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Potenza is the regional capital of Basilicata.

Understand
It is known as "Vertical City" because of its characteristic urban structure: the historic centre is situated on the highest upland, while the other districts are located at gradually lower altitudes. It is also known as "City of 100 Stairs" or "City of Stairs" for its system of ancient and modern stairs that connects various parts of the urban centre. As a matter of fact, the city has an escalator system, Scale Mobili Santa Lucia, that is the largest in Europe and the second largest in the world after Tokyo's.

On September 30th Potenza was nominated "European City of Sport" of 2021, together with Rieti, Siena and Terni. Although the tourist sector is not the prevalent one in the city, in the second half of 2010 there was a growing number of initiatives to promote and enhance its touristic potential and, as a consequence, there was also an increase of tourists in Potenza as well as in the surrounding areas. European_City_of_Sport

Location
Potenza is the highest regional capital in Italy and the second highest provincial capital in Italy after Enna.

The city lies in the upper Basento valley, along an Apennine ridge north of the Lucanian Dolomites enclosed by several higher mountains, including Monti Li Foj, a mountain group in the heart of the Lucanian Apennines. Due to its geomorphological position, Potenza is situated in a high seismic area.

By contrast, most modern districts rise further down until they lap the course of the Basento river, whose bed has been heavily man-made since the second half of the 20th century. Dolomites Monti_Li_Foj Apennine_Mountains Basento Basento

Climate
The climate is both Mediterranean and mountainous, that is, cold and snowy in winter and warm and dry in summer. January is statistically the coldest month and the average temperature is +3.5 °C, while July and August are the warmest months and record an average temperature of +20 °C.

History
The origin of the city is certainly ancient, but uncertain. The area of the city has been inhabited since the 7th century B.C. by the ancient indigenous people of the Peuketiantes. Between the 5th and 4th centuries B.C., the Lucanians settled in the area, gradually establishing themselves as the dominant ethnic group, and then probably founded the city. Relations with Rome changed over the centuries from allies to enemies, who nevertheless built important communication routes between the two cities. The first churches arose around 500 AD. After the decline of the Roman Empire, many plunderers and conquerors influenced its customs. The Norman period, for example, was full of important events for Potenza. From the early 12th century, the city was a very important episcopal seat: it was, indeed, the gathering place for Crusaders leaving for the Middle East. Potenza achieved a new administrative continuity only when the Aragonese kings ascended the throne of the Kingdom of Naples, with the appointment of Innico de Guevara as count in 1435. The Guevara dynasty governed the city continuously for 160 years, appointing six Counts of Potenza and giving rise to a vast programme of military, religious and civil public works, as well as establishing their personal and affective centre. In 1799, after the French conquest of the Kingdom of Naples by General Championnet, Potenza was the city in the Kingdom where the Jacobin revolution emerged most strongly after Naples. After a few years of the restoration of the Bourbon regime, 1806 marked a turning point in the history of the city and Southern Italy: Napoleone Bonaparte's French troops once again conquered the Kingdom of Naples, this time completely, and the new leaders started a process of civil, economic and social modernisation of the whole territory, which also affected Potenza in an incisive manner. In 1806, indeed, the new government of Giuseppe Bonaparte decided to change the capital city of Basilicata from Matera to Potenza because of the territorial and administrative reorganisation of the entire region, since the new capital city was closer and better connected to Naples, thus making it less peripheral and therefore better governable. Potenza was also confirmed as the capital city of Basilicata at the end of the Napoleonic period. In the post-war period, with the reconstruction of the devastation caused by the conflict and the affirmation of the economic boom, Potenza also experienced urban expansion and civil and social development. Kingdom_of_Naples Innico_Maria_Guevara-Suardo Kingdom_of_Naples_(Napoleonic) Jean-Étienne_Championnet Napoleon Napoleon_II

