History

Parma Historical Background

Parma began as a Roman colony in 183 BC set on an old Celtic settlement (which in turn was based on former settlements dating back to the 17th-13th centuries BC). Its founders were the triumvirate of M. Emilio Lepido, T. Ebuzio Caro and L. Quinto Crispino. At the time, the city had around 2000 inhabitants and saw a period of rapid growth. The land was fertile which led to pig and sheep rearing, in turn giving rise to beautiful wool to the extent that the industries of spinning, weaving and dyeing boomed. The traces of Roman settlement are still clearly visible. Especially the Via Emilia which crosses the city taking various names in the centre from Via Gramsci to Via D'Azeglio, from Via Mazzini to Via Repubblica; all the other streets of the old town (or at least the oldest) run perpendicular or parallel to this one according to the ancient layout of Roman settlements. During this period the town had a theatre, an amphitheatre, a thermal spa, a basilica and of course a forum, where Piazza Garibaldi stands today, and which is still the very heart of Parma.

Darker times came with the Barbaric invasions (V and VI centuries). The Huns, the Erulis and then the Longobards (570) – in the intermediate period of 493 to 569 with Teodorico and the Byzantine government, the city, In those years it experienced raids and destruction which completely changed its appearance.

After the French reign, the bishops' hegemony began until the period of the struggle for investitures, when Parma became the scene of many an animated event with internal wars. Despite its being a small city it gave rise to two antipapal figures: Onorio II (Cadalo, remembered as a great sinner in one of the cathedral's chapels) and Clemente III (Giberto da Parma).

The Romanesque period gave Parma its artistic masterpieces such as the cathedral, the work of Wiligelmo and Lanfranco, the Vescovado, of which a trace of the original building remains (the city's oldest wall in an alleyway of the Vescovado), the Benedetto Antelami baptistry, testimony of the passage from Romanesque to Gothic style.

Federico Barbarossa and his nephew Federico II di Svevia, saved Parma from total destruction and dreamed of the construction of a new city called Vittoria. Defeated by troops from the surrounding anti-imperial cities, they gave up their intentions in 1248. The other great period of fervor took place with various ups and downs due to ongoing wars for supremacy between various important families. During those years of upheaval, and well into the Rennaisance, two figures stand out: Grapaldo and Taddeo Ugoleto who, together with other humanists, spread new ideas, inflaming the Italian states.

With the beginning of the Ducato, Parma became a 'little capital' a title that it still holds today. And the period of the Farnesian duchy began with Pope Paul III (Alessandro Farnese, who was already bishop of Parma from 1509 to 1534). After having constructed the Dukedom of Parma and Piacenza, it was handed to his son Pier Luigi giving rise to two centuries of history which changed the face of the city. In Oltretorrente the dukes built their palazzo, which now stands inside the Parco Ducale; they commissioned Gian Battista Fornovo to build the Steccata church, and Aleotti and Magnani to build the Quartiere, with the dome decorated with frescoes by Bernabei. The Pilotta was built on the other side of the river - an enormous complex more like a castle than a palazzo, which became the home to workers at the Farnesian court and a depository for arms and equipment. The Reinach Theatre was annexed to the Pilotta, a real architectural jewel that was completely destroyed by bombs in the second world war. The construction of the Cittadella is also credited to the Farnese. It is a pentagonal complex, originally part of the city's fortification. Many of the most beautiful churches which can still be visited in Parma were commissioned by the Farnese and remain testimony to the beauty of the baroque period, or the older ones testify to the transition from Mannerism to baroque. San Quintino, Sant'Alessandro, the Rossi oratory, San Vitale, Santa Croce, Santa Maria delle Grazie, Santa Cristina e Sant'Antonio, where even Jacopo Bibiena worked.

In 1718, the dukedom passed to the Bourbons when the Farnese family died out and a new period began for Parma. Often the city's rulers were involved in distant wars. Filippo di Borbone, second cousin to Elisabetta arrived to rule the city after several years. With him, Du Tillot arrived in 1759, an able minister who chose to be linked to France rather than Spain. A man of great intelligence, he was surrounded by intellectual friends such as Condillac, Millot, Petitot, Boudard, Ravenet, Paciaudi, Bodoni and many others. Du Tillot brought an "international" flavour to Parma, livening up daily life and giving the economy and culture a boost. He also aimed to brighten up the city itself and open schools.

Throwing Du Tillot out in 1765, Ferdinando, Filippo's successor, put an end to the period of reform and liveliness. He died in 1802, the duchy ended up in the hands of Napoleon. Parma's occupation ended with the Congress of Vienna, which settled the most important matters. It was officially decided to assign the duchy to Maria Luigia, now a symbol of Parma. Neipperg, then joined her, governing in a relaxed, detached manner. The construction of Teatro Regio, and the Palazzo Ducale (no longer in existence) near to the Pilotta dates back to this period. Maria Luigia died in 1847. The Treaty of Paris (1817) establishes that the dukedom passed to the Bourbons and Carlo Ludovico arrived in Parma. In the meantime, the Independence war broke out and various liberal movements developed within the city. The Bourbon leadership ended definitively in 1859. The following year saw the annexation of Parma to Piedmont.