Palmanova
Encyclopedia
Palmanova is a town and comune
in northeastern
Italy
, close to the border with Slovenia
. It is located 20 km from Udine
, 28 km from Gorizia
and 55 km from Trieste
near the junction of the Autostrada Alpe-Adria (A23) and the Autostrada Venezia-Trieste (A4).
Palmanova is famous for its fortress plan and structure, called a star fort
, imitated in the Modern era by numerous military architects.
founded a revolutionary new kind of settlement: Palmanova. The city’s founding date commemorated the victory of European forces (supplied primarily by the Venetian republic) over Ottoman Turks
in the Battle of Lepanto
. October 7 also celebrated Saint Justina
, chosen as the city’s patron saint. Using all the latest military innovations of the 16th century, this tiny town was a fortress in the shape of a nine-pointed star, designed by Vincenzo Scamozzi
. In between the points of the star, ramparts protruded so that the points could defend each other. A moat surrounded the town, and three large, guarded gates allowed entry.
Marcantonio Barbaro
headed a group of Venetian noblemen in charge of building the town, Marcantonio Martinego was in charge of construction, and Guilio Savorgnan acted as an adviser. The outer line of fortifications was completed under the Napoleonic
domination. From 1815 to 1866 the city was under Austria
, and was annexed 50 years later to Italy together with Veneto and the western Friuli
. In 1960 Palmanova was declared a national monument.
American professor Edward Wallace Muir Jr.
said on Palmanova: "The humanist theorists of the ideal city designed numerous planned cities that look intriguing on paper but were not especially successful as livable spaces. Along the northeastern frontier of their mainland empire, the Venetians began to build in 1593 the best example of a Renaissance planned town: Palmanova, a fortress city designed to defend against attacks from the Ottomans in Bosnia. Built ex nihilo according to humanist and military specifications, Palmanova was supposed to be inhabited by self-sustaining merchants, craftsmen, and farmers. However, despite the pristine conditions and elegant layout of the new city, no one chose to move there, and by 1622 Venice was forced to pardon criminals and offer them free building lots and materials if they would agree to settle the town. Thus began the forced settlement of this magnificent planned space, which remains lifeless to this day and is visited only by curious scholars of Renaissance cities and bored soldiers who are still posted there to guard the Italian frontier."
). Commissioned in 1603, the construction started later that year under Inspector Girolamo Cappello
, and was completed in 1636. Who the architects were is uncertain, but may have been Vincenzo Scamozzi
and Baldassare Longhena. The cathedral was not consecrated until 1777, after the town had been included into the Archbishopric of Udine
.
The bell tower
of the cathedral, erected in 1776, was deliberately made short because enemies attacking the city should not be able to see the cathedral from outside the city walls.
The niches in the facade
contain statues representing the saints Justina of Padua
, one of Padua
's patron saints, and Mark, as well as a statue of Christ
, the Redeemer
. The facade itself is made of stone from Istria
, and was restored in 2000.
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:...
in northeastern
Triveneto
The name Tre Venezie was created in 1863 by historical linguist Graziadio Isaia Ascoli . The area included what would become by 1866-1919 the three Italian regions of Venezia Euganea, Venezia Giulia and Venezia Tridentina...
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...
, close to the border with Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
. It is located 20 km from Udine
Udine
Udine is a city and comune in northeastern Italy, in the middle of Friuli-Venezia Giulia region, between the Adriatic sea and the Alps , less than 40 km from the Slovenian border. Its population was 99,439 in 2009, and that of its urban area was 175,000.- History :Udine is the historical...
, 28 km from Gorizia
Gorizia
Gorizia is a town and comune in northeastern Italy, in the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia. It is located at the foot of the Julian Alps, bordering Slovenia. It is the capital of the Province of Gorizia, and it is a local center of tourism, industry, and commerce. Since 1947, a twin...
and 55 km from Trieste
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
near the junction of the Autostrada Alpe-Adria (A23) and the Autostrada Venezia-Trieste (A4).
Palmanova is famous for its fortress plan and structure, called a star fort
Star fort
A star fort, or trace italienne, is a fortification in the style that evolved during the age of gunpowder, when cannon came to dominate the battlefield, and was first seen in the mid-15th century in Italy....
, imitated in the Modern era by numerous military architects.
History
On October 7, 1593, the superintendent of the Republic of VeniceRepublic of Venice
The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
founded a revolutionary new kind of settlement: Palmanova. The city’s founding date commemorated the victory of European forces (supplied primarily by the Venetian republic) over Ottoman Turks
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
in the Battle of Lepanto
Battle of Lepanto (1571)
The Battle of Lepanto took place on 7 October 1571 when a fleet of the Holy League, a coalition of Catholic maritime states, decisively defeated the main fleet of the Ottoman Empire in five hours of fighting on the northern edge of the Gulf of Patras, off western Greece...
. October 7 also celebrated Saint Justina
Justina of Padua
Saint Justina of Padua is a Christian saint who was said to have been martyred in 304 AD. Justina was said to have been a young woman who took private vows of chastity and was killed during the persecutions of Diocletian. She is a patron saint of Padua.Medieval histories described her as a...
