Territory

The territory of Brindisi is characterised by a wide flat area from which emerge sub deposits of limestone and sand of marine origin, which in turn have a deeper level clay of the Pleistocene era, and an even later Mesozoic carbonate composed of limestone and soils. The development of agriculture, has caused an increase in the use of water resources resulting in an increase of indiscriminate use.^[5]

Climate

Brindisi experiences a Mediterranean climate (Köppen: Csa). Summers are hot and dry with abundant sunshine. Summer heat indexes can be regularly over 30 °C (86 °F) and occasionally as high as 37 °C (99 °F) during July and August. Winters are mild with moderate rainfall. Brindisi and the mostly topographically flat Salento peninsula is subject to light winds during the majority of the year. The two main winds in Salento are the Maestral and the Scirocco. The northerly Maestral wind from the Adriatic sea is cooling, moderating summer heat and increasing winter wind chill. The southerly Scirocco wind from the Sahara, brings higher temperatures and humidity to Salento. During spring and autumn, Sirocco winds can bring thunderstorms, occasionally dropping red sand from the Sahara in the region. Snow is rare in Brindisi but occurred during the January 2017 cold spell which brought snow and ice to much of southern Italy.

Ancient times

16th century map of Brindisi by Piri Reis

There are several traditions concerning its founders; one of them claims that it was founded by the legendary hero Diomedes. The geographer Strabo says that it was colonized from Knossos in Crete.^[8]

Brindisi was originally a Messapian settlement predating the Roman expansion. The Latin name Brundisium, through the Greek Brentesion, is a corruption of the Messapian Brention meaning "deer's head" and probably referring to the shape of the natural harbour. In 267 BC (245 BC, according to other sources) it was conquered by the Romans and became a Latin colony.^[9] In the promontory of the Punta lands, which is located in the outer harbor have been identified as a Bronze Age village (16th century BC) where a group of huts, protected by an embankment of stones, yielded fragments of Mycenaean pottery. Herodotus spoke of the Mycenaean origin for these populations. The necropolis of Tor Pisana (south of the old town of Brindisi) returned Corinthian jars in the first half of the 7th century BC. The Brindisi Messapia certainly entertained strong business relationships with the opposite side of the Adriatic and the Greek populations of the Aegean Sea.

After the Punic Wars it became a major center of Roman naval power and maritime trade. In the Social War it received Roman citizenship, and was made a free port by Sulla. It suffered, however, from a siege conducted by Caesar in 49 BC, part of Caesar's Civil War (Bell. Civ. i.) and was again attacked in 42 and 40 BC, with the latter giving rise to the Treaty of Brundisium between Octavian, Mark Antony and Lepidus in the autumn of the same year.

The poet Pacuvius was born here about 220 BC, and here the famous poet Virgil died in 19 BC. Under the Romans, Brundisium – a large city in its day with some 100,000 inhabitants – was an active port, the chief point of embarkation for Greece and the East, via Dyrrachium or Corcyra. It was connected with Rome by the Via Appia and the Via Traiana. The termination of the Via Appia, at the water's edge, was formerly flanked by two fine pillars. Only one remains, the second having been misappropriated and removed to the neighbouring town of Lecce.

Middle Ages and modern times

Church of S. Giovanni al Sepolcro.

Later Brindisi was conquered by Ostrogoths, and reconquered by the Byzantine Empire in the 6th century AD. In 674 it was destroyed by the Lombards led by Romuald I of Benevento, but such a fine natural harbor meant that the city was soon rebuilt. In the 9th century, a Saracen settlement existed in the neighborhood of the city, which had been stormed in 836 by pirates.

In 1070, it was conquered by the Normans and became part of the Principality of Taranto and the Duchy of Apulia, and was the first rule of the Counts of Conversano. After the baronial revolt of 1132, owned by the will of Roger II of Sicily, the city recovered some of the splendor of the past during the period of the Crusades, when it regained the Episcopal See, saw the construction of the new cathedral and a castle with an important new arsenal, and became a privileged port for the Holy Land. In 1156 a siege of Brindisi by the Byzantine Empire ended in a battle in which the believers were decisively defeated by the Sicilian Normans, ending the Byzantines' hopes of conquering Southern Italy.

