Castel Sant'Elmo (Naples)
The Castel Sant'Elmo is a fortress in Naples , Italy . Right next to it is the Certosa di San Martino monastery . These two buildings are located above the city on the Vomero and are therefore a landmark of the city that can be seen from afar. The name "Sant'Elmo" comes from a church from the 10th century, Sant'Erasmo, whose name was shortened to "Ermo" and later "Elmo".
history
Construction of the fortress began in 1329 during the reign of Robert of Anjou and was completed in the year of his death in 1343. Pedro Álvarez de Toledo , the Spanish viceroy of Naples, had the fortress rebuilt between 1537 and 1547. The expansion of the fortress was completed under the architetto regio Gian Giacomo dell'Acaja . The fortress was laid out in a star shape with six walls. During the revolution of 1647, the Masaniello uprising, the Spanish viceroy found refuge from the revolutionaries in the fortress. Sant'Elmo was also a symbol of the short-lived Neapolitan Republic of 1799.
The fortress was used as a military prison from 1860 to 1952 and remained in military possession until 1979. After several years of renovation work, Castel Sant'Elmo has been open to the public since 1982.
Today the fortress is home to various cultural and scientific institutions, including the Art History Library (Biblioteca di Storia dell'Arte).
Panorama fortress and museum
literature
- Christoph Höcker: The Vomero and its slopes. In Ders .: Gulf of Naples and Campania. Three thousand years of art and culture in the heart of southern Italy. 2nd updated edition, DuMont, Munich 2000, ISBN 3-7701-3990-9 , p. 110ff.
Web links
Coordinates: 40 ° 50 ′ 37.73 " N , 14 ° 14 ′ 20.42" E