Today I am going to talk to you about the history of Noto. A city in southeast Sicily, near Syracuse and at the foot of the Iblean Mountains.
It is part of the wider Val di Noto which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Local legend claims Daedalus stayed in Noto after his tragic flight with Icarus
It also claims Hercules also stayed here. Noto’s fate downfall and subsequent recovery
was due to a natural disasters and also a successful Italian TV series
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Noto Antica, dated back to the Bronze age. It was an original Sicel settlement on Mount
Alveria, and apparently called Neas. It was the birthplace
of the Sicilian leader Ducezio, who defended Sicily from Greek raids in the 5th century BC
It is said he caused the relocation from the Noto Antica site to the modern location
the Grotta del Carciofo, near Noto Antica is evidence of a sizeable and permanent Jewish population
The fortunes of Noto have always always been heavily influenced by the watchful gaze of nearby Syracuse
Nicias was an Athenian Greek general who very reluctantly accepted a posting as general of the Athenian invasion
of Sicily in 415BC. The Athenian siege of nearby Syracuse was beaten back by the Spartan general Gylippus.
The Greek forces fell back and Nicias was cornered, on the coastal plain near Noto. His army made its last stand and
was cut down or taken as slaves. While Nicias was spared by Glippus, Nicias was assassinated
soon after.
In 263 BCE the Romans granted their ally Netum (Roman name for Noto) to Hiero II, the tyrant
of Syracuse. Now this was during the era of Archimedes and the First Punic War (between Rome and Carthage.)
Netum defied the notoriously corrupt magistrate Gaius Verres, who was later prosecuted by Cicero
in a famous trial.
Around 550 AD Sicily was invaded by the Byzantine armies of Emperor Justinian
In 866 the Muslim invasion of Sicily, Noto Antica
was renamed to Notus or Nutus and appointed the capital of Val di Noto.
Ras Khafaja ben Sufyan, immediately fortified Noto which soon became
a hub for trade (including silk manufacture) and agriculture.
The famous geographer Muhammad al Idrisi - "Nutus one of the strongest and most elevated fortresses and one of the most beautiful cities
Vast in area, rich in entrances, and very important. With its markets arranged in beautiful order and with its towering buildings
The rivers of its territory carry copious waters and move many mills. Its jurisdiction covers a vast perimeter, its province is noble, its field to be sown are fertile above all others and his lands more productive above all others"
Noto fell to a Norman army led by Roger of Hauteville
In 1282 Noto rose up against Angevin rule, as part of the wider Sicilian Vespers insurrection.
Castello Reale was built by Duke Giordano in 1430 and was further expanded by Duke Peter of Aragon
The town of Noto was in its golden age and at this point it was devastated
in 1693 by an earthquake. Half of the population died and a new town was
now built near River Asinaro. As a result,
the Duke of Camastra, reporting to the Spanish Viceroy, ordered the centre of new Noto was to be
built in a Sicilian baroque architectural style
Architects Rosario Gagliardi, Francesco Sortino contributed to the designs. A number
of buildings were made using the same material, (tufa) limestone which unusually emits a golden
glow under certain conditions of sunlight.
In 1848 Noto joined the failed Sicilian independence uprising
against the Bourbons. One of the key activists, Matteo Raeli, he was exiled to Malta. Raeli subsequently
became a member of the Italian government in 1861
Noto rebelled against the House of Bourbon in 1860. Indeed it opened its gates to its liberators, led by Giuseppe Garibaldi
Noto was liberated again from the fascist dictatorship of Benito Mussolini in 1943
Noto went into decline after WW2 and waves
of immigration headed for northern Italy, Germany, France, Belgium, Argentina, the USA
and Canada. Part of Noto cathedral, collapsed in 1996
due to a construction defect.
The movie L'Avventura (1960)
directed by Michelangelo Antonioni was shot in Noto.
Did you know Cyrano (2022) starring Peter Dinklage, Haley Bennett was filmed with Noto
Cathedral as a backdrop? The Italian TV series Inspector Montalbano
occasionally uses Noto as a backdrop during filming.
The movie Malèna by Giuseppe Tornatore,
starring Monica Belluci was also part filed in Noto. Noto celebrates the annual Infiorata flower
festival. Via Nicolaci is decorated by florists from across the world. Noto also hosts medieval
festivals as well as festivals of Baroque music. A lot of the land in this area focuses on agricultural production, producing grapes
including Nero d'Avola, Moscato Bianco, olives, almonds and citrus fruits as well as tending
livestock. What to do in Noto, when you don't have a week to see everything? Well, grab a camera (or smartphone), a bottle of
water, put on some sensible shoes and lets go marvel at Noto!
I would start at Porta Reale, these are the city gates. On your way there you can look at the various stalls
Walk around the city centre (which is Corso Vittorio Emanuele III)
You must see St. Nicholas Cathedral
Palazzo Nicolaci is a Baroque 18th century Palace.
Chiesa di San Francesco d'Assisi all'Immacolata, if nothing else for its dramatic staircase.
Palazzo Ducezio is the current town hall
Chiesa Santa Chiara
has an outside terrace with good views of Noto
Chiesa San Domenico stands behind Fontana d'Ercole (Fountain of Hercules)
Villa Romana del Tellaro is a late Roman era villa
There is a stone column (Colonna Pizzuta)
it is some form of funeral monument. If you are getting fed up of architecture, go see the wildlife at Vendicari nature reserve
(Riserva di Vendicari .) If that is not enough for you, go to the beach - you are spoilt for choice(!) Lido di Noto, Spiaggia Marineddi,
and Spiaggia Calamosche