Augusta

Augusta is a municipality of the free municipal consortium of Syracuse in Sicily. The city was founded by Emperor Frederick II of Swabia in 1232. He built a large castle on a promontory to indicate his authority to the inhabitants. On the death of the Emperor the city was occupied by the Angevins. The city became a fief of the Moncada family; in the years from 1552 to 1560 Augusta was the seat of Turkish invasions, it was only with the construction of walls and bastions and with the supply of weapons to the Dominicans that in 1594 the Turks were put to flight. In 1693 the city was devastated by a terrible earthquake that destroyed the entire town, but in a short time the city was rebuilt in the late Baroque style; despite the reconstruction the city had a slow economic decline it was only in the twentieth century that given the location of its port that the city returned to its former glory. There are numerous monuments to visit in the city of Augusta such as the church of San Domenico. The church dates back to the 13th century and is dedicated to San Domenico Guzman. The facade of the church is in neoclassical style, with pilasters adorned with pilasters on the sides. The bell tower has a quadrangular plan, divided into three floors and has openings with balustrades, on the top there are four spheres with a spherical dome in the center supported by an entablature. The interior of the church has a single nave divided by five arches with Corinthian columns. A marble balustrade shoots the high altar from the nave. Adjacent to the church is the convent of the Dominican fathers, the entire convent is undergoing restoration work as it has been abandoned for a long time. The symbolic building of the city is the Swabian castle of Augusta. The Swabian core of the military complex consists of a square wall and eight towers; the interiors are characterized by large arches. The church of Santa Maria Assunta is located in Piazza Duomo and is located on the ruins of the church which collapsed in 1693. Inside there are works of considerable prestige such as the organ of the eighteenth century, a wooden pulpit from the last century and frescoes representing life of the Virgin Mary. One of the most particular monuments of the city is the church of Santa Maria del Soccorso also known as the round church due to its rounded shape; the structure of modest dimensions inside contains some precious paintings, the most famous are: the Agony of Christ and the Death of San Francesco. On the altar there is a wooden statue of the Madonna of the twentieth century. Historic monument of the city is the Spanish Gate dating back to the 17th century. The door has two griffons on the top that support the crown of Charles II of Spain. On the door there is a plaque that testifies to the strategic importance of the port of Augusta. Near Augusta is the ancient Greek colony of Megara Hyblaea where excavation work began in 1867 in which a deposit of votive objects and 1500 tombs were found. The numerous archaeological remains found over the years are still visible thanks to the lack of urbanization of the area in modern times. Still visible on the site are: the agora with its two arcades, the Hellenistic baths, the heroon, the remains of the surrounding walls, the foundations of an archaic temple, the prytaneum, a metallurgical workshop, the remains of dozens of houses and the remains of a Hellistic temple.