Ragusa, Sicily

The origins of Ragusa can be traced back to the 2nd millennium BC, when there were several Sicel settlements in the area. The current district of Ragusa Ibla has been identified as Hybla Heraea.

The ancient city, located on a 300-metre (980 ft)-high hill, came into contact with nearby Greek colonies, and grew thanks to the nearby port of Camerina. Following a short period of Carthaginian rule, it fell into the hands of the ancient Romans and the Byzantines, who fortified the city and built a large castle. Ragusa was occupied by the Arabs in 848 AD, remaining under their rule until the 11th century, when the Normans conquered it. Selected as County seat, its first Count was Geoffrey, son of Count Ruggero of Sicily.

Thereafter Ragusa's history followed the events of the Kingdom of Sicily, created in the first half of the twelfth century. A Chiaramonte family fief, it remained the county capital after it was unified with Modica in 1296, a status it lost in the 15th century after a popular revolt.

In 1693 Ragusa was devastated by a huge earthquake, which killed some 5,000 inhabitants. Following this catastrophe the city was largely rebuilt, and many Baroque buildings from this time remain in the city. Most of the population moved to a new settlement in the former district of Patro, calling this new municipality "Ragusa Superiore" (Upper Ragusa) and the ancient city "Ragusa Inferiore" (Lower Ragusa). The two cities remained separated until 1926, when they were fused together to become a provincial capital in 1927 at the expense of Modica, the former capital and the most populous and important city in the region since 1296.

In 1838 an asphalt deposit was discovered, which is still being worked.

In 1848, together with the cities of Modica and Scicli, it rebelled against the Bourbon government to obtain the freedom and independence of the island. In 1860, armed volunteers were immediately sent to help Garibaldi who had just landed in Marsala and therefore became part of the Kingdom of Italy under the guidance of Senator Corrado Arezzo de Spuches di Donnafugata. In 1889 the Banca Popolare Cooperativa di Ragusa was founded, the first embryo of the current Banca Agricola Popolare di Ragusa; the bank thrived thanks to the huge wealth and prosperous agriculture that belonged to the now ex-county, and immediately became an important point of reference for the whole Ibla economy.

At the beginning of the 20th century, socialist ideas spread particularly strongly in the Ragusa area compared to the region, according to many fascist historians. Ragusa was described as a "fief of the reds", not unlike that of Bologna. Due to a strong political dialectic, Fascism imposed itself on Ragusa, provoking a violent response similar to that in the Po Valley. On 29 January 1921, a group of Fascists destroyed the socialist circle of Vittoria, killing a man and injuring four and two months later in Ragusa four people were killed and sixty were injured. The promoter of Fascist ideology in Ragusa was in particular Totò Giurato, grandfather of the TV presenter Luca Giurato.

During World War II, Ragusa was one of many Sicilian towns in which the fascist regime of Benito Mussolini was deeply unpopular. Reasons for this were a combination of straightforward anti-Sicilian racism on the part of the fascist regime (which was central to the regime's ideology) as well as the anti-mafia campaign led by fascist agent Cesare Mori which was so heavy-handed, brutal and draconian that it managed to alienate huge swaths of the Sicilian population. Coupled with both of these was the reality that fascist administration in Sicily was largely incompetent as well as indifferent to the local population. When food became scarce and Mussolini's regime had to begin rationing food, Sicily was designated as being the last to receive food aid. This often included food that was grown in Sicily (particularly wheat and fruit) which was then exported to northern Italy, despite the fact that scarcity had become a large-scale problem in Sicily. Sicilian police officers were replaced with police officers from Northern Italy as the Sicilian officers were perceived by the regime as being more loyal to their local communities than they were to Mussolini. The officers from Northern Italy were underpaid, which led to them quickly becoming corrupt and indifferent. Compounding this was the fact that they often held attitudes that were contemptuous towards the Sicilian population. When the combined British and American military operation to invade Sicily began (Operation Husky) the population of Ragusa was deeply resentful of Mussolini and the fascist regime. British forces landed to the south and east of Ragusa along the coast and American forces landed southwest of Ragusa in the Gulf of Gela. The two groups linked up in several towns in between these two locations including Ragusa. The small detachment of fascist troops in Ragusa fled without fighting as the British and American forces approached. The local population welcomed the British and American soldiers with "unbridled enthusiasm".[3][4][5][6][7][8]

On 6 May 1950 with regular papal bull, Ragusa was raised to the dignity of diocese, thanks to the wise and constant commitment of Msgr. Carmelo Canzonieri, then parish priest of Saint John the Baptist who later became auxiliary bishop of Messina before and then of Caltagirone, taking the territory from the archdiocese of Syracuse and the diocese of Noto.

Today Ragusa constitutes a dynamic and wealthy city: it is home to numerous companies and is also the most important financial pole of the south due to the presence of the BAPR, which is the fourth Italian popular bank.

Since the 90s the economy of Ragusa has been developing towards the industrial sector, which is still growing rapidly in contrast to the situation in Italy, the scarce presence of infrastructures has limited the great potential of this territory which, however, remains the most important export area of Sicily.

Ragusa is a hilltown that lies below the Hyblaean Mountains, and is historically divided into Ragusa Ibla and Ragusa Superiore. The municipality borders with Chiaramonte Gulfi, Comiso, Giarratana, Modica, Monterosso Almo, Rosolini (SR), Santa Croce Camerina, Scicli and Vittoria.[9] It counts the hamlets (frazioni) of Marina di Ragusa, located by the sea, and San Giacomo Bellocozzo.

The city has two distinct areas, the lower and older town of Ragusa Ibla, and the higher Ragusa Superiore (Upper Town). The two halves are separated by the Valle dei Ponti, a deep ravine crossed by four bridges, the most noteworthy of which is the eighteenth-century Ponte dei Cappuccini.

Ragusa has two railway stations, Ragusa and Ragusa Ibla, on the Canicattì-Gela-Syracuse line. Two other stations serve the localities of Donnafugata and Genisi.

The town will be served by the planned extension, from Rosolini to Gela, of the A18 motorway. The new exit of Ragusa will be located between the town and Marina di Ragusa.

The 18th-century interior of the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist.

Ragusa Ibla

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  Cathedral of San Giorgio in Ragusa Ibla.
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  The Church of the Souls of Purgatory, one of the Baroque edifices built after the 1693 earthquake.
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  Decorative Baroque façade of San Giuseppe church in Ragusa Ibla.
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  Cathedral of San Giorgio in Ragusa Ibla.
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  Interior of San Giorgio.

Ragusa is twinned with:[10][11]

• Dubrovnik, Croatia (itself formerly also named Ragusa)
• Mosta, Malta
• Rădăuți, Romania
• Termoli, Italy

• Princess Maria Paternò Arezzo (1869–1908), noblewoman and philanthropist
• Loredana Cannata (1975–), actress
• Maria Occhipinti (1921–1996), anarcha-feminist
• Enea Scala (born 1979), operatic tenor

• Monti Iblei Cup (Hill Climb)

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ragusa (category)

• Ragusa travel guide from Wikivoyage
• Official city website (in Italian)
• Photos of Ragusa on Wondersofsicily.com