The place
The entire plateau of the historic centre is crossed by the ancient Via Pretoria. Its name and origin, according to the historian from Potenza Emmanuele Viggiano, date back to the time of Silla and the civil wars against Mario, when he defeated the latter and reduced six of the Lucanian cities, including Potenza, to Roman military colonies. In each of these cities, Silla is said to have established the Praetorium and the Praetorian camp. Therefore there must have been a road connection between the Roman camp and their headquarters, which according to Roman tradition was called via Pretoria. This street, which acted as an actual decumanus maximus, extends through the entire city centre from Largo di Portasalza to Torre Guevara. Piazza Mario Pagano is the city's main square, commonly known as Piazza Prefettura because it houses the 19th-century Palazzo della Prefettura, the seat of the Prefect and provincial offices. The works for the construction of Piazza Mario Pagano began in 1839 at the behest of the administrative official of that time, Intendant Winspeare, with the demolition of the small houses with sottani (popular houses typical of southern Italy, located at or below street level) inhabited by peasants and artisans, but were only completed between 1842 and 1847 by Intendant Francesco Benzo, Duke of Verdura. Originally called Piazza del Mercato (Market Square) because the Sunday market was held there, it was officially called Piazza dell'Intendenza (Intendant's Square) because the government palace, seat of the intendant, overlooked it, and then named Piazza Prefettura after the Unification of Italy and the replacement of the intendant with the prefect. Around 1870, it was named after Mario Pagano and remained unchanged until its renovation in 2012 by architect Gae Aulenti. Nowadays, this square hosts lots of events, such as Christmas markets, and in winter you can also find a carousel, light installations and an ice rink.The city centre, located on a long, narrow plateau at an altitude of 819 metres, gravitates around Piazza Matteotti, overlooked by case palazziate, houses where wealthy families lived and that today consist of some of the most architecturally interesting buildings of the city. Piazza Matteotti, which was formerly known as Piazza Sedile, took the name Piazza del Fascio during the Fascist period and its current name after 1944. In its original structure probably dating to Angevin times, it housed the seat of the University where people gathered for assemblies. Shops and taverns overlooked the square and by royal decree in 1810, the food market was held there. On the southern side, where you can find the small temple of San Gerardo stands, there were the chapel of San Domenico with the nearby tower, the neviera buildings (used for collecting the snow) and the Porta della Beccheria with the alleyway of the same name, where the slaughter of animals and the sale of meat took place. On the feast of the town's patron saint, a sound box was erected in the square for performances by the music band.

Districts
The main districts are: Other districts are Macchia Giocoli, Castello, Francioso, Lucania, San Rocco, Murate, Serpentone, Malvaccaro, Rossellino, Costa della Gaveta, Betlemme and Botte.
 * Macchia Romana: in this densely populated district you can find the San Carlo hospital, the Elisa Claps park, the Gesù Maestro church and the Donato Sabia school field. It is also crossed by the junction, paved in 2012, that leads from the northwest to the southeast, avoiding the central districts.
 * Poggio Tre Galli: in this heavily populated district there are the Zona G, the church of Santa Cecilia, Parco Europa Unita, Villa Romana di Malvaccaro and a large school complex. It can be reached from via Ancona to the north and via Anzio to the south.
 * Gallitello: a predominantly commercial district, where numerous activities have been established over the years. It is crossed by the busy street of the same name where you can find the headquarters of the Region of Basilicata; between 2006 and 2016, the complex Gallitello junction was built, including viaducts and a tunnel, as well as the abolition of the level crossing (often closed for up to 15 minutes) and the subway on Via Isca del Pioppo, which can only be accessed by cars and motorbikes.
 * Montereale: a predominantly social housing district, best known for its park of the same name, formerly used as a military or agricultural punishment for brigands and today consisting of conifers, cedars and lime trees. The bridge connecting it to the historic town centre was renovated between 2016 and 2019.
 * Libertà: a predominantly social housing district, crossed mainly by Via Giuseppe Verdi and Viale Dante, on which there are numerous benches and the church of Ss. Anna and Gioacchino. The Parco del Seminario is located near the institution of the same name. At the foot of the district there are the Questura (police headquarters), the Genio Civile (civil engineer's office) to the east, further northwest the Liceo Classico Orazio Flacco and further south the Alfredo Viviani Stadium, while the entire district is crossed by the Prima escalator, the first ever built in Potenza.
 * Santa Maria: a mainly social housing district, also crossed by the SS7 Appia; here lies the church of the same name with a convent (one of the oldest in the city), the well-known villa which was formerly a botanical garden, the provincial museum and art gallery, an extensive library built to the north of the district, and the Potenza Superiore Station.
 * Parco Aurora: a predominantly social housing district, it is made up of the park of the same name. A playground with sports field has been opened in Piazza dei Comuni (Square of the Municipalities) which takes its name from the tiles all around the playground that show every municipality in Basilicata.
 * Risorgimento: a predominantly social housing district. Due to the absence of a western ring road, it is used to connect the hospital area and the road to Avigliano with the motorway junction 5. It includes the Don Bosco area, the CEP district to the west (social housing cooperative), the Parco Baden Powell with a playground and sports field dedicated to Marisol Lavanga, a 17-year-old volley player from Potenza who died from a heart disease. You can also find other sports fields in via Angilla Vecchia, the former terminal in piazza Zara, the Rocco Mazzola sports complex, piazza Bologna and the first subways built by the Ferrovie Appulo Lucane.
 * Zona Industriale di Potenza: industrial area comprising the area of the Basento river (with the river park of the same name) and delineated to the east by the Riofreddo district (currently via Macchia San Luca). Known above all for "Fuochi del Basento" (a fireworks festival), the bus station of the same name was built there with an escalator connecting it with the former Potenza Centrale Station area.

