History of the Torretta di Mergellina: A Beacon of Safety

The Torretta was built in 1564 by order of the viceroy, the Duke of Alcalá, to serve as a lookout for maritime raids and as a military garrison; in 1936 it became a local Fascist Party headquarters, and today it houses municipal offices.

The Torretta, located at Mergellina, is that crossroads-shaped square where the coastal road of Chiaia forks: to the right it heads towards Via Piedigrotta, while to the left it turns into Via Giordano Bruno in the direction of Piazza Sannazaro.

The structure takes its name from a lookout tower built in the 16th century by the governor, the Duke of Alcalá, in response to yet another attack by Saracen pirates, who had landed on the beach of the Riviera with the direct intention of kidnapping the Marchesa del Vasto, owner of an estate next to Mergellina, in order to later demand a hefty ransom.

Fortunately, the attempt failed — not only thanks to the swift action of the governor's troops, the local residents, and a former servant of the noblewoman, who drove back the pirates led by the corsair Uccialì, but also because the pirates had picked the wrong day: the Marchesa was not even at home!

The Duke of Alcalá, who lived right near the landing site in Palazzo Stigliano, decided to fortify the area by building this structure, which in the end never served its original purpose and, remarkably, was even turned into a house of pleasure in the 17th century! According to prints that have come down to us, it seems that at the start of the 20th century the tower was still standing, although stripped of its battlements, while keeping its original volume.

It is believed that during that period the structure was used as the base for the Torretta tram terminus, inaugurated in 1888. Several decades later, in 1936, the old tower was replaced by the Casa del Fascio Rionale ("local Fascist Party house", now used as municipal offices), which curiously kept the original ground-plan and volume of the tower.