Monte Argentario

Monte Argentario is a municipality with 12,454 inhabitants (as of 31 December 2012) in the Italian province of Grosseto on the southern edge of Tuscany. It includes the eponymous peninsula of Monte Argentario on the coast of the Tyrrhenian Sea.

Geography

Monte Argentario is an approximately circular rocky promontory, whose highest point ( the mount telegraph ) has 635 m. He was in ancient times an island surrounded by the open sea, at the later by the brought by the river Albegna mud, sand and debris three headlands formed to the mainland, which now in the so-called Orbetello lagoon surround the water.

Access to the Monte Argentario from the mainland takes place either, coming from Albinia, on the northern Spit ( tombolo di Giannella ) or on the average, as a dam artificially enhanced headland of Orbetello. The Southern Spit Feniglia is blocked for cars, parts of it have the status of a ' Riserva naturale ' with appropriate access restrictions.

Between the rugged cliffs of the rocky mountains grow pine trees and the characteristic scrub vegetation. Small sandy beaches stretch hard to reach deep beneath the cliffs. Large parts of the countryside outside of the two coastal towns on the "island" are natural.

Community structure

• Porto Santo Stefano, capoluogo.
• Porto Ercole, frazione.

Both harbor towns are characterized by extensive fortifications of the Spanish period.

Other districts ( frazioni ) are Cala Moresca, Cala Piccola, Carrubo Pozzarello, Santa Liberata, Sbarcatello and Terra Rossa.

The only neighboring community is Orbetello on the middle dam, which serves as an access road.

History

Whether the promontory was inhabited by the Etruscans, can not be properly verified. Anyway Etruscan Polygonalquader were used to build the breakwater of Orbetello. Strabo bears witness to a port Portus Cosanus; there may be a connection to Cosa, a 273 BC south of the lagoon at the present Ansedonia founded by the Romans harbor with Etruscan Vorbesiedlung. Clearly documented the subsequent possession is by the Roman family of the Domitii Ahenobarbi who received the territory as compensation for loans to the Roman Republic during the Second Punic War. In this family it was argentarii (Silver / Money Owning = lender ); stems from that title according to prevailing opinion, the name of the mountain range.

Several Roman emperors had the territory in possession before Constantine presented it to the church in the 4th century. In the Middle Ages, the area lost its importance, presumably due to the decaying infrastructure in the increasingly versumpfenden Maremma its environs.

Basically, the island shared the history of Orbetello: After finally changing ownership by the feudal lords of the Aldobrandeschi, the Orsini and Ladislaus (Naples) it fell to Siena. When Cosimo I de ' Medici in 1555 conquered Siena, which had occupied at that time only three years the Spanish Habsburgs, the Monte Argentario was one of the few areas that Florence was not allowed to retain for the newly to be established Grand Duchy of Tuscany. In agreement dated July 3, 1557 with Philip II the king demanded it along with Piombino, Talamone and parts of Elba returns for themselves.

The Stato dei Presidia ( spanish to 1708, Austrian until 1737, then Bourbon ) existed until 1801, after which he conquered Napoleon Bonaparte. In the Congress of Vienna in 1815, he fell to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, which rose in 1860 in the nation state of Italy.

1824 a road from Orbetello was built over the lagoon to the Monte Argentario.

The expansion of the Monte Argentario to a holiday center began after the Second World War. Hotels, apartments and inns are offered both in the two coastal towns of Porto Santo Stefano and Porto Ercole and at less accessible Felskaps on the scenic road around the mountain range. Inland also Agritourism is announced. Although the region in summer is well attended, mass tourism has not used, since on the one hand, environmentalists have prevented a large-scale speculative building and on the other hand much of the rugged coastline are intrinsically used as a spacious fenced and protected residences of wealthy privateers and international celebrities.

Scenic roads

If you drive the Monte Argentario from the north ( Orbetello ) over the lagoon dam on, the panoramic road leaves ( Panoramic Road ) driving a piece both to the southwest via Porto Santo Stefano addition as well to the southeast over Porto Ercole addition. A circumnavigation of the entire massif is not recommended with a normal car, since both ends of paved road are connected only by a narrow pot-holed road.

The scenic road passes through the holm oak, tree heath, broom and cistus scrub high above the bays and small beaches with bizarre rock formations, capes and small rocky islands, watch towers on the peaks inland and extensive views of the neighboring islands of Giglio and Giannutri in clear weather on Elba and Monte Cristo, with particularly good even see Corsica. Access to the sea is possible for the public because many largely privately owned befindlicher, fenced land only a few places.

A paved cross- connection through the inland secures front of the south-western end of the street a shortened possibility of returning to Porto Santo Stefano.

In addition, from the east, a road leads to the mount telegraph. Here, one passes the Convento dei Frati Passionisti on a hill, from which a distant view opens north in good weather over the lagoon of Orbetello addition to Talamone on the southern edge of the Parco Naturale della Maremma. Also from other vantage points along this road, for example, by a huge cross that is lit at night, get a wide view offer. On the summit transmitters RAI and on the highest point of a military facility (hence not accessible) are located.

Economy

In the 20th century, tourism has replaced fishing as the main source of income. Fish stocks have depleted and fishermen must reach out in ever more distant fishing grounds towards Sardinia.

To a lesser extent the inland in the area of Porto Santo Stefano area is used for sugarcane, vegetables and wine in terrace field culture.

However, the main source of income is tourism, with less tourists are to be found in Germany, as Italians, especially from Rome and Florence, which have their summer villas here.