Piazza De Ferrari (Genoa)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Piazza De Ferrari is the main
square In geometry, a square is a regular polygon, regular quadrilateral. It has four straight sides of equal length and four equal angles. Squares are special cases of rectangles, which have four equal angles, and of rhombuses, which have four equal si ...
of
Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...
. Situated in the heart of the city between the historical and the modern center, Piazza De Ferrari is renowned for its fountain, which was restored in recent years along with a major restyling of the square. Today next to Piazza De Ferrari are numerous office buildings, headquarters of banks, insurances and other private companies, making of this district the financial and business centre of Genoa, so that the Genoese popularly refer to it as the "City" of Genoa. At the end of the 19th century Genoa was the main financial centre of Italy along with
Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
, and Piazza De Ferrari was the place where many institutions were established, like the stock exchange, the
Credito Italiano ''Credito Italiano'', often referred to by the shorthand Credit, was a significant Italian bank based in Milan. It was established in 1895, succeeding the ''Banca di Genova'' established in 1870 in Genoa. In 1998 it merged with Unicredito to form ...
, the branch offices of the
Bank of Italy The Bank of Italy (Italian language, Italian: ''Banca d'Italia'', , informally referred to as ''Bankitalia'') is the National central bank (Eurosystem), national central bank for Italy within the Eurosystem. It was the Italian central bank from ...
, founded in 1893.


Description

The square, dedicated to the Italian banker and politician Raffaele De Ferrari, duke of Galliera, has an irregular form due to urbanistic works which united two different urban areas. The square is about . Today's shape of the ''piazza'' took form in the first two decades of the twentieth century with the creation of the three streets which converge from east: Via XX Settembre, Via Dante and Via Petrarca; and with the creation of the four
eclectic Eclectic may refer to: Music * ''Eclectic'' (Eric Johnson and Mike Stern album), 2014 * ''Eclectic'' (Big Country album), 1996 * Eclectic Method, name of an audio-visual remix act * Eclecticism in music, the conscious use of styles alien to th ...
palaces. All of this was built on the area obtained through the excavation of Colle San Andrea. We can consider the square being built between 1899 and 1983. The four eclectic palaces are contrasted by neoclassic examples of buildings such as the
Teatro Carlo Felice The Teatro Carlo Felice is the principal opera house of Genoa, Italy, used for performances of opera, ballet, orchestral music, and recitals. It is located on the side of Piazza De Ferrari. History The hall is named for King Carlo Felice, a ...
and Accademia Ligustica di Belle Arti. Furthermore, next to Teatro Carlo Felice two streets branch out: Via Roma (elegant street enriched by boutiques and shops), flanked by Galleria Mazzini and Via XXV Aprile. In front of the theatre is located a statue dedicated to
Giuseppe Garibaldi Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as (). In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as () or (). 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, revolutionary and republican. H ...
, built by the Italian sculptor
Augusto Rivalta Augusto Rivalta (1835 or 1838 – April 14, 1925) was an Italian sculptor. Biography Rivalta was born in Alessandria, Italy, to Genoese parents. In 1859, he moved to Florence, but soon swept up in the patriotic events, he volunteered for the ...
in 1893. At the centre of the square, in 1936, a bronze fountain was built. It was designed by the architect Giuseppe Crosa di Vergagni and it soon became one of the main symbols of the city. During the 1990s, the square was architectonically renovated by the German urbanist and architect
Bernhard Winkler Bernhard Winkler (born 24 June 1966) is a German former professional footballer who played as a striker. Honours 1. FC Kaiserslautern * Bundesliga: 1990–91 * DFL-Supercup: 1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun ...
and most of the attention went to the asphalt, the fountain and
Palazzo Ducale Several palaces are named Ducal Palace (Italian: ''Palazzo Ducale'' ) because it was the seat or residence of a duke. Notable palaces with the name include: France *Palace of the Dukes of Burgundy, Dijon * Palace of the Dukes of Lorraine, Nancy * ...
. The square is now almost all for pedestrians.


