Recco
Recco: the Ligurian town of the Levante Riviera
Hello everyone! Today I want to talk about a beautiful Ligurian town called Recco. This town, which has about 9,442 inhabitants, is located in the Levante Riviera within the metropolitan city of Genoa in Liguria. Recco's location is particularly suggestive, as it is situated in a small cove of the Golfo Paradiso between the villages of Sori and Camogli, and at the mouth of the Recco valley.
The physical geography of Recco
One of the peculiar characteristics of Recco is the presence of Mount Orsena, which stands out among the peaks of the area. This mountain, which is 614 m high, is one of the main natural attractions of the area. The National Institute of Statistics classifies the municipality of Recco as belonging to the coastal hill zone, which is an area with the presence of modest reliefs (maximum altitudes higher than 300 m but lower than 600 m).
The history of Recco
The history of Recco is very interesting and has ancient roots. The municipality was inhabited in pre-Roman times by the Casmonati population, one of the Ligurian families. Subsequently, it was conquered by the Roman Empire, which founded the village with the name of "Recina" or "Ricina" and transformed it into an important Roman castro on the Via Aurelia.
During the High Middle Ages, on the other hand, the first Ambrosian parish was constituted on the territory, one of the four already present in the neighboring municipalities of Camogli, Uscio and Rapallo. Afterwards, the municipality fell under the Republic of Genoa, which became the owner of the village and its neighboring municipalities starting from the 12th century. The republic erected it as a new local podesteria and, from 1513, as the seat of a captaincy having jurisdiction over the nearby territories of the Golfo Paradiso and the hinterland of the high val Fontanabuona.
Over the centuries, the municipality suffered several attacks by Saracen pirates, which caused mourning, theft and kidnapping of young inhabitants who were subsequently made slaves in Middle Eastern countries. However, the proximity and coexistence with the sea made the inhabitants skilled builders in the maritime sector, especially in the construction of ships, sailboats, and galleys that went to add to the fleet of the Genoese republic.
Recco under French rule and the Kingdom of Italy
Recco was also affected by the events of the Austrian War of Succession in 1747. In 1797, with the new French domination of Napoleon Bonaparte, the municipality fell within the department of the Golfo del Tigullio, with Rapallo as its capital, within the Ligurian Republic. In 1805, instead, it was annexed to the First French Empire and included in the department of Genoa.
In 1815, Recco was incorporated into the Kingdom of Sardinia, as established by the Congress of Vienna in 1814. Subsequently, the municipality was part of the Kingdom of Italy since 1861 and was included in the VI mandamento of the homonymous district of Genoa of the then province of Genoa from 1859 to 1926.
Conclusions
Recco is a municipality with a rich and fascinating history, which boasts a unique geographic location and suggestive natural attractions such as Mount Orsena. The presence of the Republic of Genoa has left an indelible mark on the historical and cultural heritage of the municipality, worth visiting. Thank you for reading me, see you soon with the next article!
