Rapallo

Rapallo is a municipality in the province of Genoa, in Liguria, northern Italy. As of 2011 it counts 30,742 inhabitants. It is situated on the Ligurian Sea coast, on the Tigullio Gulf, between Portofino and Chiavari.

The climate is moderate. Many of the villas are built in the hills that rise immediately behind the city, protecting them from strong northern winds.

Rapallo area is included in the Parco Naturale Regionale di Portofino, encompassing the territory of six communes.

History

The first settlement dates probably from the 8th century BC, although the findings have not clarified if it was Etruscan or Greek.

Conquered by the Lombards in 643, the village of Rapallo was included in the county of Genoa under Charlemagne. The name of the city appears for the first time in a document from 964. In 1203 the Podestà of Rapallo was created, and the town became a Genoese dominion in 1229, remaining under that aegis until the Napoleonic Wars. Galleys from Rapallo took part to the famous Battle of Meloria of 1284. On 5 September 1494, it was captured by the Aragonese, but three days later 2,500 Swiss troops ousted them.