Portoferraio
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Portoferraio () is a town and ''
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 ...
'' in the
province of Livorno The province of Livorno () or, traditionally, province of Leghorn, is a Provinces of Italy, province in the Tuscany region of Italy. It includes several islands of the Tuscan Archipelago, including Elba and Capraia. Its capital is the city of Liv ...
, on the edge of the eponymous
harbour A harbor (American English), or harbour (Commonwealth English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences), is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be Mooring, moored. The t ...
of the island of
Elba Elba (, ; ) is a Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino on the Italian mainland, and the largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago. It is also part of the Arcipelago Toscano National Park, a ...
. It is the island's largest town. Because of its terrain, many of its buildings are situated on the slopes of a tiny hill bordered on three sides by the sea.


History

It was founded by
Cosimo I de' Medici Cosimo I de' Medici (12 June 1519 – 21 April 1574) was the second and last duke of Florence from 1537 until 1569, when he became the first grand duke of Tuscany, a title he held until his death. Cosimo I succeeded his cousin to the duchy. ...
,
Grand Duke of Tuscany Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor Places * Grand, Oklahoma, USA * Grand, Vosges, village and commune in France with Gallo-Roman amphitheatre * Grand County (disambiguation), se ...
, in 1548, with the name of ''Cosmopoli'' ("Cosimo's City"), to balance the presence of the Spanish citadel in
Porto Azzurro Porto Azzurro is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Livorno in the Italian region Tuscany; it is on the island of Elba, located about southwest of Florence and about south of Livorno. It was formerly called Porto Longone, and in 15 ...
. It had three forts (Forte Stella, Forte Falcone, and Forte Inglese) and a massive line of walls, all still visible today. The name evolved from Ferraia in Etruscan times, Fabricia with Romans and Ferraio with Grand Duchy of Tuscany. The city remained attached to the
Grand Duchy of Tuscany The Grand Duchy of Tuscany (; ) was an Italian monarchy located in Central Italy that existed, with interruptions, from 1569 to 1860, replacing the Republic of Florence. The grand duchy's capital was Florence. In the 19th century the population ...
until the late 18th century, when, due to its strategic position, it came into contention with
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
,
Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...
, and
Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
. A British garrison withstood the Siege of Porto Ferrajo in 1801, but the 1802
Treaty of Amiens The Treaty of Amiens (, ) temporarily ended hostilities between France, the Spanish Empire, and the United Kingdom at the end of the War of the Second Coalition. It marked the end of the French Revolutionary Wars; after a short peace it set t ...
transferred the town to France. In 1814 it was handed over to
Napoleon Bonaparte 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 ...
, as the seat of his first exile. In the 19th century, the city grew quickly, due to the construction of infrastructures and the exploitation of new iron mills in Rio Marina. Portoferraio then became the main shipping port of the ore to the mainland, whence the current name, meaning "Iron Port" in Italian. After the end of the Napoleonic Era, Portoferraio returned to Tuscany and became part of the
Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy (, ) was a unitary state that existed from 17 March 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 10 June 1946, when the monarchy wa ...
in 1860. Here brigand
Carmine Crocco Carmine Crocco (5 June 1830 – 18 June 1905), known as Donatello or sometimes Donatelli, was an Italian brigand. Initially a soldier for the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Bourbons, he later fought in the service of Giuseppe Garibaldi. Soo ...
was imprisoned until his death for his revolution against the reign of Victor Emmanuel II and the anarchist Giovanni Passannante who attempted to kill King Umberto I. During
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, Portoferraio became the scene of battle when Elba was occupied by German forces. In late June 1944, an Allied force composed mainly of
Free French Free France () was a resistance government claiming to be the legitimate government of France following the dissolution of the Third French Republic, Third Republic during World War II. Led by General , Free France was established as a gover ...
troops liberated the island in a fight that lasted two days. Portoferraio was taken by French troops on 18 June but was damaged by the fighting and the bombing raids which preceded the invasion. Portoferraio's economy suffered from the end of mining activities starting from the 1970s, but in the following decades, it gained status as an internationally renowned seaside destination.