It was in the cathedral of Brindisi that the wedding of Norman Prince Roger III of Sicily took place, son of King Tancred of Sicily. Emperor Frederick II, the heir to the crown of Jerusalem and Isabella of Brienne ( 9 November 1225 )^[10] started from the port of Brindisi in 1227 for the Sixth Crusade^[11] Frederick II erected a castle, with huge round towers, to guard the inner harbour; it later became a convict prison.^[12] Like other Pugliese ports, Brindisi for a short while was ruled by Venice, but was soon reconquered by Spain.

A plague devastated Brindisi in 1348; it was plundered in 1352 and 1383; and an earthquake struck the city in 1456.^[12]

Brindisi fell to Austrian rule in 1707–1734, and afterwards to the Bourbons.

Between September 1943 and February 1944 the city functioned as the temporary government seat of Italy, and hosted King Victor Emmanuel III, Pietro Badoglio and a part of the Italian armed forces command in September 1943 after the armistice with Italy.

In the 21st century, Brindisi serves as the home base of the San Marco Regiment, a marine brigade originally known as the La Marina Regiment. It was renamed San Marco after its noted defense of Venice at the start of World War I.^[13]

On 19 May 2012, a bomb, made of three gas cylinders, detonated in front of a vocational school in Brindisi, killing a 16-year-old female student.^[14][15]

Heraldry

The emblem of the city of Brindisi relates to certain unique characteristics of the ancient city of Brindisi, some of them still visible today. The head of deer derives from the Messapic name of the city Brention, a name inspired by the shape of the port city, which is reminiscent of the antlers of a stag. This shape is still clearly visible in satellite photos, which show the two racks, to the east and west, into which the port is divided. The emblem also contains the so-called "terminal pillar" of the Appian Way.

Natural areas

Within the territory of the town of Brindisi environmental protected areas are located, some newly established:

• The Regional Natural Park of Punta della Contessa Salt: wetland of 87 hectares (214 acres) between Capo di Torre Cavallo and Punta della Contessa
• The Regional Nature Reserve Forest Cerano: a protected natural area that falls within the territory of Brindisi and San Pietro Vernotico;
• The Regional Nature Reserve Bosco of Santa Teresa and Lucci: it is a protected natural area composed of two forests whose name it bears. With the EU Directive 92/43 EEC, was included in the list of Sites of Community Importance (SCI) ;
• The Marine Nature Reserve Guaceto Tower: falling mostly in the municipality of Carovigno, are managed by a consortium which includes the municipalities of Brindisi, Carovigno and the WWF.

Brindisi Harbour

Migration

Brindisi has been the subject of extensive emigration during the 20th century, as well as all cities in the South. Emigration focused mainly on the lower strata of society who abandoned the countryside. Emigration can be traced in two great waves. The first, which was at its peak in the years immediately before and after the First World War, was almost exclusively to the Americas (and mostly to the United States, Argentina, and Brazil). The second wave of migrants from Apulia headed instead for Northern Europe after the Second World War. Attracted by the industrial development of some northern areas of the country, many Apulian migrants also settled in the Piedmont and Lombardy regions of northern Italy, and particularly in Milan. Since the 1960s, when the large petrochemical companies were joined by mechanical, naval, and aviation corporations, Brindisi was able to create employment opportunities for technicians and workers. The city experienced a small regional immigration, attracting families from neighboring provinces and regions. Another important chapter in the demography of the town was definitely the exodus of people from Albania in 1990–1991, which lasted almost a decade and led to the port of Brindisi receiving waves of Albanian immigrants.^[18]

Ethnic groups

The largest non-Italian ethnic community is Albanian. The number of those who decided to stay in the city, however, is negligible in light of the number of immigrants who migrated. Brindisi remains the first step towards western Europe for displaced people from the Balkans.^[19]

