The Island of Giglio is the second largest island in the Tuscan
archipelago. Its natural beauty makes it a great-tiny paradise. Its
Greek name, aegilion, means island of goats and probably comes from its
steep, granite cliffs, well suited to mountain goats.
The entire coast line is made of jagged palisades, broken only by the
Arenella, Porto and Cannelle coves along the east coast and by the
larger beach of Campese to the north east.
Its mild climate offers visitors a wonderful stay in any season. The
emerald green water and varied sea bed teeming with fish offer the ever
more numerous visitors and scuba divers the chance to enjoy the
uncontaminated sea.
The island is rich in flora and fauna and the thick Mediterranean scrub
is broken by terraces with olive groves and vineyards which produce the
excellent white wine, Ansonica.
The original settlement was probably Etruscan. From the 3rd century
B.C., it fell under Roman domination and became the property of the
noble family Domizi Enobardi.
In 805 the islands of Giglio and Giannutre were given to the Abbey of
the Tre Fontane in Rome by Charlemagne. In 1269 the island passed to the
Aldobrandeschi family and then to the powerful Repubblic of Pisa to
which it owes the Giglio Castle.
It became the property of the Medici and at the beginning of the 15th
century suffered terrible raids. The worst of these was lead by the
Algerian pirate Redbeard causing the exodus of the entire population.
The Medici undertook the task of repopulating the island and protecting
it by fortifying Giglio Castle. The period of greater safety that
followed, stimulated an increase of the population and an economic
improvement.
Today the population is concentrated at Giglio Porto, Giglio Castello
and Campese. Giglio Porto is a delightful village lying along a cove
closed between two piers and backed by a terraced hill planted in
vineyards.
From here a narrow, winding road leads up to Giglio Castle, the town
seat which has jusidiction over Giannutri as well. The town has kept its
look of a fortified village, surrounded by high Medieval walls complete
with towers.
It is a maze of tiny streets, covered by arches, dark underground
passages, steep steps carved in the rock, and old houses crowded on top
of one another with the Castle looming above. Campese is situated on the
island’s western coast.
It is in the center of a bay bordered by a wide, sandy beach,
embellished by the presence of an imposing tower built at the time of
Ferdinand I.
Both Giglio and the tiny, wild island of Giannutri are part
of the Parco Nationale dell’Archipelago Toscano. This small island is
striking for its sheer cliffs dropping off to the crystal-clear sea, the
sharp scent of its aromatic herbs and the remains of an ancient
patrician Roman villa.
