Marsala

Marsala is a seaport ceety locatit in the Province o Trapani on the island o Sicily in Italy. The law coast on which it is situatit is the wastmaist point o the island. It is best kent as the soorce o Marsala wine.

History
Marsala occupees the steid o Lilybaeum, the principal stranghauld o the  Carthaginians in Sicily, foondit bi Himilco in 396 BC efter the abandonment o Motya. Neither Pyrrhus nor the Romans wur able tae reduce it bi siege, but it wis surrendered tae the latter in 241 BC at the end o the First Punic War as a condition o the peace treaty. In the later wars it wis a stairtin point for the Roman expeditions against Carthage, an unner Roman rule it enjoyed considerable prosperity. It obtained municipal richts frae Augustus an became a colony unner either Pertinax or Septimius Severus.

The Arabs gave it its present name "Marsala," which aiblins is derivit frae the Arab "Marsa Allah" (port o Allah) or, mair probably, frae "Marsa ‘Alī" ("port o Ali", or "Marsa ‘āliyy", "great port"). The huge auncient harbor that lay on the northeast wis destroyed bi Charles V in the 16t century, tae prevent its occupation bi pirates. The modren harbor lees tae the sootheast.

On 11 Mey 1860, Giuseppe Garibaldi an his Expedition o the Thoosan landit at Marsala an began his campaign tae owerthrow Bourbon rule in Sicily, durin the Unification o Italy process.

Geography
The ceety is situatit on the Mediterranean coast, in the soothwastren side o Sicily. It lees on the road atween Trapani an Mazara del Vallo.

Main sichts
Little remains o the auncient Lilybaeum. Fragments o the ceety waws, squared stanes, an some foondations o biggins atween the waws an the sea are visible. The so-cried grotto an spring o the Sibyl is locatit unner the kirk o San Giovanni Battista (1555), an is traditionally considered the tomb o the Cuman or Siculian Sibyl.

Tae the east o the toun is a great fosse which defendit it on the land side, an ayont this again are quarries like those o Syracuse on a sma scale.

The modren toun takes the shape o the Roman camp athin the earlier ceety, ane o the gates o which still existit in 1887. Sichts include the campanile an convent o the Annunziata, an the Baroque Kirk o the Purgatory.

The main street (the Cassaro) perpetuates the name castrum. The Biagio Anselmi Airchaeological Museum hooses an example o Carthaginian ship uised durin the Battle o the Aegates Islands (241 BC), as well as ither auncient remains frae the aurie.

Natural sichts include the stagnone ("Big Marsh") lagoon preservit aurie.

See an aw
Florio
Marsala Ship

Freemit airtins


Category:Municipalities o the Province o Trapani
Category:Mediterranean port ceeties an touns in Italy