The large number of Americans is largely due to a U.S. Air Force station, between Brindisi and San Vito dei Normanni that operated throughout the second half of the 20th century. Although the base is no longer operational, many soldiers have decided to stay.^[19]

The British presence is the result of a recent phenomenon of families from Northern Europe, especially English and Irish, settling in the region. Many such settlers are pensioners, buying villas in the Brindisi countryside. This phenomenon is relatively recent in Apulia, known as "Salentoshire", a playful neologism along the lines of "Chiantishire" on the consolidation of British tourism in Tuscany.^[19]

Languages and dialects

The Brindisi dialect is a variant of Salentino and, although there are minor differences between the various municipalities, the root remains unchanged. It is spoken not only in Brindisi, but in some towns of the province of Taranto. The Brindisi also affects some dialects north of Lecce in the south^[20]

Religion

Brindisi, along with Ostuni, is home of the Archdiocese of Brindisi-Ostuni (Archidioecesis Brundusina-Ostunensis in Latin), home of the Catholic Church suffragan of Archdiocese of Lecce and part of the ecclesiastical region of Apulia.^[21] The diocese was erected in the 4th century, its first bishop was St. Leucio of Alexandria. In the 10th century following the destruction of the city by the Saracens, the bishops established their residence in Oria. It was in this century that established the Diocese of Ostuni, first joined the Diocese of Conversano-Monopoli and likely heir to the ancient diocese of Egnatia. On 30 September 1986, by decree of the Congregation for Bishops, the Archdiocese of Brindisi and Ostuni diocese were united in the Archdiocese of Brindisi-Ostuni plena. The new diocese was recognized civilly 20 October 1986, by decree of the Ministry of Interior. Brindisi contains an Eastern Orthodox Church parish, St. Nicholas of Myra Byzantine Rite. The rite of the Greek presence in Brindisi has long been established since the rule of the Byzantine Empire with a strong spread of the Basilian monks.^[22] The Jews were a small but industrious community from 53 AD until the second half of the 16th century. The new Albanian migration has led to the recurrence of some Islamic religious presence.

Traditions and folklore

Significant in Brindisi is the cult of Tarantismo that combines pagan and Christian tradition. In the past it was believed that women who showed forms of hysteria were infected by the bite of a Lycosa tarantula. The only known remedy was to dance continuously for days, so that the poison did not cause greater effect. Through music and dance was created a real exorcism in musical character. Each time a tarantato exhibited symptoms associated with Taranto, the tambourine, fiddle, mandolin, guitar and accordion players went in the house of the tarantato and began to play the pinch music with frenetic rhythms. The Brindisi pinch, as opposed to Lecce, is devoid of Christian references^[23] and a therapeutic repertoire and musical detail.^[24]

Education

Libraries

Seminary of Brindisi Library

The Provincial Library is a public library located in Commenda avenue. It has over 100,000 books and an extensive newspaper archive and participates in the National Library Service. Inside a modern auditorium, a media office and the secretariats of the university offices of Bari and Lecce operate. The Archbishop Annibale De Leo Library is a prestigious public library housed in the Seminary of Brindisi, in Piazza Duomo. Founded in 1798 by archbishop of Brindisi Annibale De Leo, with an endowment of about 6,000 volumes, today it has over 20,000 volumes, 17 incunable, over 200 16th-century manuscripts. These include some rare works, and various manuscript collections.^[25]

Music and theatre

Over the past decade the city has developed and consolidated non-amateur theater companies, some dealing with theater for research and actor training. These companies have developed several socio-cultural projects for the promotion of the theater for people with disabilities. The same group of companies has produced six shows.^[24]

The municipal theatre is the Teatro Verdi (New Verdi Theatre). It is located in the historical center of the city, and opened in 2006. In 2022, Stefano Miceli was appointed chairman of the theatre foundation. Under his guidance, the theater debuted its resident orchestra named Orchestra del Nuovo Teatro Verdi and its first symphonic concert season. During the same year the tenor Fabio Armiliato sang at the official inauguration of the first Verdi Gala at Nuovo Teatro Verdi, and new jazz and classical music festivals and international guests artists debuted at the theatre.

