Gallarate
Encyclopedia
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
of Lombardy
Lombardy
Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...
, northern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, in the Province of Varese
Province of Varese
The Province of Varese is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Varese but its largest city is Busto Arsizio....
. It has a population of some 51,700.
It is the junction of railways to Varese
Varese
Varese is a town and comune in north-western Lombardy, northern Italy, 55 km north of Milan.It is the capital of the Province of Varese. The hinterland or urban part of the city is called Varesotto.- Geography :...
, Laveno and Arona
Arona
-Places:Italy*Arona, Piedmont, a town in the Province of NovaraSpain*Arona, Tenerife, a municipality in the Canary IslandsUnited States*Arona, Pennsylvania-Persons:*Danilo Arona, Italian writer* Ricardo Arona, Brazilian mixed martial artist...
(for the Simplon). Some 10 kilometers to the west are the electric works of Vizzola, where 23,000 hp are derived from the river Ticino. Its territory is crossed by the river Arnetta, and belongs to the Ticino River National Park.
The city in the first part of 19th century had a strong textile industry.
History
Founded by the GaulGaul
Gaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era, encompassing present day France, Luxembourg and Belgium, most of Switzerland, the western part of Northern Italy, as well as the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the left bank of the Rhine. The Gauls were the speakers of...
s and later conquered by the Romans, Gallarate was mentioned as an important vicus or village in documents dating back to the Roman conquest of what was then called Gallia Cisalpina. During the Frankish hegemony, a castle was erected upon the remains of the original Roman fortifications located beside the still existing Basilica of Santa Maria. The castle does not exist anymore, but its ancient location is identified through the city’s topography and by the street name Via Postcastello.
After the obliteration of Castelseprio
Castelseprio
Castelseprio was the site of a Roman fort in antiquity, and a significant Lombard town in the early Middle Ages, before being destroyed and abandoned in 1287. It is today preserved as an archaeological park in the modern comune of Castelseprio, near the modern village of the same name...
by Ottone Visconti in 1287, Gallarate became the capital of the Seprio, a vast and important county at the time. During these years, Gallarate saw a period of prosperity and economic growth that would last for the entire reign of the Visconti
House of Visconti
Visconti is the family name of two important Italian noble dynasties of the Middle Ages. There are two distinct Visconti families: The first one in the Republic of Pisa in the mid twelfth century who achieved prominence first in Pisa, then in Sardinia where they became rulers of Gallura...
’s control, which continued until the beginning of French rule two centuries later (1450). Documents in the National Archives refer to Gallarate as an important centre of commercial exchange between both Italian and foreign markets, particularly for cotton, drapes, flax and textiles. Distinguished families such as the Rosnati, Reina, Masera, Palazzi, Macchi, Curioni, Mari and the Guenzati represented the nobility and the merchant classes. This period was also noted as a time of great civic improvement and the beginning of Gallarate as a center of industrial activity.
Because of the struggle between the Visconti and Torriani families, which culminated at Battle of Desio
Battle of Desio
The Battle of Desio was fought on 21 January 1277 between the Della Torre and Visconti families for the control of Milan and its countryside. The battlefield was located near the modern Desio, a commune outside the city in Lombardy, northern Italy....
and the ultimate victory of Visconti’s family, Gallarate lost its independence. At this time, however, the city fell under foreign domination, initially under the Spanish and then under the French (and then again Spanish and their Austrian successors), through the 16th and 18th centuries. In between this political instability, Gallarate became a private fief of some of the competing nobles and powerful Italian families such as the Bentivoglio, Pallavicino, Caracciolo, Altemps, Visconti, Castelbarco.
Gallarate became a part of the Kingdom of Italy in 1859, and received the honorary title of city with a royal decree on December 19, 1860.
By the latter half of the 19th century modern industry had begun to take over many areas of Italy. In a few decades, Gallarate became an important industrial city. This period was also marked by heavy social tensions brought about by the rapid political and economic changes wrought by Gallarate’s own industrial revolution. Nowadays, Gallarate’s industrial structure no longer includes these giant industrial powerhouses of the past. Their existence, however, is still marked out by the presence of the high chimneys, which are still visible along Gallarate’s skyline. Many of the old Liberty-style buildings, where thousands of Gallaratesi worked during the past century-and-a-half, have been turned into new modern multi-level shopping centers and plazas.
Main sights
- Romanesque church of St. Peter. It was built in the 11-th-13th centuries, including some Gothic elements. The interior has a nave without aisles. The façade, the apse and the sides are characterized by arcades supported by small columns forming a fake loggiaLoggiaLoggia is the name given to an architectural feature, originally of Minoan design. They are often a gallery or corridor at ground level, sometimes higher, on the facade of a building and open to the air on one side, where it is supported by columns or pierced openings in the wall...
. It was declared national munument in 1844 - Baroque church of Sant'Antonio Abate
- Sanctuary of Madonna di Campagna, dating to the early 17th century.
- Church of San Zenone (18th century)
- Church of San Rocco (16th century)
Education
The Sistema Bibliotecario Consortile Antonio PanizziSistema Bibliotecario Consortile Antonio Panizzi
The Sistema Bibliotecario Consortile Antonio Panizzi is a public library system in the Province of Varese, Italy. The system headquarters are in Gallarate...
has its main offices in Gallarate. The system operates the Biblioteca Civica " Luigi Majno " in Gallarate.
Transport
Gallarate railway stationGallarate railway station
Gallarate railway station serves the city and comune of Gallarate, in the region of Lombardy, northern Italy. Opened in 1860, it forms part of the Milan–Domodossola railway, and is a terminus of two secondary railways, linking Gallarate with Varese and Laveno, respectively.The station is...
, opened in 1860, forms part of the Milan–Domodossola railway, and is a terminus of two secondary railways, linking Gallarate with Varese and Laveno, respectively.