Piazza della Repubblica is the largest square in Alcamo, in the historic centre. It began in the mid-fourteenth century as a parade ground for military drill: the only building was the church of Santa Maria di Gesù with the friary of the Friars Minor, and around it there were only small farm buildings. When, in the early nineteenth century, the last counts of Modica handed the castle to the town, the square lost its purpose; a drinking trough was placed there and it was named piazza del Progresso, as it lay at the centre of a fast-growing area.
What to see
The square has a square plan. On the north side the outline of the castle of the counts of Modica dominates, and opposite its main entrance is the Teatro comunale Cielo d'Alcamo; the rest is taken up by houses, shops and offices. In the centre is the public garden, laid out in the sixties with flowerbeds, trees, flowers and benches: its paths lead to a central space where a fountain was meant to stand. On the west side is the bus station, built in the same years with two shelters.
In 1903 the square was named after Umberto I, killed by an anarchist, and in 1946, with the Republic, it took its present name. From 1922 to 1946 it was also used as a football pitch, being the only large space available.
Visiting
From the square, going down via Mazzini you reach piazza Ciullo and the historic centre; via Maria Riposo leads to the church of Santa Maria di Gesù.
Our editors' tip
In 1960, for the Garibaldi centenary, two marble busts of the brothers Stefano and Giuseppe Triolo by the Alcamo sculptor Giuseppe Bambina were placed in the square; removed because of vandalism, in 2018 they were at the castle entrance.