Radio

Radio station, CiccioRiccioBrindisi, is heard throughout Apulia, Basilicata, parts of Molise, Campania and Calabria. Radio Dara that started in a workshop, founded in 1980, now broadcasts across the province.^[27]

Print

As for the press, the La Gazzetta del Mezzogiorno publishes the Brindisi Journal. The Nuovo Quotidiano di Puglia, Salento's newspaper, also covers Brindisi. Senzacolonne, which was founded in 2004, is the only one with a central editorial office in Brindisi.^[24] "The Nautilus" national scientific magazine based in Brindisi, reports on the sea, ports, transport and recreational boating. Other newspapers that have their headquarters in the city are BrindisiSera and "Brindisi News".

Television

Brindisi is home to the television stations Teleradio Agricoltura Informazione and Puglia TV, which began broadcasts in January 1988 in Brindisi.

Beverages, spirits, liquors

Almond milk: made by infusing water with the finely chopped almonds and then squeezing the same to expel the "milk". The region of Apulia has entered the milk of almonds in its list of traditional Italian food products. Limoncello: a liquor made from the peel of fresh lemons and enriched with water, sugar and alcohol.^[28]

Cheese

Cacioricotta cheese

Brindisi cheeses are mostly from sheep, due to the significant ranching of sheep and goats. In the summer they produce ricotta, which can be eaten fresh or matured for a few months so that it has a stronger flavor. Typical of the winter season are the Pecorino, ricotta and strong ricotta (or cottage cheese). It is used to flavor spaghetti sauce or spread on bruschetta.^[28] Fresh popular cheeses are burrata, junket, Manteca cheese, mozzarella or Fior di latte.

Vegetable products, processed or unprocessed

Vegetables are the true protagonist of the traditional diet of Salento. Depending on season, are the tops of turnips, various types of cabbage, the beet greens from the thistle, peppers, eggplant and zucchini (all served sun-dried or in olive oil), and artichokes. There are also wild vegetables used in traditional cooking such as chicory, dandelion (or zangune), wild asparagus, the Wild mustard, the thistle, the lampascioni also called pampasciuni or pampasciuli, and capers.^[28] Frequent, in the Brindisi kitchen, is the use of green or white tomatoes: mainly used for tomato sauce but they are also consumed in olive oil, after a process of natural drying. Significant is also the consumption of green and black olives, crushed or in brine. Finally, legumes such as beans, peas and Vicia faba, eaten fresh or dried in the spring and during the winter season. Among the dishes prepared with fruit are quince, baked figs and dried figs (prepared with a filling of almonds), jam with orange and lemon, and fig jam.^[28]

Pasta, pastry and confectionery

Taralli

Pasta and bread is made with unrefined flour, and thus takes on a dark colour. Durum wheat is mixed with traditional meal. Special local dishes include lasagna with vegetables, cavatelli, orecchiette (stacchioddi in Brindisi dialect) and ravioli stuffed with ricotta.

In breadmaking, local custom favours the use of durum wheat, bread flour and barley bread. For bread made with yeast (called criscituni) and cooked on an oven stone, Brindisi bakers use bundles of olive branches to give the bread a particular scent. One type of traditional bread is made with olives (called puccia). It is made with a much more refined wheat flour than for ordinary bread, to which are added black olives.

Also important are frisella, a sort of dehydrated hard bread which can be stored for a long time, and tarallini, also easily stored for long periods. The pucce and uliate cakes are also typical. Among local desserts the central place is occupied by almond paste, obtained by grinding shelled almonds and sugar. Another specialty is cartellate, a pastry, particularly prepared around Christmas, made of a thin strip of a dough made of flour, olive oil, and white wine that is wrapped upon itself, intentionally leaving cavities and openings, to form a sort of "rose" shape; the dough is then deep-fried, dried, and soaked in either lukewarm vincotto or honey.^[28]

Wine

In the area of Brindisi are produced Aleatico di Puglia Doc, Ostuni Doc, Brindisi Rosso DOC, Rosato Brindisi DOC and Puglia IGT.^[28] Some grape varieties grown in Brindisi include:

• Malvasia Nera di Brindisi,
• Negroamaro;
• Ottavianello;
• Sangiovese;
• Susumaniello.

