Piazza del Plebicito

The Piazza del Plebicito is an interesting large square in Naples. It was named after a plebiscite that was taken in 1860 that took Naples into the Kingdom of Italy.

This noble 19th century semicircular piazza is enclosed on one side by the royal palace, on the other, by the neoclassical façade of the church of San Francesco di Paola, built on the model of the Pantheon in Rome and prolonged by a curving colonnade.

The church resembles the Pantheon in Rome a lot. I saw that from the very first moment I stepped inside. The church has a beautiful cupula, and impressive interior.

On the other side of the square you can see The Royal palace. The Palace (Palazzo Reale di Napoli) is a palace, museum, and historical tourist destination located in central Naples, southern Italy (you can see the shadow of San Francesco di Paola cast across the facade of the palace).

During the Napoleonic occupation the palace was enriched by Joachim Murat and his wife, Caroline Bonaparte, with Neoclassic decorations and furnishings. However, a fire in 1837 damaged many rooms. There is a justly famous, beautiful staircase at the entrance of the palace.

If you walk down the Piazza toward the sea front, you will encounter beautiful monuments, historical buildings, and of course Mount Vesuvius in the background.

Naples is such an interesting place full of history and notable buildings. I find it impossible to fit everything in one blog post. I’ll have to bore you with more posts about this city in the future.