San Giorgio Morgeto ( Calabrian: or simply ) 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 ...

'' (municipality) in the

Province of Reggio Calabria The province of Reggio Calabria () was a province in the Calabria region of Italy. It was the southernmost province in mainland Italy and is separated from the island of Sicily by the Strait of Messina. The capital was the city of Reggio. It w ...

in the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

region

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 ...

, located about southwest 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 ...

and about northeast of

Reggio Calabria Reggio di Calabria (; ), commonly and officially referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the List of cities in Italy, largest city in Calabria as well as the seat of the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria. As ...

. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 3,356 and an area of .All demographics and other statistics: Italian statistical institute

Istat The Italian National Institute of Statistics (; Istat) is the primary source of official statistics in Italy. The institute conducts a variety of activities, including the census of population, economic censuses, and numerous social, economic, a ...

. San Giorgio Morgeto borders the following municipalities: Canolo, Cinquefrondi, Cittanova,

Mammola Mammola is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria in the Italian region Calabria, located about southwest of Catanzaro and about northeast of Reggio Calabria. Mammola borders the following municipalities: Agn ...

Polistena Polistena (, or ''Polysthénē'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria in the Italian region Calabria, located about southwest of Catanzaro and about northeast of Reggio Calabria. Polistena borders the foll ...

History

The history of San Giorgio Morgeto is the topic of many myths concerning King

Italus Italus or Italos (from ) was a legendary king of the Oenotrians, ancient people of Italic origin who inhabited the region now called Calabria, in southern Italy. In his ''Fabularum Liber'' (or ''Fabulae''), Gaius Julius Hyginus recorded the myth ...

and the

Morgetes The Morgetes (, ) were an ancient oenotrian tribe, of Pelasgian descent, who occupied the region of southern Italy from Calabria to Sicily. Girolamo Marafioti, ''Croniche et antichità di Calabria. Conforme all'ordine de' testi greco, & latino, ra ...

which centre on the citadel, located on a hill which falls within the

Aspromonte National Park Aspromonte National Park is situated in the southern section of the Apennines, in Calabria, Italy. The park lies near the sea and includes mountain summits with altitudes close to 2000 meters (Montalto (Aspromonte), Montalto is 1,955 m). The p ...

. The area was certainly a point of great military and strategic significance and it may have previously served as an outpost of the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

inhabitants of

Locri Locri is a town and ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Reggio Calabria, Calabria, southern Italy. Its name derives from that of the ancient Greek region of Locris. Today it is an important administrative and cultural center on the Ion ...

to assure their control of their colonies on the Tyrrhenian coast: Medma,

Hipponion Vibo Valentia (; Monteleone before 1861; Monteleone di Calabria from 1861 to 1928; or ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in the Italian region of Calabria, near the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital of the province of Vibo Valentia, and ...

and

Metaurus The Metauro is a river in the Marche region of central Italy. It rises in the Apennine Mountains and runs east for or if the Meta is included as its uppermost reach. The name of the river in Latin is ''Metaurus'' or ''Mataurus.'' In Ancient Gr ...

. Archaeological work has revealed that a fortress was built nearby at Altanum by

Justinian Justinian I (, ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was Roman emperor from 527 to 565. His reign was marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renovatio imperii'', or "restoration of the Empire". This ambition was ...

to defend the area against Gothic forces during the Gothic War. In the 9th century AD, there were

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 ...

monks on the site, who influenced the economic and religious activities of the community. They built a monastery and a church (

Hodegetria A Hodegetria, or Virgin Hodegetria, is an iconography, iconographic depiction of the Theotokos (Virgin Mary) holding the Child Jesus at her side while pointing to him as the source of salvation for humankind. The Virgin's head usually inclines t ...

