Messina
History
On the shores of the Straits, Greeks from Khalkis in Euboea, led by Periere and Cratemene, founded Zancle, one of the first western colonies. The city's mint soon started to strike coins some of the oldest in the world and thus started a tradition which continued right up to the 17th century.
The original population of Zancle was however conquered by other peoples from Greek Messenia, which explains why the name of the city was changed to Messene. This name remained until the city was occupied by the Mamertines, mercenaries from Campania in the pay of Syracuse. Rome who had been called to Sicily by Messina, thus starting the First Punic War was bound to the city by a special treaty which trasformed Messana into a military port and important trading centre. This ancient position of strength was consolidated in the Middle Ages, as Messina acquired special economic advantages and a unique politycal physiognomy, making it a kind of city-state, similar to the free Communes of central-northen Italy.
The city and its territory was the last to fall into the hands of the Arabs in the 9th century and the first to be liberated, thanks to the grand Count Ruggero il Normanno who, in 1061, set out from Messina to win back the wole of Sicily. The first Norman kings built their royal palace in Messina and founded the Santissimo Salvatore monastery, which possessed an impressive scriptorium for the conservation and production of precious codices. These were signs of the prestige and culture at the root of the city's indepedence within the kingdom of Sicily, and also explain its intolerance of the hegemonic role of Palermo on the island. Due to the intense overseas traffic linked to the Crusades, Messina was further fortified by Richard the Lionheart , and became an important port in the journeys of the western armies to the Holy Land. Trade flourished and its merchants founded a "lodge" in the Middle East. In a crescendo interrupted only by the "Sicilian Vesper" in the 13th century, Messina reached a high point in its history, which lasted from the fiftheenth century until the end of the seventheenth century.
Humanism flourished with the great Antonello, the Greek scholar Costantino Lascari, the polyglot genius Francesco Maurolico, the matematician Giuseppe Moleti, and Montorsoli, to name but a few of the many important figures who played an active role in the cultural life of the city. Such was the wealth that Messina had accumulated during the 17th century, that the city, already the seat of a viceroy who was obliged to spend six months of the year there, proposed buying the whole of Eastern Sicily from the Spanish crown, in cash, in order to set up an independent viceroyalty. Spain oped in some way to limit the city's power, but only ended up by provoking it, thus leading to four years of war (1674-1678) .
Messina, at first helped by an army sent by Louis XIV of France, was subsequently abandoned, and finally succumbed to the much larger Spanish forces. The city nevertheless experienced some positive events in the 18th century, such as the birth of the great architect Filippo Juvarra, although a terrible eartquake, in 1783, once more brought it to its knees. It rose once more and partecipated in the 19th century Risorgimento, being the first city to rebel, on 1st September 1848. Another catastrophic earthquake in 1908, in which almost 70.000 citizens died, was a real death blow to the city.
Visit
Visit the Museo Regionale with Byzantine and Norman works as well as works by Messina’s famous artists, Antonello da Messina and Girolamo Aliprandi. Also interesting the Mannerist building - Monte di Pietà and the church Santissima Annunziata dei Catalani. A short way from the Duomo, this church was built in the 12th century during the Norman rule and remodelled later on by the Catalans. The apse is a fine specimen of the Norman composite style, that combines Roman, Moorish and Byzantine features. The Duomo has been rebuilt in Norman style, after the earthquake of 1908. From the inside you may access the Treasury, which displays a fine collection of religious objects and vestments, reliquaries, candlesticks, chalices and a fine 1600’s monstrance, containing a host.
The astronomical clock on the bell-tower to the left of the cathedral has a mechanism dating from 1933.Don’t miss a look at it on midday! It consists of several layers, each with a different display endowed with a separate movement. At the bottom, a two-horse chariot sets the day of the week; above, the central figure of Death looks at the four ages of man that pass before him. At the third stage, the Sanctuary of Montalto sets the scene for a group of figures which, according to the time of year, represent the Nativity, Epiphany, Resurrection and Pentecost. At the top, the tableau enacts a scene relating to a local legend whereby the Madonna delivers a letter to the ambassodors of Messina in which she thanks and agrees to protect the inhabitants of the town who were converted to Christianity by St. Paul the Apostle.