History


Piazza San Domenico

Where now lies the square, in the past it was nothing more than a triangular space which was named after San Domenico's Church. The church was demolished in the 1820s and on its soil was built
Teatro Carlo Felice The Teatro Carlo Felice is the principal opera house of Genoa, Italy, used for performances of opera, ballet, orchestral music, and recitals. It is located on the side of Piazza De Ferrari. History The hall is named for King Carlo Felice, a ...
. The square was enclosed by its church, a Dominican cloister, Palazzo Forcheri and other buildings. In the middle of the square there was a ''(monumental fountain)'' from the year 1536. Linked to Piazza San Domenico were to the east Via Giulia, Via dei Sellai (now named Via Cardinal Boetto) and to the west Via San Sebastiano. Most of today's square was taken by houses which were built at the foot of Colle San Andrea, then excavated at the beginning of the twentieth century.


The nineteenth century


First half of the century

After the incorporation of the former
Ligurian Republic The Ligurian Republic (, , ) or Republic of Liguria was a French client republic formed by Napoleon on 14 June 1797. It consisted of the old Republic of Genoa, which covered most of the Ligurian region of Northwest Italy, and the small Imper ...
to the Sardinian Kingdom established in 1814 during the
Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon, Napol ...
, a decision was made and the area were now Piazza De Ferrari is located was destined to become a social and cultural place of meeting. In addition to this, it was proposed to build a theatre where was located the former complex of San Domenico. In 1818, King
Vittorio Emanuele I Victor Emmanuel I (; 24 July 1759 – 10 January 1824) was the Counts and dukes of Savoy, Duke of Savoy, List of monarchs of Sardinia, King of Sardinia and ruler of the Savoyard state, Savoyard states from 4 June 1802 until his reign ended in 1 ...
authorised the demolition of the church. The church was then demolished and on its soil was built
Teatro Carlo Felice The Teatro Carlo Felice is the principal opera house of Genoa, Italy, used for performances of opera, ballet, orchestral music, and recitals. It is located on the side of Piazza De Ferrari. History The hall is named for King Carlo Felice, a ...
which was inaugurated on April 7, 1828 (after two years of building). Next to the theatre, on April 28, 1832, was inaugurated a two-stories building destined to become the headquarters of the ''Accademia Ligustica'' and of ''Biblioteca Berio.'' In the following years, the square was linked to the port by the construction of Via San Lorenzo where now lies the Cathedral of San Lorenzo. Other than being linked to several important streets such as ''Strada Balbi'', ''Via Garibaldi'' (former ''Strada Nuova''), ''Via Cairoli'' (former ''Strada Nuovissima'') and ''Strada Giulia''.


Second half of the century

During the second half of the century, several jobs on the road network were made and the square acquired its role of fulcrum of the city. In 1868, Via Roma was built and next to it was built a parallel covered street, Galleria Mazzini. On December 10, 1975, one year after the death of Raffaele De Ferrari, the square was dedicated to him. In 1893, in front of Teatro Carlo Felice was inaugurated the monument dedicated to Giuseppe Garibaldi, built by Augusto Rivalta and during its ceremony, many important figures were present such as:
Francesco Crispi Francesco Crispi (4 October 1818 – 11 August 1901) was an Italian patriot and statesman. He was among the main protagonists of the Risorgimento, a close friend and supporter of Giuseppe Mazzini and Giuseppe Garibaldi, and one of the architect ...
, Stefano Canzio and Anton Giulio Barrili. Until the last few years of the century, a fruit, vegetable and flower market took place in the square. The market was later moved in 1899 into the covered space of Mercato Orientale built on the northern side of Via XX Settembre.


The twentieth century

In 1904, the entirety of Colle Sant'Andrea was flattened and all of the houses built around it were demolished together with part of ''Barbarossa's Wall'', dated 1155. In 1912 the ''Palazzo della Nuova Borsa'', located between Via Dante and Via XX Settembre, was inaugurated. On April 24, 1936, at the centre of the square was inaugurated the bronze fountain, designed by Giuseppe Crosa di Vergagni, and its main bronze basin was donated by engineer Carlo Piaggio to celebrate Italy's entry into the war against
Abissinia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...
.


