Badolato is a ''

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 ...

'' and

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

in the province of

Catanzaro Catanzaro (; or ; ), also known as the "City of the two Seas" (), is an Italian city of 86,183 inhabitants (2020), the capital of the Calabria region and of its province and the second most populated comune of the region, behind Reggio Calabr ...

in the

Calabria Calabria is a Regions of Italy, region in Southern Italy. It is a peninsula bordered by the region Basilicata to the north, the Ionian Sea to the east, the Strait of Messina to the southwest, which separates it from Sicily, and the Tyrrhenian S ...

region of

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. As of 2013 Badolato had an estimated population of 3,152. It is one of

I Borghi più belli d'Italia () is a non-profit private association of small Italian towns of strong historical and artistic interest, that was founded in March 2001 on the initiative of the Tourism Council of the National Association of Italian Municipalities, with the a ...

("The most beautiful villages of Italy"). It was chosen as the second most beautiful village in Italy in April 2024 in a national RAI TV series.

Territory

The village of Badolato is from

on Calabria's Ionian coast. Situated approximately above sea level, Badolato has several

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

churches arranged in the shape of a Latin cross, and many small alleyways characteristic of medieval towns. It is an agricultural center for the area on the Ionian side of the Calabrian mountain range, located on the north-western slopes of Mount St. Nicholas. It occupies a spur between two valleys which open out to the coastal plain below. Above the railway station is the town of Badolato Marina, situated on the SS106 Ionica state highway.

History

During the Angevin era of the

Kingdom of Naples The Kingdom of Naples (; ; ), officially the Kingdom of Sicily, was a state that ruled the part of the Italian Peninsula south of the Papal States between 1282 and 1816. It was established by the War of the Sicilian Vespers (1282–1302). Until ...

, Badolato was controlled by local lords who took control from Pietro Ruffo, Count of Catanzaro. In 1454, Badolato became a barony held by the Toraldo family until 1596. It then passed to the Ravaschieri in 1596, to the Pinelli, and Gallelli in 1658 and to the Pignatelli of Belmonte from 1779 to 1806. Severely damaged by the earthquakes of 1640, 1659 and

1783 Events January–March * January 20 – At Versailles, Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain signs preliminary peace treaties with the Kingdom of France and the Kingdom of Spain. * January 23 – The Confederation Congress ...

, the town was also hit by the floods of 1951.

Main sights

Ruins of the perimeter walls of the Ravaschieri castle, said to date from the 17th century, still exist. The Church of Sant'Isidoro, in the village of the same name, bears traces of Byzantine frescoes. The Church of Sant'Andrea Avellino has two wooden busts of St. Andrew and St. Francis of Paola and valuable, sacred furnishings from the 17th and 18th centuries. In the church of Santa Caterina there is an ornate altar and a table depicting the Madonna and Child, both from the 15th and 16th centuries. In the Chiesa dei Riformati, there is a piece of the official altar of frà Diego de' Careri, 1644, a crucifix from the same artist and major works of art from the eighteenth century. The church of Santa Maria degli Angeli, along with the adjoining convent of Friars Minor, is of Baroque design.

Economy

Badolato is known as a centre of oil production and wine, which are largely exported. Farm also produce grain and fruit. There are many companies the business of breeding cattle, sheep and goats, as well as the processing of dairy products. Until recently some families used hand looms for the production of blankets and scarves of wool and silk, and also distilled turpentine. There are also oil mills and shirt factories. Increasingly tourism is becoming important with a number of the houses in the village being renovated or rebuilt as second homes of a high standard. Bed & breakfast services are operating in Badolato Superiore while in Badolato Marina a new development of second homes for the Danish market has joined the existing hotels and facilities.

External links

Magazine of the Association "La Radice"

Gil Botulino Magazine

Sources

{{Authority control Cities and towns in Calabria Borghi più belli d'Italia