Camogli (; ) is a

fishing village A fishing village is a village, usually located near a fishing ground, with an economy based on catching fish and harvesting seafood. The continents and islands around the world have coastlines totalling around 356,000 kilometres (221,000 ...

and tourist resort located on the west side of the peninsula of

Portofino Portofino (; ) is a ''comune'' located in the Metropolitan City of Genoa on the Italian Riviera. The town is clustered around its small harbour, and is known for the colourfully painted buildings that line the shore. Since the late 19th centur ...

, on the Golfo Paradiso in the Riviera di Levante, in the

Metropolitan City of Genoa The Metropolitan City of Genoa () is a metropolitan city in the region of Liguria in northern Italy. Its capital is the city of Genoa. It replaced the province of Genoa in 2015. It has 67 municipalities (''comuni) in'' an area of and a total p ...

Liguria Liguria (; ; , ) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is roughly coextensive with ...

, northern

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 ...

. its population was 5,332. Camogli is one of the largest areas of the ''Parco Naturale Regionale di Portofino'', and a part of the Portofino Marine Protected Area.

History

The name of the town is of ancient, though of disputed origin. A folk etymologic story suggests it comes from the shortened ''Casa de Moglie''. When the ship captains sailed, they put their wives (''mogli'') in a sort of home for all of them (''casa''), and the town was well known for this. In the

late Middle Ages The late Middle Ages or late medieval period was the Periodization, period of History of Europe, European history lasting from 1300 to 1500 AD. The late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period ( ...

, Camogli was a considerable seaport. In its heyday, its fleet consisted of hundreds of Tall Ships, and it was called the "city of a thousand white sails". In 1798 the city hosted a large contingent 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 ...

's fleet, which was then beaten in the Egyptian waters of the Nile by Admiral Nelson. The prestigious naval college "Cristoforo Colombo" was founded in Camogli in 1874, named after the Genoese navigator

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

. In 1880, the former fishing village had, in a population of 12,000, 500 registered as ship captains. Camogli now relies mainly on tourism and is known for its colorful houses that line the beach. The house colors once helped the fishermen of Camogli find the way back to their port. The local swimming club water polo RN Camogli has won several Italian championships and is known nationwide. In February 2021, the cliff collapsed below the cemetery that is sited 70m above the water, and

coffin A coffin or casket is a funerary box used for viewing or keeping a corpse, for burial, entombment or cremation. Coffins are sometimes referred to as caskets, particularly in American English. A distinction is commonly drawn between "coffins" a ...

s fell into the sea. 11 caskets were recovered from the water, and more from the landslide.Italian Riviera clifftop cemetery collapses into the Ligurian Sea

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, 2021-02-24

Trivia

Camogli Hospital on the South Atlantic island of

Tristan da Cunha Tristan da Cunha (), colloquially Tristan, is a remote group of volcano, volcanic islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is one of three constituent parts of the British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascensi ...

is named after the town, to commemorate the fact that it was the home of Andrea Repetto and Gaetano Lavarello, who settled on the island in 1892.

People

* Francesco Capurro, 17th-century painter * Ruggero Chiesa (1933–1993), classical guitarist and editor

Twin towns

* Tuningen, Germany, since 1998 * Carloforte, Italy, since 2004

References

Cities and towns in Liguria Coastal towns in Liguria Fishing communities in Italy Italian Riviera {{Liguria-geo-stub