By car
The urban area of Potenza is served by two main arterial roads: the Potenza-Sicignano motorway junction, which connects the city to the Mediterranean motorway, and the SS 658 linking Potenza and Melfi. The last few kilometres of the motorway junction also serve as a ring road for the city to the South, with the Potenza Ovest, Laurenzana, Potenza Centro, Bucaletto and Potenza Est exits. The northern ring road, on the other hand, connects the Macchia Romana hospital area to the Tiera area, with a junction to the Potenza-Melfi motorway.

From Potenza, the SS407 Basentana leads to Matera in just over an hour.

By bus
Bus service is available daily from Rome Tiburtina bus station served by Liscio. There are daily lines from Bari managed by Ferrovie Appulo Lucane and from Naples served by SITA (Italian Automobile Transport Society).

By train
Potenza is served by the Milan-Taranto connection as well as the regional lines Salerno-Taranto and Foggia-Potenza operated by Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (FSI), that is the State railway network. The city is also served by Ferrovie Appulo Lucane with the Altamura-Avigliano-Potenza line, which links the city with the province of Bari and the municipalities to the north-east areas of the capital. The stations managed by RFI in the city are: Frecciarossa Rete_Ferroviaria_Italiana
 * Potenza Centrale Station, Piazzale Guglielmo Marconi.
 * Potenza Università Station, Via La Marmora (near the Ateneo Lucano).
 * Potenza Superiore Station, Piazzale Istria.
 * Potenza Macchia Romana Station, Viale dell'Ateneo Lucano (Near the San Carlo Hospital).

By foot
The escalator system, Scale Mobili Santa Lucia, brings you from the train station at the bottom to the top of the old town. There are extremely few street signs in Potenza. If you do not know where you are going, bring your own map and navigate via landmarks, instead of street names.

Public transport
Urban public transport serves both the centre and the suburbs through bus lines, as well as serving as a link to the countryside and districts outside the main urban core through rural lines. Until 2015, public transport was operated by COTRAB, but since 2016 it is operated by Trotta Bus Services.

Religious buildings
The historical centre of Potenza is full of religious buildings dating mainly from the Middle Ages. Some of them were probably built on pre-existing early-Christian churches. Below you can find a list of the main religious buildings of historical, artistic and architectural interest in the old part of the city.

There are also a few churches of historical and artistic significance outside the city centre, listed below:

Military buildings
Since the Middle Ages, the historical centre of the city was protected by walls, which included six gates, and by the presence of a castle, which also served as an observation point over the Basento valley below. The remains of these fortifications are the residual city gates and the Guevara Tower.

