Nardò

Nardò
Comune
Comune di Nardò
18th century column in Piazza Salandra

Coat of arms

Nardò within the Province of Lecce
Nardò
Location of Nardò in Italy
Coordinates: 40°10′47″N 18°02′00″E / 40.17972°N 18.03333°E / 40.17972; 18.03333
Country Italy
Region Apulia
Province Lecce (LE)
Frazioni Boncore, Cenate, Pagani, Palude del Capitano, Portoselvaggio, Roccacannuccia, Santa Caterina, Sant'Isidoro, Santa Maria al Bagno, Torre Inserraglio, Torre Uluzzo, Villaggio Resta
Government
 • Mayor Giuseppe Mellone
Area
 • Total 190.48 km2 (73.54 sq mi)
Elevation 45 m (148 ft)
Population (30 November 2017)[1]
 • Total 31,442
 • Density 170/km2 (430/sq mi)
Demonym(s) Neretini
Time zone UTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST) UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code 73048
Dialing code 0833
Patron saint St. Gregory the Illuminator
Saint day February 20
Website Official website

Nardò (Latin: Neritum or Neretum; Messapic: Nareton) is a town and comune in the southern Italian region of Apulia, in the province of Lecce.

Geography

Part of Salento, Nardò is located in the north-western area of the province, by the Ionian Sea. The municipality borders with Avetrana (TA), Copertino, Galatina, Galatone, Leverano, Porto Cesareo, Salice Salentino and Veglie.

Details of the façade of the church of San Domenico.

History

Piazza Salandra.

Traces of human presence in the area dates from Palaeolithic times. The settlement was founded by the Messapi around the year 1000 BC. The Romans conquered it in 269 BC and built the Via Traiana through it. After the fall of the Western Empire it was under the Byzantines and the Lombards.

In 1055 the Normans captured Nardò. Their heirs were ousted by the Angevines in 1266. In 1497 the Aragonese gave it to Andrea Matteo Acquaviva, whose son Belisario was the first Duke of Nardò, and promoted the Renaissance in the city.

In 1647 the city rebelled against the Spanish domination, but the viceroyal troops suppressed the riot with heavy terms.

Nardò DOC

The area around Nardò produces red and rose Italian DOC wines. The grapes are limited to a harvest yield of 18 tonnes/ha with the finished needing a minimum alcohol level of 12.5%. The wines are primarily composed of 80-100% Negroamaro with Montepulciano and Malvasia Nera permitted to fill in the remaining 20%.[2]

Main sights

  • The Piazza Salandra is the center of the town.
  • Nardò Cathedral, built around 1000 AD. It has an 18th-century façade, but the interior has maintained the Romanesque-Gothic original appearance.
  • Church of San Domenico (16th-18th centuries). It has a highly decorated façade with Baroque caryatids, columns and vegetable figures.
  • Chiesa del Carmine, with a fine Renaissance portal.
  • Church of San Cosimo (1618)
  • Temple of the Osanna (1603)
  • Nardò Ring in Nardò is used as a test track for driving at high speeds.

People

Sister cities

In film

Nardò is the location of the Tomatina-inspired tomato festival in the 2014 British musical film, Walking on Sunshine.[3]

See also

References

  1. ↑ (in Italian) Source: Istat 2014
  2. ↑ P. Saunders Wine Label Language pg 186 Firefly Books 2004 ISBN 1-55297-720-X
  3. ↑ On location: ‘Walking on Sunshine’, Joanne O’Connor, 27 June 2014, Financial Times
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