The Brindisi DOC produces both red and rose wines from grapes limited to a harvest yield of 15 tonnes/ha and must produce a wine with a minimum 12% alcohol level. The wines are usually blends made predominantly from Negaroamaro and Malvasia Nera but Sangiovese is allowed to compose up to 10% of the blend with Montepulciano allowed to compose up to another 20% (or 30% if Sangiovese is not included). If it is to be a Reserva, the wine is aged a minimum of 2 years before release and must attain a minimum alcohol level of 12.5%.^[29]

Events

• The day of Corpus Christi.
• The Procession to the beach of San Lorenzo and San Teodoro, on the first Saturday of September .
• The Feast of San Teodoro: Feast with candles, food stands, music, fireworks, in the first week of September.

Roman period

Roman pillar signaling the end of the Appian Way

From an urban point of view [58] [59], the city's earliest signs of human settlement are on the promontory of Punta Terre, a coastal area outside the port. As a Roman colony ( 244 BC ), the city experienced a major urban expansion that ensued economic and social development. According to Pliny the Elder, Brindisi was one of the most important Italian cities.

Middle Ages

During the Middle Ages, Brindisi suffered a sharp decline, after it was devastated by the Goths in the 6th century; Procopius describes it as a small city without defensive walls. The town shrank to a smaller area, probably around the San Leucio temple, outside the old town. The port was abandoned for several centuries. The rebirth came with the Byzantine domination (11th century ) and especially with the Normans and the Swabians (12th and 13th century), when it became a prime port for the Crusades. The city was divided into three districts or "pittachi": Santo Stefano (in the vicinity of the columns), Eufemia (in Santa Teresa) and San Toma (in the area of Saint Lucia). Under the Aragonese and the Spanish kings, the main efforts were directed mainly around the ramparts (walls, castle and sea fort to provide relief from mostly the Greeks, Albanians and Slavs.^[22]

Modern era

Only through the reopening of the Pigott channel (1775), the city experienced a new impetus and reopened traffic with the East mainly due to the establishment of the Suez Canal at the end of the 19th century.^[22]

Contemporary era

Demographic development in the 20th century led to the modern city overlying the ancient one, at the cost of the demolition of the neighbourhoods around San Pietro degli Schiavoni, Teatro Verdi, and the Clock Tower. Today urban planning demands that settlements of significant architectural impact are built outside the city centre. The city has now expanded beyond the walls of the historic centre to form the new suburbs of Commando, Capuchins, Sant'Angelo (1950–1970 ) and St. Clare, St. Elias, and Bozzano (1980–2000).^[22]

Agriculture

Brindisi agriculture includes horticulture, viticulture, fruit and olives. The area that marked the territory for centuries is based on the culture of almonds, olives, tobacco, artichokes, and grain. Livestock consists of cattle, goats and sheep.

Industry

Industry in Brindisi is mainly identified with the chemical and aerospace industry.

Tourism

Byzantine fresco in Santa Maria del Casale

The city preserves important archaeological finds and coastline, particularly the north coast, where there are many large sand dunes and beaches. Inland agritourism, displays wine (Wine Appia) or olive oil (Collina di Brindisi oil). Brindisi Tourism, however, remains heavily dependent on the Italian tourists (74%, compared with 26% of foreign demand) and is very seasonal.

Roads

The main roads are represented by

• Bari-Lecce expressway, connecting with Brindisi, Lecce, with Bari and the A14.
• Adriatica SS 16 is the Brindisi bypass connecting the city to San Vito dei Normanni and Lecce * Brindisi-Taranto Brindisi with Taranto.

