Lerici is a small and sweet town which, although dependent on tourism, has a
life of its own making visits off season even more attractive. The Golfo di
Lerici, aka Golfo dei Poeti, can be as romantic as the occasion may require
and one of the traditional restaurants in the little port carrying the same
name 'Golfo dei Poeti' serves you a most famous Spaghetti di Casa said to have been highly appraised by the Queen Paola of Belgium, also of
Italian origin.
Lerici history
Because Lerici's history is lost in the night of time,
we don't know precisely the year of its foundation, but its ancient name "portus
Eliycis" that might derive from the Greek "Iliakos" (of Ilium, Trojan),
inspires us to fantasize that its foundation derives from a group of
refugees of the Trojan war.
And it can't be otherwise because the territory presents numerous analogies
with the Grecian coasts and beautiful places worthy of Venus to whom one of
its bays is dedicated. Lerici was a landing harbor for Grecian and
Phoenician traders, and its history has never had dark moments, if anything
periods still enveloped with fascinating mystery. The same mystery that
enveloped the Etruscan's origin to whom Lerici was particularly bonded for
its vicinity to Luni.
Lerici
Photo Comune Lerici
We know that in the VII B.C. the Gulf was occupied by the Etruscans ranging
from Pisa to Capo Mesco who founded the city of Luni to which Lerici linked
its history for many centuries. Regarding this we propose some lines from
Pantero Pantera, XVII century (maritime captain and author of an unpublished
pilot's book that describes the strip of land around 1620):" Lerici, not
a very big territory surrounded by walls. From this land anciently called
Golfo PortoD'Erice, since it was still called Porto di Luni, from a big city
that was of the same name.".
Because of its
importance as a port, Lerici was conquered by the Romans and used for
military and commercial purposes. Lerici was an important port in the middle
ages, still linked to the dominion of Luni's Bishop: landing there were
wayfarers, pilgrims and merchants that wanted to, through Sarzana's
neuralgic knot, reach Northern Italy and Central Europe.
A ramification of
the Francigena door to our Gulf because pilgrims going to St.Jacopo di
Campostela and Rome departed from Lerici. There were also two Roman or romee
roads departing from Lerici: one corresponding to the actual road that kinks
Lerici to Sarzana, the other, dates back to the layout of the Aemilia Scauri
then Aurelia, linking Tellaro to Lerici through a beautiful route amid olive
groves and Mediterranean scrub that touches numerous sites of historical and
archaeological importance.
Lerici was used by the
Lucchesi for trading leather and cloth, then disputed over by Genoa and Pisa
during the maritime Republic period.
Lerico
Fiascherino - Photo by Comune di Lerici
In 1241, after the
battle of Giglio, Lerici was occupied by the Pisani who built the Castle and the
walled-hamlet. After fifteen years Genoa conquered it again and expanded the
Castle. In 1528 Lerici was theatre to an event that changed Europe's
destiny: it was between the walls of one of his palaces that Andrea Doria
sought refuge and decided to pass from France to Spain, depriving France of
its dominion over the Mediterranean in favor of Spain.
Between the 1600's and
1700's Lerici experienced its greatest urban development thanks to the
presence of a noble ship owner that had his residences in the hamlet and to
whom remain the ancient palaces and villas. In the 1800's glorious pages
were written concerning the palaces and villas, and regarding the history of
the Risorgimento, so much that Garibaldi called its population "the
strongest and most energetic of Italy". Carlo Pisacane gathered in 1857 in
Lerici eight of his faithful companions for a expedition to Sapri, but it
was Giuseppe Petriccioli who impersonated more the Risorgimento's spirit
raising the three-colors together with Felice Orsini and Carlo Pisacane on
the Duomo of Milan after having battled at the barricades during the "Five
Days".
The beaches of Lerici and San Terenzo (the neighboring town) are the first
beaches south of the Cinque Terre. The beaches are few and often
over-crowded in high season, but in June and September you will enjoy the
mild climate the empty beaches the great eating and the quiet life of a
traditional village on the Italian north west coast.
