Talk:Messina, Italy

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[edit] "Messene"?

Was it also called Messene at some point, maybe after the Greek city of that same name?

[edit] A new chunk

The following splendid footnote appeared in earlier versions (e.g. this one) of Sicilian Baroque:

The Sicilian city most closely related for geographical reasons to mainland Italy, once contained some of Sicily's finest buildings. The city's history though is probably amongst the most turbulent and catastrophic of Sicily. Its Renaissance buildings, almost unique to Sicily, shared the repeated misfortunes of the city. Much was destroyed not only in the earthquake of 1693, but again by earthquakes in 1783, and yet again in 1908. What precious buildings remained to record Messina's glorious architectural past were destroyed in bombing raids in 1943. However, destruction caused by methods beyond the city's control were not the only cause of its misfortune. The city's rebellion against the Spanish, supported by the French, in 1676 failed. The Spanish then withdrew the city's privileges and powers beginning a huge decline in its wealth and prosperity. The city sank into poverty and obscurity. The Porta Grazia, the entrance to the long destroyed citadel built by the Spanish to suppress the townspeople, is one of the few remaining pre-1693 buildings to survive.

However splendid, it seems only dubiously necessary to that article, and much more suitable in this one. --Hoary 12:59, 15 December 2005 (UTC)