World War II

During World War II, an air-raid destroyed
Teatro Carlo Felice The Teatro Carlo Felice is the principal opera house of Genoa, Italy, used for performances of opera, ballet, orchestral music, and recitals. It is located on the side of Piazza De Ferrari. History The hall is named for King Carlo Felice, a ...
almost completely; only the perimeter walls and the neoclassic façade remained standing. The theatre was then rebuilt between 1987 and 1991. Finally in 1991 it was re-opened to the public. Ahead of April 25, 1945, in the square there were violent battles between
partisans Partisan(s) or The Partisan(s) may refer to: Military * Partisan (military), paramilitary forces engaged behind the front line ** Francs-tireurs et partisans, communist-led French anti-fascist resistance against Nazi Germany during WWII ** Itali ...
and the
Nazi German Army The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previou ...
. In the following days, the square witnessed events linked to the
liberation Liberation or liberate may refer to: Film and television * ''Liberation'' (film series), a 1970–1971 series about the Great Patriotic War * "Liberation" (''The Flash''), a TV episode * "Liberation" (''K-9''), an episode Gaming * '' Liberati ...
with the descent of the partisans from the mountains who came to participate in the liberation parade. On April 25, the enemy troops, headed by
Günter Meinhold Gunter or Günter may refer to: * Gunter rig, a type of sailing rig, especially in small boats * Gunter Annex, Alabama, a United States Air Force installation * Gunter, Texas, city in the United States * the former German name of the village of ...
, surrendered to the partisans headed by
Remo Scappini Remo Inc. is an American musical instruments manufacturing company based in Valencia, California, and founded by Remo Belli in 1957. Products manufactured include drum kits, drumheads, drums, and hardware, and various percussion instruments. ...
(
Comitato di Liberazione Nazionale The National Liberation Committee (, CLN) was a political umbrella organization and the main representative of the Italian resistance movement fighting against the occupying forces of Nazi Germany and the fascist collaborationist forces of the ...
). Meinhold signed the act of surrender in ''Villa Migone;'' at the time it was the house of the
Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to * Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae ***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...
of Genoa. This was the only case in Italy in which the German Army surrendered to Partisan troops and not to the allied forces, who had not arrived yet.


After the war

The square was a meeting point for most protests. In 1948, Piazza De Ferrari was where the large protest for the assassination attempt of
Palmiro Togliatti Palmiro Michele Nicola Togliatti (; 26 March 1893 – 21 August 1964) was an Italian politician and statesman, leader of Italy's Italian Communist Party, Communist party for nearly forty years, from 1927 until his death. Born into a middle-clas ...
(former leader of the
Italian Communist Party The Italian Communist Party (, PCI) was a communist and democratic socialist political party in Italy. It was established in Livorno as the Communist Party of Italy (, PCd'I) on 21 January 1921, when it seceded from the Italian Socialist Part ...
) took place. The three gunshots were taken by Antonio Pallante, a
anticommunist Anti-communism is Political movement, political and Ideology, ideological opposition to communism, communist beliefs, groups, and individuals. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in Russia, and it reached global ...
and law student, in Rome on April 18, 1948. Protests took place in the whole country in the aftermath, but Genoa's population reacted with more intensity due to the large communist presence among the people and because Togliatti was born in Genoa, even if he moved to Sardinia early in life and lived in Turin and Russia for the majority of his adult life.


June 30th 1960

On June 30, 1960, the majority of Genoa's population was opposed to the congress of the
Italian Social Movement The Italian Social Movement (, MSI) was a neo-fascist political party in Italy. A far-right party, it presented itself until the 1990s as the defender of Italian fascism's legacy, and later moved towards national conservatism. In 1972, the Itali ...
authorised by the government, headed by ''Demochristian''
Fernando Tambroni Fernando Tambroni Armaroli (; 25 November 1901 – 18 February 1963) was an Italian politician. A member of Christian Democracy, he served as the 36th Prime Minister of Italy from March to July 1960. He also served as Minister of the Interior fro ...
. At the congress, Carlo Emanuele Basile (former
prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect' ...
of Genoa during the
Italian Social Republic The Italian Social Republic (, ; RSI; , ), known prior to December 1943 as the National Republican State of Italy (; SNRI), but more popularly known as the Republic of Salò (, ), was a List of World War II puppet states#Germany, German puppe ...
) would have also made an appearance, a fact which contributed to the authorisation granted by Tambroni. A major part of the protests, which happened to be violent, took place in the squar


The twenty-first century


July 2001—G8

Central access to the (red zone) during the Group of Eight, G8 meeting in ''Palazzo Ducale'', the nearby areas were crowded by protestors who tried to enter the square. Being the square closed to the public, the protest moved to different areas of the city which caused the massacres of ''Piazza Alimonda'' and to ''Diaz School''.


