Piazza Plebiscito is one of the largest squares

Town square

A town square is an open public space commonly found in the heart of a traditional town used for community gatherings. Other names for town square are civic center, city square, urban square, market square, public square, and town green.Most town squares are hardscapes suitable for open markets,...

 in Naples

Naples

Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...

. It is named for the plebiscite taken on October 2 in 1860 that brought Naples into the unified Kingdom of Italy under the House of Savoy

House of Savoy

The House of Savoy was formed in the early 11th century in the historical Savoy region. Through gradual expansion, it grew from ruling a small county in that region to eventually rule the Kingdom of Italy from 1861 until the end of World War II, king of Croatia and King of Armenia...

. Located very closely to the gulf of Naples

Gulf of Naples

The Gulf of Naples is a c. 15 km wide gulf located in the south western coast of Italy, . It opens to the west into the Mediterranean Sea. It is bordered on the north by the cities of Naples and Pozzuoli, on the east by Mount Vesuvius, and on the south by the Sorrentine Peninsula and the main...

, it is bounded on the east by the Royal Palace

Royal Palace (Naples)

The Royal Palace is a palace in Naples, southern Italy. It is one of the four residences used by the Bourbon Kings of Naples during their rule of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies : one is in Caserta, another on the Capodimonte hill overlooking Naples, and the third is in Portici on the slopes of...

 and on the west by the church of San Francesco di Paola

San Francesco di Paola (Naples)

San Francesco di Paola is a church in Naples, southern Italy. It is located at the west side of Piazza del Plebiscito, the city's main square....

 with colonnades extending to both sides.

In the first years of the 19th century, the King of Naples was Murat

Joachim Murat

Joachim-Napoléon Murat , Marshal of France and Grand Admiral or Admiral of France, 1st Prince Murat, was Grand Duke of Berg from 1806 to 1808 and then King of Naples from 1808 to 1815...

 (Napoleon's brother-in-law). He planned the square and building as a tribute to the emperor. When Napoleon was finally dispatched, the Bourbons were restored to the throne of Naples.

Ferdinand I continued the construction but converted the finished product into the church one sees today. He dedicated it to Saint Francis of Paola, who had stayed in a monastery on this site in the 16th century. The church is reminiscent of the Pantheon in Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

. The façade

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"....

 is fronted by a portico resting on six columns and two Ionic

Ionic order

The Ionic order forms one of the three orders or organizational systems of classical architecture, the other two canonic orders being the Doric and the Corinthian...

 pillars. Inside, the church is circular with two side chapels. The dome

Dome

A dome is a structural element of architecture that resembles the hollow upper half of a sphere. Dome structures made of various materials have a long architectural lineage extending into prehistory....

is 53 metres high.

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