Population


The Jewish community

The first Jews arrived in Portoferraio at the beginning of the 17th century following the publication of the edict of 1556 in which
Cosimo I de' Medici Cosimo I de' Medici (12 June 1519 – 21 April 1574) was the second and last duke of Florence from 1537 until 1569, when he became the first grand duke of Tuscany, a title he held until his death. Cosimo I succeeded his cousin to the duchy. ...
granted special privileges to all those who settled in Cosmopoli. In 1593, Ferdinando I de' Medici issued letters patent, called La Livornina, by which more privileges were granted to foreign merchants, Jews in particular, who were willing to settle in the new free ports on Elba and in Leghorn. The first synagogue was built in 1631–1632 when there were barely over ten Jewish families living on the island. At the beginning of the 18th century, the Jewish community numbered more than 50 people. In 1702, by order of the Grand Duke, the Jews of Portoferraio were required to live on a designated street, ''Via degli Ebrei'' or ''Street of the Hebrews'' (now called via Elbano Gasperi) which constituted a small ghetto which they were not allowed to leave after 1 o’clock in the morning. At about this time, Abraham Pardo, son of Isaac, was forbidden to build a new synagogue near the church. He was forced to build it in a garden behind his home, below Fort Stella. All Jewish rituals were celebrated in the synagogue and were attended by Jews from Piombino, Maremme and the rest of the island of Elba. The ecclesiastical authorities sought to isolate the Jewish community by preventing Christians from having any contact with the Jewish community. There were restrictions on all workers and in particular on wet nurses who had to apply for special dispensations from the Vicar Forane. In 1765, authorization was granted to build a wall around a field designated for use as a Jewish cemetery. The field was situated over the Ponticello ditch, behind Ghiaie beach on the site of the present-day Hotel Villa Ombrosa. The wall with its central door is still visible. Until 1954, there was an inscription on the door which read: Cimitero Israelitico. In 1964, the remaining tombs, about 40 of them, with their inscriptions in Hebrew and Spanish and dating from 1646 to the end of the 19th century, were transferred to the new Jewish cemetery in Livorno. The ground was deconsecrated and sold by the Jewish community to a neighbor. It is now the garden of the villa behind it. In 1826, the Governor, at the request of the heads of 10 Jewish families, drew up a set of rules for the Jewish community. The rules were approved by the Grand Duke, Leopold II who nominated two ''massari'' ("bailiffs") to represent the community. In the second half of the 18th century, the Jewish community declined in number due to the worsening of economic conditions on the island. Peace had been signed with the Ottoman Empire resulting in a reduction of military garrisons and the suppression of the “compagnia urbana” made up of 180 men. At the beginning of the 20th century, the construction of a steel mill attracted new Jewish families to the island. However, due to the anti-Jewish laws and persecutions, these families left the island. Alfonso Preziosi, in his book, cited above, wrote “generally, the Jews found the island of Elba to be an oasis of peace thanks to the privileges granted by the Medici and the Lorraine which allowed them to develop their trade with Eastern ports.” On January 27, 2023, the mayor of Portoferraio attended on the occasion of Remembrance Day the installation of two historical-informative panels on the surrounding wall of the cemetery and in via Elbano Gasperi where the Ghetto was located in memory of the presence of the Jews.


Historical population


Main sights

The town center is crowded around the small marina lying in a natural cove. Main points of interest include: *Forte Stella *Forte Falcone *Forte Inglese *Archeological museum *
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 house


Portoferraio lighthouse

The
lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...
stands on the northern
rampart Rampart may refer to: * Rampart (fortification), a defensive wall or bank around a castle, fort or settlement Rampart may also refer to: * LAPD Rampart Division, a division of the Los Angeles Police Department ** Rampart scandal, a blanket ter ...
of Forte Stella built in 1548 by
Cosimo I de' Medici Cosimo I de' Medici (12 June 1519 – 21 April 1574) was the second and last duke of Florence from 1537 until 1569, when he became the first grand duke of Tuscany, a title he held until his death. Cosimo I succeeded his cousin to the duchy. ...
. It was built by Leopold II Grand Duke of Tuscany in 1788; the stone tower is 25 metres high and has a double balcony and lantern. The lighthouse is fully automated, operated by
Marina Militare The Italian Navy (; abbreviated as MM) is one of the four branches of Italian Armed Forces and was formed in 1946 from what remained of the '' Regia Marina'' (Royal Navy) after World War II. , the Italian Navy had a strength of 30,923 active pe ...
and identified by the code number 2072 E.F.; the lantern is 63
metres above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level v ...
and emits a group of three white lightning strikes in a 14-second period visible up to 16
nautical mile A nautical mile is a unit of length used in air, marine, and space navigation, and for the definition of territorial waters. Historically, it was defined as the meridian arc length corresponding to one minute ( of a degree) of latitude at t ...
s (roughly 30 km). On the same tower is an additional light identified by the number 2072.2.E.F. that emits a red fixed light at 60
metres above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level v ...
.Portoferraio lighthouse
Marina Militare


References


External links




Portoferraio



{{authority control Cities and towns in Tuscany Elba Populated coastal places in Italy