The first mayor of Salerno was Matteo Luciani, who initiated the transformation of the city with the work on the Villa Comunale and the Verdi Theater.
1812
1888
Medico, primo sindaco post-unitario
Matteo Luciani (1812-1888) was the first mayor of the post-unification era and left with his administration a renewed city launched into a new life.
A liberal exponent, a doctor and a doctor’s son in the best city tradition, after participating in the opposition to the Bourbons, he welcomed Garibaldi to Salerno in 1860 and was elected mayor in 1862, a position he held until 1874, later resuming it in 1879 and retaining it until 1886. An exponent of the liberal right, he would also be Senator of the Kingdom, but it was as mayor that he left his mark.
The Corso Vittorio Emanuele is his first achievement, a very important work that shifted the axis of the city outside the medieval walls. Gas lighting is installed on the Corso and then throughout the city.
He then entrusts the architect Casalbore with the design of the Villa Comunale, a garden of rare plants and tall trees, some of which still tower in the present Villa.
The Verdi Theater is also his decision. The City Council’s resolution was passed in 1863, and the inauguration took place in 1872 with a performance of Verdi’s Rigoletto.
A square and monument is dedicated to him right in front of the theater.
