Elba Views

Elba Views

Elba, Latin Ilva

Elba, Latin Ilva, island off the west coast of Italy, in the Tyrrhenian Sea. Elba has an area of 86 square miles (223 square km) and is the major island of the Tuscan Archipelago. It is well-known as Napoleon’s place of exile in 1814–15. Managerially Elba is part of Tuscany regione, Italy. Its coast is steep and its interior mountainous, rising to Mount Capanne (3,343 feet [1,019 m]).

The Etruscans mined iron ore at Elba, which was then called Aethalia (“Smoky Place”) by the Greeks, perhaps because of the smelting furnaces. The Romans, who called it Ilva, also mined iron ore and set up a naval base on the island. Elba was ruled by Pisa in the early Middle Ages, but it passed to Genoa in 1290 and in 1399 to the dukes of Piombino, who ceded it to Cosimo I de Medici of Florence in 1548. 

A part of the island, in Spanish hands from 1596 until 1709, was next ruled by Naples. In 1802 it was ceded to France, and, when Napoleon I abdicated in 1814, he was exiled to Elba. He arrived there on May 4. The island was renowned as an independent principality with Napoleon as its ruler until Feb. 26, 1815, on which day he returned to France for the Hundred Days. Thereafter Elba was brought back to Tuscany, with which it passed to unified Italy in 1860.

History

Originally inhabited by Ligures Ilvati who gave the ancient name Ilva, the island was well known from very ancient times for its iron resources and its valued mines. The Greeks called it Aethalia after the fumes of the furnaces for the metal production. Apollonius of Rhodes mentioned it briefly in his epic poem Argonautica: the Argonauts rested here during their travels and signs of their visit were still visible in the poet's day, including skin-coloured pebbles that they dried their hands on, and large stones they used at discus. The text however may be unsound and Strabo presented a slightly different account: "because the scrapings, which the Argonauts formed when they used their strigils, became congealed, the pebbles on the shore remain variegated still to this day."

The island was invaded by the Etruscans and later by the Romans. In the early 11th century it became a possession of the Republic of Pisa. When the latter was sold to the Visconti of Milan in 1398, the island was acquired by the Appiani, Lords of Piombino, who retained it for two centuries.

In 1544 the Barbary pirates from North Africa devastated Elba and the coasts of Tuscany. In 1546 part of the island was handed over to Cosimo I de' Medici, who fortified Portoferraio and renamed it "Cosmopoli", while in 1577 the rest of the island was returned to the Appiani. In 1596 Philip II of Spain captured Porto Azzurro and had two fortresses built there. In 1802 the island became a French possession, and its economy flourished.

Hydrography

Rivers rarely exceed 3 km in length on the island and it is common for those of lesser length to dry up over the summer period. The largest rivers, sorted by length, are:
Fosso San Francesco 6.5 km;
Fosso Barion, 5.1 km;
Fosso Redinoce, 2 km
Between Poggio and Marciana, at the foot of Mount Capanne, is a natural spring called Fonte Napoleone, which is regarded for its quality.

Elba

Elba is a Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, 20 kilometres (12 mi) from the coastal town of Piombino. The largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago, Elba is also part of the National Park of the Tuscan Archipelago and the third largest island in Italy after Sicily and Sardinia. It is located between the Tyrrhenian Sea and Ligurian Sea, about 50 kilometres (30 mi) east of the French island of Corsica.

The island is divided into eight municipalities, of which Portoferraio is the main one, the others; Campo nell'Elba, Capoliveri, Marciana, Marciana Marina, Porto Azzurro, Rio Marina, and Rio nell'Elba, are part of the province of Livorno, with a total of about 30,000 inhabitants, which increases considerably during the summer.


Geography

The island of Elba is the largest remaining stretch of land from the ancient tract that once connected the Italian peninsula to Corsica. The northern coast faces the Ligurian Sea; the eastern coast the Piombino Channel; the southern coast the Tyrrhenian Sea; while the Corsica channel divides the western tip of the Island from neighbouring Corsica.

The terrain is quite varied, and is thus divided into several areas based on geomorphology. The mountainous and most recent part of the island can be found to the west, the centre of which is dominated by Mount Capanne (1,018 metres (3,340 ft)), also called the "roof of the Tuscan Archipelago". The mountain is home to many animal species including the mouflon and wild boar, two species that flourish despite the continuous influx of tourists. The central part of the island is a mostly flat section with the width being reduced to just four kilometres. It is where the major centres can be found: Portoferraio, Campo nell'Elba. To the east is the oldest part of the island, formed over 400 million years ago. In the hilly area, dominated by Monte Calamita, are the deposits of iron that made Elba famous.