Vasto : Italy
Vasto is a town of some 35.000 inhabitants in the Italian Region Abruzzi. It is part of the province of Chieti.
Historical Notes.
Mythology claims the city was founded by Diomedes, the Greek hero; archaeological relics provide evidence of settlements dating to 1300 BC.
In pre-Roman epoch, the territorys inhabitants belonged to the Italic tribe: the Frentani. Following Roman conquest (I century BC), Histonium, Vastos Latin name, became Municipium, a municipality which gained prominence at every level – economic, artistic and cultural.
After the collapse of the Western Roman Empire, the city fell to Byzantine dominance, then to the Lombards and, finally, to the Franks. During the Middle Ages (c.1076), the citys Latin name Histonium changed to Guastaymonis (or the Waste of Aimone) from which, through corruption, it derives its current name: Vasto.
In 1400s, the citys urban structure was transformed by Giacomo Caldora, a mercenary captain who, given the quarrelsomeness of the vastesi, the locals, presented himself as mediator, first, then as lordship. The Caldoras built new city walls; its gates and towers can still be seen today: Torre Bassano in Piazza Rossetti, Torre Diomede in Vico Storto del Passero, Torre Damante in Piazza Verdi and Porta Catena, with Castello Caldoresco as its primary defensive outpost.
With Spanish Dominion, Vasto became fief of the Marquises of d’Avalos. Theirs is the contribution to the buildings present-day structure; in the reign of Cesare Michelangelo (marquis from 1697 to 1729), Vasto reached its zenith.