), which became a central point for the people of the area. According to S.Nico, when there was a plague, Morgeto and its monastery did not suffer any harm and accepted refugees from and

Oppido Mamertina Oppido Mamertina (, ) is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Reggio Calabria in Calabria in southern Italy at about northeast of Reggio Calabria and about southwest of Catanzaro. It is the seat of the Diocese of Oppido Mamertina. The mun ...

. Subsequently, the area was conquered by the

Normans The Normans (Norman language, Norman: ''Normaunds''; ; ) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norsemen, Norse Viking settlers and locals of West Francia. The Norse settlements in West Franc ...

, who built the castle on the site and whose feudatories remained in control of the area until the reign of the

Hohenstaufens The Hohenstaufen dynasty (, , ), also known as the Staufer, was a noble family of unclear origin that rose to rule the Duchy of Swabia from 1079, and to royal rule in the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages from 1138 until 1254. The dynasty ...

. In 1324, San Giorgio became a

barony Barony may refer to: * Barony, the peerage, office of, or territory held by a baron * Barony, the title and land held in fealty by a feudal baron * Barony (county division), a type of administrative or geographical division in parts of the British ...

, containing

Anoia Anoia () is a comarca (county) in central Catalonia, Spain, with its capital at Igualada. It is mainly located in the Penedès region, with its northern section being in Central Catalonia. The comarca of Anoia is irrigated by the Anoia River; ...

, Cinquefrondi, Prateria and

Galatro Galatro () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Reggio Calabria in the Italy, Italian region Calabria, located about southwest of Catanzaro and about northeast of Reggio Calabria. As of 31 December 2004 it had a population of 2,077 a ...

. In 1343, this barony was given to Antonio Caracciolo by Queen Joanna I. Subsequently, the barony endured under the suzereinity of the Angevins, the Hohenstaufens, and the Aragonese. In 1684, the borders of the barony extended east as far as Prateria and south to San Fili. The barony passed from the Caracciolo to the Correale and then to the Milano family (Barons of San Giorgio from 1501 and Marquesses from 1593), who retained the title until 1806, when

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 ...

abolished feudalism. In 1864,

Victor Emmanuel II Victor Emmanuel II (; full name: ''Vittorio Emanuele Maria Alberto Eugenio Ferdinando Tommaso di Savoia''; 14 March 1820 – 9 January 1878) was King of Sardinia (also informally known as Piedmont–Sardinia) from 23 March 1849 until 17 March ...

changed the name of San Giorgio to San Giorgio Morgeto. Previously it had sometimes been known as San Giorgio di Polistena, because it was part of the Polistena region.

Architecture

Religious structures

The Convent of San Domenico, of Byzantine origin, was granted to Baron Caracciolo in 1393 by

Pope Boniface IX Pope Boniface IX (; ; c. 1350 – 1 October 1404, born Pietro Tomacelli) was head of the Catholic Church from 2 November 1389 to his death, in October 1404. He was the second Roman pope during the Western Schism.Richard P. McBrien, ''Lives of t ...

, where he erected a church dedicated to the Annunciation.

Tommaso Campanella Tommaso Campanella (; 5 September 1568 – 21 May 1639), baptized Giovanni Domenico Campanella, was an Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, theologian, astrologer, and poet. Campanella was prosecuted by the Roman Inquisition for he ...

undertook his early education and said his vows at the age of fourteen at the convent. In 1818, the convent of San Giorgio was renovated, along with the other six Dominican convents of Calabria. The Mother church dell'Assunta is the religious centre of San Giorgio Morgeto. It contains wooden statues of the Neapolitan school depicting Saint George and Saint James as companions, a crucifix, and a polychrome marble main altar from the eighteenth century, as well as a nineteenth century Neapolitan organ. The ancient "Pietra Santa" (Holy rock) is visible in the external wall of the church having been revealed during restoration work on the church. It was probably an object of veneration for the worshipers, as the corrosion to it (probably resulting from believers kissing it) indicates. There is also a carving of a cross visible on it. The Tommaso Campanella Comunale Library is the centre of San Giorgio Morgeto's cultural life and is located in the historic centre of the town on two floors. Originally it was for ecclesiastical use; it is now used for conferences and meetings. The library is named for Tommaso Campanella, the Dominican theologian who began his monastic life at the Convent of San Giorgio Morgeto.

