demographic crisis (famine, overcrowding etc.), the search for new commercial outlets and ports, and expulsion from their homeland, Greeks began to settle in southern Italy. Also during this period, Greek colonies were established in places as widely separated as
11132-589: The other Oscan populations, they easily took over the cities of Capua and Cumae, in an area which was one of the most prosperous and fertile in the Italian Peninsula at the time. During the 340s BC, the Samnites were engaged in a war with the Roman Republic in a dispute known as the Samnite Wars , with Rome claiming the rich pastures of northern Campania during the First Samnite War . The First Samnite War
11253-560: The other side of the Strait " and "across the Strait") and which later shared a common organization into Italy's largest pre-unitarian state , the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies . The island of Sardinia , which was not part of the aforementioned polity and had been under the rule of the Alpine House of Savoy , which would eventually annex the Bourbons' southern Italian kingdom altogether,
11374-455: The paternalist Bourbon administrations produced nothing of value. The bourgeois class did not exist, agriculture was primitive and insufficient to satisfy the local market, there were no roads, no ports and the few waterways that the region had were not exploited because of the region's special geographical features. The living conditions of the people of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies are also illustrated by Raffaele De Cesare, who reported that
11495-506: The position of sunshine at midday in the south of the Italian peninsula . The term came into vogue after the annexation of the Bourbon Kingdom of the Two Sicilies by the mainland-based Savoyard Kingdom of Sardinia , and the subsequent Italian unification of 1861. Southern Italy is generally thought to comprise the administrative regions that correspond to the geopolitical extent of
11616-572: The quality of the wine. There is a problem with illegal toxic waste dump in the Triangle of death north of Naples between Acerra , Nola and Marigliano . In the region, over 12,000 cattle, river buffaloes and sheep had been culled before 2006. High levels of mortality and abnormal foetuses were also recorded in farms in Acerra linked to elevated levels of dioxin. Local studies have shown higher than permissible levels of lead in vegetables grown in
11737-888: The region, equalling €2.2 billion. Campania produces over 50% of Italy's nuts and is also the leader in the production of tomatoes. Typical products are: A distinctive point of regional agriculture in the breeding of buffalos . The milk is used to produce mozzarella di bufala . Olive trees , mainly of the varieties Carpellese (PDO designated) , Cornia (Val di Cornia DOC), Frantoio , Leccino , Ogliarola Barese, Olivella, Ortice, Pisciottana (Also Ogliastrina or Olivo dell'Ascea), Ravece (also known as Rotondello), and Salella, covers over 74,604 hectares (184,350 acres). Vineyards cover 41,129 ha, but only ca. 5,100 ha using to produce quality wine of DOC and DOCG types. There are 4 DOCG wines: Aglianico del Taburno (red and rose), Fiano di Avellino (white), Greco di Tufo (white and sparkling) and Taurasi (red). Wine production has increased as well as
11858-468: The regions of southern Italy compared to the other regions of the country, especially the northern ones, is known as the Southern question . Poverty and organised crime were long-standing issues in southern Italy as well and it got worse after unification. Cavour stated the basic problem was poor government, and believed the solution lay in the strict application of the Piedmontese legal system. The main result
11979-448: The rise of Benito Mussolini , the "Iron Prefect", Cesare Mori , tried to defeat the powerful criminal organizations flowering in the south with some degree of success. However, when connections between mafia and the fascists emerged, Mori was removed, and fascist propaganda declared the mafia defeated. Economically, Fascist policy aimed at the creation of an Italian Empire and southern Italian ports were strategic for all commerce towards
12100-421: The situation nearly impossible for many tenant farmers, small businesses and land owners. Multitudes chose to emigrate rather than try to eke out a meagre living, especially from 1892 to 1921. In addition, the surge of brigandage and mafia provoked widespread violence, corruption and illegality. Prime Minister Giovanni Giolitti once conceded that places existed "where the law does not operate at all". After