Parks

 * Villa S. Maria (Pz).jpg




 * Parco del basento potenza.jpg



Theaters and cinemas

 * Interno teatro Francesco Stabile di Potenza.jpg

Events and festivals

 * Parata dei Turchi. 29/30 May. Costume parade depicting the legendary intervention of San Gerardo to save the town from the Turkish invasion, an event that has no historical veracity but is part of local folklore. In the parade, in addition to depicting San Gerardo, the Turkish invaders and the medieval soldiers defending the city, there are also figures representing the people of Potenza from the 12th, 16th and 19th centuries, wearing the traditional clothes and costumes of those historical periods. On 30 May, the celebrations in honour of the saint end with a religious procession through the streets of the historical centre.


 * Maggio potentino. In May. This month in Potenza is traditionally dedicated to the organisation, by the municipal administration and local cultural associations, of cultural, food and wine and leisure events linked to the city's traditions, all culminating on 29 May with the historic Turkish parade.


 * National fireworks festival "Fuochi sul Basento". A fireworks competition organised every year since 1989 at the beginning of September on the eastern suburbs of Potenza, where firework companies from all over Italy take part.
 * Città delle cento scale Festival. An international festival of urban dance and performing arts in urban landscapes established in 2008 in cooperation with the city's cultural institutions such as the Polo Museale Regionale, the University, educational institutions and artistic and professional organisations, which aims to enhance disused or abandoned urban areas through cultural and artistic initiatives; it is generally held in September.


 * WoodyGroove Festival. In June and July. Music festival that over the years has become one of the main events on the independent music scene in southern Italy.


 * Presepe Vivente di Contrada Cavalieri. A living nativity scene organised since 1987 in the contrada of the same name, it has gained increasing importance over the years to the point of reaching the participation of 120 figures who, in addition to depicting the nativity, re-enact the ancient crafts of the town's rural and artisan traditions in special areas.
 * Christmas markets (In the historic centre). In December and January. Organised by the municipal administration since 2010.

Eat
Potenza's cuisine has its origins in the rural tradition and is famous for its pasta-based first courses, including strascinati (oblong and concave shaped-pasta), fusilli (spiral-shaped pasta), orecchiette (literally means "small ears" recalling its shape), maccheroni and ravioli alla potentina (small pasta envelopes containing ricotta and parsley, served with tomato sauce), as well as lagane, a typical pasta similar to tagliatelle but shorter in length, usually accompanied by beans or other legumes; the typical ragù alla potentina, also known as  'ndruppeche (glitch) in the local dialect, is also famous. The name of this condiment refers to the fact that when people eat it they stumble metaphorically over the pieces of meat it contains, that is beef and pork. When it comes to savoury baked goods, we have the typical focaccia (a type of flat bread made with semolina, yeast and olive oil) that has various versions depending on the seasoning: with onions, peppers, aubergines, oregano.Then we have ciambotta (literally "mix" or "mess" in the local dialect), a vegetable-based thick soup. Another typical dish is minestra maritata (literally "married soup" recalling the combination between the meat broth and the vegetables in the soup). According to the traditional version, it requires the addition of pork and is therefore called minestra maritata ricca. Baccalà alla potentina is the only fish-based dish in the typical cuisine, which also exists in a ciauredda version, that is a soup; pollo alla potentina, on the other hand, is one of the typical meat preparations.

You can enjoy the typical cuisine at some of the most renowned restaurants such as Taverna Oraziana and Goblin's, which are located in the historic centre. While making your "passeggiata" on the main street of the old town, Via Pretoria, you will pass a couple of gelaterias and cafés. One of the most renowned places in Potenza is Gran Caffé La Delizia, right in Piazza Mario Pagano, where you can stop for a coffee as well as eating pastries and ice creams.

There are amazing restaurants also far from the historic centre, such as Trattoria Zi Mingo, and of course some great pizzerias, like Taverna Ludwig and Casarsa, where you can try local products.