The Vittoriale degli Italiani, monument by d'Annunzio
- Category What see Lake Garda and Verona
The Vittoriale by Gabriele d'Annunzio, an open-air museum in Gardone Riviera on Lake Garda
Number of views: 8387Agriturismo - Where to stay overnight
- The Vittoriale degli Italiani
- The Entrance
- The amphitheater
- The Priory
- Schifamondo
- The Park
- Vittoriale degli italiani (video):
The Vittoriale degli Italiani
The D'Annunzio House Museum was bought by the poet for 130,000 lire from Heinrich Thode, a German art scholar who was expelled from Italy in 1918 and forced to sell his house full of relics, memorabilia, books and works of art.
Looking for peace after spending the last months of the war amid so much noise, d'Annunzio chose the villa (first rented and then bought) with a view of Lake Garda because of "greed for silence after so much noise" and Peace after so much war ”.
Over time, D'Annunzio also bought the land next to it and created a real citadel, which only became such after the funding requested by the state in exchange for the donation of the Vittoriale, which after years of work became a real monument to itself and above all represent the great war.
The Vittoriale is literally an open-air museum full of culture, which can be clearly identified by the historical monuments erected to commemorate the endeavors accomplished during the First World War.
At every corner of the area that can be visited, you will encounter surprises that you have never thought of: from an SVA plane to a military ship to the observation of a submarine. But let's go alright by listing the main attractions.
The Entrance
The entrance should not be trivial in D'Annunzio's head, so the monumental entrance was designed by a pair of arches and a royal fountain with a bronze inscription from a work of the poet. From here you can choose to go to the right to the theater or to the priory on the other side.
The amphitheater
The open-air theater, which still organizes summer events and concerts today, is one of the most famous ancient amphitheaters designed by the architect Giancarlo Maroni on his model and inspired by the most famous and oldest Pompeii.
The Priory
D'Annunzio's house is called Prioria or the prior's house, which was bought by a German art critic at the beginning of the 20th century. The house is very structured so that each room had a specific theme and use:
Schifamondo
Building intended to represent D'Annunzio's new home, but has not been inhabited since the poet's death in 1938. The interior of this room was always designed by the architect Maroni, who took over the corridors and a studio similar to a deck of a ship. Here is the Museo d'Annunzio Eroe, an environment created to celebrate the many exploits of the Italian people in the First War.
The Park
In the highest part of the Vittoriale is the mausoleum, a monument made of Botticino marble where the remains of the poet are kept. Nearby, in the Fontanone del Delfino, there is instead the hangar with the MAS96, the embarkation protagonist of the famous Becca von Buccari.
Instead, under the cypress trees, you can watch the military ship Apulia, which was donated to the poet by the Navy in 1923 and which for many is the most impressive "monument" of their entire visit to this magnificent area full of history.