Calabria is without a doubt a region with a very rich history. Numerous people of the Mediterranean have touched its history.

There are numerous prehistoric findings, dating back to the Paleolithic Age. One of the most important settlements (dating back to the Bronze Age) is the Torre Galli (VV).

Perhaps of greatest interest is the period of Greek colonization. In the 8th century a.c., the ancient Greeks called this part of the peninsula ‘Italia’. This epoch is characterized by various phases and the supremacy of different cities: Reggio is the first colony (founded by the Calcidesi). The development of Greece then reached its highest point in the 6th century a.c. with Pythagoras (who lived in Crotone) and then with Locri (Epizephyris).

Then came the Bruzi, who were conquered by the Romans many times, first as allies of Pirro and then of Annibal. The period of Roman domination is quite different from the splendor of Magna Grecia: economic and social development remained stagnant for a long time. Afterwards, the invasions of the Goths, the Visgoths and the Longobardi followed. During the Byzantine period, Calabria became a fortress against the invasions of the Saracens who came from the sea.

The widespread development of monasteries also played a key role in the transmission of antique culture via the production of manuscripts. Unfortunately, only a few artistic texts and cultural products of this period remain in Calabria.

In Rossano, however, one can admire the magnificent Codex Purpureus Rossanensis.

The domination of the Normans (during which lived two great protagonists of monastic life, Gioacchino da Fiore and San Bruno, the founders of the Carthusian monks), the Svevi, the Angioni, the Aragons and the Spaniards (opposed by Tommaso Campanella among others) followed.

In the 18th century a terrible famine and very strong earthquake destroyed Bourbon Calabria. And so we come to the age of revolutions: in 1799, Murat was executed in Pizzo; in the middle of the 19th century, the Bandiera brothers were shot and killed; in 1860 Garibaldi arrived to bring new hopes with the advent of the Regno d’Italia. However, the history of Calabria has not been tranquil since then. The fear of kidnappings and extreme poverty forced people to leave. The population of the region has been practically halved by the immense immigration. 

Then in the 20th century, with the losses of the Second World War, the recovery of the region became next to impossible.