The Castle

The Castle of San Giorgio Morgeto was built in the 9th or 10th century AD on the summit of a rocky peak near the settlement. It is one of the few examples of High Medieval Calabrian architecture and one of the few fortifications in the region to have undergone restoration work. Even today it dominates the plain of

Gioia Tauro Gioia Tauro () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria (Italy), on the Tyrrhenian coast. It has an important port, situated along the route connecting Suez to Gibraltar, one of the busiest maritime corridors in ...

from the

Tyrrhenian Sea The Tyrrhenian Sea (, ; or ) , , , , is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy. It is named for the Tyrrhenians, Tyrrhenian people identified with the Etruscans of Italy. Geography The sea is bounded by the islands of C ...

to Capo Vaticano, with a view of

Stromboli Stromboli ( , ; ) is an island in the Tyrrhenian Sea, off the north coast of Sicily, containing Mount Stromboli, one of the four active volcanoes in Italy. It is one of the seven Aeolian Islands, a volcanic arc north of Sicily, and the mytho ...

and the

Aeolian Islands The Aeolian Islands ( ; ; ), sometimes referred to as the Lipari Islands or Lipari group ( , ) after their largest island, are a volcanic archipelago in the Tyrrhenian Sea north of Sicily, said to be named after Aeolus, the mythical ruler of ...

. Local legend attributes the original fortification to the mythical King Morges of the

, son of

. Morges' shade or ghost is meant to appear on the walls from time to time. Rebuilt and expanded by the Normans in the eleventh century, during the reign of Roger I, it underwent various changes over the centuries, mostly in response to changing military requirements, at the hands of the Caracciolo, Curreale di Sorrento, and Milano families. It was finally abandoned in the sixteenth century. The surviving structure consists of the walls, the foundations of the towers and the cistern, which is now used as a gallery and conference hall. The field below the castle is used for concerts and cultural events. The keep is difficult to access, but the cistern and the lower part of the castle can be reached easily by means of a stairway from the monument to the fallen. The ruins of the keep have been the object of restoration work, while the wider area requires further work. In February 2010, artistic nocturnal lighting was installed.Costruito in cima alla collina
/ref>

War memorials

Monumento Faro ai caduti della Prima Guerra Mondiale

In the 1920s, the comune of San Giorgio Morgeto commissioned Fortunato Longo (a sculptor with strong links to the town) to create a memorial for the soldiers killed in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. The resulting monument still stands near the castle. It is a bronze sculptured group, with a winged female warrior in the centre holding sword and shield, symbolising attack and defence. There are three Italian soldiers at her sides. The soldier at her right is in the process of throwing a grenade of the type employed by the Italian army in 1915, the SIPE (Società Italiana Prodotti Esplondenti). The man at her left carries a wounded soldier out of battle. In September 1943, a German pilot was shot down by an Allied pilot over San Giorgio. His body was found in a field nearby with no means of identification. The comune erected a monument for this unknown airman on a hill in the comunale cemetery.

Archaeological site

In 1921,

Paolo Orsi Paolo Orsi (Rovereto, October 17, 1859 – November 8, 1935) was an Italian archaeologist and classicist. Life Orsi was born in Rovereto, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and now in the province of Trento in Italy. After studying at a gy ...

assigned to perform excavations at Altanum, near San Giorgio. The large walls, remains of a circular tower (called the "Bombardiera") were identified by Minuto as the remains of a sixth-century Byzantine fortress from the reign of

, part of the defensive network built after the Goths invaded Calabria during the Gothic War. During the excavations near the cistern, a large amount of ceramic material and bone fragments were found.

