Visit Trieste in one day

Visit Trieste in one day

Trieste, a fortified village in prehistoric times, then an Augustan colony, after a turbulent period in the Middle Ages, was disputed by Venice and Austria, in whose possession it remained until 1918.

We reach the city of Trieste in the evening by Viale Miramare and go down Via Cavour to Piazza dell'Unita d'Italia overlooking the sea and surrounded by 19th century buildings.

The old city of Trieste, which we shall visit on the morning, stretches out, with its quaint winding streets, on the slopes of the hill of San Giusto, where an early Christian basilica stood in the 5th century.

As we climb the hill, we come across the handsome Roman Theatre (1th century), then turning to the left we reach the Castle (1470-1508) at the top of the hill, which houses a Museum with a Triptych by Vittore Carpaccio, .furniture, hangings and ancient weapons. Beyond the round embattled tower, we see the ruins of the Roman Basilica, next to which stands, in a magnificent position, the Cathedral of San Giusto (14th century), built 6y joining together two pre-Romanesque Basilicas.

The result is the present-day Basilica, preceded by a sturdy bell tower. The interior, consisting of a double-aisled nave, contains a painting by Carpaccio, frescoes and mosaics (12th and 13th century) in the two apses, which stand side by side in a most effective manner. Leaving San Giusto, we turn left to the Museo Civico, containing , works from classical antiquity, glassware, arms, paintings (Crespi, M. Ricci, Magnasco, etc) and a vast collection of nearly 200 drawings by Giovan Battista Tiepolo.

Down narrow winding streets and steps. we come to the harbor, passing the Roman Arco di Riccardo (1st century) and arriving at the 17th century Basilica of S. Maria Maggiore on the right, with next to it, the pretty Romanesque church of S. Silvestro. Returning by the Roman Theatre, we come to one of the finest 19th century buildings in Trieste, S. Antonio Nuovo, with its neo-classical facade which is reflected in the rectangular Grand Canal.

In the afternoon, we can take a trip to Muggia with its handsome 11th century Basilica, its Gothic Cathedral and Town Hall, in a marvelous position overlooking the gulf.

Or we may go to Miramare, a white castle (1871) built for Maximilian of Austria, brother of Franz Joseph, the ill-starred emperor of Mesico, executed in Queretaro.

From the eastern end of the Coast Road into Trieste the eye is drawn to the tip of a headland on which stands the Castle of Miramare.

The Castle and its gardens were built at the behest of Archduke Maximilian of Habsburg, brother of Emperor Franz Josef. Born in Vienna in 1832, Maximilian came to Trieste for the first time in 1850. Four years later, appointed Rear Admiral in the Austro-Hungarian Navy, he decided to settle in the city. He decided on the promontory of Miramare as the site for his residence and appointed Carl Junker to take charge of the construction of a castle there (1856), giving him detailed instructions as to its design.