Arona, Italy
Encyclopedia
Arona is a town and comune
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:...
on Lake Maggiore
Lake Maggiore
Lake Maggiore is a large lake located on the south side of the Alps. It is the second largest of Italy and largest of southern Switzerland. Lake Maggiore is the most westerly of the three great prealpine lakes of Italy, it extends for about 70 km between Locarno and Arona.The climate is mild...
, in the province of Novara
Province of Novara
Novara is a province in the Piedmont region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Novara.It has an area of 1,339 km², and a total population of 365.156 . There are 88 communes in the province.-External links:*...
(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...
). Its main economic activity is tourism, especially from Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
History
Archaeological findings have shown that the area of what today is Arona was settled from the 18th-13th centuries BC. Later it was a possession of the CeltCelt
The Celts were a diverse group of tribal societies in Iron Age and Roman-era Europe who spoke Celtic languages.The earliest archaeological culture commonly accepted as Celtic, or rather Proto-Celtic, was the central European Hallstatt culture , named for the rich grave finds in Hallstatt, Austria....
s, the Romans
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
and the Lombards
Lombards
The Lombards , also referred to as Longobards, were a Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin, who from 568 to 774 ruled a Kingdom in Italy...
.
In the 11th century the Benedictine abbey of Saints Gratianus and Felinus, Martyrs, was founded.
After the siege and destruction of Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
in 1162 by Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, many of the exiled took refuge in Arona.
Later the city was a possession of the Torriani and (from 1277) 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...
families. In the early 14th century the city became a free commune under the suzerainty of the abbey. In 1439 it was acquired by Vitaliano Borromeo and, as a result, the House of Borromeo
House of Borromeo
The aristocratic Borromeo family, said to date from before the twelfth century, were counts of Arona from the mid-fifteenth century and played important roles in the politics of the Duchy of Milan and in the Catholic Reformation...
.
Main sights
Arona's main attractions include:- Sancarlone. This giant statue of Saint Charles Borromeo was commissioned by Cardinal Federico BorromeoFederico BorromeoFederico Borromeo was an Italian ecclesiastic, cardinal and archbishop of Milan.-Biography:Federico Borromeo was born in Milan as the second son of Giulio Cesare Borromeo, Count of Arona, and Margherita Trivulzio...
, and construction began in 1614, completed in 1698. At 35.10 m it was the largest bronze standing statue in the world, second only to the Statue of LibertyStatue of LibertyThe Statue of Liberty is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, designed by Frédéric Bartholdi and dedicated on October 28, 1886...
. It is said that the architects behind the Statue of Liberty consulted the blueprints of the Sancarlone when laying out their own. The statue was intended as part of a complex of buildings and chapels celebrating the life of St. Charles, of which only three chapels were completed. Next to the statue are the 17th Century basilica and the former Archbishop's Palace. A smaller version of the statue, the Sancarlino, can be seen in Corso Cavour in the town. - La Rocca ("The Castle") is a park owned by the Borromeo family. The park used to contain the castle of Arona, destroyed by the Napoleonic armiesNapoleonic WarsThe 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...
, and was the birthplace of St. Charles Borromeo himself. The park is freely open to the public and is a favourite of many locals; many animals are kept in semi-captivity in various areas of the park. - The Lungolago ("Lakeside") offers a fine view of the castle of AngeraAngeraAngera is a town and comune located in the province of Varese, in the Lombardy region of northern Italy. In Roman times, under the name of Angleria, it was an important lake port and road station. Angera received the title of city by Duke Ludovico il Moro of October 7, 1497. Today its major feature...
and the Alps. Swimming in Lake Maggiore is now possible, after years of pollution. A beach has been refurbished by this group close to Piazza del Popolo in the town center, called Le rocchette ("The little rocks"). - The church of the Collegiata della Natività di Maria Vergine (1482) has paintings of the life of San Carlo Borromeo by Cesare NebbiaCesare NebbiaCesare Nebbia is an Italian painter from Orvieto who painted in a Mannerist style.-Biography:He trained with Girolamo Muziano, and under this master, he helped complete a flurry of decoration that was added to the Cathedral of Orvieto in the 1560s...
