Piazza della Repubblica is the largest square in

Alcamo Alcamo (; ) is the fourth-largest town and communes of Italy, commune of the Province of Trapani, Sicily, with a population of 44.925 inhabitants. It is on the borderline with the Metropolitan City of Palermo at a distance of about 50 kilometr ...

, a town in the

province of Trapani The province of Trapani (; ; officially ''libero consorzio comunale di Trapani'') is a Provinces of Italy, province in the autonomous island region of Sicily, Italy. Following the suppression of the Sicilian provinces, it was replaced in 2015 by ...

. It is located in the town centre.

History

Its origin dates back to the middle of the 14th century: at first it was used as a place-of-arms for military exercise. The only building existing at that time was the Church of Saint Mary of Jesus and its convent of the

Order of Friars Minor The Order of Friars Minor (commonly called the Franciscans, the Franciscan Order, or the Seraphic Order; Post-nominal letters, postnominal abbreviation OFM) is a Mendicant orders, mendicant Catholic religious order, founded in 1209 by Francis ...

south of it, while, on the sides of the square there were just some small rural buildings.Roberto Calia, I palazzi dell'aristocrazia e della borghesia alcamese, Alcamo, Carrubba, 1997. In the early 19th century, the castle was given to the municipality by the last Counts of Modica, and the square was not used for its primary scope any longer. Later, the town municipality placed an

abreuvoir A watering trough (or artificial watering point) is a man-made or natural receptacle intended to provide drinking water to animals, livestock on farms or ranches or wild animals. History In Australia, the watering trough is established so t ...

in this square and, another one in ''Piano Santa Maria''. It was first called ''Piazza del Progresso'', as it was in the middle of a rapidly expanding area. In 1903, after the

anarchic Anarchy is a form of society without rulers. As a type of stateless society, it is commonly contrasted with states, which are centralized polities that claim a monopoly on violence over a permanent territory. Beyond a lack of government, it can ...

bombing which caused

Umberto I Umberto I (; 14 March 1844 – 29 July 1900) was King of Italy from 9 January 1878 until his assassination in 1900. His reign saw Italy's expansion into the Horn of Africa, as well as the creation of the Triple Alliance among Italy, Germany an ...

's death, it was named for him, but in 1946, with the arrival of ''Italian Republic'', it was given the present name. From 1922 to 1946 the square was used as a football ground, as it was the only large area available for this activity. In the 1960s it was asphalted, and they built the

bus station A bus station, bus depot, or bus interchange is a structure where city buses or intercity buses stop to pick up and drop off passengers. A bus station is larger than a bus stop, which is usually simply a place on the roadside, where buses can st ...

Atto deliberativo della Giunta Municipale, May 1962 with two platforms; they also settled the garden, by realizing some

flowerbed A flower garden or floral garden is any garden or part of a garden where plants that flower are grown and displayed. This normally refers mostly to herbaceous plants, rather than flowering woody plants, which dominate in the shrubbery and wo ...

s, planting some trees and flowers and placing benches. In the first Garibaldian

centennial A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century. Notable events Notable centennial events at a national or world-level include: * Centennial Exhibition, 1876, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. ...

(

1860 Events January * January 2 – The astronomer Urbain Le Verrier announces the discovery of a hypothetical planet Vulcan (hypothetical planet), Vulcan at a meeting of the French Academy of Sciences in Paris, France. * January 10 &ndas ...

) they had put two marble busts representing the two Triolo brothers (Stefano and Giuseppe Triolo), who took part in the revolts and in

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 ...

's deed: these works, realized by Giuseppe Bambina (a sculptor from Alcamo), were then removed because of the continuous acts of

vandalism Vandalism is the action involving deliberate destruction of or damage to public or private property. The term includes property damage, such as graffiti and defacement directed towards any property without permission of the owner. The t ...

, and at present (May 2018) they are placed at the entrance of the Castello dei conti di Modica.

Description

Piazza della Repubblica has a square shape: the north side is predominated by the profile of the Castle, while all the remaining part is occupied by houses, shops and offices. Inside the public garden, located in the middle of the square, there are some

footpaths A footpath (also pedestrian way, walking trail, nature trail) is a type of thoroughfare that is intended for use only by pedestrians and not other forms of traffic such as motorized vehicles, bicycles and horses. They can be found in a wide ...

leading to a central open space, where they had to place a fountain; on the west side of the garden there is the bus station, recently restored (January–May 2018). Around the garden there are the

arterial roads An arterial road or arterial thoroughfare is a high-capacity urban road that sits below highways on the road hierarchy in terms of traffic flow and speed. The primary function of an arterial road is to deliver traffic from collector roads to hig ...

which let car traffic flow towards Piazza Bagolino and Viale Europa (through Via Maria Riposo, where you can admire the Church of Saint Mary of Jesus. If you go down via Mazzini, you will get to Piazza Ciullo and then to the town centre . The Civic Theatre " Cielo d'Alcamo" is located opposite the main entrance of the castle.

References

Sources

* * * * * Atto deliberativo della Giunta Municipale, May 1962

Other projects

{{commons category, Piazza della Repubblica (Alcamo) 14th-century establishments in Italy Buildings and structures completed in the 14th century Alcamo Umberto I of Italy Piazzas in Sicily

History

Description

See also

References

Sources

Other projects