, chosen as the city’s patron saint. Using all the latest military innovations of the 16th century, this tiny town was a fortress in the shape of a nine-pointed star, designed by Vincenzo Scamozzi
Vincenzo Scamozzi
thumb|250px|Portrait of Vincenzo Scamozzi by [[Paolo Veronese]]Vincenzo Scamozzi was a Venetian architect and a writer on architecture, active mainly in Vicenza and Republic of Venice area in the second half of the 16th century...
. In between the points of the star, ramparts protruded so that the points could defend each other. A moat surrounded the town, and three large, guarded gates allowed entry.
Marcantonio Barbaro
Marcantonio Barbaro
Marcantonio Barbaro was an Italian diplomat of the Republic of Venice.-Family:He was born in Venice into the aristocratic Barbaro family...
headed a group of Venetian noblemen in charge of building the town, Marcantonio Martinego was in charge of construction, and Guilio Savorgnan acted as an adviser. The outer line of fortifications was completed under the Napoleonic
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
domination. From 1815 to 1866 the city was under Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, and was annexed 50 years later to Italy together with Veneto and the western Friuli
Friuli
Friuli is an area of northeastern Italy with its own particular cultural and historical identity. It comprises the major part of the autonomous region Friuli-Venezia Giulia, i.e. the province of Udine, Pordenone, Gorizia, excluding Trieste...
. In 1960 Palmanova was declared a national monument.
American professor Edward Wallace Muir Jr.
Edward Wallace Muir Jr.
Edward Wallace Muir Jr. is a Professor of History and Italian at Northwestern University. He is also Clarence L. Ver Steeg Professor in the Arts and Sciences and Charles Deering McCormick Professor of Teaching Excellence. Known for his use of anthropological methods in historical research, he was...
said on Palmanova: "The humanist theorists of the ideal city designed numerous planned cities that look intriguing on paper but were not especially successful as livable spaces. Along the northeastern frontier of their mainland empire, the Venetians began to build in 1593 the best example of a Renaissance planned town: Palmanova, a fortress city designed to defend against attacks from the Ottomans in Bosnia. Built ex nihilo according to humanist and military specifications, Palmanova was supposed to be inhabited by self-sustaining merchants, craftsmen, and farmers. However, despite the pristine conditions and elegant layout of the new city, no one chose to move there, and by 1622 Venice was forced to pardon criminals and offer them free building lots and materials if they would agree to settle the town. Thus began the forced settlement of this magnificent planned space, which remains lifeless to this day and is visited only by curious scholars of Renaissance cities and bored soldiers who are still posted there to guard the Italian frontier."
The cathedral
The cathedral is located in front of the town hall of Palmanova (formerly the Palace of ProvveditoreProvveditore
The Italian title provveditore or proveditore , "he who sees to things", was the style of various local district governors in the extensive, mainly maritime empire of the Venetian dogal republic...
). Commissioned in 1603, the construction started later that year under Inspector Girolamo Cappello
Girolamo Cappello
Girolamo Cappello was a Venetian ambassador and Bailo.Cappello's first appointment as a Venetian ambassador came in 1567 when he was appointed Ambassador to Austria. From 1570-1573 Ambassador to Savoy, then for a short time Ambassador to Poland. From 1576-1579 he was Ambassador to France...
, and was completed in 1636. Who the architects were is uncertain, but may have been Vincenzo Scamozzi
Vincenzo Scamozzi
thumb|250px|Portrait of Vincenzo Scamozzi by [[Paolo Veronese]]Vincenzo Scamozzi was a Venetian architect and a writer on architecture, active mainly in Vicenza and Republic of Venice area in the second half of the 16th century...
and Baldassare Longhena. The cathedral was not consecrated until 1777, after the town had been included into the Archbishopric of Udine
Archbishop of Udine
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Udine, is an Archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic church in Italy. The see was established in 1752 when the Patriarchal see of Aquileia was divided...
.
The bell tower
Bell tower
A bell tower is a tower which contains one or more bells, or which is designed to hold bells, even if it has none. In the European tradition, such a tower most commonly serves as part of a church and contains church bells. When attached to a city hall or other civic building, especially in...
of the cathedral, erected in 1776, was deliberately made short because enemies attacking the city should not be able to see the cathedral from outside the city walls.
The niches in the facade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
contain statues representing the saints Justina of Padua
Justina of Padua
Saint Justina of Padua is a Christian saint who was said to have been martyred in 304 AD. Justina was said to have been a young woman who took private vows of chastity and was killed during the persecutions of Diocletian. She is a patron saint of Padua.Medieval histories described her as a...
, one of Padua
Padua
Padua is a city and comune in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic and communications hub of the area. Padua's population is 212,500 . The city is sometimes included, with Venice and Treviso, in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area, having...
's patron saints, and Mark, as well as a statue of Christ
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
, the Redeemer
Redeemer
- Religion :*Redeemer , referring to Jesus Christ*Mahdi, described in Islam as "the Redeemer "*Redeemer Presbyterian Church - Other organisations :*Redeemer Lutheran College, school in Queensland, Australia...
. The facade itself is made of stone from Istria
Istria
Istria , formerly Histria , is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner...
, and was restored in 2000.
Other
- The three monumental gates Porta Udine, Porta Cividale and Porta Aquileia.
- The Piazza Grande, to which all the main edifices of the city open, built in IstriaIstriaIstria , formerly Histria , is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner...
n stone. - The singer Sting gave an outdoor concert in Palmanova's main piazza on July 5, 2001