.
The frazione of Mercurago is home to Lagoni Park, a protected area including a peat-bog, pastures dedicated to the breeding of thoroughbred horses and a woodland area. There are also some archeological findings from the Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
, including ancient wheel
Wheel
A wheel is a device that allows heavy objects to be moved easily through rotating on an axle through its center, facilitating movement or transportation while supporting a load, or performing labor in machines. Common examples found in transport applications. A wheel, together with an axle,...
s.
Transport
Arona is 25 km north of Milan's Malpensa International Airport, actually closer than Milan itself. It is also connected to the railway network, being one of the main stops in the important link between Milan and SwitzerlandSwitzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
that passes Domodossola
Domodossola
Domodossola is a city and comune in the Province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, in the region of Piedmont, northern Italy...
(another parallel link travels through Como
Como
Como is a city and comune in Lombardy, Italy.It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como....
). Arona is also the last station for two minor rail lines, connecting Arona to Novara
Novara
Novara is the capital city of the province of Novara in the Piedmont region in northwest Italy, to the west of Milan. With c. 105,000 inhabitants, it is the second most populous city in Piedmont after Turin. It is an important crossroads for commercial traffic along the routes from Milan to Turin...
and Santhià
Santhià
Santhià is a comune in the province of Vercelli in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 50 km northeast of Turin and about 20 km northwest of Vercelli....
; the latter uses single-car diesel
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
trains.
Due to the town's size there is no public transport, but some bus companies connect the city to its frazioni of Dagnente, Campagna, Mercurago and Montrigiasco, and to neighbouring municipalities.
Arona is near a confluence of motorways, and from there one can head for Milan, Genoa, and Gravellona Toce
Gravellona Toce
Gravellona Toce is a comune in the Province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 110 km northeast of Turin and about 8 km west of Verbania.-Main sights:*Gallo-Roman necropolis...
(where the motorway becomes a simple highway to Domodossola
Domodossola
Domodossola is a city and comune in the Province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, in the region of Piedmont, northern Italy...
and continues into Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
). Whereas there is a motorway exit named after Arona, the exit at Castelletto Ticino
Castelletto sopra Ticino
Castelletto sopra Ticino, also referred to by locals as Castelletto Ticino or just Castelletto, is a comune in the Province of Novara in the Italian region of Piedmont, located about 100 km northeast of Turin and about 30 km north of Novara.It is the birthplace of immunologist Serafino...
is usually more convenient for the traveller coming from the direction of Milan.
The headquarters of the Navigazione del Lago Maggiore (Lake Maggiore's ship transport company) are located in Arona, along with their shipyard
Shipyard
Shipyards and dockyards are places which repair and build ships. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance and basing activities than shipyards, which are sometimes associated more with initial...
. Arona is the southernmost port
Port
A port is a location on a coast or shore containing one or more harbors where ships can dock and transfer people or cargo to or from land....
on Lake Maggiore, and transport by boat
Boat
A boat is a watercraft of any size designed to float or plane, to provide passage across water. Usually this water will be inland or in protected coastal areas. However, boats such as the whaleboat were designed to be operated from a ship in an offshore environment. In naval terms, a boat is a...
or hydrofoil
Hydrofoil
A hydrofoil is a foil which operates in water. They are similar in appearance and purpose to airfoils.Hydrofoils can be artificial, such as the rudder or keel on a boat, the diving planes on a submarine, a surfboard fin, or occur naturally, as with fish fins, the flippers of aquatic mammals, the...
is available to both sides of the lake up to the Swiss city of Locarno
Locarno
Locarno is the capital of the Locarno district, located on the northern tip of Lake Maggiore in the Swiss canton of Ticino, close to Ascona at the foot of the Alps. It has a population of about 15,000...
.
External links
- Official website
- Arona.net, a private portal
- AronanelWeb, history and events of the city
- Discover Arona, Local information