Renovation process of the square

The square was heavily renovated during the 1990s and in the first couple of years of the 2000s for the Colombians Celebrations for the 500th anniversary of the discovery of America and for the G8 meeting of 2001. The project was guided by German urbanist and architect
Bernhard Winkler Bernhard Winkler (born 24 June 1966) is a German former professional footballer who played as a striker. Honours 1. FC Kaiserslautern * Bundesliga: 1990–91 * DFL-Supercup: 1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun ...
. The square was widely
pedestrianised Pedestrian zones (also known as auto-free zones and car-free zones, as pedestrian precincts in British English, and as pedestrian malls in the United States and Australia) are areas of a city or town restricted to use by people on foot or ...
and re-paved and the fountain was enriched with new water springs and with a supplementary basin. Since the beginning of the 2000s, due to high consumption of water and to infiltrations in the metro station beneath the square, the new water jets were often disabled. Finally, in 2018, the streams were renovated and the water recycling system was updated.


Historical palaces

Next to the square are several historical palaces and buildings. *The Palace of the Doges *The headquarters of the Ligurian Region (the former Palazzo Italia di Navigazione) *The palace of the Ligurian Academy of Fine Arts, founded in 1741 *The Theatre Carlo Felice, with its neoclassic pronao designed by the Italian architect Carlo Barabino and the
equestrian statue An equestrian statue is a statue of a rider mounted on a horse, from the Latin ''eques'', meaning 'knight', deriving from ''equus'', meaning 'horse'. A statue of a riderless horse is strictly an equine statue. A full-sized equestrian statue is a ...
of
Giuseppe Garibaldi Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as (). In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as () or (). 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, revolutionary and republican. H ...
, work of the Italian sculptor
Augusto Rivalta Augusto Rivalta (1835 or 1838 – April 14, 1925) was an Italian sculptor. Biography Rivalta was born in Alessandria, Italy, to Genoese parents. In 1859, he moved to Florence, but soon swept up in the patriotic events, he volunteered for the ...
*The stock exchange building, built in 1912 by the architect Alfredo Coppedè *The palace of the Duke of Galliera, Raffaele De Ferrari, to whom the square is dedicated


Public transport

An underground
station Station may refer to: Agriculture * Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production * Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle ** Cattle statio ...
of the Genoa Metro opened at Piazza De Ferrari on February 4, 2005.''
Tramways & Urban Transit ''Tramways & Urban Transit'' ''(TAUT'' or ''T&UT)'', also known as ''Modern Tramway'', is a British monthly magazine about tramways and light rail transport, published continuously since 1938. Its content is orientated both to tramway enthusi ...
'', April 2005, p. 149. Ian Allan Ltd./
Light Rail Transit Association The Light Rail Transit Association (LRTA), formerly the Light Railway Transport League (LRTL), is a non-profit organisation whose purpose is to advocate and encourage research into the retention and development of light rail and tramway/streetc ...
(UK). ISSN 1460-8324.
The square is also served by the Genoa trolleybus system – by route 30 since 1997 and by route 20 since 2008.


Gallery

File:Genua - Piazza De Ferrari.jpg, Panorama of the square File:Genova-fontana di piazza De Ferrari-050.jpg, Water playing on the fountain File:Genova - Piazza De Ferrari.jpg, The palace of the ''New Stock Exchange'' File:Genova-DSCF8007.JPG, The Carlo Felice Theater File:Genova-DSCF8008.JPG, The Palace of the Ligustica Academy and in the background the scenic tower of Carlo Felice File:Genova-De Ferrari-IMG 2851.JPG, The Palace of the Italian Navigation Society (now the
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 ...
Region) File:Genua (10).JPG, The laterale side of the
Ducal Palace Several palaces are named Ducal Palace (Italian: ''Palazzo Ducale'' ) because it was the seat or residence of a duke. Notable palaces with the name include: France *Palace of the Dukes of Burgundy, Dijon *Palace of the Dukes of Lorraine, Nancy *Pa ...
File:Piazza de ferrari palazzo d angolo.jpg, The Palace of the Italian Credit File:Genova 12-8-05 040.jpg, The monument of the
Garibaldi Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as (). In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as () or (). 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, revolutionary and republican. H ...


References

{{coord, 44, 24, 25.57, N, 8, 56, 3.23, E, source:itwiki_region:IT_scale:5000, display=title Buildings and structures in Genoa
Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...