Reggio Calabria

Reggio Calabria (anc. Regium, q.v.), a town and archiepiscopal see of Calabria, Italy, capital of the province of Reggio, on the Strait of Messina, 248 m. S.S.E. from Naples by rail. Pop. (1906) 39,941 (town); 48,362 (commune). It is the terminus of the railways from Naples along the west coast, and from Metaponto along the east coast of Calabria. The straits are here about 7 m. wide, and the distance to Messina nearly io m. The ferryboats to Messina therefore cross by preference from Villa S. Giovanni, 8 m. N. of Reggio, whence the distance is only 5 m. In 1894 the town suffered from an earthquake, though less severely than in 1783. It was totally destroyed, however, by the great earthquake of December 1908; in the centre of the town about 35,000 out of 40,000 persons perished. The cathedral, which dated from the 17th century, and the ancient castle which rose above it, were wrecked. Great damage was done by a seismic wave following the shock. The sea front was swept away, and the level of the land hereabouts was lowered. (See further MESSINA.)