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Scarlino
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Scarlino
Piazza Garibaldi and Palazzo Aldobrandeschi
Piazza Garibaldi, an irregular quadrilateral carved out of the hillside thanks to an ancient terracing system, was the square where popular assemblies were held and where festive days were spent.
Piazza Garibaldi and Palazzo Aldobrandeschi
Piazza Garibaldi, an irregular quadrilateral carved out of the hillside thanks to an ancient terracing system, was the square where popular assemblies were held and where festive days were spent.
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The street that crosses the square is Via dei Citerni, formerly Via Appiani, but known to the people of Scarlino as Via di Mezzo. In fact, this road, which cuts the village in two, marks the boundary between two worlds: the coastal and the inland, each with its own seasons and climates.
The Garibaldi Monument
“Garibaldi’s spectacular retreat from Rome was a fitting finale to the Italian tragedy of 1849. It seems he left the city with the genuine hope of still being able to fight a good war. Once that illusion collapsed, he sought to keep alive a last revolutionary stronghold in the marshes and mountains of central Italy […] He took refuge from house to house, moved through ponds and swamps, sometimes even eating in the same tavern as the soldiers who were hunting him. Many humble but courageous citizens, moved by admiration and sympathy, aided his escape. He had no money, yet he never went hungry and was never betrayed. Finally, on 2 September, he found salvation aboard a ship off the Tuscan coast.”
(Denis Mack Smith, Garibaldi: A Great Life in Brief)
After fleeing besieged Rome and losing his wife Anita, on 2 September 1849 Giuseppe Garibaldi stayed near Scarlino. His plan was to embark from Cala Martina towards Liguria, in order to avoid being handed over to the Austrians.
He was accompanied only by the patriot Giovanni Battista Culiolo and four citizens of Scarlino: Leopoldo Carmagnini, Oreste Fontani, Giuseppe Ornani, and Olivo Pina. The architect of Garibaldi’s escape through the Maremma was Angiolo Guelfi, a wealthy landowner and staunch republican.
In honour of his deeds, half a century later, in 1900, this square saw the erection of a monument to the hero of the Risorgimento. It was commissioned from the workshop of the Pasquali brothers of Scarlino and inaugurated by Ettore Socci, the first Maremman deputy in the history of Italy.
The Aldobrandeschi Palace
The Count’s palace closes Piazza Garibaldi with its massive bulk, its 14th-century arches still visible on the façade facing Via dei Citerni.
The earliest trace of this imposing building dates back to the 13th century, when it belonged to Ildebrandino XI Aldobrandeschi, known as the “Red Count”, who sold it to Pisa in 1277.
In 1399, the palace passed to the Appiani family, who used it as a private residence. Over the centuries, the building underwent several restorations and today it houses shops, private residences, and the offices of a bank.
Piazza Garibaldi