The female bell-strikers are the local heroines Dina and Clarenza, during the period of resistance against the Angevins (1282). The southern side of the bell-tower shows a perpetual calendar, the astronomical cycle marked by the signs of the zodiac, and the different phases of the moon. When the clock strikes midday, all the mechanical figures come to life. On the Piazza del Duomo you may admire the Fontana di Orione with allegoric statues of four rivers.
For excursions in the area:
Ganzirri and Torre Faro
Two characteristic, pictoresque fishing villages full of life. Or the medieval hill village of Savoca which boasts interesting churches like the Convento dei Capuccini, the 15th century Chiesa di San Michele with fine Gothic-Renaissance portals, and the Chiesa Madre. From Casalvecchio you’ll have a panoramic view over the Ionian coastline and may visit the Chiesa Madre, decorated with Taormina marble.
Tindari
Piazzale Belvedere, Greek theatre and Basilica at the archaeological site.
AEOLIAN ISLANDS
A volcanic archipelago on Sicily’s North-Eastern Tyrrhenian coast with the islands of Lipari ( the largest one), Salina (a green island with many wineyards), Filicudi, Alicudi, Stromboli (with an active volcano), Panarea (a jet-set island) and Vulcano (famous for its fango baths). The Greeks who colonized the islands around 580BC named them after the god of the winds Aeolus. These beautiful spots offer an enchanting landscape, great beaches with white sand, castles, thermal resorts and medieval structures and are a main tourist resort in Summer. On Lipari the volcanic phenomenon can be observed in the island's thermal springs (up to 600), in its solfataras and in its 12 volcanic systems converging towards the 602 metres of Monte Chirica. This elevated and craggy island has spectacular beaches and breathtaking ragged coasts.
Panarea
The main village, Contrada San Pietro, consists of a group of white houses clustered along the eastern side of the island. The built-up area is crowned with olive trees and protected by huge walls. The other two villages north and south of San Pietro are Dittella and Drauto.We recommend a boat tour to the nearby small islands of Basiluzzo, Dattilo and Lisca Bianca, to the Scoglio Bottaro (with its underwater "fumaroles").
Salina
More than 400 different types of plants grow here. It is also the island with the highest peaks such as the three volcanoes that originated e.g Monte Fossa delle Felci (962 m), which is partially covered by one of the most beautiful strawberry tree woods of the entire Mediterranean.
Vulcano
Famous for the baths in the warm waters of its submarine springs. This 21 km2, 500 metre high (Monte Aria) isle is the Aeolian island closest to the Sicilian coast. Its name is a clear description of its geography: a land of lava and fumarole, yellow sulphur rocks and black sands all worth a visit.
Stromboli
This 924 metre high lava mountain (Serra Vancori) which drops abruptly down to 2000 metres below sea-level is Europe's biggest active volcano after Etna. During the night, the glittering "sciara" of fire (the red-hot flow descending towards the sea) can be seen from the boats and from Panarea. During the day, the smoke of the peak joins the steam raising up from the water that cools down the red-hot lava detritus which have plunged into the water after sliding down the slope of the coast. The white houses of the little village create a unique contrast with the black lava background dotted with dark-green bushes.
TAORMINA
A 19th century haunt of the English aristocracy, it has long been Sicily's most famous resort town and it was here that D.H. Lawrence was inspired to write Lady Chatterly’s Lover. Taormina has endlessly winding medieval streets and tiny passages. The most famous view you can get on your strolls is the one overlooking the Greco-Roman amphitheatre, one of Sicily's largest, with Mount Etna and the sea in the background. The Teatro Greco was founded by Greeks in the third century BC but the visible remains are almost entirely Roman. Between July and August the theatre hosts an international arts festival including film, theatre and music.