12221-478: The south, such as parts of Lucania . Campania was a full-fledged part of the Roman Republic by the end of the 4th century BC, valued for its pastures and rich countryside. Naples, with its Greek language and customs, made it a centre of Hellenistic culture for the Romans, creating the first traces of Greco-Roman culture. During the Pyrrhic War in 275 BC, the Battle of Beneventum took place in Campania in
12342-448: The southern economy by attracting new capital, stimulating local firms, and providing employment. However, the objectives were largely missed, and the south became increasingly subsidised, dependent on the state and incapable of generating private growth itself. Presently, huge regional disparities still persist. Problems still include pervasive organised crime and very high unemployment rates. Southern Italy's lack of progress in bettering
12463-578: The southern regions. The tourist flow sees more than half of the Italian and foreign tourists of the entire region gather in the Metropolitan City of Naples . Of all the locations, Pompeii and Herculaneum stand out, two of the most visited archaeological sites in Italy and among the most visited in the world where there is an average of four million tourists a year. Then there are the Campanian Archipelago ( Capri , Ischia and Procida ,
12584-475: The time of Ferdinand IV , the French Revolution made its way to Naples: Horatio Nelson , an ally of the Bourbons, even arrived in the city in 1798 to warn against it. However, Ferdinand was forced to retreat and fled to Palermo , where he was protected by a British fleet . Naples' lower classes (the lazzaroni ) were pious and Royalist , favouring the Bourbons; in the mêlée that followed, they fought
12705-485: The time, such as Boccaccio , Petrarch and Giotto . Alfonso I conquered Naples after his victory against the last Angevin king, René , and Naples was unified for a brief period with Sicily again. Sicily and Naples were separated in 1458 but remained as dependencies of Aragon under Ferrante . The new dynasty enhanced Naples' commerce by establishing relations with the Iberian Peninsula . Naples also became
12826-749: The tourism industry: the city of Naples, the Amalfi Coast, Mount Vesuvius, and the islands of Capri and Ischia have long been major attractions. The region known today as Campania was inhabited from at least the beginning of the 1st millennium BC by several Oscan-speaking Italic tribes : the Osci , the Opici , the Aurunci , the Ausones , the Sidicini , the Hirpini , the Caudini ,
12947-472: The world), the Amalfi Coast (which is among the most visited sites in Italy) and finally Vesuvius (the most visited and well-known volcano in the world). There is also a growing influx of tourists to Cilento ( Paestum and Certosa di Padula . Campania has many small and picturesque villages, 11 of them have been selected by I Borghi più belli d'Italia (English: The most beautiful Villages of Italy ),
13068-421: Was 17,000 tons per year. By contrast, in the former Bourbon southern state, there were 14,700 kilometers of roads, 184 kilometers of railroads (only around Naples), no canals connected to rivers and iron and steel production was 1,500 tons per year. In 1860, illiteracy rates on the Italian peninsula averaged 75%, with the lowest level of 54% in the northwestern Kingdom of Sardinia (also known as " Piedmont ") and
13189-552: Was Campania's leading city, while Naples was an anomaly, being predominantly Greek-speaking. Campania is rich in culture, especially with regard to food, music, architecture, and archaeological and ancient sites—such as Pompeii, Herculaneum, Oplontis , Paestum , Aeclanum , Stabiae , and Velia . The name "Campania" is derived from Latin; the Romans knew the region as Campania felix ("fertile countryside" or "happy countryside"). The rich natural beauty of Campania makes it important to
13310-438: Was an upsurge in brigandage . Therefore, the south experienced great economic difficulties resulting in massive emigration leading to a worldwide Italian diaspora , especially to North America , South America , Australia and other parts of Europe. Many natives also relocated to the industrial cities in northern Italy, such as Genoa , Milan and Turin . A relative process of industrialisation has developed in some areas of
13431-625: Was characterised by its competent governance, multi-ethnic nature and religious tolerance . Normans, Jews, Muslim Arabs, Byzantine Greeks, Lombards and "native" Sicilians lived in relative harmony. However, the Norman domination lasted only several decades before it formally ended in 1198 with the reign of Constance of Sicily , and was replaced by that of the Swabian Hohenstaufen dynasty, thanks to Constance's marriage to Henry VI , member of this family. In Sicily, King Frederick II endorsed