Railways

Rail transport is provided through Brindisi railway station, an important Apulian railway junction and an intersecting point between the Adriatic Railway and the Taranto–Brindisi railway. The station is managed by Centostazioni, and links Brindisi with all destinations served by the Adriatic and Ionian coastal railways. Brindisi Marittima railway station closed in 2006.

Seaport

The port of Brindisi has always been at the center of trade with Greece. It is one of the most important commercial and industrial seaports on the Adriatic Sea. The trade is mostly in coal, fuel oil, natural gas, and chemicals. The port consists of three parts:

• The Outer Harbour: the limits of which are in the southern mainland, east of the Pedagne islands and west of the island from the pier in Costa
• The port is formed by the average area of sea that is before the Pigott Channel, access to the inner harbor, the basin to the north as the Strait of Apulia.
• The inner harbor is formed by two long wings that touch the heart of Brindisi both the north and east, they are the "bosom of the west" and "within the east."

International airport

Brindisi Airport

Brindisi is home to Papola-Casale Airport located 6 kilometres (4 miles) outside the city's center. The airport of Brindisi has daily connections with major Italian and European cities. The airport serves the entire province of Brindisi and partly that of Taranto. In 2017, a total of 2,321,147 passengers passed through. It has two runways, one northwest to southeast that is 3,330 metres (10,930 ft) long, and the other northeast to southwest that is 1,950 metres (6,400 ft) long. Their characteristics allow the landing of large transport aircraft such as the Antonov An-124 and Boeing 747.

This airport was originally established as a military airbase in the 1920s. As of 2008 it has officially changed its legal status into civilian airport, still maintaining the military facilities attached to it. These are identified as "Military Airport Orazio Pierozzi", named in memory of an Italian airman of the First World War.

The strategic position of the airport in the Mediterranean region, along with its natural potential for multi-modal (the port is a few kilometers away) operations, have made it a base of crucial importance for both national defense and NATO. For the same strategic reasons, in 1994 the airport was chosen as the main worldwide logistics base by the United Nations to support its peacekeeping and peace enforcement operations around the globe, which was since then hosted in Pisa Military Airport "San Giusto". In 2000, also the United Nations humanitarian supply depot moved from Pisa to Brindisi. It has since then been managed by the World Food Programme and officially known as the United Nations Humanitarian Response Depot (UNHRD). On behalf of governments, other UN agencies and NGOs, from UNHRD Brindisi humanitarian aid is directed to the most remote and devastated regions around the world.

Public transport

The Public Transport Company of Brindisi provides public transport in the city, and is the link with the other municipalities in the province. Moreover, the company provides transport service by sea into inland waters of the port of Brindisi. Brindisi is also a major ferry port, with routes to Greece and elsewhere.^[30]

Consulates

Brindisi is home to the following consulates:

• Denmark
• France
• Honorary Consulate of Greece
• Netherlands

Association football

Brindisi 1912 has played in six championship series. Their football strip colours recall those of the province, white and blue. The club plays in the stadium named after the president of the historical association on the Adriatic shore, Commander Franco Fanuzzi Stadium. ASD Appia Brindisi plays in the Regional Championship of the "First Category".

Basketball

The main basketball team in the city and in the wider region of Apulia is New Basket Brindisi, which has played for basketball championships in the top of A1 championships in League 2. Their colours are the same as that of all sports associations in the city, white and blue. The club plays their home games in the sports hall "Elio Pentassuglia".

Other clubs

• NAFTA rugby Brindisi (C1)
• Aces Amateur Volleyball 2006 (series B1 female).

Sports venues

• Franco Fanuzzi Stadium: Municipal Stadium
• PalaPentassuglia: sports hall
• PalaMelfi: sports hall
• Brindisi Tennis Club
• St. Elias Sports Centre: rugby, sports hall, tennis court

Twin towns – sister cities

Brindisi is twinned with:

• Lushnje, Albania
• Patras, Greece
• Corfu, Greece^[31]
• Amasya, Turkey
• Charlotte, United States of America