Piazza della Vittoria

This majestic commemorative monument dedicated to the fallen of the First World War has a very complex history.

The first project was carried out by Cesare Bazzani (1873-1839), a well-known Roman architect close to the politics and the architectural trends of the time.

The impressive commemorative work, designed in 1919, was inaugurated by King Vittorio Emanuele III in November 1930. It stayed incomplete for twenty years, until the missing statuary group was finally installed on the side facing Corso Umberto.

The sculptural works that decorate the monument are characterized by their high symbolic value. The last artistic body that was added, the so-called Aquilifero, is dedicated to the Navy and depicts a trireme on which stands a soldier in the act of throwing an eagle in the sky, whereas on the top of the white pillar, the goddess Athena stands out among the soldiers. The lower sculptural group overlooking Via D’Aquino, on the other hand, represents two soldiers in the act of carrying a wounded man and it is surmounted, in the highest part of the installation, by the representation of the Victory.

The valuable bronze sculptures that were chosen to decorate the monument were made by the Tarantino artist Francesco Paolo Como (1888-1973), winner of a national competition.

The structure, which has on its base the latin inscription: “Ex Rostris / ad Gloriam / Italica Virtus” (from the beaks / to the glory / the Italic value), is enriched by the unusual presence of a small interior decorated with a mosaic and closed by two heavy wrought iron doors.

There is also another inscription that completes the work, its aim is to reinforce its symbolic message and to pass on the date of its inauguration; it says:  “Strong in Life / Heroic in Death / In eternal history / Taranto Mother / IV November MCMXXX / A IX”.

The monument, located in the center of a large rectangular square called “Piazza della Vittoria”, overlooks Via D’Aquino, one of the main streets of the Borgo Umbertino, considered by the citizens as the best destination for walks.

The important road axis, once called simply “Strada del Carmine” (due to its proximity to the church of Carmine), took the name of Tommaso Nicolò d’Aquino (1665 – 1721) who has been, since 1892, a member of the Academy of Arcadia and author of the “Delicie Tarentinae”, a poem in latin dedicated to the “charms” of Taranto.