13552-466: Was depicted by the Sicilian writer Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa in his famous novel Il Gattopardo ( The Leopard ), set in Sicily at the time of Italian unification. In a famous final scene, Prince Salina, when invited to join the senate of unified Italy, tells a high-ranking Piedmontese officer that "the Sicilian will never want to change, because the Sicilian feels perfect...". With theoe and other words,
13673-530: Was endemic in southern Italy, since the Bourbons themselves relied on it as their military agent. Unlike in southern Italy, there was little brigandage in the other annexed states of Northern and Central Italy, like the Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia , the Duchy of Parma , the Duchy of Modena , the Grand Duchy of Tuscany and the Papal States . According to the southern Italian historian Giustino Fortunato , and
13794-411: Was home to artists including Caravaggio , Rosa and Bernini ; philosophers such as Telesio , Bruno , Campanella and Vico ; and writers such as Battista Marino . A revolution led by local fisherman Masaniello saw the creation of a brief independent Neapolitan Republic , though this lasted only a few months before Spanish rule was regained. Finally, by 1714, the Spanish ceased to rule Naples as
13915-530: Was initiated when the Etruscan-influenced Oscan city of Capua (in Etruscan Capeva ) was being attacked by the Samnites, and thus appealed to Rome for defensive help. As the majority of Southern Italy was under Roman control at the time, the sole major remaining independent settlement in the region was the Greek colony of Neapolis , and when the city was eventually captured by the Samnites ,
14036-522: Was made up of sailing vessels mainly for fishing and coastal shipping in the Mediterranean Sea and had very few steamships, even if one of the first steamers was built and fitted out in Naples in 1818. Both the merchant and the military navies were insufficient compared to the great coastal extent of southern Italy, defined by the Italian historian Raffaele De Cesare: "… a great pier towards the south". In
14157-431: Was one of the highest in Italy. The region, with a population of over 5.8 million inhabitants, is divided into five provinces: Naples, Benevento, Avellino, Caserta and Salerno. Over half of the population is resident in the province of Naples, where there is a population density of 2,626 inhabitants per km2. Within the province, the highest density can be found along the coast, where it reaches 13,000 inhabitants per km2 in
14278-730: Was reduced and relocated to plant in Cassino near Rome . Currently only one low-level Fiat Panda model is produced in facilities located in Pomigliano d'Arco in the Naples metropolitan area (140,478 units in 2020). A FIAT plant manufacturing engines is in Pratola Serra , Avellino . There are also plants for automotive parts suppliers like Magneti Marelli (exhaust systems) and Denso (engine cooling and air-conditioners). Buses are produced by Industria Italiana Autobus in Flumeri (ex- Irisbus ). There
14399-598: Was restored as king; however, after only seven years Napoleon conquered the kingdom and instated Bonapartist kings including his brother Joseph Bonaparte . With the help of the Austrian Empire and allies, the Bonapartists were defeated in the Neapolitan War and Bourbon Ferdinand IV once again regained the throne and the kingdom. The Congress of Vienna in 1815 saw the kingdoms of Naples and Sicily combined to form
14520-438: Was soon forced to withdraw because of the support of Ferdinand II of Aragon to his cousin, Alfonso II's son Ferrantino . Ferrantino was restored to the throne but died in 1496 and was succeeded by his uncle, Frederick IV . The French, however, did not give up their claim and, in 1501, agreed to a partition of the kingdom with Ferdinand of Aragon, who abandoned his cousin, King Frederick. The deal soon fell through, however, and
14641-483: Was the temporary "Capital of the Kingdom of Italy ", and the King Victor Emmanuel III lived in a mansion in its outskirts. Salerno received the first "Tricolore" in an official ceremony on 7 January 2012 from the premier Mario Monti , to celebrate the glorious story of Italy and its old capitals. Campania has an area of 13,590 km (5,247 sq mi) and a coastline of 500 km (311 mi) on
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