In the years of his London exile, Gabriele Rossetti remembered his hometown with these words: Ancient Town Hall of the RomansWhere I first saw the light of day. You, who adorn the beach of the FrentaniWith the Adriatic before you and joyful hills around,And to show the merit of your childrenYou crowned yourself with a…
Gabriele Rossetti was one of the earliest modern commentators on Dante Alighieri. In 1826, he published his Analytical Commentary on the Divine Comedy in London. While his studies are now considered outdated, they were deeply connected to a symbolic and political interpretation of Dante’s work. Upon rereading certain passages, it’s clear how much Rossetti was…
The Rossetti family, likely originating from Guardiagrele in the 17th century, initially settled in the San Pietro district. It was here that the first records of their presence in the city can be found. Nicola Rossetti, a blacksmith by trade, lived and worked in a house and workshop located in the square behind the Santa…
The monument to Gabriele Rossetti is crowned with four medallions, each bearing the likenesses of his children, whom he had during his exile with his wife Francesca Maria Lavinia Polidori, herself the daughter of another Italian exile, Gaetano Polidori, who had previously been the private secretary of Vittorio Alfieri. The inclusion of his children in…
Gabriele Rossetti was already well-known during his lifetime, but only within a small circle of Italian literati who regarded him as a symbol of the anti-papal struggle—particularly against Pope Pius IX. At the time, many saw Pius IX as a potential unifying figure for Italy, making Rossetti’s opposition all the more significant. In 1847, two…
Gabriele Rossetti spent his childhood and youth in Vasto until the age of 21, when, thanks to a recommendation from Count Wenceslaus Mayo—the father of a school friend and administrator of the d’Avalos estate in Vasto—he was welcomed in Naples by Marquis Tommaso d’Avalos, who financed his studies. With the arrival of the French in…
Piazza Rossetti in Vasto is rich in Masonic symbols. The monument to Gabriele Rossetti, long requested by the citizens and subject to numerous attempts to raise funds through public subscriptions, particularly among Vasto’s emigrants in the United States, remained a dream for the local administration until 1924. At that time, an unspecified association proposed to…
The Palazzo del Carmine, as it stands today, was built in 1738 alongside the renovation of the adjacent church. By the mid-17th century, a convent already occupied the site, likely adapted from earlier structures. It became home to the Lucchesi fathers, invited to Vasto by Marquis Diego d’Avalos to establish a college dedicated to educating…
The current Gabriele Rossetti’s House is a 1952 building constructed on the site of Gabriele Rossetti’s birthplace. Initially used as a municipal library, it now serves as a research center and is not open to the public. Its significance lies more in its beautiful location than the historical value of the building itself. However, the…