Naples was cool in a lot of ways, but it is fighting a losing battle. In the early ages, Naples was its own kingdom. Centered around trade, and located in the heart of Italy, Naples was really rich. It was a kind of capital city for early Italy. But then, when Italy was united, the title of capital, the trade, the nobles, and the king, all moved to Rome. At that moment, Naples started its decline.
Let’s go back to the start of Naples. This is the time of the Greeks. Naples dates back to roughly 1250 B.C., when the Greeks first settled the land and built a port for trading with nearby Greek cities such as Rhodes. They named their settlement Neapolis. Soon after the settlement’s founding, Neopolis was conquered by the Samnites, and a century later, by the Romans. Soon thereafter, Vesuvius, the big volcano that destroyed Pompeii, erupted. That eruption destroyed many other cities near Naples.
Fast forward a couple of centuries. In about 0 A.D., the Catholic Diocece of Naples was established, about the time when the Catholic religion was sweeping the Roman empire. After that, the final Roman emperor died in Naples. His (weird) name was Romulus Agustulus. After this, Naples was conquered yet again by the Byzantines and the Goths, rebelled against the Goths, and established the independent duchy of Naples.
Then, about 500 A.D., the dark ages began. And (of course) Naples was conquered yet again by the Swabians. Then here come the Spanish and their viceroy, Charles of Anjou. Shortly after the latest conquerors and the Spanish, opera was invented in Naples. And I was right outside the room where it happened!
After all of this Spanish nonsense, the Bourbons took over led by Charles of Bourbon. Quickly, though, in the early 1800s, Napoleon took Naples for the French and gifted it to his brother Joseph. Then, Naples became the capital of the kingdom of the two Sicilys. But that does not last long. The last king of the two Sicilys, Francesco the second, died only fifty years after Naples became the capital.
Then, as we get into the 1900s, 2000s, Naples’s trash collector system was taken over by the mafia, who took a bunch of toxic trash and dumped it into three of the cities surrounding Naples: Acerra, Marigliano, and Nola. These three cities are now known as the triangle of death.
As for the Engstroms visit to Naples, it was fairly short, as we only saw it through a one hour city walk. We did get to see some pretty cool things though. Including a huge cathedral, the mall, the market on Spaccanapoli street, and a couple of other odds and ends. We had a lot of fun in Naples.
So yeah. Naples is no great shakes right now, but it has a lot of history. And it is fun to learn about. I know Pompeii is really amazing, but Naples is pretty cool too. Whatever European age you like best, whether it’s the Romans, Greeks, French, Spanish, or the dark ages, Naples was part of it.
Fanatical Sabbatical 