Don Francesco: an apartment with spectacular views in Palazzo Marigliano

Don Francesco Marigliano del Monte, previous owner of Palazzo Marigliano, was a cavalry officer during the first World War. He was awarded the silver medal for military heroism on the Piave line. In the following years he became a military officer in London with intelligence functions. The Palazzo was gravely damaged during the war by three bombs and Don Francesco devoted himself to the restoration of his home. Giving up his compensation for war damage, he financed the reconstruction by offering a space in the Palazzo to two business men (a banker and an editor) to develop into the headquarter for Il Giornale, the famous newspaper around which most of the cultural publishing of the time gravitated.

The history of the building
The courtyard remains to this day the center of the building: it once housed cellars, warehouses, a 15th century oven which remains intact and stables which hosted horses until the 1930s.
During the bombings of 1943, the building was hit by three bombs. The Palazzo was restored in the post-war period by Don Francesco Marigliano del Monte. It is thanks to him, with the help of publishers and bankers, that “Il Giornale” printed by Arte Tipografica and signed by Benedetto Croce (the liberal philosopher) was established in the Palazzo. Currently, some of the most prestigious and traditional Neapolitan artisans including the Antica Legatoria, the Doll Hospital, Tiziana D’Auria Presepi and Materia Mediterranea can be found within the Palazzo’s courtyard.