Demographic evolution

Colors= id:lightgrey value:gray(0.9) id:darkgrey value:gray(0.8) id:sfondo value:rgb(1,1,1) id:barra value:rgb(0.6,0.7,0.8) ImageSize = width:455 height:303 PlotArea = left:50 bottom:50 top:30 right:30 DateFormat = x.y Period = from:0 till:7000 TimeAxis = orientation:vertical AlignBars = justify ScaleMajor = gridcolor:darkgrey increment:500 start:0 ScaleMinor = gridcolor:lightgrey increment:100 start:0 BackgroundColors = canvas:sfondo BarData= bar:1861 text:1861 bar:1871 text:1871 bar:1881 text:1881 bar:1901 text:1901 bar:1911 text:1911 bar:1921 text:1921 bar:1931 text:1931 bar:1936 text:1936 bar:1951 text:1951 bar:1961 text:1961 bar:1971 text:1971 bar:1981 text:1981 bar:1991 text:1991 bar:2001 text:2001 PlotData= color:barra width:20 align:left bar:1861 from: 0 till:4806 bar:1871 from: 0 till:5375 bar:1881 from: 0 till:5180 bar:1901 from: 0 till:4645 bar:1911 from: 0 till:5368 bar:1921 from: 0 till:6063 bar:1931 from: 0 till:6536 bar:1936 from: 0 till:5908 bar:1951 from: 0 till:6181 bar:1961 from: 0 till:5451 bar:1971 from: 0 till:4570 bar:1981 from: 0 till:4046 bar:1991 from: 0 till:3764 bar:2001 from: 0 till:3384 PlotData= bar:1861 at:4806 fontsize:XS text: 4806 shift:(-8,5) bar:1871 at:5375 fontsize:XS text: 5375 shift:(-8,5) bar:1881 at:5180 fontsize:XS text: 5180 shift:(-8,5) bar:1901 at:4645 fontsize:XS text: 4645 shift:(-8,5) bar:1911 at:5368 fontsize:XS text: 5368 shift:(-8,5) bar:1921 at:6063 fontsize:XS text: 6063 shift:(-8,5) bar:1931 at:6536 fontsize:XS text: 6536 shift:(-8,5) bar:1936 at:5908 fontsize:XS text: 5908 shift:(-8,5) bar:1951 at:6181 fontsize:XS text: 6181 shift:(-8,5) bar:1961 at:5451 fontsize:XS text: 5451 shift:(-8,5) bar:1971 at:4570 fontsize:XS text: 4570 shift:(-8,5) bar:1981 at:4046 fontsize:XS text: 4046 shift:(-8,5) bar:1991 at:3764 fontsize:XS text: 3764 shift:(-8,5) bar:2001 at:3384 fontsize:XS text: 3384 shift:(-8,5) TextData= fontsize:S pos:(20,20) text:Data from ISTAT

Notable people

Francesco Florimo Francesco Florimo (12 October 1800 – 18 December 1888) was an Italian librarian, musicologist, History of music, historian of music, and composer.Libby, Dennis; Rosselli, John. "Florimo, Francesco" in Sadie 2001. Early life and friendship with ...

(1800-1888), musician, composer and librarian * Fortunato Longo (sculptor). * Francisco Macri (1930-), Italian-Argentine businessman *

(1568-1639), Dominican theologian

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

San Giorgio Morgeto is twinned with: *

Aosta Aosta ( , , ; ; , or ; or ) is the principal city of the Aosta Valley, a bilingual Regions of Italy, region in the Italy, Italian Alps, north-northwest of Turin. It is situated near the Italian entrance of the Mont Blanc Tunnel and the G ...

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 ...

San Luca San Luca is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Reggio Calabria in Italy, located about southwest of Catanzaro and about east of Reggio Calabria. The town is situated on the eastern slopes of the Aspromonte mountains and in the val ...

, Italy

References

{{Authority control Cities and towns in Calabria